Fossils are important for a variety of reasons – paleontologists analyse them to explore how organisms that came before us lived. Insight about these animals and plants can help us understand the natural world a little better. Try to see if you can get all the answers right for the questions below.
1. Which of the following constitutes a fossil?
- A mineralized burrow of an extinct animal
- An unidentified animal found frozen in a glacier
- An ant found inside a block of amber, dating back to 110 million years
- All of the above
2. Stephen J. Gould is a paleontologist who speculated that, of all the organisms that ever lived on earth, only ________% are still alive.
- 1
- 20
- 50
- 99
3. Which of the following statements hold true for fossilization?
- Only small animals are more likely to become fossils
- Fossilization is more likely to occur on mountains rather than forests
- Every organism that dies becomes a fossil
- None of the above
4. An animal is more likely to become fossilized if:
- Left exposed to the elements
- The animal dies at sea and sinks deep
- The animal is a soft-bodied animal like jellyfish
- All of the above
5. Which of the following statements is true?
- Ground water percolation can hinder mineralization of bone
- Bones usually contain organic as well as inorganic molecules
- Jellyfish can become fossils as their body contains hard parts
- None of the above
6. Which of the following can be inferred from studying the fossilized skeletons of animals?
- Pathologies
- Life expectancy
- Growth pattern
- All of the above
7. Paleoanthropology is the study of _____
- Fossils of early birds and their ancestors
- Fossils of early humans and their ancestors
- Fossils of early fish and its descendants
- Fossils of early reptiles and its descendants
8. A holotype is a ______
- A single physical example of an organism known to have been used when the species was described
- A term used to describe special type of bones found exclusively in birds
- A recently formed fossil specimen
- None of the above
9. Radiocarbon dating can help find the age range of biological specimens no older than:
- 50,000 years
- 100,000 years
- 500,000 years
- 1,000,000 years
10. The scientific study of the structure of bones, skeletal elements and microbone morphology is called:
- Osteology
- Herpetology
- Entomology
- None of the above
Answer key |
|
Question Number |
Answer |
1 |
d |
2 |
a |
3 |
d |
4 |
b |
5 |
b |
6 |
d |
7 |
b |
8 |
a |
9 |
a |
10 |
a |
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