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Fossils7095a
Fossil definitions
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Fossils | remains, imprints, or traces of prehistoric organisms that can tell when and where organisms once lived and how they lived |
| Perminalized remains | fossils in which the spaces inside are filled with minerals from groundwater |
| Carbon film | thin film of carbon residue preserved as a fossil |
| Cast | a type of body fossils that forms when crystals fill a mold or sediments wash into a mold and harden into rock |
| Index fossil | remains of species that existed on earth for a relatively short period of time |
| Principle of superposition | states that in undisturbed rock layers the oldest rocks are on the bottom and become progressively younger toward the top. |
| Relative age | the age of something compared with other things. |
| Uncomformity | gap in the rock later that is due to erosion or periods without any deposition. |
| Absolute age | age in years of a rock or other object. |
| Radioactive decay | process in which some isotopes break down into other isotopes particle. |
| Half life | time it takes for half the atoms of an isotope to decay. |
| Radiometric dating | process used to calculate the absolute age of a rock. |
| Uniformitarianism | principle starting that Earth process occuring today are similar to those that occur in the past. |
| Mold | a type of body fossil that forms in rock when an organism with hard parts are buried decays or dissolves and leaves a cavity in the rock |