the rock and fossil record
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Chapter 3 Mr. Monson’s Science Class. The Rock and Fossil record. Earth’s Story and Those Who First Listened. James Hutton- Scottish Farmer spent 30 years studying rock and rock formations in England and Scotland His observations led to the founding of modern Geology. 1729 - 1797. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Chapter 3Mr. Monson’s Science Class
Earth’s Story and Those Who First Listened James Hutton-
Scottish Farmer spent 30 years
studying rock and rock formations in England and Scotland
His observations led to the founding of modern Geology
1729 - 1797James Hutton
Hutton’s Theory of the Earth Hutton collect his
notes in 1788 He writes the key to
understanding Earth’s History is all around us today
Uniformitarianism – geological processes that occur in the past can be explained by current geological processes
Siccar Point in Scotland – One of Hutton’s observation Points
Catastrophism
During Hutton’s time most scientist thought the earth was only a few thousand years old
Mountains and seas formed in sudden, rare events
Catastrophism – geologic changes occur suddenly
Mt. Saint Helens Erupts 1980
The Battle Continues . . .
Charles Lyell published Principles of Geology
1830 -1833 three volume collection
Successfully challenged catastrophism
Earth’s changes gradual
1797 – 1875 Charles Lyell
Modern Geology - Both
Modern geologists Stephen J. Gould
Challenged saying catastrophes do play an important role in Earth’s History
Both Uniformitarianism and Catastrophism are right
1941- 2000 Stephen J. Gould
Modern Geology - Both
Some Scientists think . .
An asteroid struck earth
65 million years ago
Caused extinction of dinosaurs
Through global debris raining down for decades
Other Modern Theories
Other current theories include – volcano(s) erupting changing the earth’s temperature
Some think the Earth got too hot . . .
Some think the Earth got to cold from the volcanic activity
Paleontology – The study of Past Life
Paleontology is the study of past life (fossils)
Paleontologists are the scientists that study past life Specialize
Invertebrates Animals (no back bones)
Vertebrates Animals (back bones)
Paleobotantist study plants
Others reconstruct past ecosystems
Paleontology – The study of Past Life . . .
1905 – 2001 Edwin Colbert Vertebrate Paleontologist
Found 12 Coelophysis on Ghost Ranch in New Mexico
Edwin Colbert
Named Staurikosaurus
Relative Dating: Which Came First Scientist have to
figure out the sequence of events in Earth’s History
Keys to identify older or younger object
* Rocks* Fossils
Superposition
Younger rocks lie above older rocks if the layers of rocks have not been disturbed
New Rock
Old Rock
Middle Age Rock
Disturbing Forces
Some rock sequences are disturbed by the forces of nature
Tilted Folded Broken apart’ Upside down
Over most of Breadalbane, between 740 and 515 million years before the present day, south of Glen Lyon, these metamorphic rocks are relatively flat-lying. The unusual thing about them, however, is that as a result of folding they are upside down!
Geologic Column An ideal layer of
rock that contains all the known fossils and rock formations arranged from oldest to youngest
Oldest rocks on bottom and youngest rocks on top
Geologic Column . . .
Geologists rely on geologic column to help identify layers in puzzling rock sequencing
Constructing the Geologic Column Grand Canyon
Disturbed Rock Layers. . .
Features cut across rock layers Features are younger than rock layers Rocks had to be there to fault, fold, tilt,
erode . . .
Disturbed Rock Layers
Fault is a break in the Earth’s Crust along which blocks of the crust slide relative to one another
Disturbed Rock Layers . . .
Intrusion – molten rock from the Earth’s interior that squeezes into existing rock and cools
Follow the dark igneous rock
Disturbed Rock Layers. . .
Folding occurs when the rock layers bend and buckle from Earth’s internal forces
Disturbed Rock Layers
Tilting occurs when internal forces in the Earth slant rock layers
Events that Disturb Rock Layers Geologist assume
rock layers are originally formed in horizontal layers
The events that fold, tilt or intrude happen after the rock forms so they are newer
Gaps in the Record – Unconformities. . .
Faults, intrusion, folding and tilting make dating rocks difficult
Unconformity is a break in the geological record created when rock layers are eroded or when sediment is not deposited for a long time
Types of Unconformities Disconformities – parts of a sequence of parallel
rock layers are missing
Represent thousands to millions of years of missing time
Types of Unconformities
Nonconformities – a horizontal sedimentary layer lies on top of an eroded layer of older intrusive or metamorphic rocks
Represent millions of years of missing time
Types of Unconformities
Angular Unconformities – are found between horizontal layers of sedimentary rock and layers of rock that have been tilted or folded
Represent millions of years of missing time
Types of Unconformities
Looked at all the unconformities in this picture – can you see the millions of years of missing records
Rock Layer Puzzles
Rock layer sequence can be affected by more than one event
Intrusive rock may have squeezed into layers that contain deformity
Geologist use their knowledge of events to piece together the rock layer jigsaw puzzle
Fossils Fossil is the remains or physical evidence of an organism preserved by geological processes
Fossils in Rocks When an organism dies
it usually decays or is quickly eaten
Sometimes an organism is quickly buried by sediments when it dies
Sediments slow decay
Bones and shells decay slower
Hard parts are preserved more than soft tissue
Fossils in Amber Amber –tree sap which hardens
quickly Insects or small animals get caught in it Some of the best fossils of insects Also frogs and lizards
Petrifaction
Petrifaction – process in which tissue of an organism are replaced with minerals
Petrifaction. . .
Permineralization – is where the pore space (hard tissue) is filled with the mineral
Bone permineralization with silicon, calcite or pyrite . . .
Petrifaction. . . Replacement – is the process in which the
minerals tissues are completely replaced with minerals
Fossil in Asphalt
Asphalt wells on Earth’s surface are thick, sticky pools
La Brea asphalt deposits near Los Angeles CA
Trapping organisms for 38,000 years
Fossil in Asphalt. . .
Scientist learn a lot about past form Asphalt pools
Frozen Fossils Found remains of a
20,000 year old woolly mammoth in Siberian Tundra in 1999
Frozen Fossils. . .
Freezing slows decay
Many type of frozen fossils are preserved from the last ice age
Frozen shrimp fossil
Frozen baby mammoth
Other Types of Fossils
Trace Fossils – is a fossilized mark that is formed in soft sediment by the movement of animals Foot prints - tracks Burrows
Other Type of Fossils . . .
Mold – the cavity in the rock where the plant or animal was buried
Cast – fossil type that forms when sediments fill the cavity left by decomposition
Using Fossils to Interpret the Past
Fossil record gives us part of the Earth’s History Know more about
hard body then soft bodied animals
Incomplete because most organisms never became fossils
Using Fossils to Interpret the Past. . . Fossils reveal
changes in Earth’s environment Sea fossils on
mountain tops Can help scientist
reconstruct ancient coastlines
Can help tell what the weather was Cooer Wetter desert
Fossils from ancient seas left in Burgess Shale on the top of a mountain at Walcott Quarry, in Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada
History of Changing Organisms
Older rocks contain different organisms than younger rocks
Fossil record is incomplete
Scientists look for similarities in ancient organisms and their closest living relatives
Using Fossils to Date Rocks
Index fossil - found in the rock layers of only one geologic age and that is used to establish the age of the rock layers
Ammonites - Tropites
Fossils of Tropites (marine mollusk) Living relative - squid Lived between 230 – 208 million years ago Rock they are found in is 230 – 208 million years
old
Trilobites Trilobites or
Phacops– extinct Lived 400 million
years ago
Living relative – hermit crab
Rocks they are found in is 400 million years old
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