Earth Science: Geology, the Environment, and the Universe

Section 4: Early Life on Earth

Early Life on Earth

1
What were the type of life-forms that existed before the Proterozoic?
A)prokaryotes
B)eukaryotes
C)algae
D)fungi
2
Fossils of __________ from late Proterozoic rocks are found in all parts of the world.
A)the Ediacaran fauna
B)the Burgess Shale fauna
C)trilobites
D)corals
3
What did organisms of Earth's first 4 billion years have in common?
A)They were single-celled organisms.
B)They were multi-celled organisms.
C)They breathed oxygen.
D)They were photosynthetic.
4
Which type of cell shown in the figure existed first?
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A)A
B)B
C)it is impossible to tell
D)both came into existence at the same time
5
According to the table, what were the first organisms to evolve on Earth?
Event Or First Evidence In Fossil RecordApproximate Geological Time
Bacteria 3 b.y.b.p
Green algae1 b.y.b.p
Jellyfish 600 m.y.b.p
Ediacara organisms550 m.y.b.p
Eurypterids*510 m.y.b.p
Horn corals*500 m.y.b.p
First vertebrates480 m.y.b.p
Spiders400 m.y.b.p
Sharks
400 m.y.b.p
First jawed fish*380 m.y.b.p
Ferns350 m.y.b.p
Earthworms300 m.y.b.p
Great Permian Extinction Event
250 m.y.b.p
Drastic geographic and climatic changes248 m.y.b.p
First dinosaurs* 220 m.y.b.p
First mammals210 m.y.b.p
Ginkgo biloba 200 m.y.b.p
Abundant ammonites*180 m.y.b.p
Archaeopteryx*140 m.y.b.p
First flowering plants120 m.y.b.p
Ants 100 m.y.b.p
Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction Event66 m.y.b.p
Camel35 m.y.b.p
Grass20 m.y.b.p
Australopithecus afarensis (“Lucy”)4 m.y.b.p

* = now extinctint
b.y.b.p = billion years before present
m.y.b.p = million years before present


A)ediacara organisms
B)bacteria
C)jellyfish
D)green algae
6
What event caused the extinction of acritarchs near the end of the Proterozoic?
A)global warming
B)formation of ozone
C)outgassing
D)the Varagnian glaciation
7
According to the figure, in which era or eon did life first emerge?
Era or Eon
Period
End Date
(million of years ago)
Length
(in million of years)
Life On Earth
Cenozoic
Quaternary
---
2
Humans
Neogene
1.6
64
Mammals diversify
Paleogene
23
80
Mesozoic
Cretaceous
66
Dinosaurs become extinct
Jurassic
146
62
Birds
Triassic
208
37
Dinosaurs, mammals
Paleozoic
Permian
245
45
Seed plants
Pennsylvanian
(carboniferous)
290
33
Reptiles diversify
Mississippian
(carboniferous)
323
39
Reptiles
Devonian
362
46
Amphibians
Silurian
408
31
Land invertebrates and plants
Ordovician
439
71
Fishes
Cambrian
510
30
Marine invertebrates
Proterozoic Eon
(Precambrian)
540
1960
Multicellular organisms
Archean
(Precambrian)
2500
2100
Early bacteria
4600
Birth of earth

A)Archean
B)Paleozoic
C)Proterozoic
D)Mesozoic
8
The energy and nutrients necessary for the origin of life can be found near __________.
A)hydrothermal vents
B)magma chambers
C)trenches
D)transform faults
9
__________ are the building blocks of proteins.
A)DNA and RNA
B)Amino acids
C)Formaldehyde molecules
D)Cyanide molecules
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