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    Relative and Absolute Dating

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    Relative and Absolute Dating

    Uploaded by

    John gaming Ph 25
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    Relative-and-Absolute-Dating

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    Relative and Absolute Dating

    Uploaded by

    John gaming Ph 25
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    of 27

    Fossil Dating

    Relative and
    Absolute Dating
    HOW DO WE
    KNOW THE AGE
    OF FOSSILS?

    -Scientists use 2
    methods to
    determine the age of
    rocks and fossils:
    1. Relative Dating
    2. Absolute Dating
    What is Dating?

    When geologists date rocks, they are


    determining how long ago they formed.
    Two ways to do this:
    Relative Dating
    Absolute Dating
    Relative Dating

    Determining how old something is


    compared to something else
    Use words like “older” or “younger”
    instead of exact numbers
    I. Relative Dating

    Relative Dating is when you give the age


    of a rock or fossil compared to another
    rock or fossil.

    Example: Rock A is OLDER than Rock B.


    An actual age in years is not determined.
    II. Rules of Relative Dating
    1. Law of Superposition: When sedimentary
    rock layers are deposited, younger layers
    are on top of older deposits.
    Rules of Relative Dating
    2. Law of Original Horizontality: Sedimentary
    rock layers are deposited horizontally. If
    they are tilted, folded, or broken, it
    happened later.
    Rules of Relative Dating
    3. Law of Cross-Cutting Relationships: If an
    igneous intrusion or a fault cuts through
    existing rocks, the intrusion/fault is
    YOUNGER than the rock it cuts through
    Order these layers from oldest to
    youngest

    Youngest layer

    Oldest layer
    Order the events from oldest to youngest
    YOUNGEST LAYER/EVENT
    Fault
    Gray Layer
    Multicolored layer
    Spotted Layer
    OLDEST LAYER/EVENT
    Absolute Dating

    Determining how old


    something is
    Use numbers (in
    millions of years, mya)
    Only works for
    Igneous Rocks
    Absolute Dating

    Determines the specific age of a fossil


    Looks at chemical properties
    2 types:
    Carbon-14 (radiocarbon)
    Potassium-Argon
    Carbon-14 Dating

    Also known as Radiocarbon dating


    Used to date organic substances
    Scientists measure the radiocarbon in the
    fossil to determine its age
    Can only date specimens up to about
    60,000 years old
    Potassium-Argon Dating

    Scientists determine the age of the rock


    surrounding the fossil to determine the
    fossil’s age.
    Used only for inorganic substances (rocks
    and minerals)
    Scientists measure the amount of argon in
    the rock to determine its age
    Dates rock 60,000 years old and older
    How Absolute Dating Works
    When magma/lava cools, radioactive elements
    are incorporated into the minerals
     Examples:
    -- Potassium 40
    -- Uranium 235
    How Absolute Dating Works
    These elements begin to decay at a known rate
    starting when the rock cools

    We can measure how much of the element is


    left

    Tells us how much time has passed since the


    rock formed.
    What can we learn from this?
     Geologist

    Basalt, dated to 80
    mya
     T-Rex Fossil Sandstone

    Basalt flow, dated


    to 100 mya
    So when did this T-Rex live?
    Between 100 and 80 mya
    This may not seem very accurate, but compared to
    the 4,500 million years the earth has been around it
    gives us a lot more information than we had before
    What can we learn from this?

    Absolute Dating
    Helps us determine the age of the earth
    Helps us determine when specific events in the
    history of the earth happened (ex. Extinction of
    the dinosaurs)
    Relative Dating
    Can help us estimate the time span between
    major earthquakes, storms, tsunamis etc
    Can help us determine the order that life forms
    developed on earth
    Which rock layer is the
    oldest? Youngest?

    Youngest

    Oldest
    If you wanted to figure out the
    exact age of a rock, what
    technique would you use?

    a.Relative Dating
    b.Carbon-14 Dating
    c.Law of Superposition
    d.Potassium-Argon Dating
    If you were looking to find the
    exact age of a fossil that is at
    least 1 million years old, what
    technique would you use?

    a. Carbon-14 Dating
    b. Potassium-Argon Dating
    c. Relative Dating
    d. You can’t; it is impossible
    If you wanted to figure out the
    exact age of a fossil that is less
    than 40,000 years old, what
    technique would you use?
    a. Carbon-14 Dating
    b. Potassium-Argon Dating
    c. Relative Dating
    d. You can’t; it is impossible

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