Anthropology Dating methods
younglack
Assignment3DatingMethods1.docxANTHROPOLOGY 2423
Assignment #3
DUE: MARCH 12TH 11:50 P.M.
Dating Techniques
Relative Dating
Examine the diagram of stratigraphic layers and the hints below, and answer the questions that follow.
· Ash is sediment resulting from volcanic activity
· A mix of silt, pebbles, and other unsorted sediments are the result of flooding
· Sandy sediment (including resulting sandstone) often reflects an extended dry period
· From absolute dating techniques, we know that Bed 2 is about 3 million years old
· Bed 4 is about 4.5 million years old
· Shales are usually deposited in slow-moving water such as in former lakes, lagoon, river deltas, and floodplains
1. List the fossils in order from the most recent to the oldest.
2. Which bed (note the number) contains Fossil C?
3. A volcano 100 miles from this fossil locality has erupted several times, each time spewing ash for hundreds of miles. Which stratum or strata formed during times of volcanic activity?
4. Which fossil likely represented a species that lived in or near a lake?
5. Which fossil (or fossils) was (were) deposited around the time of flooding?
6. What do you know about the age of fossil A compared to fossil C?
7. Which strata probably formed during arid (dry) periods of time?
8. You learn that remains from the same species as Fossil B have been found at a site 300 miles away embedded between two layers of volcanic rock. How can this help you?
