Fossils

paleontologist

A paleontologist is a scientist who studies fossils. If your basement is filled with fossils found while out on hikes, then you're an amateur paleontologist. Paleontology breaks down to the Greek for "ancient" (paleo), "being" (onto-), and "study" (-logy).

aboslute age

Absolute age is the true age of a rock or fossil. Absolute age tells scientists the number of years ago a rock layer formed. What is meant by absolute. age? Radioactive elements give off particles and energy which causes the elements to decay.

ammonites

Ammonites are perhaps the most widely known fossil, possessing These creatures lived in the seas between 240 - 65 million years ago, when they became extinct along with the dinosaurs.

fossil resin

Definition of fossil resin. : any of various hard natural resins (as amber or some copals) usually found in the earth as exudates of trees long dead.

permineralization

Permineralization is a process of fossilization in which mineral deposits form internal casts of organisms. Carried by water, these minerals fill the spaces within organic tissue.

sedimentary rocks

Rock that has formed through the deposition and solidification of sediment, especially sediment transported by water (rivers, lakes, and oceans), ice ( glaciers ), and wind. Sedimentary rocks are often deposited in layers, and frequently contain fossils. Note : Limestone and shale are common sedimentary rocks.

geologic time scale

The geologic time scale (GTS) is a system of chronological dating that relates geological strata (stratigraphy) to time. It is used by geologists, paleontologists, and other Earth scientists to describe the timing and relationships of events that have occurred during Earth's history.

trace fossils

a fossil of a footprint, trail, burrow, or other trace of an animal rather than of the animal itself.

index fossils

a fossil that is useful for dating and correlating the strata in which it is found.

coprotite

a piece of fossilized dung.

law of superpostion

aw of superposition. noun. 1. Geology. a basic law of geochronology, stating that in any undisturbed sequence of rocks deposited in layers, the youngest layer is on top and the oldest on bottom, each layer being younger than the one beneath it and older than the one above it.

carbonization

convert into carbon, typically by heating or burning, or during fossilization.

realtive age

elative age. [′rel·əd·iv ′āj] (geology) The geologic age of a fossil organism, rock, or geologic feature or event defined relative to other organisms, rocks, or features or events rather than in terms of years.

fossil record

fossil record definition. A term used by paleontologists ( see paleontology ) to refer to the total number of fossils that have been discovered, as well as to the information derived from them.

molds

mold-fossil. Noun. (plural mold fossils) A fossil formed when an animal, plant, or other organism dies and is covered by sediment, its flesh decays and bones deteriorate due to chemical reactions, and a cavity remains below the ground surface.

cast

oun. (plural cast fossils) A fossil formed when an animal, plant, or other organism dies, its flesh decays and bones deteriorate due to chemical reactions; minerals gradually enter into the cavity, resulting in a cast, also called a mold fossil, which is in the general form of the original organism.

replacement

rimaldi and Engel also classify permineralization as a type of mineral replication that is a result of microbial decay. Organic residue on compression fossils can be replaced by minerals leaving an impression coated with a mineral. Pyrite is a common replacement mineral.

petrification

the process by which organic matter exposed to minerals over a long period is turned into a stony substance

fossil

the remains or impression of a prehistoric organism preserved in petrified form or as a mold or cast in rock.

burrows

trace fossils are produced in soft sediments and include surface tracks, molded impressions left by organisms or tissues that later decayed, and subsurface burrows or tunnelings.

tar and ice

type of body fossil that forms in rock when an organism with hard parts is buried, decays or dissolves, and leaves a cavity in the rock. original remains. fossil in which the actual organism is preserved by ice, tar, or amber. petrified. fossils in which the spaces inside are filled with minerals from groundwater.