paleo exam 1

what is a deduction

drawing a conclusion from previously known information

what is an induction

establishing a general theory from the accumulation of many observations

what is a hypothesis

a supposition or proposition that explains a number of observations

what is the hypothetico-deductive method

the scientific method that consists of seeking to disprove rather than to prove a hypothesis

what did Baron Cuvier study

biostratigraphy, extinction, comparative anatomy

what did jean lamarck study

evolution, plants at first, came up with dichotomous key to identify plants

who were the founders of evolution; what did they contribute

darwin (natural selection)

medel (genetics)

what did charles darwin study, with who

natural selection; alfred russel wallace

what did alfred russel wallace study; with who

natural selection; darwin

what is a theory supported by

rigorous and repeated observation, data collection, analysis, and testing

what is stratigraphy

the sequence of rocks and events in geological time

the science of rock strata

what is a biozone

the basic units of biostratigraphy; based on occurance, abundance, and ranges of various organisms, typically species

what are facies fossils

good indicators of certain environments

what are zone fossils

used for biostratigraphic correlation.

rapidly evolving organisms that were widespread, found in different facies (shale and limestone) over broad areas which are relatively common.

chronostratigraphy

time stratigraphy, establishing global standard stratigraphy

what is a system/

example

a major division of the rock column

Cambrian

what is the difference between a period and a system

when youre talking about a time an organism lived you use a period (Triceratops lived in the Cretaceous)

when youre talking about rocks then you use the system (Triceratops are found in the rocks belonging to Cretaceous system)

what is a formation

the most fundamental lithostratigraphic unit

which categories are italicized

species and genus

what are the eastern north american orogeny

appalachian, acadian, taconic

what is micropaleontology

science focused on the study of microorganisms or the microscopic parts of larger organisms

what is a prokaryote

unicellular microbes lacking nuclei and organelles; includes oldest known organisms; Archaea and bacteria

what is a protist

unicellular organisms with nuclei (eukaryotes)

what are foraminifera

single celled animal like protozoans contain both benthic and planktonic forms with chitinous agglutinated but most commonly calcareous tests occuring throughout the Phanerozoic

what are radiolarians

animal-like protozoans with siliceous tests; important rock formers

microfossils

very small fossils; most but not all protists

what are protozoans

not animals or plants

mostly small organisms with a nucleus (which makes they eukaryotes)

what is an autotroph

‘self-feeder’; an organism that converts inorganic matter to food

plants

what is a heterotroph

‘different feeder’; an organism that feeds on a variety of materials

humans

what are dinoflagellates

a type of microscopic, single-celled algae

what are diatoms

autotrophs and considered to be algae

how many years was the end of the Ediacaran beginning the Cambrian

539 MYA

what is a metazoan

‘later animals’; multicellular animals; highly organized

write the classifications in order

Kingdon

Phylum

Class

Family (end with ae)

Genus (italicized)

Species( italicized)

what is a clade

a monophyletic group (includes all the descendants of a common ancestor)

what are the two ways to estimate the age of groups (clades)

explain

\-molecular divergence: determining common ancestors and relationships based on the rate of amino acid substitution in protein molecules (molecular clock)

\-biomarkers: chemical indicators of life, such as certain carbon isotopes

what are possible reasons for the Cambrian Explosion

\-sea level rise

\-increased oxygen

\-savannah hypothesis

what are plankton

floating organisms

what are nekton

swim in open water, few meters from the top

what are demersal

bottom dwelling

what is spongocoel

the interior cavity of a sponge

what is choanocyte

cell with one flagella, the basal part of which is surrounded by a collar or protoplasm

they line the interior opening of a sponge

what is a spicule

a tiny needle-like calcareous or siliceous structure that forms part of the skeleton of a sponge

discreet mineral skeletal element of a sponge; may be calcareous or siliceous

what is spongin

a fibrous somewhat flexible material formed of proteins; make us sponges

class HOMOSCLEROMORPHA

massive encrusting sponges with simple structures

Clinona

Class DEMOSPONGEA

common sponges

Class HEXACTINELLIDA

glass sponges; have siliceous spicules

class Calcerea

calcareous sponges

what are Archaeocyathids

\-important reef formers in the Early and Middle Cambrian

\-are related to poriferans at some level

what is functional morphology

determining how an organism functioned in its environment based on its morphology (shape)

what is evolution (at its most basic level)

change over time

what is macroevolution

‘large evolution’, evolution at species level and above

what is natural selection and who founded it

in highly variable populations, organisms with the best adaptation survive best and pass on their winning attributes to their offspring

Charles Darwin along with Alfred Russel Wallace

what is phylogeny

pattern of evolution represented by a branching tree

what is hierarchy

small things (species) fit in larger categories

what is taxonomy

the study of the morphology (form, structures, features, etc) and relationships of organisms

what is systematics

the broader science of taxonomy and evolutionary processes

what is classification

refers particularly to the business of naming organisms and identifying the natural hierarchy

what is Linnaean nomenclature and example

a species is given a genus and species name

(italicized) Homo sapiens Linnaeus, 1758

what does it mean if a name is followed by a name and date in parenthesis, what about no parenthesis

with: it means that the name has been changed and that is the original author

without: it has not been changed

what is a type specimen

when a new species if found this is the best version of it kept in a major institution

what do you have to do when you find a new species

have to write a short diagnosis emphasizing the distinct features

then a description which has measurements, pics, etc

what is allopatric speciation

speciation by geographical separation of populations

where is the most important area for the fossils of us and our immediate ancestors

lake turkana

what is phyletic gradualism

gradual change over time resulting eventually in speciation

what is punctuated equilibrium

long periods of no change (stasis) with short periods of rapid change (ex: speciation)

what is Cope’s rule; example

body sizes of animals tend to get larger over time

horses

what are paraphyletic groups; example

have a single ancestor but do not include all descendants (i.e. Reptilia which excludes birds and mammals)

what are polyphyletic groups

random assemblages of organisms that arose from more than one ancestor and have no place in the tree of life

what is a genotype

the genetic composition of an individual, population, or species

what is a phenotype

the expression of genetic composition; the externally expressed features of an individual, population, or species

what does the biological species concept say

a species consists of all the individuals that can naturally breed together and produce viable offspring

ex: humans

ex: wolves and domestic dogs look similar but can’t mate

what does the morphological species concept say

a species is based only on morphology; entirely judged on form

what is a chronospecies

‘time species’; a species that is part of a lineage, whose origin and extinction are defined somewhat arbitrarily by gaps in the fossil record, or by major morphological changes

what are apomorphies; example

derived characters, feature that arose once only in evolution, and therefore diagnose all the descendants of the first organism to possess that new character

mammals mothers produce milk for the offspring

what are eumetazoans

a clade including all major metazoan groups except for sponges; true metazoans

what are cnidarians, example

\-more complex than sponges

\-radially symmetrical

\-care carnivores

\-have stinging cells

\-ex: Hydra a simple cnidarian

explain the cnidarian life cycle

polyp-budding(asexual)-medusa (swim and float in water)-sperm/egg-fertilization(sexual)-zygote-planula-

what is a corallite

exoskeleton of a solitary polyp or of a bud (individual) in a colony

what is a corallum

exoskeleton of a coral colony or a solitary coral

Order Rugosa

\-growth mode

\-septa

\-tabulae

\-skeletal material

\-stability

\-range

\-growth mode: colonial and solitary

\-septa: six prospeta

\-tabulae: usual

\-skeletal material: calcite

\-stability: poor;free

\-range: Ordovician to Permian

Order Tabulata

\-growth mode

\-septa

\-tabulae

\-skeletal material

\-stability

\-range

\-growth mode: colonia

\-septa: septa weak or absent

\-tabulae: well developed

\-skeletal material: calcite

\-stability: poor; free

\-range: Ordovician to Permian

Order Scleractinia (stony corals)

\-growth mode

\-septa

\-tabulae

\-skeletal material

\-stability

\-range

\-growth mode: Colonial and solitary

\-septa: six prosepta

\-tabulae: usually absent

\-skeletal material: aragonite

\-stability: good with basal plate, facilitating attachment

\-range: Triassic to Quaternary (Recent)

what is a conulariid

generally considered to be Cnidaria but have four sides so they deviate from the radial pattern

what is the difference between a corner groove and a midline in a conulariid

midline less pronounced that corner groove

what is paleogeography

‘ancient geography’; the layout of the continents and oceans in the geological past

what is biogeography

geographical distribution of organisms

what is paleobiogeography

geographical distribution of ancient organisms

what are biogeographic provinces

large scale areas defined by a distinctive array or organisms

what is an endemic

organisms with a restricted biological distribution

what is paleoclimate vs climate

climate in the past

average weather over time

what is the difference between icehouse and hothouse conditions

\-really cold, up to complete coverage of earth by ice

\-really warm with little or no ice; organisms expanding their range to the poles

what types of organisms have lophophores

brachiopods (twin-valved shelled organisms)

bryozoans (colonial organisms)

phoronids (wormlike tube-dwelling organisms)

what are lophophores

filamentous feeding and breathing organs

what is a brachiopod

a twin-valved shellfish with a lophophore and usually a pedicle

what is the relationship between these terms:

brachial

ventral

pedicle

dorsal

brachial=dorsal

pedicle=ventral

what are the three subphylums of the phylum Brachipoda

linguiformea (nonarticulate)

craniiformea (nonarticulate)

rhychonelliformea (articulate)

what are bryozoans

colonial invertebrates with lophophores

difficult to identify without thin sections

a lot smaller than corals

what is the Bryozoan class Stenolaemata

cylindrical zooids with calcareous skeleton

with lophophore

marine with extensive fossil record

what is paleoecology

‘ancient ecology’; the life and times of ancient organisms, also the study of these