Introduction
Paleontology Is
Paleontology is the study of the ancient life forms that have inhabited our earth, and of the fossils that remain behind. Paleontologists, the scientists who study paleontology, are working to understand the types of plants and animals that have lived here, from the beginning of life on earth until the present. They study ancient fish, dinosaurs and bear-dogs, climates and continents. They search for fossils in rocks from all over the earth, discovering clues that will help them recreate what life was like in the ancient past. Paleontology can also include the study of Zoology and the study of the ecosystem.
What is a fossil?
Fossils are evidence of past life that can still be found today. Most often, fossils are remains that have mineralized, i.e., turned to stone. They can be the bones or teeth of saber-tooth tiger, ancient shells, the imprint of a frond, the footprint of a dinosaur, or petrified wood. By studying these fossils paleontologists learn about long-extinct organisms that inhabited the earth in ancient times, and about how they adapted to the environment they lived in.
What is geologic time?
Geologic time is a way of organizing the history of the planet earth. All time on earth is separated into 4 eras. The Geologic Time Scale shows the outline of geologic time. Scientists depict geologic time with the oldest at the bottom, just as it would appear in the rocks they uncover. The oldest rocks are at the bottom, and as newer rocks and sediments are added, they accumulate on top of the older rocks, layer by layer. For instance, if you were walking down into the Grand Canyon, you would start with the most recent rock formations, and the deeper you went down in, the older the rocks would be along the canyon walls. In the figure of geologic time, the first organisms appear at the bottom, and the most recent at the top.
Paleontology is the study of the ancient life forms that have inhabited our earth, and of the fossils that remain behind. Paleontologists, the scientists who study paleontology, are working to understand the types of plants and animals that have lived here, from the beginning of life on earth until the present. They study ancient fish, dinosaurs and bear-dogs, climates and continents. They search for fossils in rocks from all over the earth, discovering clues that will help them recreate what life was like in the ancient past. Paleontology can also include the study of Zoology and the study of the ecosystem.
What is a fossil?
Fossils are evidence of past life that can still be found today. Most often, fossils are remains that have mineralized, i.e., turned to stone. They can be the bones or teeth of saber-tooth tiger, ancient shells, the imprint of a frond, the footprint of a dinosaur, or petrified wood. By studying these fossils paleontologists learn about long-extinct organisms that inhabited the earth in ancient times, and about how they adapted to the environment they lived in.
What is geologic time?
Geologic time is a way of organizing the history of the planet earth. All time on earth is separated into 4 eras. The Geologic Time Scale shows the outline of geologic time. Scientists depict geologic time with the oldest at the bottom, just as it would appear in the rocks they uncover. The oldest rocks are at the bottom, and as newer rocks and sediments are added, they accumulate on top of the older rocks, layer by layer. For instance, if you were walking down into the Grand Canyon, you would start with the most recent rock formations, and the deeper you went down in, the older the rocks would be along the canyon walls. In the figure of geologic time, the first organisms appear at the bottom, and the most recent at the top.