Dino Dig
“Dino Dig” by Kathleen Rudolph
In this activity you’ll make use of some of the techniques and evidence that paleontologists work with to determine the identity of different fossils to establish the particular time period in which those creatures lived.
Most fossil digs take place in remote places where it is hot and dry and dirty. But one outstanding (and famous) site for Pleistocene fossils is right in the middle of downtown Los Angeles: The La Brea Tar Pits.
Check out this site to learn about bones that have been preserved, not in layers of sediment, but in bubbling oil. The video explains the excavation process. http://www.tarpits.org/la-brea-tar-pits/excavation-101 1. What kind of tool does the researcher in the La Brea video use to remove soft matrix from the bone? DENTAL PICK 2. What is the age of the fossils found in the La Brea Tar Pits?
3. What kind of fossils are found in the La Brea Tar Pits?
SABERTOOTH CAT PELIVIS, BISON SACRUM, JUVENILE MASTEDON FEMOR, PLANTS, INSECTS, SHELLS
4. When dealing with rock that probably doesn’t have bone in it, what kind of tool does the researcher use? HAMMER, CHISEL, SCREW DRIVER
Now head over to the Dino Dig website to try your hand at dating fossils: http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/genbio/virtual_labs/BL_17/BL_17.html Read the background and instructions for this activity before you begin.
Hit reset until you are sure you have seen fossils of every dinosaur listed below. You have resources on the page that include the Dinosaur Guide, a geological time scale, and a metric ruler. Note that the ruler is a TOTAL of 50 cm long (every tick mark = 1 cm). To measure half-lives: The half-life of a radioactive element is the time it takes for half its atoms to decay into the daughter produce. When two half-lives have passed, one fourth of the original isotope atoms remain and 3/4 of them have turned into the daughter product. (The math is VERY simple. Don’t overthink it).
A table is
In this activity you’ll make use of some of the techniques and evidence that paleontologists work with to determine the identity of different fossils to establish the particular time period in which those creatures lived.
Most fossil digs take place in remote places where it is hot and dry and dirty. But one outstanding (and famous) site for Pleistocene fossils is right in the middle of downtown Los Angeles: The La Brea Tar Pits.
Check out this site to learn about bones that have been preserved, not in layers of sediment, but in bubbling oil. The video explains the excavation process. http://www.tarpits.org/la-brea-tar-pits/excavation-101 1. What kind of tool does the researcher in the La Brea video use to remove soft matrix from the bone? DENTAL PICK 2. What is the age of the fossils found in the La Brea Tar Pits?
3. What kind of fossils are found in the La Brea Tar Pits?
SABERTOOTH CAT PELIVIS, BISON SACRUM, JUVENILE MASTEDON FEMOR, PLANTS, INSECTS, SHELLS
4. When dealing with rock that probably doesn’t have bone in it, what kind of tool does the researcher use? HAMMER, CHISEL, SCREW DRIVER
Now head over to the Dino Dig website to try your hand at dating fossils: http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/genbio/virtual_labs/BL_17/BL_17.html Read the background and instructions for this activity before you begin.
Hit reset until you are sure you have seen fossils of every dinosaur listed below. You have resources on the page that include the Dinosaur Guide, a geological time scale, and a metric ruler. Note that the ruler is a TOTAL of 50 cm long (every tick mark = 1 cm). To measure half-lives: The half-life of a radioactive element is the time it takes for half its atoms to decay into the daughter produce. When two half-lives have passed, one fourth of the original isotope atoms remain and 3/4 of them have turned into the daughter product. (The math is VERY simple. Don’t overthink it).
A table is