Assignment 18: Origins- The Birth of the Earth

Introduction

Geologists estimate the age of the earth to be at least 4.5 billion years, and in this time many things have happened. Mountains have been raised and eroded, then raised again. Seas have advanced over the land; layers of sand, mud, and calcium carbonate have been deposited on the sea floors, and the waters have retreated, leaving strata of rock thousands of feet thick. Volcanoes have erupted, just as they are doing in many places today, and lava fields have formed. Volcanic dust or "ash" has settled to the earth, sometimes in lakes or ponds, burying whatever lay beneath. Great glaciers, formed during long cold periods, at times have covered a large part of North America, but have melted back with the coming of a warmer climate.

All these events have taken place during the geologic history of the earth. Just as human history is divided into major segments, like the Stone Age and Bronze Age, the 4.5 billion years of earth history have been divided into large units of time called eras. Eras have been divided into smaller units called periods and these in turn have been divided into epochs.

Directions: 

1) This assignment is designed to assist you in learning the concepts of this module as well as assess your understanding and application of the content. Since this assignment is a combined Formative and  Summative Assessment of the module, it is considered a high-stakes assignment and will have a significant impact on your grade. To ensure that you understand and can apply the content, you will be provided two (2) opportunities to complete this assignment with the highest grade being kept as your final grade. Both attempts must be completed and submitted before the due date or the late policy will be applied to both submissions. This is a setting in Canvas I cannot control. No modifications will be made as you have been made aware of this setting. 

2) This assignment has no time limit and does not have to be completed in one sitting. Please do not click Submit Assignment until you have completed it. This assignment must be completed by the due date or the 10%/ day late policy will be applied to your grade. 

3) To begin this assignment, click the "Take the Quiz" button below.