A. How do radioactive elements help scientists establish how old rocks and fossils are? b. How do index fossils help scientists establish how old rocks and other fossils are? In your answer, include fossils in the same layer of rock, in a lower layer of rock, and in a higher layer of rock compared to an index fossil.

A: To establish the age of a rock or a fossil, researchers use some type of clock to determine the date it was formed. Geologists commonly use radiometric dating methods, based on the natural radioactive decay of certain elements such as potassium and carbon, as reliable clocks to date ancient events.

Explanation: B: Certain fossils, called index fossils, help geologists match rock layers. To be useful as an index fossil, a fossil must be widely distributed and represent a type of organism that existed for a brief time period. Index fossils are useful because they tell the relative ages of the rock layers in which they occur.

9.9 years

a = p(1 + rt) . . account balance after time t at rate r starting with principal p

3000 = 2500(1 + 0.0202t) . . filling in the given numbers

1.2 = 1 + 0.0202t . . divide by 2500

0.2 = 0.0202t . . . subtract 1

0.2/0.0202 = t ≈ 9.901

it will take about 9.9 years for the account balance to reach $3000.

[ answer ]

foliated

[ explanation ]

foliation forms in a rock when pressure squeezes the rock together. the rock then has a design of many different color little lines. there are three types of foliated rock. the types are slate, schist, and gneiss. each type of foliated rock is different based on grain size and foliation characteristics. the lines appear when the rock has been under pressure.

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