The asphalt in the la brea tar pits is composed of hydrocarbons, but is not considered a fossil fuel, true or false ?

False.

Reason -

The natural deposits of La Brea Tar pits are referred to as bitumen, asphalt or tar (formed by fossil deposits) interchangeably. These terms describe the black semisolid deposits as hydrocarbons which are associated with sand and clay and are recovered from it by the application of water and steam. These tar sands also have lot of oil which can be recovered easily.

the principles and empirical processes of discovery and demonstration considered characteristic of or necessary for scientific investigation, generally involving the observation of phenomena, the formulation of a hypothesis concerning the phenomena, experimentation to test the hypothesis, and development of a conclusion that confirms, rejects, or modifies the hypothesis.