Question

Which describes the law of superposition used to find the relative age of fossils in rocks?

Answer 1

The law of superposition is a fundamental principle in geology and paleontology that states that in any undisturbed sequence of sedimentary rock layers, the oldest layers will be at the bottom, and the younger layers will be at the top. This means that as you move upward through the layers, the fossils and rock formations contained within those layers also become progressively younger.

This principle is used to determine the relative ages of fossils found within the rock layers: by examining the position of a fossil within these layers, scientists can infer whether it is older or younger than fossils found in other layers. It is important to note that the law of superposition applies primarily to sedimentary rocks and assumes that the layers have not been significantly disturbed or altered since their deposition.