Question

What can be told about the age of the fossils in the diagram?



A.
All of the fossils are the same age because they were all present during the same period.
B.
The fossils in layer 5 are the oldest, and the fossils in layer 1 are the youngest.
C.
The fossils in layer 1 are the oldest, and the fossils in layer 5 are the youngest.
D.
Nothing about the ages of the fossils can be determined from the diagram.

Answer 1

B. In an undisturbed sequence of sedimentary layers, the principle of superposition applies: lower layers (layer 5) were deposited before upper layers (layer 1), so fossils in layer 5 are the oldest and those in layer 1 are the youngest.