The length of a football field is 100 yards. When you compare geologic time (4.6 billion years) to
the length of a football field, you will find that each yard on the field will equal 46 million years,
and each 10-yard section will equal 460 million years. Use this information to complete the
activity below.
Create a digital model of a football field. Starting at the left and moving forward in time, label the
10-yard lines in years. Using different colors, draw a horizontal line to mark the beginning and
end of each of the following periods and eras [note that the years have been rounded up for this
activity]:
• Cenozoic era (65 MYA to present)
• Cretaceous period (146‒65 MYA)
• Jurassic period (208‒146 MYA)
• Triassic period (245‒208 MYA)
• Paleozoic era (570‒245 MYA)
• Proterozoic era (2,500‒570 MYA)
• Archean era (3,800‒2,500 MYA)
• Hadeanera(4,600‒3,800MYA)
For example, to calculate where to mark the Cenozoic era, calculate:
⋅ 1 yard 65 million years 1.4 yards 46 million years ≈
The Cenozoic era should be marked approximately 1.4 yards from the right end of the football field.
Review your model with your Learning Coach, and submit to your teacher for grading.
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