...University of Phoenix Material Effects of the Motions of Tectonic Plates Worksheet From Visualizing Earth Science, by Merali, Z., and Skinner, B. J, 2009, Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Copyright 2009 by Wiley. Adapted with permission. Part 1 This diagram was similar to one Alfred Wegener drew to show the distribution of continents 300 million years ago. His theory of continental drift was met with skepticism in the scientific community. [pic] 1. Describe three forms of evidence Wegener used to support his ideas of continental drift. Wegner suggested that the continental shelves of the continents seemed to fit together similar to a puzzle. According Bugielski (1999), "continents in the southern hemisphere exhibit an identical pattern of rock and fossils known as the Gondwana sequence. The most logical explanation was that the continents themselves were once parts of a much larger super-continent (Early development of plate tectonics). Another point that Wegener used as evidence was by looking at the glacial till deposits. When the contintents were together, the glacial movement was, "more streamlined motion of the glacier from southern Africa and Northern Australia outward" (Bugielski, 1999). The last important piece of evidence that was used was by examinung sedimentary rock that was able to show a change in climates proving the theory of the continental drift or that the poles had moved. (Bugielski, 1999). Bugielski, M. (1999). The Richard Stockton...
Words: 859 - Pages: 4
...1. What is the theory of evolution? How is it a unifying theme in biology? The evolution theory explains the unity and diversity of life by explaining how random changes in genetic material and competition for scarce resources cause species to change gradually. 2. What is biogeography? How is it a unifying theme in ecology? The distribution of species and ecosystems in geographic space and through geological time. 3. What is genetics? How is it a unifying theme in biology? Genetics is the scientific study of heredity. 4. What is plate tectonics? How is it a unifying theme in earth science? Plate tectonics is the theory that pieces of Earth's lithosphere are in constant motion, driven by convection currents in the mantle. 5. What is the Big Bang theory? How is it a unifying theme in astronomy? The theory that the universe originated 20 billion years ago from the cataclysmic explosion of a small mass of matter at extremely high density and temperature 6. How are the following branches of science integrated, connected, and related? • Chemistry and biology- any living thing has a chemical makeup, so the study of any living thing involves studying its chemistry. • Physics and chemistry- one explains why an object has certain properties and the other explains how the objects move and use those properties. One is the world at a distance and the other is the world up close. You cannot have one without the other • Physics and astronomy- physics grew from the study of our...
Words: 302 - Pages: 2
...Plate Tectonics Damian Neal EG 481 May 14, 2012 Instructor: Dr. M. Jiru Plate Tectonics Outline I. Revolution in Earth Science Continental Drift Hypothesis Sea-Floor Spreading: Clues and Processes II. The Plate Tectonic Model Motivating Observations Types of Plate Margins (Divergent and Convergent Margins) III. The Search for a Mechanism The Tectonic Cycle (the motion and influences that occur during the cycle) Plate Tectonics The location where two plates meet is called a plate boundary, and plate boundaries are commonly associated with geological events such as earthquakes and the creation of topographic features such as mountains, volcanoes, mid-ocean ridges, and oceanic trenches. The majority of the world's active volcanoes occur along plate boundaries. In 1912 Alfred Wegener introduced his continental drift hypothesis. Wegener's believed that at once the continents were at one time were all connected together forming a single continent in which, he referred to as the supercontinent. The supercontinent may also be referred to as the Pangaea, defined as the all lands. Wegener believed that the supercontinent had split into fragments like pieces of ice floating on a pond and that the fragments had slowly drifted to their present locations (Merali & Skinner, 2009). However, there was a problem with Wegener’s hypothesis...
Words: 1832 - Pages: 8
...earthquakes(3) of the (eastern) mediterranean area Table of content Introduction 1 Geodynamics 2 Volcanism and Earthquakes 4 Paleoenvironment 6 References: 8 Introduction The Mediterranean Sea has been one of the most profound areas for geologists to study at. Amongst each other they also refer to the sea as ‘Mare Nostrum’ which is Latin for ‘our sea’. It is an area where many different types of tectonic plates come together, moving in different directions. It also has the perfect latitude to make it a sensitive area regarding astronomically induced oscillations. In the past it has been a fascinating area for geological research and further analysis of the area would contribute greatly of many geological process in an accurate time-frame. This report will first explain the geodynamics of the area focussing on the subduction processes in the eastern Mediterranean and how extension is possible in an overall compressive state. Secondly the volcanic activity and earthquake activity in the Aegean domain will be addressed, looking at how they are related to tectonic plate configuration and finally discuss the Messinian Salinity Crisis which as part of a dramatic change in paleoenvironmental conditions. Geodynamics Geodynamics is a subfield of the earth sciences that looks into movements and processes of the earth’s mantle. Some of the predominant topics...
Words: 2766 - Pages: 12
...Structure and composition of the Earth The overall composition of the Earth is very similar to that of meteorites, and because of this, it is thought that the Earth originally formed from Planetesimals composed largely of metallic iron and silicates. What makes Earth unique? Soon after the Earth formed, unique processes occurred - division into metallic core, silicate mantle and crust - which, along with surface water, made it different from the other planets in our Solar System. The formation of the early mantle was important as it consisted primarily of ferromagnesium silicate minerals, some of which contained water as an essential component (e.g. amphibole group minerals). Water-bearing magmas (molten rock) from deep in the lower mantle then rose towards the surface (being liquid, they were lighter than the surrounding solid rock) and emerged as volcanic eruptions. The Earth's atmosphere and hydrosphere developed from the degassing (loss of gaseous elements such as carbon, hydrogen and oxygen) of the early-formed core and mantle during this volcanic activity. In the present, abundant gases are still released from the Earth during volcanic eruptions and these are mainly composed of water (77%), carbon dioxide (12%), sulfur dioxide (7%), and nitrogen (3%), with minor amounts of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, sulfur, chlorine and argon. The Earth can be divided into two main parts. Atmosphere: measured from the surface of the Earth upwards to 150 km (anything above this...
Words: 6184 - Pages: 25
...Name(s): __________________ and _____________________________ Section (lab day) _________ Lab 2: Plate Tectonics & the Origin of Magma – AGI 9th ed. Read Lab 2 p31-56. The aim of the lab is: A. To investigate some aspects of the plate tectonic model. B. To interpret rates and directions of plate movement C. To analyze data and associated geological processes & features. The theory of plate tectonics is a powerful and far-reaching theory encompassing many aspects of geology. The theory explains such diverse phenomena as mountain building on continents, the evolution of ocean basins, magma chemistry, the long-term migration of plants and animals, climatic change and the movement of continents. Turn to Lab 2 in the lab manual and read the introduction to each Part, then answer the questions in the manual in the corresponding spaces provided below. Introduction: Earth’s Size, Continents & Ocean Basins 1.1.a Read p 31-32. What was Alfred Wegener’s observation that led him to propose the Continental Drift Hypothesis ___________________________________. (1) 1.1.b Why was this rejected?___________________________________________. (1) Why did anti-drift scientists oppose this and what was their evidence or bias? _____________________________________________________________. (1) 1.1.c What alternative hypothesis did Bernard Lindemann (1927) and Otto Hilgenberg (1933) propose? _______________________________________________....
Words: 3082 - Pages: 13
...Complex Rift System I. Introduction The never ending saga on how the earth was created continues on. Numerous scientists have attempted to state different theories and this article describes how two Michigan Tech affiliates believe the East African Rift Valley was created. It is written from an old-earth viewpoint as it was believed to have originated billions of years ago. II. Brief Overview and Main Points In this article, the authors James Wood and Alex Guth try and visually describe the area along the rifts in East Africa. They also provide the reader with a detailed explanation of how they believe the rifts were formed. Through this, they are attempting to convince readers that the world had evolved billions of years ago and humans were present in this area at that same time, based on what they have studied. III. Article Strengths One of the strengths of this article includes, but is not limited to, the very informative colored digital maps seen online to assist the reader in visualizing the East Africa area. The authors go in depth describing this area, the surrounding geographic features, and their theory of how they feel the rifts were formed. The authors reaffirm this throughout the article, and make it exceptionally clear that the cause of the East African Rift is still unknown, despite their own theory. I feel the authors did not write with precision in regards to the accuracy of the article but were very concise on not knowing the specific cause of the EARS...
Words: 1396 - Pages: 6
...BANG THEORY According to Marmet (2005) , the big bang theory believes that the universe originated from an extremely dense concentration of material. The original expansion of this material is called the big bang theory. Moskowits (2010) describes the big bang theory as an assertion that the universe began extremely hot and dense. Around 14 billion years ago, space itself expanded and cooled down eventually allowing atoms to form and clump together to build the stars and galaxies we see today. Taylor (2012) says According to the Big Bang theory, all matter and all space was originally part of an infinitesimally small point called the Singularity. The theory says nothing about where that singularity came from. It is assumed to have come about by a random quantum event. The theory was first proposed in the 1930s, based on Edwin Hubble's discovery that distant galaxies are receding. Hubble measured the distances to a large number of galaxies which was based on the observed brightness of certain stars within them, he went on to collate these distances with their electromagnetic spectra. As it turned out, more distant galaxies had the features in their spectral lines shifted to lower frequencies in a linear manner: that is, more distant galaxies exhibit greater redshifts. The only known mechanism for generating a spectral shift is the Doppler effect, which means that distant galaxies are receding from us. Another dominant idea connects the dots between the big bang theory and the...
Words: 1683 - Pages: 7
...GLG 101 - Week 6 Assignment: Metamorphic Rocks Lab PART 2/2 (UOP) FOR MORE CLASSES VISIT www.glg101tutorial.com Resources: pp. 108–116 of Geoscience Laboratory and Appendixes K & L Identify and classify the rock examples in Appendix K. Answer the Appendix L questions from your lab book. Write your responses in Appendix K. Complete All of Appendix K & L. Post completed Appendix K & L in the individual forum. Due day 7. ================================================= GLG 101 Assignment Deserts Lab (UOP) FOR MORE CLASSES VISIT www.glg101tutorial.com Resources: pp. 265–276 of Geoscience Laboratory and Appendix M Answer the Appendix M questions from your lab book. Write your responses in Appendix M. Complete ALL of Appendix M. Post completed Appendix M to the individual forum. Due day 7. ================================================= GLG 101 Assignment: Earthquake Technology Lab (UOP) FOR MORE CLASSES VISIT www.glg101tutorial.com Resources: pp. 156–170 of Geoscience Laboratory and Appendix F Answer the questions listed in Appendix F from the lab book. Write your responses in Appendix F. Complete ALL of Appendix F. Post the completed Appendix F in the individual forum. Due day 7. ================================================= GLG 101 Assignment Groundwater Lab (UOP) FOR MORE CLASSES VISIT www.glg101tutorial.com Resource: pp. 213–227 of Geoscience Laboratory and Appendix N. Answer the Appendix N questions from...
Words: 2964 - Pages: 12
...Earth's crust and mantle Earth cutaway from core to exosphere The crust of the Earth is composed of a great variety of igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks. The crust is underlain by the mantle. The upper part of the mantle is composed mostly of peridotite, a rock denser than rocks common in the overlying crust. The boundary between the crust and mantle is conventionally placed at the Mohorovičić discontinuity, a boundary defined by a contrast in seismic velocity. The crust occupies less than 1% of Earth's volume. The oceanic crust of the sheet is different from its continental crust. The oceanic crust is 5 km (3 mi) to 10 km (6 mi) thick[1] and is composed primarily of basalt, diabase, and gabbro. The continental crust is typically from 30 km (20 mi) to 50 km (30 mi) thick and is mostly composed of slightly less dense rocks than those of the oceanic crust. Some of these less dense rocks, such as granite, are common in the continental crust but rare to absent in the oceanic crust. Both the continental and oceanic crust "float" on the mantle. Because the continental crust is thicker, it extends both above and below the oceanic crust. The slightly lighter density of felsic continental rock compared to basaltic ocean rock contributes to the higher relative elevation of the top of the continental crust. Because the top of the continental crust is above that of the oceanic, water runs off the continents and collects above the oceanic crust. The continental crust...
Words: 1549 - Pages: 7
...Scientific Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Observation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Hypothesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Experiment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Definitions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Fact: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Hypothesis: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Scientific Theory (or Law): . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Science...
Words: 6230 - Pages: 25
...South America and the west coast of Africa. However, it was in 1912 when a German meteorologist, Alfred Wegener, published his theory that all the continents were once joined together in one large supercontinent, which was named Pangaea. Wegeners theory of continental drift combined information from several subject areas, examples include: maps, biology, geology and climatology. Be that as it may, specialists in those disciplines rejected his ideas partly because he was not regarded as an expert himself, but mainly because he could explain how solid continents had changed their position. Wegener could never come up with an underlying reason for the motion of the continents. The theory of continental drift eventually evolved into the modern theory of plate tectonics. This holds that the lithosphere (or the Earth's crust) is made up of numerous plates that literally float on the underlying liquid asthenosphere. The motion of the plates and resulting activity at their edges to form mountains, trenches, and volcanoes explains the planet's topography. The first piece of evidence that really inspired Wegners quest to explain Earths geology was a map of the continents that showed the interlocking fit of Africa’s and South Americas shoreline. Using these maps, Wegener then questioned as to why these coastlines fitted so precisely. He came up with the theory that in the remote past (200 million years ago) they were part of a larger super continent (Pangaea) that then spilt apart via...
Words: 1032 - Pages: 5
...seemed to be similar, but had different features, such as different beak shape and length. Upon closer inspection of the specimens, an ornithologist concluded that they were in fact all types of finches. This led Darwin to create the ideas of what we now know as the mechanism of natural selection and the theory of evolution. Darwin was unable to publish his findings in depth for fear of being labeled as a heretic and instead waited for a more opportune time when his findings would be socially accepted. He even left a note to his wife stating that if she were to do anything if he died suddenly, it was to take 400 pounds and publish the rest of his findings. Chapter Questions: 1. The experiences of his youth that helped Darwin prepare for the voyage on the Beagle were not only his curious nature and rebellious spirit, but his connection with his mentor Reverend John Steven Henslow. Henslow further nurtured Darwin’s interest in cataloging and collecting species (the beetles) and travel and was the reason Darwin ended up on his great journey around the world. 2. Darwin witnessed an Earthquake which pinpointed how some islands are formed by the shifting of tectonic plates. He also saw the unalike layers of sediment that contained diverse types of fossils that showed that sea levels on those islands must have once been different. This shaped his...
Words: 547 - Pages: 3
...m Biology 2 – Study Guide # 1 Chapters 24 & 25 - Macroevolution What are the two main points of Darwin’s book? What is microevolution? Macroevolution? What are the two theories of macroevolution? What are the three types of gradualism? What is punctuated equilibrium? What is a biological species? What is allopatric speciation? What conditions favor allopatric speciation? Sympatric speciation? What is autopolyploidy? Allopolyploidy? What is a hybrid zone? What are the three outcomes? What is the origin of novelty? (exaptations) What is evo-devo? What is allometric growth, heterochrony, paediomorphosis, paediogenesis? What are hox genes (homeotic genes)? How do evolutionary trends behave? What is adaptive radiation? Know the ways fossils are formed and what fossilizes. What are the limitations of the fossil record? Know how to do a radiometric problem? What is a half-life? Know the geological time scale. What is continental drift? Plate tectonics? K-T boundary? Pangaea? Laurasia? Gondwana? Chapter 17 – Viruses Know the structure of viruses. Know how viruses replicate. Know the viral genome structure. What are bacteriophages? What are the lytic and lysogenic reproductive cycles? Know the information give on HIV virus. What are the treatments? Chapter 27 – Bacteria Know the structure of a prokaryotic cell. Know how bacteria reproduce asexually and through genetic combination. (binary fission, transduction, transformation, conjugation)...
Words: 500 - Pages: 2
...EVOLUTION/LECTURE1 Evolution (PCB 4674). Chapter 2. The evidence for evolution Main topics of lecture: I: The three main statements of the Theory of Special Creation 1.- Introduction 2.- Relatedness of life forms 3.- Change through time 4.- The age of the Earth II: Correspondence among data sets and Theory of Evolution I: General background: 1.- Introduction 1.1.- Before the establishment of the Theory of Evolution by Charles Darwin the leading explanation in Europe for the origin of species was the Theory of Special Creation. This theory held that all organisms were created by God during the six days of creation as described in the Bible's book of Genesis. The theory stated that species are unchanged since their creation, or immutable, and that variation within each species is strictly limited. 1.2.- The Theory of Special Creation also stated that creation of all the organisms was recent (approx. 6,000 years ago). 1.3.- By the time that Darwin began working with his theory dissatisfaction with the Theory of Special Creation had begun to grow. Research in the biological and geological sciences was advancing rapidly, and the data clashed with creationism's central tenets and predictions. 1.4.- Scientific theories frequently have two components: (i) A statement of a fact: A claim about a pattern that exists in the natural world (ii) Which process is responsible for this patter 1.5.- The three main statements of facts made by the Theory of Special Creation are: (i) Species were...
Words: 2687 - Pages: 11
