Briefly review the history of the theory of plate tectonics. What was Alfred Wegener's role? What evidence did he present? Why was his theory NOT widely accepted initially? What new evidence led to its later acceptance?

What will be an ideal response?


Plate tectonics is the theory that describes the motions of Earth's lithosphere. In 1912, Alfred Wegener presented his theory on plate tectonics, which he called continental drift. Using evidence of rock assemblages in South America and Africa, fossil records, and climatic records, he hypothesized that all land masses migrate and that approximately 225 mya they formed a supercontinent called Pangaea. Since the 1950s and 1960s, when there was renewed interest in his plate tectonics, additional evidence grew to support it (e.g. bathymetry and sea floor spreading, knowledge of subductions zones, etc.).

Environmental & Atmospheric Sciences

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This isotope of oxygen is the least common: ________

Fill in the blank(s) with the appropriate word(s).

Environmental & Atmospheric Sciences

The long profile of a glaciated valley floor is ________

A) a smooth curve B) irregular C) logarithmic D) steep E) flat

Environmental & Atmospheric Sciences

What are the actual and estimated coordinates of the ground control points in an image-to-map transformation?

What will be an ideal response?

Environmental & Atmospheric Sciences

In a truly free-market economic system, all economic decisions are governed solely by principles of fairness, democracy, and individual choice.

Answer the following statement true (T) or false (F)

Environmental & Atmospheric Sciences