Essays on Continental Drift

Part 1

Question 1 Tectonic plate motion refers to the movement of continental and oceanic plates from one place to another due to the effect of forces that generally act on these plates. These movements cause some effects to the surrounding environment and even to the earth surface in general. A scientist by the name of Wegner had earlier on formulated a theory that instituted some of the facts and evidence backing this presence of continental drift that had happened some time back in history (Runcorn, 2013). Furthermore, the critical evidence in support of continental drift is the jigsaw fitness of ...

Describe how Spain, England, France and Dutch’s different economies-along with their justification for expansion-shape their settlements in North America –

The colonization of North America revolves around the need for Spain, England, and Spain to conquer and control the continent. The French and the Spaniards governed through autocratic sovereigns while the English were free to govern themselves as much as they followed the English law. The biggest advantage, therefore, for the English to expand into North America was that they allowed immigration which enabled them to boost their colonial population that helped them to participate more actively and on a wide scale in agricultural activities. The English colonies were established by a royal charter and settled first in Massachusetts ...

1. A hot spot is an area on the earth’s surface that has several unique characteristics. These characteristics include but are not limited to high volcanic activity, frequent and extreme heat flows, and crustal movement that stretches across several hundred miles. Hot spots around the Hawaiian island chain created the islands. This was due to the Pacific plate move on top of the hot spot. Consequently mantle plumes created the islands. 2. An accretionary wedge is, like the name, suggests is a wedge. It is made up of a group of rocks called sediment and forms by gathering ...

Ivana Susic

Before Federation (prior to 1901), Australia was not a nation; each of the British colonies was its own self-ruling state. Each had separate laws and regulations and functioned effectively as a separate country. Those colonies were: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia, the last one to join (Singleton et al. 2013, pp.55-56). According to “Federation 1890-1910” published by the government of Western Australia (n.d.), that state had delayed its decision because it had seen such rapid changes in the previous decade, including the discovery of gold and a population increase from 50,000 to near 200,000. ...

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Introduction

In the scientific world, many radical scientific principles go through a tumultuous progression before the scientific community accepts them. This was the case with the continental drift theory, a landmark theory in geology. When it was proposed, the scientific community received the continental drift theory with ridicule. However, with time, the theory underwent a series of reinforcement from accumulating evidence in support of the theory. In the end, it emerged as the greatest geological principle of all time. The continental drift theory was the brainchild of Alfred Wegener. Alfred Wegener was a German meteorologist born in 1980. He acquired a PhD in astronomy from ...

The theory of the continental drift was proposed by the German geographer and geologist Alfred Wegener on basis of the accumulated scientific facts. He formulated the first scientific theory of the slow continental drift in 1912. He mentioned the numerous similarities in the geological structure of the continents and the generality of the fossilized flora and fauna in the geological past. The weighty proof also was the coincidence of the climate in the distant geological eras. Alfred Wegener was born on first of November in 1880 in the center of Brooklyn in the family of the famous scientist. ...

Abstract

This essay assesses whether Australian federalism has or has not changed dramatically since the Constitution was inaugurated in 1901. It looks at the way the central government (the Commonwealth) and the State governments have interacted, and the various changes along the way that have shifted the balance of powers to reach the point we are at today. In addition to considering the general situation, the essay looks at specific issues such as fiscal changes including taxation, and at specific areas of policy such as education and health (including Aboriginal health issues). From the research undertaken it is evident that ...

The hydrological cycle refers to the continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the earth. It mainly involves the processes of evaporation, condensation, precipitation, infiltration, percolation, interception and runoff/overland flows. The main source of energy that drives the cycle is solar energy and therefore the main changes in energy involve changes in temperature. When surface water is heated, it gains energy and changes from liquid state to gaseous state. This results in a cooling effect to the surrounding region (Arctic Climatology and Meteorology) Transpiration also contributes in adding water vapor in the atmosphere; this is referred ...

Plate Tectonic Theory

The continental drift theory stated that the world was formed of a single continent that separated and drifted apart to form 7 continents that exist today. According to Alfred Wegner, a German meteorologist, the continents were comprised of light rocks that rested on heavy crustal material. According to Wegner, the continents were previously a single large continent that broke apart and drifted along the floor of the ocean up to wear the continents are located today. While Wegner used the fit of the 2 continents that had already been mentioned, he also used lithological similarity and fossil distribution as evidence. Wegner’ ...

The theory of plate tectonics describes the wide­scale movements of the lithosphere of

the earth. The model is based on the ideas of continental drift, which first gained acceptance in the early 1900s. The geoscientific community granted the theory even more validity after the notion of seafloor spreading appeared in the late 1950s. Basically, the lithosphere is not whole but instead is separated into either seven or eight major plates, depending on the definition that you use. Every meeting point between plates has its own relative movement, either transform, convergent or divergent. Volcanic activity, mountain creation and earthquakes all occur along these edges, and the plates ...

The contribution of Alfred Wegener

William C. McCullough LAIS 370 History of Science Colorado School of Mines Abstract This paper discusses the role of Alfred Wegener in the discovery of the Plates tectonics theory. It is believed that the modern day plate tectonics theory is an advancement of continental drift theory which was discovered by Wegener. The study will seek to explore his efforts and contribution to modern science and how he has helped to shape the world.

Overview

Plate tectonics also known as continental drift theory describes that the earth was at one time many years back a super continent whereby ...

Continental drift is an idea developed by Alfred Wegner which states that the continents are drifting away across the ocean. He also suggested the plate tectonic theory in the year 1915. The theory states that, all continents were brought together into a mass land million of years ago. The key evidence presented in this case is that, African and South American continents fit each other perfectly if they can be enjoined. In addition, it has been evidenced that similar fossils are found in different continents which implies that, at one point in time they used to be together. The distribution ...

Geographical evidence

- Fossil evidence of Glossopteris flora exists in Pennsylvania and Permian age coal deposits. This is in Africa, India, Australia, and Antarctica (Trent, Hazlett and Bierman 68) - Close fit of the continental coastlines on both sides of the continents. Presence of geological features that were originally shared between the continents. Presence of faulting that leads to the formation of faults such as the San Andreas Fault indicates that continental drift has been taking place over a long period (Holmes 629). - Rocks had retained the record of their positions of when they were formed to indicate that ...

The Hydrologic Cycle

The global hydrologic cycle involves the change of water between three states. Water can be gaseous, like humidity in the atmosphere and the condensation in clouds, liquid as in our lakes, rivers, and oceans, or solid as in our ice caps and glaciers. Water is very complex and energy is required for it to change between the different states. Without water, biologic life could not exist. Evaporation and transpiration return water from the liquid state into the gaseous state. It takes a lot of energy to effect this change in state. Approximately 600 calories per gram of water is ...

Introduction

In this essay, a research took place about the following topics, which are meant to be clarified: geographic evidence as support of the theory of continental drift, scientifical acceptance of the movement of continents, the process of the scientific method and theory development, the scientific method help in understanding the natural world, association between the plate tectonics, continental drift and natural landforms. With these topics addressed, in this essay, the understanding of the natural world should become clearer, adding new knowledge on the matter, which should complement the one acquired al throughout the course. - Geographic evidence collected ...

The theory of plate tectonics has changed the way of seeing things in the field of earth sciences. Plate tectonics, a theory of the dynamics of the Earth's outer shell, the lithosphere, rests on geologic and geophysical data, and dominates current thinking in the Earth sciences (Dawson, n.pag). It has served as a unifying model or paradigm for explaining geologic phenomena that were formerly considered in unrelated fashion (Britannica, n.pag.). The plate tectonic theory states that the crust of the earth is made up of irregular pieces of rocks, usually different in their chemical composition and thickness. The movement of ...

The Continental Drift Theory and Earth Forming Processes

The origin of the planets and how they came to be what they are today has been a topic of contention for ages. Many geologists and scientists have come up with theories explaining how the continents came to be and have gone further to provide evidence to support their theories. The continental drift theory by Alfred Wegner is one of the theories. The paper will give an overhaul of Alfred’s theory. Alfred proposed that once the earth was a single unit but forces which acted upon the earth caused it to break up and split to form continents. Alfred ...