Introduction

The theory of Plate Tectonics evolved from an earlier notion of sea-floor spreading. Use the links to answer the tectonic related questions below. Then use your newly gained knowledge to answer the big qustion at the end. Good luck and have fun.

Questions

1. What are the main components of the Earth’s interior?
   
   
2. Describe the three types of tectonic plate boundaries.
   
   
3. What may explain the motion of tectonic plates?
   
   
4. What are the main types of volcanoes?
   
   
5. What and where is the “Ring of Fire’?
   
   
6. Where are the majority of Earthquakes located and how does the distribution of Earthquakes relate to the ring of fire?
   
   
7. Where are ocean sediments thickest, near the center of the ocean, or near the shorelines?
   
   
8. In what area is oceanic crust oldest; near the center of the ocean, or near the shorelines?
   
   
9. What does the relationship between the Austrailian fossil Allosaurus and the Antarctic fossil Cryolophosaurus suggest about the relative positions of Australia and Antartica in the geologic past?
   
   
10. What does the distribution of Fossils such as Glossopteris Mesosaurus and Lystrosaurus, which lived from the late Paleozoic to the Middle Mesozoic, suggest about the relative positions of the southern continents?
    
    

The Internet Resources

• Structure of the Earth
• Plate Tectonics
• What drives Teconic Plates
• Volcanoes
• Ring of Fire
• Earthquakes and Plate Tectonics
• World Ocean Sediment thickness
• Crustal Sea Floor Age
• Polar Dinosaurs on Australia
• Tectonic History of Madagascar

The Big Question

Using maps and diagrams, describe how Plate Tectonics acts as a unifying theory that explains 1) the distribution of volcanoes and earthquakes; 2) the distribution of fossils; and 3) the relation of ocean sediment thickness and age of oceanic crust to the proximity to mid-oceanic ridges.