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 their current position is because of the continental drift (Holmes 629).
Why Wegener’s Theory was not accepted back then?
- Wegner had little knowledge on geology when he decided to use it to support the drift theory.
- Scientist back then indicated that he should have used his vast knowledge in geophysical observations to support the continental drift theory.
- Wegner was impatient in providing his discoveries to the public. One could say that he rushed his arguments. Within a year, he was able to declare that what he found was of great importance (Frankel 73).
Process of Scientific Method and Theory of development
- Observation
- Formulation of research questions
- Formulation of hypothesis
- Prediction
- Evidence and Experimentation
- Theory
How does the Scientific Method help us understand out natural world?
- Using the scientific method requires experimentations, which help us in understanding nature.
- Using the scientific method allows the development of critical questions that develop arguments upon which useful resolutions can be drawn (Wicander, Monroe, and Peters 171). The hypothesis formed in the scientific method needs to be proved through experimentation (Seeds and Backman 7).
How do Plate tectonics provide mechanism for continental drift?
- The plate tectonic theory asserts that the presence of large plates in the lithosphere lies on a fluid like athensophere.
- The tectonic plates are constantly in motion either colliding or moving away from each other. Thus, based on the movement of the tectonic plates, it can be seen that the continents have moved away from each other.
How do plate tectonics explain natural landforms like the Himalayas and the Ring of Fire in the Pacific Ocean?
- Collisions of the tectonic plates cause one plate to rise above the other.
- One plate forms a deep trench while the other plate is forced upward to form tall mountains such as the Himalayas.
- The plate that forms a deep trench develops subduction zones, which are prime zones for volcanoes such as the Ring of Fire (McColl 731).
Works Cited
Frankel, Henry. The continental drift controversy. Cambridge [England: Cambridge University
Press, 2012. Print.
Holmes, Arthur, and Doris L. Holmes. Holmes principles of physical geology. 3rd ed.
Wokingham, Berkshire, England: Van Nostrand Reinhold (UK), 1978. Print.
McColl, R. W.. Encyclopedia of world geography. New York, NY: Facts On File, Inc., 2005.
Print.
Seeds, Michael A., and Dana E. Backman. Horizons: exploring the universe. 12th ed. Boston,
MA: Thomson Brooks/Cole, 2012. Print.
Trent, D. D. , Richard Hazlett, and Paul Bierman. Geology and the environment. 5th ed.
Belmont, CA: Thomson Brooks/Cole, 2008. Print.
Wicander, Reed, James S. Monroe, and E. Kirsten Peters. Essentials of geology. 4th ed. Belmont,
CA: Thomson Brooks/Cole, 2006. Print.
