Geo Science Chapter 9 Plate Tectonics

Wegener's Continental Drift Hypothesis stated all the continents once joined together to form _____.

• two major super-continents

• two major super-continents and three smaller continents

• one major super-continent

• three major super-continents

The super-continent in the Continental Drift Hypothesis was called _____.

• Panthalassa

• Pangaea

• Mesosaurus

• Africa

One kind of evidence that supports Wegener's Hypothesis is that _____.

• The same magnetic directions exist on different continents

• Major rivers on different continents match

• Land bridges still exist that connect major continents

• fossils of the same organism have been found on different continents

Evidence about ancient climates indicates that _____.

• glacial ice once covered much of what is now India and Australia

• continents in the Northern Hemisphere were once centered over the South Pole.

• continents in the Southern Hemisphere were once centered over the North Pole.

• no continents occupied the Southern Hemisphere

The geographic distribution of the swimming reptile Mesosaurus provides evidence that _____.

• Europe was covered by a shallow sea then Mesosaurus lived

• a land bridge existed between Australia and India

• South America and Africa were once joined

• the Atlantic Ocean was wider when Mesosaurus lived than it is now

Which of the following was NOT used to support if the Continental Drift Hypothesis?

• fossil evidence

• paleomagnetism

• ancient climate

• the fit of South America and Africa

How did opponents of continental drift account for the existence of similar fossils on widely separated continents?

• parallel evolution

• oceanic currents

• large ocean rafts

• migration across land bridges

What was the main reason Wegener's Continental Drift Hypothesis was rejected?

• He was not well liked by other scientists.

• He could not provide a mechanism for the movement of the continents.

• He could provide only illogical explanations for the movements of the continents.

• His evidence was incorrect.

Which of the following statements correctly describes the asthenosphere?

• It is a thin cold, and rigid layer.

• It is the source of Earth's heat.

• It permits plate motion.

• It only occurs near subduction zones

In the Plate Tectonics Theory, the lithosphere is divided into _____.

• 100 major plates

• 7 major plates and many smaller plates

• many small plates but no large plates

• 50 major plates and many smaller plates