Unit 5 Plate Tectonics

The diagram below models two tectonic plates sliding past one another. This type of plate

movement is common with oceanic plates. As the plates push against one another, pressure

builds up in the form of tension. All of the tension is released when the plates begin to move.

According to the information and diagram above, which force is responsible for the plate

movement?

• Balanced

• Gravitational

• Frictional

• Unbalanced

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Students examine a map that shows the movement of the two tectonic plates.

Each student writes a description of the tectonic activity and why they think it is occurring.

Which explanation best describes the impact of Newton’s Laws on the movement of these

plates?

• The North American Plate is subducting underneath the Eurasian Plate because equal and

  opposite forces are acting on them.

• The forces acting on both plates cause them to diverge until they are acted upon by

  another force.

• The Eurasian Plate and the North American Plate are converging because the forces

  acting on them are balanced.

• Balanced forces are acting the Eurasian Plate and the North American Plate causing them

  to diverge.

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The image models the process of Pangea breaking up into modern day continents.

Which of the following best explains why Pangea broke apart into modern day continents?

• Earthquakes and volcanoes formed between the continents.

• Changing climate caused ice to form between the plates.

• Balanced forces caused a change in the motion of the plates.

• The plates underlying the continents were already in motion.

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Scientists believe that convection currents within the____ are responsible for the movement

of the plates that form the Earth's crust.

• Asthenosphere

• Lithosphere

• Inner Core

• Outer Core

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Which two continents did Alfred Wegener think looked like they fit together like puzzle

pieces?

• North America and South America

• Europe and Africa

• North America and Europe

• South America and Africa

Which scientist is credited for first proposing Continental Drift Theory?

• Albert Einstein

• Alfred Wegener

• Abrahan Ortelius

• Harry Hess

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Alfred Wegener noted that fossils from a particular type of reptile were found on both sides

of the Atlantic Ocean. Which of the following would be the best explanation of how

this occurred?

• The reptiles swam across the ocean.

• The Atlantic Ocean did not exist in earlier times.

• The reptiles walked across a giant land bridge that has weathered away.

• The reptiles walked across an ice bridge located near the equator.

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Scientists discovered trilobite fossils in Oklahoma and Morocco, as illustrated on the map

below. Additional research in these areas shows that the rocks in Oklahoma and Morocco

surrounding these fossils are physically and chemically similar.

The discovery of trilobite fossils in Oklahoma and Morocco provide evidence of —

• plate tectonic movement

• volcanic eruptions

• weathering and erosion

• weathering and deposition

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Which of these landforms is most likely to be found at a convergent boundary?

• Fault Line

• Mid-ocean ridge

• Mountain

• Rift Valley

The most recently formed crust of the Earth would be found —

• where plates moving sideways passed each other

• where one plate is going under another plate

• where two plates are pushing directly toward each other

• where two plates are moving away from each other in opposite directions

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