Continental Drift

What did Antonio Pellegrini find on continents separated by wide oceans?

• Similar mountain ranges

• Identical fossils

• Similar plant species

• Similar rock formations

Who explained why the shorelines of different continents seem to match?

• Albert Einstein

• Alfred Wegener

• Isaac Newton

• Charles Darwin

What forces did Wegener argue were responsible for continental drift?

• Gravitational tidal forces and the earth’s rotation

• Wind and water currents

• Solar radiation and magnetic fields

• Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions

What was a breakthrough for scientists according to the text?

• Discovering new planets

• Understanding why the earth’s surface was drifting

• Finding new species of animals

• Inventing new technology

What did Frank B. Taylor believe caused the large polar continents to drift toward the equator?

• Wind currents

• Tidal forces

• Volcanic activity

• Earthquakes

What did Alfred Wegener's continental drift hypothesis explain?

• Why continents have different climates

• Why the edges of some continents fit together like puzzle pieces

• How mountains are formed

• Why the ocean is salty

What was one thing Wegener's hypothesis could not explain?

• Why the sky is blue

• How continents could move thousands of miles

• Why rivers flow

• How plants grow

What did most geologists initially think about Wegener's hypothesis of continental drift?

• They accepted it immediately.

• They rejected it.

• They were unsure about it.

• They thought it was a joke.

The process of the ground moving is called

• trenches

• moving

• continental drift

• Alfred Wegener

What is the main idea of the theory of continental drift?

• The continents have always been in their current positions.

• The continents were once joined together and have drifted apart over time.

• The continents are moving towards each other.

• The continents are shrinking.