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WorksheetsContinental Drift Hypothesis
Total questions: 25
Worksheet time: 15mins
Name
Class
Date
1.
Who is the person credited with developing the theory of continental drift?
a)
Harry Hess
b)
Galileo
c)
Alfred Wegener
d)
Newton
2.
What is this a picture of?
a)
plate tectonics
b)
continental drift
c)
pangea
d)
glacier scaring
3.
This is a picture of glacier scars found in Africa. What are these evidence for?
a)
Africa has always been near the equator
b)
Africa was once in an area of the Earth that had a very cold climate
c)
The continents have not moved
d)
sea floor spreading
4.
What does the theory of continental drift state?
a)
The continents were once joined in a super-continent and have moved over time
b)
Continents are stationary and do not move
c)
The Earth is broken into lithospheric plates that move due to convection currents
d)
none of the above
5.
What evidence did Wegener use in his theory?
a)
Continents and fossils fitting together/matching-up like puzzle pieces
b)
glacier scars and evidence from temperature
c)
mountain ranges and coal deposits line up across continents
d)
all of the above
6.
Why did no one believe Wegener's thoery?
a)
He could not explain HOW the continents moved
b)
He didn't have evidence
c)
His data was wrong
d)
He didn't use the right technology to gather data
7.
What was Wegener able to PROVE before his death?
a)
The mid ocean ridge existed
b)
convection currents cause plate movement
c)
Greenland was moving away from Europe a tiny bit each year
d)
Africa and South America were connected
8.
What two specific continents fit together most noticeably?
a)
Africa and North America
b)
South America and Europe
c)
South America and Africa
d)
Antartica and Africa
9.
What specific technology did Wegener use in his study?
a)
GPS
b)
Sonar
c)
Radar
d)
Maps
10.
How long ago is Pangea believed to have existed?
a)
200-300 million years ago
b)
1000-2000 years ago
c)
10,000-20,000 years ago
d)
20-30 billion years ago
11.
1) Which statement best explains Wegener's hypothesis of continental drift?
a)
Volcanic activity slowly reshapes the continents throughout Earth's geologic history.
b)
The continents shift locations as a result of major catastrophes like meteorite impacts and earthquakes.
c)
The continents rapidly change places from one hemisphere to another when Earth's magnetic field reverses.
d)
The continents were once part of the same landmass and have drifted very slowly to their current positions.
12.
The similarities between the Appalachian mountains and the Scottish highlands provides evidence for which process?
a)
fossilization
b)
climate change
c)
continental drift
d)
glacial retreat
13.
Which statement best compares the theories of plate tectonics and continental drift?
a)
Plate tectonics and continental drift are two names for the same theory.
b)
Plate tectonics proposes that the continents move; continental drift proposes the mechanism for how the continents move.
c)
Continental drift proposes that the continents move; plate tectonics proposes the mechanism for how the continents move.
d)
Continental drift proposes that the continents move; plate tectonics proposes that the continents are stationary.
14.
Which statement does NOT summarize one of the lines of evidence used by Alfred Wegener to support his theory of continental drift?
a)
Glacial deposits indicate a different climatic condition.
b)
Similar fossils are found on widely separated continents.
c)
Similar geologic formations occur on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
d)
Bands of rock are older the farther their position from a mid-ocean ridge.
15.
Which statement best summarizes the theory of continental drift?
a)
Only the continents move, traveling slowly over and through Earth’s crust.
b)
All of the continents were once joined together into a single supercontinent.
c)
The continents are fixed and have always been located in their present positions.
d)
Earth’s crust is divided into plates that move slowly over, against, and apart from each other.
16.
Which of the following best explains the difference between continental drift and plate tectonics?
a)
Continental drift describes the motion of Earth's continents only; plate tectonics describes the motion of the crust beneath Earth's oceans as well.
b)
Continental drift is supported only by observations of similar coastlines and geologic features on opposite sides of an ocean; plate tectonics is supported by a wide range of fossil evidence as well.
c)
Plate tectonics was Wegener's theory that Earth's continents rest on sections of Earth's crust that drift together and apart over time; continental drift is a hypothesis describing how plate tectonics might happen.
d)
Continental drift was Wegener's hypothesis that Earth's continents were once part of a supercontinent that has since broken apart; plate tectonics is the theory that explains how continental drift happens.
17.
How does fossil evidence support Wegener's hypothesis of continental drift?
a)
Similar fossils are found along continental margins that appear to join together.
b)
Fossils are found in areas where the present-day climate could not have supported the organisms that made the fossils.
c)
Similar fossils of giant, land-dwelling dinosaurs are found on continents separated by oceans.
d)
all of the above
18.
Which statement best explains why scientists of Wegener's time did not accept his continental drift hypothesis?
a)
They thought Wegener's methods were unscientific.
b)
They didn't believe that Earth was over 200 million years old.
c)
They thought Wegener's ideas about how continents move were implausible.
d)
Most scientists of Wegener's time accepted his continental drift hypothesis.
19.
Which statement best explains the major difference between Wegener's continental drift hypothesis and the theory of plate tectonics?
a)
Wegener's continental drift hypothesis was not supported by evidence.
b)
Wegener's continental drift hypothesis did not give a plausible explanation for how continents move.
c)
Wegener's continental drift hypothesis did not state that the continents were arranged into a supercontinent many millions of years ago.
d)
Wegener's continental drift hypothesis did not give an accurate estimate for the length of time involved in continent motion.
20.
Which statement best explains how the continents have changed over the last 200 milion years, according to the continental drift hypothesis?
a)
They drifted into and out of about seven different supercontinent configurations.
b)
They drifted into and out of about fifteen different supercontinent configurations.
c)
They split apart from a supercontinent and very slowly moved to their current positions.
d)
They formed a stable supercontinent until the last ice age, when they rapidly moved to their current positions.
21.
Which evidence supports Wegener's continental drift hypothesis?
a)
similar fossils found on opposite sides of an ocean
b)
meteorite impact craters in continental crust
c)
the buildup of sediment along continental margins
d)
all of the above
22.
South America and Africa appear to fit together like pieces in a puzzle. This observation is explained by
a)
gravitational theory
b)
electromagnetic forces
c)
the laws of motion
d)
the hypothesis of continental drift
23.
According to Wegener's continental drift hypothesis, the continents were once part of a supercontinent called
a)
Antares
b)
Europa
c)
Mons
d)
Pangaea
24.
Which mechanism for continental motion did Wegener propose in his continental drift hypothesis?
a)
The continents push through the rock of the ocean floor.
b)
The continents drift on tectonic plates that move due to mantle convection.
c)
The continents shift as a result of changes in Earth's magnetic field.
d)
none of the above
25.
According to Alfred Wegener's hypothesis of continental drift, the continents were joined together in the supercontinent Pangaea approximately
a)
200,000 years ago
b)
2 million years ago
c)
200 million years ago
d)
2 billion years ago
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