Download Science - Chaparral Middle School

FOSSILS QUESTIONS:
If you found fossils of ancient fish in the middle of the desert, what would this tell you?
Explain why.
If my cat died, and I buried it in the backyard, and every day the sprinklers came on and
watered the backyard, would my dead cat turn into a fossil? Whether you say yes or no,
explain the answer you chose.
Why don’t scientists find fossils in igneous and metamorphic rock?
Describe the process of pertrification.
If millions and millions of dinosaurs lived and died on the earth, why do we find so few
dinosaur fossils? It has nothing to do with not being found yet.
Why will scientists never find a dinosaur trapped in amber?
Why is water so necessary to turn a bone into a stone?
How come scientists very rarely find the remains of prehistoric organisms such as jellyfish
and worms?
LAND BRIDGE:
What is a land bridge? What two things have to happen for a land bridge to form? How is a
Land Bridge "created"?
When Wegener discussed plants and animals, he said that the Land Bridges theory
couldn’t be correct. Explain some of the reasons we discussed, which showed why
this theory doesn’t make sense.
Why is there no land bridge directly from South America to Africa?
Describe the theory of the land bridge, that we discussed in class, which explained how
dinosaur fossils could be found on two separate continents?
CONVECTION CURRENTS
Explain how convection currents work AND how they move the Earth’s crust. Be specific.
CONTINENTAL DRIFT
In 1910, a German scientist named Alfred Wegener formed a different theory. Describe
what his theory says to explain these fossils?
Some continents seem to fit together like jigsaw puzzle pieces. But other don’t. How did
Wegener know which way to put together his map of Pangaea?
List and explain the FOUR types of evidence Wegener used to prove Continental Drift.
What were the four different types of “proof” that Wegener used to show that his
Continental Drift (Pangaea) theory was a better theory than the Land Bridge theory?
Describe each in detail, and HOW they help prove his theory.
One piece of evidence that Wegener used to help explain his Continental Drift theory, was
how the continents seem to fit together like puzzle pieces. Choose any two (2) other
types of evidence, and explain in detail how they help prove his theory
How is Wegener’s Continental Drift theory like a giant Birthday Cake? Explain how these
comparisons are related to our discussion of probability.
Both the Land Bridge theory and Wegener’s Continental Drift theory, which explain similar
fossils found on different continents, could be correct. Yet scientists almost all believe
Wegener’s.
WHY? Explain your answer by giving support related to our discussion of
probability.
How did Wegener use the shape of the continents to help support his theory?
How did Wegener use fossil evidence to support his theory of continental drift? Why did
Wegener choose the particular fossils that he did?
How did Wegener use rock layer (landform) evidence to support his theory?
Explain how this evidence helps us “see” that continental drift could work.
How did Wegener use climate evidence to support his theory of continental drift?
Explain how this evidence helps us “see” that continental drift could work.
Why did most geologists of the time reject Wegener’s theory of Continental Drift?
Wegener searched for particular fossils to help him prove his theory. Why did Wegener
choose the particular fossils that he did? Why didn’t he choose the first first ones he found,
or the easiest fossils to find, like fish?
SEA FLOOR SPREADING:
How does sonar work to help us learn about and “map” the ocean floor?
Explain how the processes of sea-floor spreading and magnetic reversal produce bands of
oceanic crust that have different ages and magnetic charges.
How do magnetic stripes help prove sea-floor spreading is taking place?
How do the drilling samples help prove sea-floor spreading is taking place?
What did the scientists learn when they used the submersible (unmanned submarine) called
A.L.V.I.N.?
Describe the processes that cause the Earth to become a giant magnet.
How do rocks layers in volcanoes show that magnetic reversal has occurred?
Explain how scientist know that the ocean floor wasn’t all made at the same time, but is
actually “growing”. Use at least one piece of evidence we talked about, and show how it
supports.
List and explain the FOUR types of machines that scientists use to prove sea-floor
spreading exists.
Give evidence to show that sea-floor spreading exists. In other words, explain how we know
that new crust is being made in the ocean.
PLATE TECTONICS:
If the Earth crust is growing / spreading / getting wider at the mid-ocean ridges, then why
doesn’t the entire planet get bigger every year?
Describe how the Earth is like a checkstand at a grocery store.
- Which part of the Earth is the "turning wheels"? What makes these wheels spin?
- Which part is the black rubber belt?
- Which part are the groceries? What makes the two types of Earth's "groceries" different?
What is a "Tectonic Plate"? What is one made from? There are two types of plates.
Describe what makes them different.
If two plates come together and collide only once, why do we have three types of
convergent boundaries?
How do scientists know where plate boundaries are located, if they are found mostly at the
bottom of the ocean?
When two continents collide, how come there aren’t any volcanoes being made?
When two plates collide, it makes a convergent boundary. Yet there are three types of
convergent boundaries, not one. Explain why, AND explain the differences between these
three types.
A continental plate is much thicker and heavier than an oceanic plate. When an oceanic and
continental plate collide with an oceanic plate, how come the heavier continental plate doesn't
sink?
When two oceanic plates collide, they are both very dense so they should both go down.
But only one goes down, while the other “floats”. Explain why
Why don’t we get volcanoes everywhere in the world, since magma is underneath the
Earth everywhere? Why are they only found in certain locations?
There is a mid-ocean ridge in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean AND the middle of the
Pacific Ocean. Yet the Atlantic is growing and the Pacific is shrinking. Explain how this
is possible?
How come South America has volcanic mountains on the left side, where continent crust
touches ocean crust, but there are no volcanic mountains on the right side, where the
continental crust touches ocean crust?
If the Earth was solid all the way through the planet, instead of partially liquid like it is
now, describe what the world would be like, in terms of the things we discussed.
There are virtually no major earthquakes (or volcanoes) found in the middle of any
continental landmasses in the world. Provide a logical explanation for this fact, and give
supporting details for your reason.
Propose another theory to explain how fossils of certain animals and plants found on
continents thousands of miles apart could occur. Remember to include logical, observable
facts that help support your theory.
Explain the mechanisms by which the massive continents can move around the world for
millions of years. What other aspects of nature do these mechanisms also work in? Briefly
explain how they would work in these other areas.
DEFORMATION
FAULTS
EARTHQUAKES
If earthquakes are only formed when one piece of crust rubs against another piece of
crust, like at plate boundaries, then how can Kansas in the middle of a plate still get
earthquakes?