Download plate tectonics gizmo

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Plate Tectonics Gizmo
Background Information:
During the 1800s, geologists were unsure what caused the creation of mountains. In 1908, an American
geologist, F. B. Taylor, suggested that collisions between drifting continental plates might be the cause.
Geologists had long considered the possibility that continental plates moved — the idea of continental drift. A
key piece of evidence for that theory was the amazingly similar shapes of the eastern coastline of the Americas
and the western coastline of Africa and Europe. Perhaps these continents were once connected?
The discovery of the mid-Atlantic ridge provided the proof that geologists needed. This ridge runs the entire
length of the Atlantic Ocean, paralleling the eastern coasts of the Americas and the western coasts of Africa and
Europe. It is now accepted that molten material from deep within the Earth rises up in these locations and forces
the lithosphere (hard outer crust of the Earth) outward, pushing the continents apart. This discovery led to a
theory called plate tectonics, describing continental drift and its causes.
Exploring Plate Movement
In this activity, you will explore the interactions that occur between the Earth's plates at their boundaries.
Procedures:
1. In the Gizmo, select BOUNDARY A. Turn on Boundary name and Show labels. The diagram in the middle
of this Gizmo shows a cross-section of a region, shown from the side. The colored stripe with four arrows on it,
just above the sky in the diagram, is an overhead view of the same region. When the BOUNDARY A tab is
selected, you have control over the leftmost plate in the diagram. (Notice the boundary shown as a thin vertical
black line in the ground between the two houses.)
2. With all of the other options still turned on, select the BOUNDARY B tab. Click on the left arrow to see
what happens when the left plate moves.
3. Select the BOUNDARY C tab. Click on the left arrow to see what happens when the left plate moves.
4. Select the BOUNDARY D tab. Click on the left arrow to see what happens when the left plate moves.
Data Table:
Boundary
A
B
C
D
Type of Boundary
Type of Movement
Features
Location
Questions:
1. Which boundary is most likely to result in a volcanic eruption?
2. Which boundary is forms new lithosphere?
3. Which boundary affects us the most in California?
4. Which boundary demonstrates sea-floor spreading?
5. Which boundary formed the highest mountains?
6. If new crust is being made, why isn’t the earth growing bigger?