GEOL 1200 - The Mobile Earth

• Become familiar with the concept of paleomagnetism, its use in developing the hypothesis of sea-floor spreading and the evidence that substantiated this hypothesis.
• Become familiar with the process of terrane accretion (as exemplified by the North American Cordillera) as a prelude to continental collision.
• Know that mid-ocean ridges represent the surface manifestation of divergent plate boundaries and understand the processes occurring at these sites (as exemplified by the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the east Pacific Rise and Iceland).
• Know the geologic time scale and understand the concept of geologic time and the history behind our efforts to determine age of the Earth.
• Learn the concept of continental drift, the evidence upon which it was based, and the reasons for its rejection by the contemporary scientific community.
• Recognize the role of supercontinents, such as Pangea, in influencing the geologic, climatic and biological evolution of the earth.
• Understand convergent plate boundaries (as exemplified by the Pacific Ring of Fire, Indonesia and the Mediterranean), the volcanoes associated with these boundaries, and there impact on society.
• Understand the concept of hot spots on the earth’s surface (as exemplified by Hawaii and Yellowstone), their probable origin and their role in the break-up of continental land masses.
• Understand the process of continental break-up through the development rift systems (as exemplified by the East African Rift Valley) and their opening to form oceans.
• Understand the process of subduction and the recognition of its link of sea-floor spreading in formulating the theory of plate tectonics.
• Understand the processes associated with continental collision (as exemplified by the Appalachians, Alps and Himalayas).
• Understand transform faults such as the San Andreas, their role as conservative plate boundaries, the earthquakes they produce, and our effort to predict earthquakes and mitigate their effects.