Use the website link below, Internet research, and my course Webliography, along with your Physical Geology, 2nd ed. textbook (esp. Chapters 3, 10, and 18) to complete this assignment. Explore the United States Geological Survey (USGS) “Dynamic Earth” website: http://pubs.usgs.gov/publications/text/dynamic.html.  Note: This weblink is also found in my course Webliography along with more recent plate tectonics Internet sources.

Based on your interpretation of the maps and diagrams in the USGS “Dynamic Earth” website and your textbook answer the following two questions in “essay style”.

A1. Where are the major concentrations of the world’s earthquakes?  What is the main type of plate boundary there?  Are earthquake and volcano locations related to the Pacific “Ring of Fire”?  Give some specific geologic locations around the ring.  What major submarine geologic feature is located near most of the Pacific ring?  Explain how earthquake and volcano locations help support the theory of plate tectonics.

A2. What are the geologic differences between continental plates and oceanic plates?  Which plate type is associated with mainly extrusive igneous rocks, and which is associated with mainly intrusive igneous rocks?  What is the major igneous rock type forming the deep-ocean basins and what is the major igneous rock type forming the base of all the continents?  Describe each rock type and how they differ.  How is this difference related to the depths of the oceans and the higher elevations of the continents?  Make sure that you use specific plates as examples of each. How are the crustal plates related to the asthenosphere?  What is isostacy?  Explain.

PART B.

After viewing my PPT lecture “The Geology of Iceland: Plate Tectonics & The Mid-Atlantic Ridge” answer the following questions:

B1. What did you learn about “plate tectonics” and “diverging plates”?  Why is Iceland such a great natural environment to learn about plate tectonic theory?  Why are there mainly extrusive igneous rocks in Iceland?

B2. What are geologic “hot spots”?  How are they related to plate tectonics?  What volcanic and geothermal activities occur near and on hotspots?  Besides Iceland, name two other hot spot locations.

B3. Answer any of the questions asked within the Iceland lecture (give title and slide number).

B4. Overall, was this a helpful lecture for learning about plate tectonics, hot spots, and extrusive igneous rocks?  What was the most interesting or surprising fact you learned about volcanic Iceland?