Plate tectonics is an earth sciences topic that attracts a good deal of interest, given that it a topic very often featured in popular science programmes on TV and radio.
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April 28, 2022
English
English [CC]
Description
It is a subject that has strong visual appeal. In this 15-hour free course the coverage is self-contained, up to date and is written in a way that will be accessible to those with interest and motivation, all the more so for those who have some pre-existing scientific understanding.
Course learning outcomes
After studying this course, you should be able to:
- Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the theory of tectonic plates and the different forms of evidence (e.g. palaeontology, palaeomagnetism, continuity of structures etc.) that can be used to understand the movement of the lithospheric plates over geological time
- Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the mechanisms of crustal growth and transfer of heat at spreading ocean ridges
- Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the three main types of plate boundary (constructive, destructive and conservative) and how they interact at triple junctions
- Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the difference between relative and true plate motion
- Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the driving and retarding forces that influence plate motion at constructive, destructive and conservative plate boundaries.
Course Curriculum
- Introduction 00:05:00
- Learning outcomes 00:10:00
- Preamble: the moving Earth 00:15:00
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- Continental drift 00:40:00
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- Geometric continental reconstructions 00:15:00
- Geological match and continuity of structure 00:15:00
- Climate, sediment and the mismatch of sedimentary deposits with latitude 00:20:00
- Palaeontological evidence 00:07:00
- Palaeomagnetic evidence and ‘polar wander’ 00:30:00
- Sea-floor spreading 00:10:00
- Linear magnetic anomalies – a record of tectonic movement 01:00:00
- Plate tectonics 00:03:00
- Assumptions 00:20:00
- What is a plate? 00:07:00
- Heat flow within plates 01:00:00
- Constructive plate boundaries 01:00:00
- Destructive plate boundaries 00:20:00
- Destructive plate boundaries, continued: ocean-ocean (island-arc) subduction 01:30:00
- Destructive plate boundaries, continued: ocean-continent (Andean type) subduction 00:15:00
- Destructive plate boundaries, continued: continent-continent destructive boundaries 00:20:00
- Conservative plate boundaries and transform faults 00:30:00
- Triple junctions 00:20:00
- Why do plates move? 00:20:00
- Forces acting upon lithospheric plates 00:05:00
- Forces acting on the underside of lithospheric plates 00:10:00
- Lithospheric plates: forces acting at plate margins 01:00:00
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