The Formation of Geologic Features Experiment
[TG.04] Experiment Steps to Demonstrate Geologic Feature Formation
One student designed an experiment to demonstrate the formation of a geologic feature. The steps of the experiment are listed below:
- Place a rectangular piece of cardboard on a table.
- Cut a strip of paper one inch long and half an inch wide.
- Place the paper strip on the cardboard along one of its edges.
- Use a clip to attach the middle of the paper strip to the cardboard so that approximately half of the paper strip is on each side of the clip.
- Place one hand on each of the two halves of the paper strip.
- Push both ends of the paper strip towards the clip.
- Observe the formation of ripples on the paper.
Which of these geologic features was created by the process demonstrated by the student's experiment?
Question:
Which of these geologic features was created by the process demonstrated by the student's experiment?
A) the Big Island of Hawaii
B) the Grand Canyon
C) the Himalayan mountain range
D) the Sierra Nevada Mountains
Answer:
The student's experiment simulates the mountain-building process, and the geologic feature created is most akin to the Himalayan mountain range, which is formed by the collision and folding of tectonic plates.
Explanation:
The experiment described by the student demonstrates the process of mountain building, most likely through the geological concept of plate tectonics and the collision of tectonic plates causing folding and faulting of the Earth's crust. The paper strip represents the Earth's crust being pushed together, which results in the formation of ripples or mountains. Based on the choices given and the nature of the experiment, the most suitable answer to what geologic feature was created by the student's experiment is C) the Himalayan mountain range. This range was formed by the collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates and resembles the ripples formed in the paper in the student's experiment. This type of mountain formation is different from the volcanic processes that created the Hawaiian Islands, the erosion that formed the Grand Canyon, or the specific tectonic activity that formed the Sierra Nevada Mountains.