Understanding Tectonic Plate Movement

What is the term used to describe the pieces of Earth's crust that are moving?

• Mantle currents

• Tectonic plates

• Continental drifts

• Core fragments

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DOK Level 2: Skill/Concept

Which layer of the Earth is directly involved in the movement of tectonic plates?

• Outer core

• Inner core

• Upper mantle

• Lower mantle

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DOK Level 2: Skill/Concept

How do converging currents in the upper mantle affect tectonic plates?

• They pull plates apart

• They drive plates into each other

• They cause plates to rotate

• They make plates stationary

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DOK Level 2: Skill/Concept

What technological advancement allows us to track the motion of tectonic plates with millimeter precision?

• Seismographs

• Satellite tracking from space

• Deep-sea drilling

• Ground-based radar

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DOK Level 2: Skill/Concept

What happens to hot mantle rock as it rises from the core and moves under the crust?

• It cools and becomes lighter

• It cools and becomes heavier

• It heats up and becomes lighter

• It heats up and becomes heavier

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DOK Level 2: Skill/Concept

Which of the following statements is mostly true about the movement of tectonic plates?

• They are stationary and do not move

• They are passively riding on mantle currents

• They are driven by the rotation of the Earth

• They are moved by converging and diverging currents in the upper mantle

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DOK Level 2: Skill/Concept

What is the simplified explanation for why tectonic plates are moving?

• They are pushed by ocean currents

• They are carried along on currents in the upper mantle

• They are pulled by gravitational forces

• They are driven by wind patterns

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DOK Level 2: Skill/Concept

What is the primary reason geologists started believing in the movement of continents in the 1960s?

• Discovery of new continents

• Mounting evidence of Earth's crust being broken into fragments

• Changes in ocean levels

• Advances in fossil studies

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DOK Level 2: Skill/Concept