science

What evidence suggests the continents were once all together but then drifted apart?

Mountain ranges in North America match up with those along the European coastline. Similar fossils of plants and animals are found on widely separated continents. Remains of tropical plants have been found in Antarctica. Matching jigsaw puzzle coastlines exist, particularly with the west coast of Africa and east coast of South America.

food web

a diagram that shows the connections among food chains in an ecosystem

hydrologic cycle

a natural and continuous cycle of Earth that recycles and distributes Earth's water; often called the water cycle

fault line

area along plate boundaries and ridges where the crust of the lithosphere is fractured

subduction zone

area where an oceanic plate sinks into the asthenosphere under another plate

divergent boundary

area where tectonic plates are moving away from each other

convergent boundary

area where tectonic plates meet and push against each other

transform boundary

area where tectonic plates slide sideways past each other

decomposers

bacteria and fungi that break down dead matter

The Earth's crustal plates move due to _____ currents.

convection

lower mantle

layer just outside of the outer core

upper mantle

layer that includes the asthenosphere

food chain

line of plants and animals that shows the order in which organisms are eaten

Plate tectonics suggests that the______ floats and moves on the ___________ .

lithosphere athenosphere

lithosphere

made of large plates that move. the solid, crustal layer of Earth

inner core

made of solid iron

tectonic cycle

natural and continuous cycle of Earth that recycles Earth's lithospheric plates

rock cycle

natural and continuous cycle of Earth that recycles Earth's minerals

secondary consumer

organisms that eat primary consumers

primary consumer

organisms that eat producers

The seven continents used to be one huge supercontinent called _____.

pangaea

asthenosphere

plastic portion of the upper mantle of the earth

tertiary consumer

predator that eats secondary consumers

nitrification

process by which certain bacteria convert ammonium into nitrates

denitrification

process by which certain bacteria convert nitrates into nitrogen gas

ammonification

process by which certain bacteria convert organic nitrogen into ammonia and ammonium salts during decomposition

nitrogen fixation

process by which certain bacteria in the soil convert nitrogen gas into ammonia and ammonium

photosynthesis

process by which green plants convert carbon dioxide, water, and energy from the Sun into sugars

respiration

process by which living cells produce usable energy from food

assimilation

process by which plants or animals convert nutrients into usable organic compounds, such as proteins

deposition

process by which sediment flows into a reservoir

metamorphism

process of intense heat and pressure which changes igneous or sedimentary rock into metamorphic rock

weathering

process that breaks down rock through physical and chemical changes

kinetic

related to or possessing motion

A well-known transform boundary found in California is the _____. A well-known transform boundary found in California is the _____.

san andreas fault

potential

something possible; ability to go into action or perform work

atmosphere

the gaseous layer of a planet, usually retained by its gravity

biosphere

the living organisms of earth

transpiration

the process by which plants give off water vapor

thermodynamics

the study of energy and its transformations

hydrosphere

the water system of the earth; solid, liquid, and gas phases

crust

thin, rigid surface of Earth

earth quakes are normally made by

transform boundaries

equilibrium

two opposing forces in balance or when two opposite processes occur at equal rates

outer core

very dense liquid of iron and sulfur