Plate Tectonics is fundamental to our understanding of how the planet works. It is Earth's Operating System - EOS - and without it we would not be here, nor would there be any land, any oceans and any life. Read on more to find out why.
There were those who thought plate tectonics was a pile of nonsense. Alfred Wegener published his book on the theory in 1915, and it took 50 years for it to come of age and become the grand unified theory of the Earth Sciences. So for some it was nothing more than a myth, and a dangerous one at that.
The acceptance of the theory completely revolutionised the study of the Earth Sciences
Plate Tectonics would be the lens through which you view the world. The acceptance of the theory completely revolutionised the study of the Earth Sciences and provided a mechanism for explaining almost everything, which until then had not been available. 1965 was the year the world changed, for geologists at least.
Uplift, rejuvenation of rivers, and erosion are all the result of Plate Tectonics
Everything is a result of plate motion. The shape of the ocean basins, the high Alps and the high Himalayas, the volcanoes of South America, the American northwest, Japan and Indonesia are due to plate tectonics. Tsunamis, which we have had two very destructive ones in the last 20 years are a result of plate tectonics. Earthquakes in California or Nepal are the result of Plate Tectonics. Uplift, rejuvenation of rivers, and erosion are all the result of Plate Tectonics.
Our very existence is a result of the sequestration of carbon
Speciation of animals and humans alike is the result of Plate Tectonics. Mineral deposits, so important to our modern lifestyles, are the result of plate tectonics. Our very existence is a result of the sequestration of carbon via the Carbon Silicate Cycle – a feedback loop that keeps temperatures under control and by extension makes our planet habitable. Go read the Carbon Silicate Cycle here to find out some more about that vital and fundamental process.
Geomorphology is fundamentally controlled by the underlying geology
I am an Earth Scientist, and Plate Tectonics is the fundamental orthodoxy of our creed, for the reasons I have just given. You are a geographer, studying physical processes and landforms. Geomorphology is fundamentally controlled by the underlying geology. Huge granite batholiths poking their heads through ancient metamorphosed rocks create landscapes that are very different to those underlain by softer schists, which in turn are very different to landscapes underlain by hard, resistant sandstones. Sure, there are other processes that come into play, but let us not deal with these now.
Everything then cascades beautifully
I am of the opinion that the whole study of physical geography should fall under the umbrella of plate tectonics – it should be the first port of call in terms of framing the syllabus. For all the reasons given above. Once we understand this fundamental operating system, everything then cascades beautifully down the hierarchy.
