Based on the videos, you\'ve learned a great deal about the rocks that make up t

Question

Based on the videos, you've learned a great deal about the rocks that make up the Great Staircase. Now, use your logic and experience on sedimentary environments to choose the best (i.e. most definitive) evidence for an inland seaway over western North America in the past. Select one: a. erosion of the sedimentary rocks, which forms "badland" topography b. volcanic rock that eroded from the Rockies into the basin c. sand and gravels left behind by streams d. turtle shells, ammonoids, squids, seashells, and fossilized bones in the sedimentary rocks Choose the correct plate tectonic setting for western North America during the accumulation of the Grand Staircase rocks and the existence of this inland seaway. Select one: a. Strike-slip between the Pacific and North American plates b. Convergence between the Pacific and North American plates c. Divergence leading to the Basin and Range Province d. Western North America was a passive margin that sustained long-term deposition of marine sediments e. Convergence between the Farallon and North American plates What was the cause of the inland flooding that lead to a shallow seaway over western North America during this time period? Select one: a. The global climate was warm. As glaciers melted, global sea level rose higher and flooded western North America. b. The global climate was warm. The moist air increased the rainfall which flooded western North America. c. Wouldn't this precipitation just flow out to sea? Why did it flood much of western North America? d. The ancestral Sierra Nevada mountains blocked rain clouds from reaching the inland seaway and flooding western North America.

Explanation / Answer

Question 1: Sedimentary rocks evidence for an inland seaway over western North America in the past?

Answer: A. Erosion of the sedimentary rocks, which forms badland topography

Explanation: Erosion is the wearing away of rocks and this badlands regions are formed by crumbling rocks which results in dry hills and sharp cliffs. The two major elements that cause erosion are water and wind. From many years the climate has been changing regularly and that's the reason for dry hills and sharp cliffs located in Badlands national park. Interestingly some of the world's richest fossil beds are located in the Badlands.

Question 2: Plate tectonic setting for Western North America?

Answer: E. Convergence between the farallon and North American plates

Explanation: Before millions of years ago farallon lay between North America and Pacific plates, where these plates converged and farallon was subducted underneath North America and sank into the mantle. Literally California is surviving on the slab of farallon oceanic plate.

Question 3: Cause of the inland flooding?

Answer: B. The global climate was warm. The moist air increased the rainfall which flooded Western North America.

Explanation: Extreme precipitation events have intensified in recent decades across the United States. Warmer temperatures under climate change are subjected to increase precipitation intensity. This flooding severely affects human safety, health and property.

Related Questions

Navigate

• Browse (All)
• Browse B
• Subjects

---

---

Integrity-first tutoring: explanations and feedback only — we do not complete graded work. Learn more.