In some sense, living on the surface of Earth is like riding in bumper cars, as the blocks of rock beneath are feet slowly move across the planet. Realistically, these are slow-moving bumper cars, but they back a major punch whenever they slam into one another. Anyone who has ever found themselves in the midst of an earthquake can attest that plate motion can have a major impact on the environment.
In this module, we will investigate the movement of crustal plates on Earth. We will start by looking at earthquakes and how they are measured, and then move on to analyzing how fast plates move across the surface. We will end with an activity that investigates the mechanics of plate motion and asks you some questions about where you would bury toxic materials.