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8 pages/≈2200 words
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MLA
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Life Sciences
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Essay
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English (U.S.)
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EES 112 Writing Assignment Paper: Pangea, Alfred Wegener

Essay Instructions:

Term Paper Guidelines
EES 112
One writing assignment is required for the course. It should be at least 2,000 words long. Spelling and grammar will be heavily emphasized in the grade assignment. Each paper will also be checked for plagiarism. You cannot pass the course without completing the writing assignment with a passing grade.
The topic of the term paper should be relevant to the course. Examples of past topics include evolution, dinosaurs, a particular type of dinosaur, a particular time period, formation of earth, etc. If you are not sure if your topic is relevant, please check with me.
Be very careful about plagiarism. It is easy to do accidentally - it's your job to make sure that you write an original paper. I WILL check your references - if I see that your material is too similar to your references, you may lose points or may score zero depending on the seriousness of the offense. 
FORMAT OF THE PAPER 
REMEMBER: THIS IS ONLY AN EXAMPLE! YOU DO NOT NEED TO DO YOUR PAPER ON EARTHQUAKES IN CALIFORNIA!!
ALSO: DO NOT LABEL THE PARTS OF YOUR PAPER SUCH AS BODY, INTRODUCTION, ETC.
Your paper should include the sections listed below. It should be typed with 1 inch margins, double-spaced, and with 12 point type.
PAGE 1 — 
Cover sheet 
Include the title of your paper and your name as the author 
BEGINNING ON PAGE 2 — 
Introduction 
Introduce the topic (e.g. earthquake hazard) and the place (location, population, etc.). Include any historical background you may not address in the body of the paper. You might also include here anything about the significance or impact of your topic either globally or in a particular location. 
Body 
This is the bulk of the term paper and the most important section - you should break it down into several topics that relate to your paper (These topics should have their own headings). If your topic is “Earthquakes in California” for example, you could break down the body of the paper into several topics like those listed below -each topic will turn into at least one paragraph or a few paragraphs at most: 
1) The history of earthquakes in California 
2) Faults in California (or Faults in the San Francisco Bay Area) 
3) The San Andreas fault 
a) The 1906 San Francisco earthquake 
- Location of the epicenter 
- Magnitude 
- Surficial features caused by the earthquake (offset fences, 
ground rupture) 
- Damage caused in San Francisco 
b) The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake 
(See examples in a) above) 
4) The Hayward fault 
5) Future earthquake potential and earthquake prediction 
Conclusions 
Summarize your paper in a paragraph or two. Only include items that are the most relevant, exciting, or important. 
References cited 
You should reference at least 4 or 5 books, newspaper/journal/magazine articles, maps, or websites to research your topic. Be sure your references are reputable such as usgs.gov, geology.com, National Geographic, etc. Include references for anything used in your figures - whether you photocopy, trace, scan, download figures. Follow the format below for citing your references: 
Articles 
Smith, J.D., 1995, Historical earthquakes in California, California Geology , v. 100, p. 25- 32. 
Books 
Smith, J.D., 1995, Historical earthquakes in California, Earth Science Publishers, New York, 315p. 
Web sites 
Discovering Plate Boundaries, Rice University: [http://zephyr(dot)rice(dot)edu/plateboundary/] 
You should incorporate your references into your text like this: “There were 15 earthquakes larger than magnitude 3.0 in the Bay Area during 1999 (Smith, 1995). Figure 3 shows a map of earthquake epicenters in the Bay Area for 1999 (see http://www(dot)usgs(dot)gov/earthquakes/1999 ).” Many of you will choose to use several web sites as references. Make sure you include the entire URL or web address. For example, if you are referencing a specific earthquake, use the URL that takes me directly to the information you are citing (http://earthquake(dot)usgs(dot)gov/eqinthenews/nc40133364/) and not the general web site that you started your search through (http://earthquake(dot)usgs(dot)gov/). You may be docked points for references that I can't find (particularly for web sites). 
Figures and Figure Captions 
You should use figures such as maps, photos, line drawings, etc. to supplement your paper. Only include figures if they are relevant, necessary to get your point across, or if the topic is better understood with the figure. Unnecessary figures will be considered "filler material" and may not count toward your total score on the assignment. You are required to include at least 2 figures. You must include at least one map to show the location or global significance of the topic you are researching. For example, if you are looking at earthquakes in California, you could include a map of California that shows the major fault lines in the state. If you are writing about a hazard related to plate tectonics (e.g., earthquakes or volcanoes), you should include an appropriate map showing the plate tectonic setting (for “Earthquakes in California”, you could incorporate the boundary between the Pacific and North American plates into your map of California) 

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Pangea
Pangea or Pangaea is the name of one of the supercontinents that existed before the present-day continents’ configuration and size. According to geology.com, the term supercontinent describes a large landmass that was formed as a result of the convergence of multiple but smaller landmasses. Pangea is the most recent supercontinent, and geologists estimate that it existed over 225 million years ago. The continents as they are shaped right now were all but a single major landmass. Unlike the shape and arrangement of today’s continents, Pangea was in the Southern hemisphere and was surrounded by a large water mass known as Panthalassa. Supercontinents, although on record and their years of existence already determined, have never been reconstructed except Pangea. Geologists have managed to reconstruct Pangaea and to show a majority of its properties which are indeed incredibly enlightening. As per the information that most geologists provide, Pangea existed during the Mesozoic and Paleozoic eras, and albeit the fact that most of the information gathered is era-prone, one cannot fail to notice and marvel at the perfect coincidence of the earth’s current shape.
The name Pangea was coined by Alfred Wegener who is credited and nicknamed the father of the theory of continental drift. It is believed that Wegener came to the conclusion of Pangea when he noticed that the shape of the world would fit together if continents were joined just as they are. This prompted him to think that there is a possibility that the world was one day shaped into one big landmass but eventually separated to form the continents as they are today. To explain his ideas to the world and share his discovery, Alfred later developed the continental drift theory. Through his book The Origin of Continents and Oceans, Alfred finally exposed his ideas to the world, and in 1927, he used the term Pangea for the first time at a symposium and until today, the world has stuck with it.
The history and geography of Pangea are intriguing, and with the vast evidence that exists, Wegener’s notion seem all the more credible. First of all, the continents of the world flawlessly fitting together are one of the simplest pieces of evidence. Apparently, the continents rather accurately support Wegener’s notion of the world being a land mass millions of years ago. Archaeological evidence also adds on to the claim of Pangea’s existence. In North America, specifically Pennsylvania, coal deposits similar to the ones in Poland, Germany, and Britain have been found. Therefore, the likelihood that Europe and North America were once a single mass of land is high. Animals and plants have also been used as evidence, and the discovery of similar plants and animals in some continents all but confirms that the world was once joined but later separated.
Geologists believe that Pangea was C-shaped. The land was massive, and this impacted the climate of some regions within the continent and thus explained the climatic conditions of some continents today. Unlike the outer regions of the land that received ample rainfall, the inland areas were dry mainly because of lack of precipitation. Animals had no geographical restrictio...
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