. Collected reprints, Essa Institute for Oceanography. Oceanography great liberties with the shapes of the pieces as though the continents were made of rubber. The reconstructions of former supercontinents are easy to make by such sketch-map methods, but are they meaningful? Using conti- nental cutouts or templates for achiev- ing fit on a globe is another favorite device of drifters. Unfortunately some of these have been done on a globe of 12-inch diameter or less. And one recent paper records the use of a 6-inch globe! Good "fits" are easy to achieve on a ping-pong-ba
. Collected reprints, Essa Institute for Oceanography. Oceanography great liberties with the shapes of the pieces as though the continents were made of rubber. The reconstructions of former supercontinents are easy to make by such sketch-map methods, but are they meaningful? Using conti- nental cutouts or templates for achiev- ing fit on a globe is another favorite device of drifters. Unfortunately some of these have been done on a globe of 12-inch diameter or less. And one recent paper records the use of a 6-inch globe! Good "fits" are easy to achieve on a ping-pong-ball-sized globe. Nonetheless, the case for the former existence of the southern hemisphere supercontinent of Gondwana, at least, is particularly strong. Attempting its reconstruction is a fascinating jigsaw puzzle—a game for the Gods, as some of the pieces are missing. Tibetan Plateau: Two Continents Thick India is universally recognized by drifters as a part of Gondwana, al- though it is physically attached to Asia. Geologists agree that the rocks of India are wholly unlike those of Asia. India's present position is ascribed to its hav- ing impinged against the underbelly of Asia on its journey north, forcing up the Himalaya Mountains and the Ti- betan Plateau in the process. This may seem too much to believe, but it is ac- tually reasonable. Tibet is 14,000 feet high, or equivalent to the relief of a continental slope. Looking north at issoe ?. Following Wegener's lead, many drifters have made forced reconstruction by considering the continents as pliable as rubber . . but are such fits meaningful? 73. Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Institute for Oceanography; Atlantic Oceanographic Laboratories (U. S. ); Pacific Oceanographic Laboratories; United States. Environmental Science Services Ad
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