Plate Tectonics

No need to be an earth scientist or geologist to know that earthquakes and the shifting of plates due to plate tectonics are a major cause of tsunamis. Showcase your scientific attitude with any of these geography gifts featuring the Puerto Rico trench between the Caribbean Plate and the North American Plate along with a ponderous thought: "The Next Tsunami To Hit The United States Could Come From An Earthquake Along The Puerto Rico Trench". Make others do a double-take about what is geographically and theoretically possible with these plate tectonics fan gifts today!

No need to be a geologist or earth scientist to enjoy wry suggestive scientific humor with any of these gifts featuring the three different types of plate boundaries along with the saying "Subduction Leads To Orogeny". Orogeny means mountain-builiding; subduction is part of the tectonic forces within Earth that leads to mountain-building -- i.e, when one plate is subsumed under another and a mountain chain forms (think Himalayas). Make others do a double-take about what you are saying with a dose of plate tectonic attitude with these memorable educational gifts!

If you have ever been through an earthquake, then you've probably read up on plate tectonics. Showcase your wry plate tectonic attitude side with a dose of geographical style with any of these gifts featuring the various tectonic plates of the world along with the query: "Millions Of People Live On An Edge Will Mother Nature's Friction Affect You?" Make others do a double-take with a dose of scientific style with this ubiquitous query on any of these earthquake attitude gifts -- especially for all who live in a seismic area!

I couldn't stop thinking about the intraplate earthquake that hit the East Coast yesterday. Earth scientists, of course, know that "Intraplate Earthquakes Happen All The Time". (You can purchase any of the following educational, geographical gifts with this scientific truism below -- hint, hint.)

Take the case of the New Madrid Seismic Zone, a major seismic zone and a prolific source of intraplate earthquakes (earthquakes within a tectonic plate) in the southern and midwestern United States, stretching to the southwest from New Madrid, Missouri. This seismic zone in the United States is comprised of reactivated faults that formed when what is now North America began to split or rift apart during the breakup of the supercontinent Rodinia in the Neoproterozoic Era. Technically, the New Madrid fault system was responsible for the 1811–1812 New Madrid earthquakes. Along the lines of earthquake-prone California, where various fault lines lie (most notably the San Andreas Fault which is the strike-slip tectonic boundary between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate), the New Madrid region may also have the potential to produce large earthquakes in the future.

Ever been in an earthquake or two? A 5.8 magnitude earthquake was reported in Virginia today and felt all along the East Coast. I felt the earthquake in NYC, but it's definitely not the big one due in the NYC every couple hundreds of years. As someone who has lived along the West Coast and felt earthquakes in California and Washington state, this earthquake tremor was relatively serene.

The key issue is as follows: Are you prepared for a major earthquake? Advise others gently with a dose of scientific humor with any of these gifts featuring a map of the world's tectonic plates along with the truism saying "Shift Happens - Be Prepared For Mother Nature's Friction". Make others do a double-take about the subject of earthquakes today with a dose of educational fun!