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?The evolution of Pangaea
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By fishes, Section Biology
Posted on Fri Apr 30th, 2010 at 01:34:03 AM PST
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A number of hypotheses have been put forth as to how the continents as we know them today, first came to exist. The most popular existing theory is the `continental drift theory'. This theory suggests that one giant super-continent existed on planet earth before separation of the continental shelf. This super continent has been named Pangaea. It is thought that Pangaea began to break apart approximately 225-200 million years ago.
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| I propose a study that utilizes synchronous coefficient of drag alteration (SCODA), a relatively new nucleic acid purification technique, in order to examine soil samples from several dispersed geographic locations from each of the seven continents. The robust purification of nucleic acids followed by high-throughput sequencing of samples and the use of known values for mutation rates, will allow for the comparison of microbial DNA from across the world. These comparisons can draw a number of interesting conclusions.
First, the data will infer phylogeny of micro species within each continent. This may lend insight into intra continental historical human migration patterns.
Second, the data will infer phylogeny of micro species between continents, thereby lending insight into the evolutionary timeline of continental drift.
Additionally, intermediate continental patterns may be inferred. This can allow insight into the ecological climate of the planet at different time points.
It is interesting to gain insight into the evolutionary history of the geography of our planet. Obtaining increasingly precise calculations of the continental drift time-line not only teaches us about the history of the land we walk on, but it may also lend insight into the dynamics of the ecological climate over the lifetime of earth.
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