Principle of lateral continuity
Okay kiddo, imagine you have a really long piece of string. You fold it in half and make a loop. Now, you cut the loop in half so that you have two shorter pieces of string.
No matter how much you stretch and twist each piece of string, you can still see that they used to be connected to each other in the loop. That's kind of how the principle of lateral continuity works.
When we look at rocks that are layered on top of each other, we can tell that they used to be connected even if they're now separated by something like a river or canyon. This is because we know that those layers of rock came from the same place and were laid down at the same time, stretching out in all directions.
So even if the rocks have been eroded or shifted around, we can figure out where they used to be connected because they share the same layers and patterns. Just like our pieces of string, the layers of rock have a "memory" of their origins and connections even if they're now separated. This helps scientists understand the history of the earth and how it has changed over time. Cool, right?
No matter how much you stretch and twist each piece of string, you can still see that they used to be connected to each other in the loop. That's kind of how the principle of lateral continuity works.
When we look at rocks that are layered on top of each other, we can tell that they used to be connected even if they're now separated by something like a river or canyon. This is because we know that those layers of rock came from the same place and were laid down at the same time, stretching out in all directions.
So even if the rocks have been eroded or shifted around, we can figure out where they used to be connected because they share the same layers and patterns. Just like our pieces of string, the layers of rock have a "memory" of their origins and connections even if they're now separated. This helps scientists understand the history of the earth and how it has changed over time. Cool, right?