--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Plate tectonics is not all havoc and…" description: "\"Plate tectonics is not all havoc and destruction. The slow movement of continents and ocean floors recycles carbon dioxide dissolved in the oceans back..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3da/seth-shostak-2047_atmosphere_plate-tectonics-is-not-all-havoc-and-des_189683.png" --- # Plate tectonics is not all havoc and destruction. The slow… ![“Plate tectonics is not all havoc and destruction. The slow movement of continents and ocean floors recycles carbon dioxide dissolved in the oceans back into the atmosphere. Without this slow speed carbon cycle, Earth's temperatures would cool dozens of degrees below your comfort zone.” quote by Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3da/seth-shostak-2047_atmosphere_plate-tectonics-is-not-all-havoc-and-des_189683.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3da/seth-shostak-2047_atmosphere_plate-tectonics-is-not-all-havoc-and-des_189683.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3da/seth-shostak-2047_atmosphere_plate-tectonics-is-not-all-havoc-and-des_189683.png) > “Plate tectonics is not all havoc and destruction. The slow movement of continents and ocean floors recycles carbon dioxide dissolved in the oceans back into the atmosphere. Without this slow speed carbon cycle, Earth's temperatures would cool dozens of degrees below your comfort zone.” [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Slow continental drift recycles carbon, stabilizing climate; rapid change would chill Earth. **In simple terms:** Plate movement balances climate. Key Takeaway Support natural slow processes. Themes science climate geology balance Mood thoughtful educational Type scientific informative When to use this quote - environmental policy - education - climate modeling Key Concepts carbon cycle tectonics planetary health Questions to Reflect On - How does tectonics affect climate? - What can we learn for climate mitigation? A Different Perspective Human actions can disrupt these slow cycles. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atmosphere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atmosphere/) [Back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back/) [Below](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/below/) [Carbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carbon/) [Carbon cycle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carbon-cycle/) [Carbon dioxide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carbon-dioxide/) [Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comfort/) [Comfort zone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comfort-zone/) [Continents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/continents/) [Continents Ocean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/continents-ocean-2008042/) [Cool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cool/) [Cycle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cycle/) [Degrees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/degrees/) [Destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destruction/) [Dissolved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dissolved/) [Dozens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dozens/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Earth Temperatures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth-temperatures-2008041/) [Floors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/floors/) [Havoc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/havoc/) [Movement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movement/) [Movement Continents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movement-continents-2008043/) [Ocean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ocean/) [Oceans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oceans/) [Plate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plate/) [Plate Tectonics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plate-tectonics-985111/) [Slow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slow/) [Speed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speed/) [Tectonics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tectonics-899285/) [Temperatures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temperatures/) [Without](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/without/) [Would](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would/) [Your](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/your/) [Zone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zone/) ## Related quotes > [Planets that don't currently sport plate tectonics, such as Venus and Mars, are scarcely habitable. Tectonics might be a requirement of any world that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/planets-that-don-t-currently-sport-plate-tectonics-such-as-venus-and/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Mountains aren't eternal: even the most imposing massifs are smoothed away by weathering in a few hundred million years or less. Plate tectonics makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/mountains-aren-t-eternal-even-the-most-imposing-massifs-are-smoothed/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Though the theories of plate tectonics now provide us with a modus operandi, they still seem to me to be a periodic phenomenon. Nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-v-ager/though-the-theories-of-plate-tectonics-now-provide-us-with-a-modus/) [D. V. Ager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-v-ager/) > [“Plate tectonics will be plate tectonics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/plate-tectonics-will-be-plate-tectonics/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [It is hoped that by God's assistance, some of the continents in the Ocean will be discovered ... for the Glory of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-columbus/it-is-hoped-that-by-god-s-assistance-some-of-the-continents-in-the/) [Christopher Columbus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-columbus/) > [“This is the yin and yang of the earth, an energetic feedback. What happens below relates directly to what is happening on the surface…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-childs/this-is-the-yin-and-yang-of-the-earth-an-energetic-feedback-what/) [Craig Childs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-childs/) > [Unfortunately, we haven't found many very old rocks on Earth because our planet's surface is constantly renewed by plate tectonics, coupled with erosion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-duncan/unfortunately-we-haven-t-found-many-very-old-rocks-on-earth-because/) [Robert Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-duncan/) > [Just as human activity is upsetting Earth's carbon cycle, our actions are altering the water cycle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/just-as-human-activity-is-upsetting-earth-s-carbon-cycle-our-actions/) [David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/) > [The essential fact which emerges ... is that the three smallest and most active reservoirs ( of carbon in the global carbon cycle), the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/the-essential-fact-which-emerges-is-that-the-three-smallest-and-most/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [“By planting rye I am creating carbon sinks in my backyard, expanding my role in the carbon cycle, launching my own backyard campaign to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-seidl/by-planting-rye-i-am-creating-carbon-sinks-in-my-backyard-expanding/) [Amy Seidl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-seidl/) > [Unless we decide to reduce greenhouse gas emissions within just a few years from now, our destinies will already be chosen and our path…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lynas/unless-we-decide-to-reduce-greenhouse-gas-emissions-within-just-a-few/) [Mark Lynas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lynas/) > [The world beyond 450 ppm atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, the world that crosses carbon cycle tipping points that quickly take us to 1000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-j-romm/the-world-beyond-450-ppm-atmospheric-concentrations-of-carbon-dioxide/) [Joseph J. Romm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-j-romm/) > [Grief is an element. It has its own cycle like the carbon cycle, the nitrogen. It never diminishes not ever. It passes in and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-heller/grief-is-an-element-it-has-its-own-cycle-like-the-carbon-cycle-the/) [Peter Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-heller/) > [My first goal would be to reduce the perturbation in the carbon cycle. That would mean using carbon neutral sources of energy, and changing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/my-first-goal-would-be-to-reduce-the-perturbation-in-the-carbon-cycle/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [We cannot hope to either understand or to manage the carbon in the atmosphere unless we understand and manage the trees and the soil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/we-cannot-hope-to-either-understand-or-to-manage-the-carbon-in-the/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) ## More by Seth Shostak > [Studying Sol's interior by looking for analogous patterns on its incandescent face is known as helioseismology, an active - if largely unpronounceable - research…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/studying-sol-s-interior-by-looking-for-analogous-patterns-on-its/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Some pundits have proposed that the aliens have come here to breed with us. Apparently, too much bike riding or something similar has rendered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/some-pundits-have-proposed-that-the-aliens-have-come-here-to-breed/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [As far as I can tell, the only unambiguous consequence of the claimed invasion of Earth by beings from another star system has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/as-far-as-i-can-tell-the-only-unambiguous-consequence-of-the-claimed/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Look, science is hard, it has a reputation of being hard, and the facts are, it is hard, and that's the result of 400…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/look-science-is-hard-it-has-a-reputation-of-being-hard-and-the-facts/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Give consideration to the fact that alien astronomers could have scrutinized Earth for more than 4 billion years without detecting any radio signals, despite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/give-consideration-to-the-fact-that-alien-astronomers-could-have/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [In a movie, it's often important to have aliens whose gestures and facial expressions can be 'read' by humans. And in the days before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/in-a-movie-it-s-often-important-to-have-aliens-whose-gestures-and/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Sure, nobody will make a fortune if we figure out why the Big Bang happened. But just about everyone would like to know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/sure-nobody-will-make-a-fortune-if-we-figure-out-why-the-big-bang/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [If you could drive straight down, into a tunnel bored through the crust of the planet, you'd hit this molten mess in about an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/if-you-could-drive-straight-down-into-a-tunnel-bored-through-the/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [While I have always thought that the motivation for looking for E.T. was both self-evident and patently worthy, it's possible that I'm a victim…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/while-i-have-always-thought-that-the-motivation-for-looking-for-e-t/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [I studied Latin in high school, and I was reading stuff from Cicero. And that signal took a few thousand years to get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/i-studied-latin-in-high-school-and-i-was-reading-stuff-from-cicero/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [About the only things that are unique to Earth are our biota and our culture. If aliens ever come here, they'd most likely be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/about-the-only-things-that-are-unique-to-earth-are-our-biota-and-our/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [This plucky NASA telescope is able to find planets en masse. If you compare planet hunting to prospecting for gold, then Kepler is equivalent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/this-plucky-nasa-telescope-is-able-to-find-planets-en-masse-if-you/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [The most attractive habitats for synthetic sentience might be the vicinities of exceptional sources of energy - for example black holes, or even the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/the-most-attractive-habitats-for-synthetic-sentience-might-be-the/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Buying insurance is no one's idea of fun. And it's especially easy to berate something as funky-sounding as writing checks to defend our neighborhoods…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/buying-insurance-is-no-one-s-idea-of-fun-and-it-s-especially-easy-to/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > ['Eternal inflation,' as it's called - the endless generation of new universes - may be a hyper-cosmic imperative. It seems that it must happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/eternal-inflation-as-it-s-called-the-endless-generation-of-new/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Explore all 189 Seth Shostak quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) ## More Atmosphere quotes > [“The global population of Earth are involved in the following corporate government experiments: The long term effects of - 1. Nuclear bomb fallout radiation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-global-population-of-earth-are-involved-in-the-following/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/) [Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/) > [My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work-give-me/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Man will not always stay on Earth; the pursuit of light and space will lead him to penetrate the bounds of the atmosphere, timidly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konstantin-tsiolkovsky/man-will-not-always-stay-on-earth-the-pursuit-of-light-and-space-will/) [Konstantin Tsiolkovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konstantin-tsiolkovsky/) > [Pause before you get home and prepare your heart. A peaceful heart leads to a peaceful atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-burns/pause-before-you-get-home-and-prepare-your-heart-a-peaceful-heart/) [Jim Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-burns/) > [Sometimes a minute is really the difference between success and failure. There are times when you finish with ten seconds left, and one extra…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-symon/sometimes-a-minute-is-really-the-difference-between-success-and/) [Michael Symon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-symon/) > [Christianity does not oppose debauchery and uncontrollable passions and the like as much as it opposes... flat mediocrity, this nauseating atmosphere, this homey, civil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/christianity-does-not-oppose-debauchery-and-uncontrollable-passions/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [Washington bureaucrats have classified the very air we exhale as a pollutant and have gone unchallenged in this incredible assertion. The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [“Atmosphere" is a massive song. A lot of people say it's their favorite Joy Division song, but it's not mine; it reminds me too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-hook/atmosphere-is-a-massive-song-a-lot-of-people-say-it-s-their-favorite/) [Peter Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-hook/) > [Establish an atmosphere that energizes you. Some creative people flourish in confusion; others need to be free from interruption. Many prepare themselves for work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-leland/establish-an-atmosphere-that-energizes-you-some-creative-people/) [Nita Leland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-leland/) > [Each year we pump at least six billion tons of heat-trapping carbon into the innermost layer of our atmosphere, whose outer extent is only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-gelbspan/each-year-we-pump-at-least-six-billion-tons-of-heat-trapping-carbon/) [Ross Gelbspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-gelbspan/) > [It was clear to me that the White House's solemn atmosphere would not civilize Trump. But the merciless nepotism with which he conducts politics,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/it-was-clear-to-me-that-the-white-house-s-solemn-atmosphere-would-not/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [“Bjerknes had come up with equations capable of describing the behavior of the atmosphere. The state of the atmosphere at any point could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-cullen/bjerknes-had-come-up-with-equations-capable-of-describing-the/) [Heidi Cullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-cullen/) > [What one thing does the world need most today-apart, that is, from the all-inclusive thing we call righteousness? Aren't you inclined to agree that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-c-forbes/what-one-thing-does-the-world-need-most-today-apart-that-is-from-the/) [B. C. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-c-forbes/) > [ Jowett, in his day, did probably more than any other single man to let some fresh air into the exhausted atmosphere of the \[Oxford\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-jowett/jowett-in-his-day-did-probably-more-than-any-other-single-man-to-let/) [Benjamin Jowett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-jowett/) [Browse all 1,572 Atmosphere quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atmosphere/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Plate tectonics is not all havoc and destruction. The slow movement of continents and ocean floors recycles carbon dioxide dissolved in the oceans back into the atmosphere. 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