Pangea, also spelled Pangaea, was a supercontinent that existed on the Earth millions of years ago and covered

about one-third of its surface. A supercontinent is a very large landmass that is made up of more than one continent. In the case of Pangea nearly all of the Earth's continents were connected into one large landmass. It is believed that Pangea began forming about 300 million years ago, was fully together by 270 million years ago and began to separate around 200 million years ago. The name Pangea is ancient Greek and means "all lands." The term began being used in the early 20th century after Alfred Wegener noticed that the Earth's continents looked like they fit together like a jigsaw puzzle. He later developed his theory of continental drift to explain why the continents looked the way they did and first used the term Pangea at a symposium in 1927 focused on that topic. Formation of Pangea Due to mantle convection within the Earth's surface new material constantly comes up between the Earth's tectonic plates at rift zones, causing them to move away from the rift and toward one another at the ends. In the case of Pangea, the Earth's continents were eventually moved so much over millions of years that they combined into one large supercontinent. Around 300 million years ago the northwestern part of the ancient continent of Gondwana (near the South Pole), collided with the southern part of the Euramerican continent to form one very large continent. Eventually the Angaran continent, located near the North Pole, began to move south and it collided with the northern part of the Euramerican continent to form the large supercontinent, Pangea, by about 270 million years ago. It should be noted however that there was another separate landmass, Cathaysia, which was made up of north and south China that was not a part of the larger Pangea landmass. Once it was completely formed, Pangea covered around one-third of the Earth's surface and it was surrounded by an ocean that covered the rest of the globe. This ocean was called Panthalassa. Break-Up of Pangea Pangea began to break up about 200 million years ago as a result of the movement of the Earth's tectonic plates and mantle convection. Just as Pangea was formed by being pushed together due to the movement of the Earth's plates away at rift zones, a rift of new material caused it to separate. Scientists believe that the new rift began due to a weakness in the Earth's crust. At that weak area, magma began to push through and create a volcanic rift zone. Eventually the rift zone grew so large that it formed a basin and Pangea began to separate. In the areas where Pangea began to separate, new oceans formed as Panthalassa rushed into the newly opened areas. The first new oceans to form were the central and southern Atlantic. About 180 million years ago the central Atlantic Ocean opened up between North America and northwestern Africa. Around 140 million years ago the South Atlantic Ocean formed when what is today South America separated from the west coast of southern Africa. The Indian Ocean was the next to form when India separated from Antarctica and Australia and about 80 million years ago North America and Europe separated, Australia and Antarctica separated and India and Madagascar separated. Over millions more years, the continents gradually moved to their current positions.

Evidence for Pangea As Alfred Wegener noticed in the early 20th century, the Earth's continents seem to fit together like a jigsaw puzzle in many areas around the globe. This is the significant evidence for the existence of Pangea millions of years ago. The most prominent place where this is visible is the northwestern coast of Africa and the eastern coast of South America. In that location the two continents look like they were once connected, which they in fact were during Pangea. Other evidence for Pangea includes fossil distribution, distinctive patterns in rock strata in now unconnected parts of the world and the distribution of the world's coal. In terms of fossil distribution, archaeologists have found matching fossil remains if ancient species in continents are separated by thousands of miles of ocean today. For example matching reptile fossils have been found in Africa and South America indicating that these species at one time lived very close to each other as it is not possible to them to have crossed the Atlantic Ocean. Patterns in rock strata are another indicator for the existence of Pangea. Geologists have discovered distinctive patterns in rocks in continents that are now thousands of miles apart. By having matching patterns it indicates that the two continents and their rocks were at one time one continent. Finally the world's coal distribution is evidence for Pangea. Coal normally forms in warm, wet climates. However geologists have found coal under Antarctica's very cold and dry ice caps. If Antarctica were a part of Pangea it is likely that it would have been in another location on the Earth and the climate when the coal formed would have been very different than it is today. Many Ancient Supercontinents Based on the evidence scientists have found in plate tectonics, it is likely that Pangea was not the only supercontinent to exist on the Earth. In fact, archaeological data found in matching rock types and searching for fossils shows that the formation and break-up of supercontinents like Pangea are a cycle throughout the Earth's history (Lovett, 2008). Gondwana and Rodinia are two supercontinents that scientists have discovered that existed prior to Pangea. Scientists also predict that the cycle of supercontinents will continue. Currently the world's continents are moving away from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge toward the middle of the Pacific Ocean where they will eventually collide with one another in about 80 million years (Lovett, 2008). To see a diagram of Pangea and how it separated, visit the United States' Geological Survey'sHistorical Perspective page within This Dynamic Earth.

Dance history is difficult to access because dance does not often leave behind clearly identifiable physical artifacts that last over millennia, such as stone tools, hunting implements or cave paintings. It is not possible to say when dance became part of human culture. Early dance[edit] Dance has certainly been an important part of ceremony, rituals, celebrations and entertainment since before the birth of the earliest human civilizations. Archaeology delivers traces of dance from prehistoric times such as the 9,000 year old Bhimbetka rock shelters paintings in India and Egyptian tomb paintings depicting dancing figures from c. 3300 BC. An early manuscript describing dance is the Natya Shastra on which is based the modern interpretation of classical Indian dance (e.g. Bharathanatyam). The ancient chronicle, the Sinhalese (Sri Lankans), the Mahavamsa states that when King Vijaya landed in Sri Lanka in 543 BCE he heard sounds of music and dancing from a wedding ceremony. Origins of the Dances of Sri Lanka are dated back to the aboriginal tribes. The Classical dances of Sri Lanka (Kandyan Dances) feature a highly developed system of tala (rhythm), provided by cymbals called thalampataa. As a method of healing[edit] Another early use of dance may have been as a precursor to ecstatic trance states in healing rituals. Dance is used for this purpose by many cultures from the Brazilian rainforest to theKalahari Desert.[1] Medieval European danses macabres were thought to have protected participants from disease, however the hysteria and duration of these dances sometimes lead to death due to exhaustion.[2] Sri Lankan dances goes back to the mythological times of aboriginal yingyang twins and "yakkas" (devils). According to a Sinhalese legend, Kandyan dances originate, 2500 years ago, from a magic ritual that broke the spell on a bewitched king. Many contemporary dance forms can be traced back to historical, traditional, ceremonial, and ethnic dances. As a method of expression[edit] One of the earliest structured uses of dances may have been in the performance and in the telling of myths. It was also sometimes used to show feelings for one of the opposite gender. It is also linked to the origin of "love making." Before the production of written languages, dance was one of the methods of passing these stories down from generation to generation.[3] In European culture, one of the earliest records of dancing is by Homer, whose "Iliad"; describes chorea ( khoreia). The early Greeks made the art of dancing into a system, expressive of all the different passions. For example, the dance of the Furies, so represented, would create complete terror among those who witnessed them. The Greek philosopher, Aristotle, ranked dancing with poetry, and said that certain dancers, with rhythm applied to gesture, could express manners, passions, and actions. The most eminent Greek sculptors studied the attitude of the dancers for their art of imitating the passion.

Dance and music started as partners for ritual purposes. In ancient civilizations, dancing before the god is regarded as a special element in the temple ritual. For example, in Egypt the priests and priestesses perform stately movements which mirror important events in story of god. Choros, a dance performed in a circle in honour of god, was a centrepiece in Greek theatre in 6th century. In India the hand movements of the priestesses in Hindu temples are documented as early as 1st century AD t is not really possible to say when dance became part of human way of life or culture. By the 18th century ballet had migrated to the Paris Opera from the royal court and the dance was a special element and this developed throughout Europe. Dance has certainly been an essential part of ceremony, rituals, celebrations and entertainment since before the birth of the earliest human civilizations. Dance as ritual In most ancient civilizations, dancing before the god is an important element in temple ritual. In Egypt the priests and priestesses, accompanied by harps and pipes, perform stately movements which mime significant events in the story of a god, or imitate cosmic patterns such as the rhythm of night and day. At Egyptian funerals, women dance to express the grief of the mourners. Sacred occasions in Greek shrines, such as thegames at Olympia from the 8th century BC, are inaugurated with dancing by the temple virgins. Thechoros is originally just such a dance, performed in a circle in honour of a god. In the 6th century it becomes the centrepiece ofGreek theatre. In India the formalized hand movements of the priestesses in Hindu templesare described in documents from as early as the 1st century AD. Each precise gesture is of subtle significance. A form of classical dance based upon them - known as Bharata Nhatyam - is still performed by highly skilled practitioners today.