One of the basic concepts of Plate Tectonics is that continental plates are rigid, with deformation only along their margins. However, there are extensive areas within continental crust that have undergone large magnitude distributed deformation at a regional scale, notably in the southwestern United States. This project will use a combination of field and laboratory techniques to evaluate the role of strike-slip faulting and block rotation and measure the internal deformation of a portion of the Basin and Range province, and to attempt to relate this deformation to plate boundary processes.
