With the formation of Pangaea, disconnected continents merged into one huge landmass. This decreased the amount of

Question:

With the formation of Pangaea, disconnected continents merged into one huge landmass. This decreased the amount of shallow marine environments, which led to mass extinctions during the Permian. Let us compare the difference in coastlines for a single large landmass and a same-sized landmass that is broken up into several pieces.

(a) Find the perimeter for each shape shown here. Then add all the perimeters together.
(b) Like Pangaea, the shapes are joined into one landmass. Find the perimeter of the single landmass.
(c) Compare the total perimeters for parts (a) and (b). Do your results support the decrease in coastlines after the formation of Pangaea?

L = 6 m W = 4 m Side = 6 m Side = 4 m