Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

What's new with the plague? More than you might think

Pandemics of the past are getting new attention and the plague of the 14th century was among the most consequential. Known as the Black Death, it was medieval, European, bubonic and spread by rats – at least that's what ...

Genetics

The genetic origins of high-altitude adaptations in Tibetans

Genetic adaptations for life at high elevations found in residents of the Tibetan plateau likely originated around 30,000 years ago in peoples related to contemporary Sherpa. These genes were passed on to more recent migrants ...

Genetics

8,000-year-old mutation key to human life at high altitudes

In an environment where others struggle to survive, Tibetans thrive in the thin air on the Tibetan Plateau, with an average elevation of 14,800 feet. A study led by University of Utah scientists is the first to find a genetic ...

Health

Do we lose gains from exercise as our bodies get used to it?

Many of us exercise on a regular basis, and we become comfortable with the same exercise routine. But is your standard routine leading to a plateau in fitness gains? Once the body becomes used to running a few kilometres ...

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Plateau

In geology and earth science, a plateau ( /pləˈtoʊ/ or /ˈplætoʊ/; plural plateaus or rarely plateaux), also called a high plain or tableland, is an area of highland, usually consisting of relatively flat terrain. A highly eroded plateau is called a dissected plateau. A volcanic plateau is a plateau produced by volcanic activity.

Plateaus can be formed by a number of processes, including, upwelling of volcanic magma, extrusion of lava, and erosion by water and glaciers. Magma rises from the mantle causing the ground to swell upward, in this way large, flat areas of rock are uplifted. Plateaus can also be built up by lava spreading outwards from cracks and weak areas in the crust, an example of such a plateau is the Columbia Plateau in the northwestern United States of America. Plateaus can also be formed due to the erosional processes of glaciers on mountain ranges, in this case the plateaus are left sitting between the mountain ranges. Water can also erode mountains and other landforms down into plateaus.

Plateaus are classified according to their surrounding environment, common categories are: intermontane, piedmont, and continental plateaus.

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