The Natural structures Are diverse creations and formations that do not count on the human intervention in any sense. It is presumed that most natural structures have been present since before the appearance of man, therefore, they do not need their presence to exist.
The natural structures are the opposite of the artificial structures, which were built thanks to the ingenuity and manpower of the human being.
Generally, the artificial structures respond to diverse needs acquired by the man, making necessary its construction for the survival in the present world. An example of the artificial structures are the bridges, the buildings, the technology, among other things.
Most of the natural structures have an impressive beauty and a majesty that can only be attributed to the action of nature and its system of creation.
Many factors play an important role in the formation of these structures, such as climate, relief, temperature and others. Each of them has the power to catalyze the appearance of natural structures.
Examples of natural structures
Whether on land or at sea, the presence of natural structures surrounds us without us being fully aware of it.
Mountains
An example of the most common natural structures are mountains. Its formation is due to different internal and external forces, which are eroding the soil and creating a natural elevation.
The formation of mountains and appearance in nature, began about 400 million years ago and the constitution of the same is divided into three distinct periods.
The first one was called Caledonian and had greater prominence in Scotland and its surroundings, having as reference to the peak of the mountain Ben Nevis, that counts on a total elevation of 1,345 ms.
The second period is known as Hercynian and more or less the whole process began more than 200 years ago.
In the Hercynian mountains were created different mountains located in the European, Asian and American continents, mainly in the north, the most known mountains and peaks in this period are Urals and Appalachians.
The last period is called Alpine, are the youngest mountains, with an appearance more than 30 million years ago, are still considered to be in formation and development.
Its name is due to the fact that the mountains here are located in the Alps, part of Europe and Asia, the most known are Everest, Mont Blanc and Himalayas.
caves
As another natural structure, we have an example to the caves. Like the mountains, the formation of the caves is due to erosion and natural wear of the soil, and it is usually influenced by some stream of water, hail or lava.
It has been proven that most of the time, caves are formed by the presence of acid rain, generating a natural subsidence of the soil.
Within the caves, there is always the possibility of finding great wonders and structures that can protect different animals, and even humans.
There are many caves that can be used as tourist destinations due to its completely natural composition. The caves have been more known in the world, thanks to their extension and depth.
Coral reefs
On the other hand, in the sea we have the natural structure of coral reefs. Being one of the largest habitats of all types of marine animals, coral reefs are made up of the sodium carbonate released by the corals located in the depths of the sea.
They are considered as one of the Ecosystems More varied from all over the planet, and can even be visualized with the help of an expert team.
It is believed that the reefs were formed a little less than 10,000 years ago, set at the same time where the ice of the"last glacial period"melted.
It should be noted that this natural structure has one of the greatest weaknesses in this area. Coral reefs are extremely sensitive to changes in sea temperatures, aquatic pollution and, above all, chemicals frequently used when fishing.
That is why around the world has created a campaign for the protection and care of coral reefs, trying to preserve one of the wonders that nature has given us.
Stone materials
Also, we have the stone materials, considered as natural structure because their formation comes from the rocks. However, stone materials can also be manipulated by humans, automatically becoming artificial structures.
It is known that the stone material is natural because its location is in different deposits and the extracted materials can be manipulated in a fast way, making a simple selection process is sufficient.
These stone materials can possess and acquire different shapes and sizes. The most common are marble, glass, granite, and cement.
References
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- Hunter, M. (1996). Benchmarks for managing ecosystems: are human activities natural?.Conservation Biology, 10 (3), 695-697. Retrieved from onlinelibrary.wiley.com
- Knott, N.A., Underwood, A.J., Chapman, M.G., & Glasby, T.M. (2004). Epibiota on vertical and horizontal surfaces on natural reefs and artificial structures. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the UK, 84 (06), 1117-1130. Retrieved from journals.cambridge.org
- Leroueil, S., & Vaughan, P. R. (2009). The general and congruent effects of structure in natural soils and weak rocks. InSelected papers on geotechnical engineering by PR Vaughan (pp. 235-256). Thomas Telford Publishing. Recovered from icevirtuallibrary.com
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