nothing is totally uniform---
for the appalachians type mountains to form the surface of the earth must have expanded....
via plates breaking up/cracks-shrinking---
width of the crack---width of the mountains---
triangular pointing up!
What plate tuetonics/earthquakes do is mostly unpredictable.
But their formation and the surface/layering is obvious...top first---layering from the bottom!
Only some/little surface layering from above!
Very young---FRESH-new Earth!
I live in Hawaii and see a variety of 'lava'... nothing is totally uniform--- for the appalachians type mountains to form the surface of the earth must have expanded....There was a collision between what is present day Africa and the east coast creating the uplift of the Appalachian range. The process creates a distict sequence of sedimentary rocks over time. The mechanisms and associated rock suites can be observed in the process of formation in several areas of the world today (Indian subcontinent collision, Marianas Trench\Japan island arc complex, Great Rift Valley in Africa.
What plate tuetonics/earthquakes do is mostly unpredictable.
Plate tectonics is totally predictable. I can tell you now that Europe will be about 2.5 centimeters (cm) farther from us next year, Mt. Everest will (baring a big landslide) be about 3-5 cm higher etc...
Earthquakes are just a symptom of plate tectonics. (with the exception of deep well injection of wastes :)