Sanction has two nearly opposite meanings: to sanction can be to approve of something, but it can also mean to punish, or speak harshly to. Likewise, a sanction can be a punishment or approval. Very confusingââthe person who invented this word should be publicly sanctioned! See if you can guess the meaning of sanction in the following contexts.
Artist's rendering of concept for the Bering Strait bridge. The Bering Strait was last crossed by humans 20,000 years ago during the ice age, when ice formed a bridge between North America and Asia. Today, 47 miles and some of the harshest ocean and arctic conditions separate the two continents. However, there are many who believe there would be great economical, sociological, and political value in connecting the two land masses by bridge or tunnel.
During the ice age that occurred in the Pennsylvanian and Permian, the southern portion of the supercontinent Pangea was at the south pole. The result was extensive glaciation of what is now Africa, South America, India, Antarctica, Australia, and the Arabian peninsula.The position of the continents during the Late Proterozoic glaciation (around 700 million years ago) is not well-known. Evidence of glaciers exists from North America, Australia, and Africa.uring the current ice age, which began slightly less than 3 million years ago, several large land masses have been at high latitudes. These include Antarctica, much of North America and much of Eurasia. This continental configuration led to extensive glaciation of both North America and Eurasia.