A semantically odd question.

[sitifan]

The perpetual motion of the earth as it turns on its axis creates the change of seasons . ( A ) ancient ( C ) leisurely ( B ) rhythmic ( D ) constant
(Barron's how to Prepare for the Test of English as a Foreign Language, TOEFL)

https://books.google.com.tw/books?i...hUKEwi6oOXAgbfrAhWiNKYKHcZqD48Q6AEwAXoECAAQAg

I know the answer to the above question is option D. But How can the earth turn on its axis to create the change of seasons? It's not scientific, is it?

https://www.thoughtco.com/what-causes-the-seasons-on-earth-3072536

 

[SoothingDave]

It's not. The turning earth causes night and day. It's the wobble on the axis that causes the sun to alternatively favor one hemisphere or the other that causes the seasons.

 

[tedmc]

I remember from geography that the seasons are caused by the tilt of the earth's axis of rotation off the vertical and its revolution around the sun within the year. For half the year, the northern hemisphere leans towards the sun and for the other half, it leans away from the sun; it is the reverse for the southern hemisphere. When the sun reverses its direction, we have the solstices at each of the hemispheres, and in between, the equinoxes.

 

[jutfrank]

It's not scientific, is it?

No, it isn't. In actual fact, the Earth is a giant flat disc. The change in seasons is easily explained by the fact that the sun is a spotlight, which spirals above this disc over the course of the year.

(At least, that's what my builder friend Paul told me.)

 

[jutfrank]

I'm now wondering whether the testwriter had the answer rhythmic in mind. That could explain the wobble that SoothingDave refers to in post #2. The constant rotation, coupled with the wobble, would create a rhythmic motion. That seems to make sense to me.

 

[SoothingDave]

One could also argue for "leisurely." Seasons come and go at a pace that isn't breakneck.

 

[tedmc]

I'm now wondering whether the testwriter had the answer rhythmic in mind. That could explain the wobble that SoothingDave refers to in post #2. The constant rotation, coupled with the wobble, would create a rhythmic motion. That seems to make sense to me.

Why do you call it a wobble and not a tilt? I understand that a wobble is an unsteady movement as in a wheel which is loose or off-balance.

The rotation of the earth around its own axis on a daily basis gives rise to "day and night"; it is the yearly revolution around the sun that causes the seasons.

 

[jutfrank]

Why do you call it a wobble and not a tilt?

I was quoting SoothingDave's post #2. Perhaps he should answer this.