Final answer:
The correct question for the answer given is 'How does heat move through the Earth's interior?' It is about convection within the Earth's mantle, a significant mechanism in the movement of tectonic plates and related geological phenomena.
Step-by-step explanation:
The correct question to the answer 'hot material rising, losing heat, and then sinking' is b) How does heat move through the Earth's interior? This process describes convection, a key mechanism that drives the motion of Earth's tectonic plates. In the context of geology and Earth science, convection in the mantle is a result of thermal gradients within the Earth's interior, where hot, less dense materials rise, transfer heat to the surroundings, become cooler and more dense, and subsequently sink. This creates a cycle that facilitates the movement of plates and can lead to geological phenomena such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and the formation of mountain ranges.
The flow of heat through the Earth's interior is intrinsically linked to the theory of plate tectonics, which describes the movement of large plates forming the outer shell of the Earth. These movements are responsible for many of the Earth's geological features and activities, including the continental drift, mountain building, and the creation of island chains like Hawaii due to volcanic activity at hotspots.