I believe it was the spread of Christianity although increase trade was amazing. The Chinese did not want the spread of Christianity and was mostly a traditional area.
The correct answer is - Magma generated from a hot spot burned through the overlying plate to create volcanoes.
The Hawaiian Islands are all formed as a result of volcanic activity of a hot spot. The hot spot is stationary, but the islands are in the shape of a chain, not all in the same place. Also, the rocks on the islands that do not have active volcanoes are older, than the ones that do have volcanic activity. This suggests that the Pacific plate is moving. According the direction in which the islands are arranged, the Pacific plate seems to move toward northwest. As it moves, it moves over the hot spot. Since the hot spot is stationary, as the Pacific plate moves, eventually the volcanic activity will stop on the island that has moved further away from the hot spot. The magma from the hot spot will penetrate through the crust that came to be over it. That will result in new volcanic island emerging from the sea over the hot spot. The process goes on for millions of years, and it can result in hundreds of islands of volcanic origin.
One simple and easy way that scientists can accurately date fossils found is through the ground levels. When you take a big chunk out of the earth, you can see the changes in the texture in the "ground" Each "layer" represents a set of years. And as you get further and further into the ground, fossils become older and older.
