What is the causes by the action of hot material rising and cool material sinking?

Hot material rises to the top of the mantle and then cools and sinks. This rising and sinking happens in a circular motion. When the mantle flows it moves the plates. ... Both plates are moving in opposite directions.

true. earthquakes are felt whenever there is a slip around a fault in the rocks below the earth. this reorientation of faults create sesmic waves and is known as earthquake, the severity of which is measured in richter scale. these are more prominent in hilly regions as the rocks usually form faults to balance the pressures on it.