The learning objectives for this GIS exercise are to 1) understand rainfall …
The learning objectives for this GIS exercise are to 1) understand rainfall spatial variability and how to account for it when making areal-rainfall estimates, and 2) learn how ArcGIS can be used as a tool to determine areal averages, and 3) compare the advantages and drawbacks of the various techniques.
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On July 4th, 1997, Mars Pathfinder landed at the mouth of Ares …
On July 4th, 1997, Mars Pathfinder landed at the mouth of Ares Vallis, a large channel that drains into the Chryse Planitia basin. While there remains a great deal to debate about the origin of the channels, one of the leading hypotheses at present is the idea that these features are the result of catastrophic flooding. If this is correct, then the plains where Pathfinder landed may be rich in debris eroded out of the Martian highlands across which the Ares Vallis channel passes, providing a golden combination -- a relatively safe landing site which still provides access to a wide variety of different rock types. [If you would like to learn more about the many Pathfinder results, explore the April, 1999 and January, 2000 issues of the journal Journal of Geophysical Research -- Planets (the green one) in the library.]
For the sake of this lab assignment you will hypothesize that the Ares Vallis and associated deposits were indeed produced by catastrophic flooding, and will use the information at your disposal to learn all you can about the putative flooding event.
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Simple budgets may be used to estimate the exchange of water in …
Simple budgets may be used to estimate the exchange of water in embayments that capitalize on the concept of steady state and conservation principals. This is especially true for bays that experience a significant exchange of freshwater. This exchange of freshwater may reduce the average salt concentration in the bay compared to seawater if it involves addition of freshwater from rivers, R, and/or precipitation, P. Alternatively, it may increase the average salt concentration in the bay compared to seawater if there is relatively little river input and high evaporation, E. Since freshwater input changes the salt concentration in the bay, and salt is a conservative material, it is possible to combine two steady state budgets for a bay, one for salt and one for water, to solve for the magnitude of the water flows that enter and exit the bay mouth. Students will make actual calculations for the inflow and outflow of water to Puget Sound, Washington and the Mediterranean Sea and compare them to actual measured values.
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After instructing students on basic receiver operation, each student will make many …
After instructing students on basic receiver operation, each student will make many (10-20) position estimates of 3 benchmarks over a week. The different benchmarks will have different views of the skies or vegetation cover. Each student will download their data into a spreadsheet and calculate horizontal and vertical errors which are collated into a class spreadsheet. The positions are sorted by error and plotted in a cumulative frequency plot. The students are encouraged to discuss the distribution, sources of error, and estimate confidence intervals. This exercise gives the students a gut feeling for confidence intervals and the accuracy of data. Students are asked to compare results from different types of data and benchmarks with different views of the sky. Uses online and/or real-time data Has minimal/no quantitative component Addresses student fear of quantitative aspect and/or inadequate quantitative skills Addresses student misconceptions
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This is a service-learning project for students in Geography 204 (Weather, Climate …
This is a service-learning project for students in Geography 204 (Weather, Climate and Ecosystems). Students will assess prior estimates of carbon offsets associated with plant and soil biomass on their college campus; and as a result, they will understand the complexity of measuring the complex sources of carbon emissions and offsets; address the challenges of coordinating data collection and field measurement; and realize importance of estimation in public policy contexts.
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Description here. (Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part …
Description here.
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In this computer lab, students use satellite imagery, daylength information, and phytoplankton …
In this computer lab, students use satellite imagery, daylength information, and phytoplankton physiology models to calculate annual primary production for an assigned ocean region.
Satellite data is obtained from the NASA Earth Observation website. Students use the analysis tool to determine chlorophyll concentration and sea surface temperature. They also receive a day-length calculator and are asked to model light transmission through the water column. Using step-by-step instructions and proviede equations relating phytoplankton physiology to irradiance and temperature students calculate carbon uptake at discreet locations in the water column. The second half of the exercise involves scaling up to the entire water column, region, and season. Students present their work to the class and evaluate their result using scientific literature. Differences between regions are then discussed by the class.
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Previous mapping exercises have dealt with well-exposed rocks, but this particular area …
Previous mapping exercises have dealt with well-exposed rocks, but this particular area runs into a problem with a thick valley fill on bedrock. We have some good estimates of the density contrast for the valley fill and bedrock. A prelab exercise asks the students to assign realistic densities to the units. In class we develop a model for the expected anomaly size for different thickness, then we go out and measure the anomaly and estimate the thickness. Uses online and/or real-time data Has minimal/no quantitative component Addresses student fear of quantitative aspect and/or inadequate quantitative skills Uses geophysics to solve problems in other fields
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Students make measurements of dam dimensions and water levels above and below …
Students make measurements of dam dimensions and water levels above and below a small, accessible earthen dam. They assess the soil texture in the field. They follow up by developing a simple flow net and estimating seepage rate as part of a problem set. They discuss their assumptions and the likely sources and magnitude of error.
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This is a field and lab activity in which students collect CTD …
This is a field and lab activity in which students collect CTD data in a local estuary, contour the data, and analyze the results to classify the estuary based on standard classification schemes.
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This case study explores decision-making in high risk settings such as back-country …
This case study explores decision-making in high risk settings such as back-country skiing. The scenarios presented have application to many field-based studies where of physical injury or even death may be an outcome in circumstances that have known predictable risks that must be evaluated. Go? or No Go? What factors must be considered to ensure the safety of the group while achieving desired objectives? What are the ethical responsibilities of group leaders and group members in high-risk situations? Recommended readings on high-risk decision making are provided.
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The purpose of the assignment is twofold: first, to expose students to …
The purpose of the assignment is twofold: first, to expose students to what is sometimes called a "feminist" or "care" perspective in ethics. The second is for students to apply these abstract ideas in ethics to the very real and complex issues relating to climate change in environmental ethics.
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Dinosaur fossils capture the interest of students and the public, but their …
Dinosaur fossils capture the interest of students and the public, but their study, collection, and disposition often engender signficant highly-publicized controversy. As such, ethical dilemmas emerge around fossil discoveries in the realms of scientific research, including professional and personal conduct, educational and economic roles of museums, landowner rights, fossils as commodities in a capitalist economy, and science journalism. This project uses the controversy over a highly-publicized pair of dinosaur skeletons collected from private land to examine the myriad complexly intertwined ethical issues that arise from the attempt to sell these fossils at public auction for private financial benefit. Students planning careers in paleontology and geology need to be aware of these types of controversies and the ethical choices they will face.
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This collection of case studies deals with ethics involved in publishing research …
This collection of case studies deals with ethics involved in publishing research in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Often, graduate students learn about these ethics informally as they go along and are often unaware that individual journals often have their own formal policies. This activity is intended to present students with some scenarios of "what would you do?", as well as guide them to find and read ethics policies of at least 2 scientific journals.
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This project involves students in substantial community-based ethnographic research. Working cooperatively together …
This project involves students in substantial community-based ethnographic research. Working cooperatively together as a consultancy team, the students learn to use ethnographic and other research methods. They also learn to empower and give voice to various stakeholders and to assemble and synthesize data for a formal report.
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This chapter details cell-cell communication highlighting studies performed in the model organism …
This chapter details cell-cell communication highlighting studies performed in the model organism Dictyostelium discoideum. Topics covered include signaling molecules, cell surface receptors, and subversion of host cell signaling by pathogens.
This activity leads to understanding common landslide hazards in the area and …
This activity leads to understanding common landslide hazards in the area and how they relate to weather patterns and/or local geology.
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Students use a series of maps and natural hazard data to evaluate …
Students use a series of maps and natural hazard data to evaluate the risk to a building structure of their choice in the state of California. For each hazard, students rate the potential risk in two dimensions: (1) Probability - probability that a hazardous event "may" occur, and (2) Severity of Impact - the size of the impact in terms of cost and impact on human health.
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In this in-class exercise, students compare several lines of evidence that support …
In this in-class exercise, students compare several lines of evidence that support the ideas of continental drift and plate tectonics. Before the class meeting, each student is given a preparation assignment in which he/she studies one "continental drift" and one "ocean floor data" map. In class, students divide into teams of 3, with each team member having prepared different specialties. They discuss their respective maps and look for spatial patterns among the data.
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