This assignment addresses cultural sustainability by asking students to go beyond distinguishing between five subsistence strategies to examining the impact of globalization on diet and culture.

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Students are given 4 hypothetical stratigraphic columns (each roughly 30 m thick) of deltaic deposits, 3 base maps with section locations, and a map scale. Students subdivide the stratigraphic units into subfacies and interpret subenvironments (delta plain, delta front, prodelta, marine) and describe/list features used to make these interpretations. Using depositional interpretations, 3 bentonite marker beds, and paleocurrent information, students draw 3 successive paleogeographic maps of the region showing delta migration through time.

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A demonstration (with full class participation) to illustrate radioactive decay by flipping coins. Shows students visually the concepts of exponential decay, half-life and randomness. Works best in large classes -- the more people, the better.

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The goal of this activity is to demystify the science behind Punnett Squares and explore data and statistical representations in genetics and heredity. Begin by breeding two parent mice and observe the ratios in the pie chart as more offspring are bred in each litter. Compare the ratios between different pairs of parents and identify how they are different or similar. Finally, use the simulation controls to show gametes and reveal how each offspring obtained its genotype from its parents.

One of the great challenges in teaching undergraduates is finding ways to get them to apply knowledge or skills learned in one class to problems encountered in subsequent classes. Case in point: the use of algebra, trig, and even rudimentary calculus in geology classes! This activity presents practical ways we can use to build student confidence in their ability to peer into the meaning of the equations they encounter in sedimentary geology. These techniques include: (1) Surgical Strike Reviews -- 5 to 10-minute review of relevant math principles at the beginning of the appropriate lecture, (2) Unit Analyses -- assigning fundamental units of Mass, Length, and Time to test whether an equation has been derived correctly or to explore the meaning of derivative units of measure that may be unfamiliar to students, and (3) Perturbation Interrogation -- asking students to identify whether the quantity of interest described by an equation will increase or decrease when individual components of the equation increase or decrease.

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In this visualization adapted from the University of Massachusetts Medical School, discover the role that dengue viral proteins play in a human cell as the virus prepares to replicate.

Why do objects like wood float in water? Does it depend on size? Create a custom object to explore the effects of mass and volume on density. Can you discover the relationship? Use the scale to measure the mass of an object, then hold the object under water to measure its volume. Can you identify all the mystery objects?

This 3-hour hands-on guided-discovery lab activity teaches students the concepts of density, buoyancy, thermal expansion and convection.

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Concluding a two-part lab activity, students use triple balance beams and graduated cylinders to take measurements and calculate densities of several household liquids and compare them to the densities of irregularly shaped objects (as determined in Part 1). Then they create density columns with the three liquids and four solid items to test their calculations and predictions of the different densities. Once their density columns are complete, students determine the effect of adding detergent to the columns. After this activity, present the associated Density & Miscibility lesson for a discussion about why the column layers do not mix.

In this lab activity, students determine density differences of water samples with varying temperature and salinity levels. Students synthesize information to predict the effects of oil in given water samples.

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HideA critical component of this activity involves sharing team data with the entire class, done the old-fashioned way on the chalkboard. Details This activity begins with an exploration of a topographic map of the earth, ending with the question: Why is the distribution of topography on the earth bimodal? The students then collect two forms of data. They measure the density of the most common rocks that make up oceanic crust (basalt), continental crust (granite), and the mantle (peridotite). They also measure the density of several different kinds of wood, and how high each kind floats in a tub of water. In each case, they work in teams of two or three and then the entire class shares their data. Based on the data from the wood, they derive an equation that relates the density of the wood to the height at which the block floats in the water - the isostasy equation. They then substitute density values for real rocks into their equation to derive thicknesses for average continental and oceanic crust, and apply their knowledge in order to draw a cross-section of the crust across South America. This activity gives students a real, hands-on and mathematical understanding of the principle of isostasy.

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River and wind processes can be readily studied in the field, and we have devised a series of lab exercises in western Nevada that take advantage of our rivers and deserts. But for density-contrast flows, there was no easy way to get the students beyond pictures and formulae. With the assistance of Tripp Plastics, we designed acrylic tanks that fit on a lab bench. They have a ramp with screw-adjustable slope up to 20��. Students mix a solution of Epsom salt (MgSO4) to several experimental densities. They add a dye to make the dense fluid visible. The dyed fluid is released at the top of the slope. The grid allows the flow to be accurately timed and described. The students determine how density changes and how slope affect the flow velocity and structure.

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This activity modifies a typical density laboratory exercise to fit within a lecture session. Students are asked to compare the densities of six different rocks/minerals collected from six different environments. Based on the brief description of each rock the students are asked to first predict which rock has the highest density and which rock has the lowest density. The students are then asked to construct a hypothesis and test their hypothesis by calculating the density of the rocks. Students are then asked to apply information from lecture to place each rock in the appropriate layer of the Earth.

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This module addresses the problem of how to determine the density of the earth and has students do some field experiments to get the data they need to answer the problem.

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This module addresses the problem of how to determine the size of a ton of rocks of a given composition and invites the student to figure out how to solve the problem.

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This module addresses the real problem of determining the density of the Earth and invites the student to figure out how to solve the problem.

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After going over the concept of moment of inertia in class, students are asked to calculate density models of the earth. Three models of increasing complexity are developed, using additional constraints from seismology on the radius of the core. This homework assignment is typically the only assignment for the week - it gives the students practice in applying concepts and methods from physics and mathematics that usually have only been encountered in a theoretical fashion by the students. How we determine mass and moment of inertia are discussed in class. Usually students work together in small groups, as those whose math skills are rusty find this assignment difficult on their own. This activity uses geophysics to solve problems in other fields.

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The goal of this pair of labs is for the students to learn to apply rock and fossil identification skills to determining rock formations, sedimentary depositional environments, age ranges, and, ultimately, to writing a geologic history of a sequence of rocks from Bryce, Zion, and Grand Canyons. During the first of the two labs, the students learn to make fossil and sedimentary structures identifications. They add these skills to their rock and mineral identification skills to make interpretations of the sedimentary environments along a generalized profile from terrestrial to offshore locations. During the second lab, they apply these skills to a sequence of rocks from the southwestern U.S. to interpret the environmental changes that have occurred over time. They also begin to learn how to use fossils to determine age ranges for these changing events. Once they put together all of their data, they construct a stratigraphic column and piece together a written narrative of the geologic history of the area. The students work in groups to collect their data and determine their stratigraphy. They write their geologic histories individually. The students learn how to apply their skills and knowledge to make interpretations and also learn how to support their determinations with data.

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This project involves a field trip to the Jordan Formation in Winona, MN. Student teams are assigned a section of the outcrop from which they are to determine a stratigraphic column. The class then performs a lateral analysis and builds a composite stratigraphic column for the formation. As a final product, the students write up the class's observations about the formation.

Project Webpages

Project Summary and Write-up Outline (Acrobat (PDF) PRIVATE FILE 115kB Jul7 05)
Instructor Notes for Project (Acrobat (PDF) PRIVATE FILE 91kB Jul7 05)
Outlines and Notes (Acrobat (PDF) PRIVATE FILE 1.1MB Jul7 05) for each class session for this project

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In this activity, students confront several different models - from the DNA helix Watson and Crick constructed in their laboratory to a map of McDonalds density in the US - and work in small groups to derive their commonalities.

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