Learners use the UNAVCO GPS Velocity Viewer, or the included map packet to visualize relationships between earthquakes, volcanoes, and plate boundaries as a jigsaw activity.

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Before completing this computer-based activity, students need to learn basic (Earth Science 101) information about volcanic rocks and hazards, and they also need to learn how to interpret a histogram. Students complete the activity individually outside class time in a computer lab equipped with Arcview3.3 geographic information system (GIS) software. They do not need any prior experience with GIS because the activity text includes step-by-step instructions accompanied by numerous screen shots. Students use the GIS to investigate geochemical data from the global Earthchem database and, for the Mount Hood, Oregon area, the NAVDAT database. Students also use maps and satellite images to learn about volcanic hazards at Mount Hood. Through all of these investigations, they learn about the connections between the silica content of a melt, volcanic hazards, and plate tectonics. Hundreds of students have successfully completed the activity at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, TN, but the activity is still considered a "beta test copy" and the author welcomes feedback. Funding has been provided by small grants from the NASA Earth Observing System Higher Education Alliance ("GeoBrain"), Tennessee Space Grant, and NSF.

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Before completing this computer-based activity, students need to learn basic (Earth Science 101) information about volcanic rocks and hazards, and they also need to learn how to interpret a histogram. Students complete the activity individually outside class time in a computer lab equipped with Arcview3.3 geographic information system (GIS) software. They do not need any prior experience with GIS because the activity text includes step-by-step instructions accompanied by numerous screen shots. Students use the GIS to investigate geochemical data from the global GEOROC database and, for the Mount Hood, Oregon area, the NAVDAT database. Students also use maps and satellite images to learn about volcanic hazards at Mount Hood. Through all of these investigations, they learn about the connections between the silica content of a melt, volcanic hazards, and plate tectonics. Hundreds of students have successfully completed the activity at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, TN, but the activity is still considered a "beta test copy" and the author welcomes feedback. Funding has been provided by small grants from the NASA Earth Observing System Higher Education Alliance ("GeoBrain"), Tennessee Space Grant, and NSF.

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In preparation for this walking field trip to the San Andreas Fault,
students ideally have attended two lecture sessions where plate
boundary processes and features have been discussed formally. The
expected outcomes include students that are capable of calculating
rupture length based on elastic rebound theory, recurrence interval,
and relative plate motion and rates. The field trip procedure and
details for each stop are included in the lab manual below.

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This activity is a directed reading exercise focused on papers that have been key to our understanding of the major source contributors to subduction zone volcanic rocks.

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Volcanoes, earthquakes, and topography reveal whether a continental margin is active or passive. In this activity, students use the GeoMapApp tool to work with earthquake, volcano, and topographic data to identify active and passive margins.

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This classroom activity involves students interpreting geologic structures presented in photos during lecture. Photos are shown either after topics or towards the end of class and one student is called upon to interpret the photo. Students may come to the screen to point out features if they choose. At the beginning of the course more basic structures are presented for interpretation and as the course progresses more complex photos are used after more advanced topics are discussed.

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Given the extensive literature on the composition and evolution of continental crust there are a number of teaching strategies that can be employed to encourage active learning by students. A critical reading of this collection of articles will provide students with a good opportunity to evaluate the chemical isotopic and physical evidence that has led to the development of these models of continental crustal growth. These instructional approaches build on recommendations from Project 2061, Science for all Americans:
1) Start with questions about nature.
2) Engage students actively.
3) Concentrate onthe collection and use of evidence.
4) Provide historical perspectives.
5) Use a team approach.
6) Do not separate knowing from finding out.
A compilation from the primary literature has been provided (see the reference list at the end of this web page: http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/earlyearth/questions/crust.html), along with guiding questions for deeper exploration and discovery. Recommended instructional methods include: jigsaw method, role playing or debates (have each student play the role of Richard Armstrong, Ross Taylor, William Fyfe...), reading the primary literature, or problem-based learning (which is purposefully ambiguous and addresses questions that require independent discovery).

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Introductory in-class session
I bring a hand-held GPS receiver into class, and present information about how the GPS receiver functions in coordination with the GPS satellites to define a position on Earth. I then talk about high-resolution GPS receivers, and introduce UNAVCO and the EarthScope Plate-Boundary Observatory. We visit the PBO website (http://pboweb.unavco.org) and find time-series data graphed for the motion of a given station (SBCC in Mission Viejo, California) relative to 3 orthogonal axes: north-south, east-west, and up-down. I hand-out paper copies of the data graphs, and we determine the slopes of the data to find the rate of change along each axis. We then use simple trigonometry to determine the length and direction of the 3-D velocity vector for that station. When we finish working on the first station's data together, we jointly write some rules for how to do the analysis. Then we use the rules to do a second analysis in class, working on data from a handout in groups of 2-3 students. The second station is BEMT in Twentynine Palms, California. The rules are refined as necessary and posted on the web. The results for SBCC and BEMT are then compared and discussed.

Homework portion
Students are required to find data for another PBO station and use the rules we developed to determine the velocity vector for that station. A report with the data and results of the analysis is due in the next class session. A sample report may be provided for their reference.

Classroom follow-up session
The results of the various analyses are compared, and questions generated about where various chunks of the lithosphere are going, how fast they are moving, and why they are moving. At the end, students are asked to write a few sentences describing what they would like to do next with the data -- what questions would they like to address through additional research work?

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The plate tectonics mapping activity allows students to easily begin to identify basic tectonic processes on a global scale. As students become aware of plate movements, they begin to identify patterns that set the stage for deeper understanding of a very complex topic. The activity uses a simple "Where's Waldo" approach to identify tectonic symbols on a laminated World Plate Tectonic map.

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This is an example of a writing assignment focussed on the use of data to support the theory of plate tectonics.

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Spreadsheets Across the Curriculum module/Geology of National Parks course. Students use foundational math to study the velocity of the North American Plate over the hot spot, the volume of eruptive materials from it, and the recurrence interval of the cataclysmic eruptions.

Spreadsheets Across the Curriculum module/Geology of National Parks course. Students use foundational math to study the velocity of the North American Plate over the hot spot, the volume of eruptive materials from it, and the recurrence interval of the cataclysmic eruptions.

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This application was developed to promote a deeper understanding of the science of geochronology, including the integration of crystal-scale relative dating principles with numerical dating via radioisotope measurements. An integral aspect of developing this understanding is practical experience with the decision-making that goes into the selection of samples for analysis, and the subsequent interpretation of the resulting isotopic ages from those samples. The U-Pb decay system in zircon is particularly amenable to this practice, as we can apply different methods -- both in situ laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICPMS) and high-precision chemical abrasion isotope dilution thermal ionization mass spectrometry (CA-IDTIMS) -- to the same crystals, and link the resulting radioisotopic ages to the textures within crystals revealed by cathodoluminescence (CL) imaging.

The application presents the student with a set of images of zircon crystals from a single sample, illustrating their internal zoning and complexities. Two modules -- LA-ICPMS and CA-IDTIMS -- are available, with the same set of crystals available for analysis in each module. The exercises are designed around the ability of the student to conduct a virtual experiment by clicking on either labeled laser ablation "spots" (in the LA-ICPMS module) or individual crystals (in the CA-IDTIMS module) to obtain a set of radioisotopic ages. These ages are illustrated in both tabular and graphical formats to allow the student to visualize the distribution of data, and assess the relative similarities and differences between ages using common statistical tools.

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Plate tectonics is a quantitative, robust and testable, geologic model describing the surface motions of Earth's outer skin. It is based on real data and assumptions, and built using the scientific method. New space geodesy data provide important quantitative (and independent) tests of this model. In general, these new data show a close match to model predictions, and suggest that plate motion is steady and uniform over millions of years. Active research continues to refine the model and to better our understanding of plate motion and tectonics. The exercise presented here aims to help students experience the process of doing science and to understand the science underlying the plate tectonic theory.

Key words: plate tectonics, global plate motion models, assumptions, geologic data (spreading rates, transform fault azimuths, earthquake slip vectors), space geodesy tests.

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This lesson presents a brief tour of the Mariana subduction system, an active continental margin in the west Pacific.

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