Observe River Erosion Creating Waterfalls and Chasms
This animation illustrates the processes involved in waterfall formation. Related features such as chasms and plunge pools, as well as headward erosion and migration are also portrayed. Users can stop, play, fast forward and rewind the animation at any time. This visualization is one of several animations in a series developed as a component of Exploring Earth, a website that supports the textbook Earth Science.
Animation Showing Growth of a Continent
This Flash animation illustrates continental growth. It shows a convergent boundary where a terrane on a subducting plate is fused to the edge of a continent. Users can stop, play, fast forward and rewind the animation at any time. This visualization is one of several animations in a series developed as a component of Exploring Earth, a website that supports the textbook Earth Science.
Graphical Representation of Geologic Time
This spiral graph visualization, which includes both marine and terrestrial components, represents 4.5 billion years of geologic time. Stratigraphy, paleontology, and geochronology study results provide evidence in support of this old earth. This graphical representation is from an article called Age of the Earth.
CLT: Exploring Climate Events and Human Development
This animation on the Climate TimeLine (CTL) site depicts changes in land cover due to land use over the past 100 years. Data is based on census data, tax records, land surveys, and historical geography estimates. This visualization is the work of the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment (RIVM, Netherlands) and the Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment (SAGE, USA).
Why Topography?
Part of the supporting resources for the School of Earth Sciences dynamic earth module, the -Why Topography?- site discusses two models introduced in the 19th century that are still used to explain topographic variations. These models are the Pratt and Airy models of isostasy. In the Pratt model, high topography (relative to surroundings) is due to lower density whereas in the Airy model, high topography is due to thick crust.
Impact of the Seasons on Earth Systems
This site features Flash animations that illustrate how seasons impact various Earth systems, including surface temperature, latent heat flux, air temperature, net radiation, precipitation, runoff, and soil moisture. These resources are suitable for use in lectures, labs, or other teaching activities.
Geochemistry Activities
This site from the "On the Cutting Edge" workshop series contains a collection of activities that can be used in undergraduate geochemistry courses. The collection includes lab exercises, classroom activities, problem sets and more.
Teaching Mineralogy: A Digital Collection of Teaching Materials
This site from the "On the Cutting Edge" workshop series features a collection of resources for teaching mineralogy at the undergraduate level. These digital teaching materials are designed for faculty to use while designing new courses, enhancing existing courses, or simply looking for new ideas in teaching mineralogy. Students will also find this collection helpful for finding supplemental study materials and for doing research projects in mineralogy.
Teaching Hydrogeology in the 21st Century
This site from the "The On the Cutting Edge" workshop series features a wealth of ideas, teaching examples and web-based resources that are useful for teaching undergraduate hydrogeology.
Solar System Animations
This site features Flash animations that illustrate phases of the moon, distances between planets, total, partial, and annular eclipses, and solar system formation that includes an example of the impact that created the moon. These resources are suitable for use in lectures, labs, or other teaching activities.
Igneous Rocks for Undergraduate Courses
This site contains photographs of 22 igneous rock hand samples. Clicking on an image brings up a larger view of the sample. In addition, links to thin sections are available for some of the samples. Thin sections can be seen in both crossed polarized light and plane polarized light by moving the cursor on and off the photomicrograph. This resource is part of the Teaching Petrology collection. http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/petrology03/index.html
Tonto National Monument: Saving a National Treasure
tells the story of the Salado people, who thrived in the Arizona valley where Tonto Creek joins the Salt River (1050-1450 AD). The Salado culture combined customs of several American Indian groups. They channeled the river to create farmland in the desert. They built Pueblo-style buildings. They left no written records. This monument, established in December 1907, was among the first sites protected under the Antiquities Act of 1906.
Paterson, New Jersey: America's Silk City
examines conditions that led to the famous 1913 strike in a city that produced nearly half the U.S.'s manufactured silk. Conflicts between labor and management increased in the U.S. during the early 20th century. In Paterson, on January 27, 1913, when Henry Doherty tried to extend a new four-loom system throughout his plant, 800 silk weavers walked out. More than 20,000 Paterson silk workers took part in the strike, which lasted over five months.
Lexington, Kentucky: The Athens of the West
highlights 29 places that illustrate the transformation of the city from a small frontier post during the Revolutionary War into a center of economic, intellectual, and political activity. Photos, maps, and essays are included.
Thaw in the Cold War: Eisenhower and Khrushchev at Gettysburg
describes how President Eisenhower's personal diplomacy at his Gettysburg farm helped ease the tensions of the Cold War. The site offers photos and maps of the home as well as readings and suggestions for student assignments.
Glorieta and Raton Passes: Gateways to the Southwest
examines the role of these two passes in ensuring that the Southwest would become and remain part of the U.S. Learn about traders and armies that depended on the passes, which were part of the Santa Fe Trail, as the best way to get through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The Santa Fe Trail was a key trade route until the railroad reached Santa Fe in 1880. Like the trail, the railroad and later highways ran through the two passes.
Resources on Alaska History and Politics
This National Park Service website offers links to a variety of articles about the history and politics of Alaska. Users can download PDF articles about World War II in Alaska, the Alaska Goldrush, and national historic places. The site also features links to educational resources such as teachers' guides to teaching about historic places and culture.
Geysers: Lower Geyser Basin
This Yellowstone National Park web site is dedicated to Lower Geyser Basin. It includes images and descriptions of Queen's Laundry and Sentinel Meadows, Sentinel Cone, Ojo Caliente, Pocket Basin Mud Pots, Imperial Geyser, Spray Geyser, Octopus Spring, Great Fountain Geyser, White Dome Geyser, Pink Cone Geyser, Bead Geyser, Narcissus Geyser, Steady Geyser, Silex Spring, Fountain Paint Pot, Fountain Geyser, Clepsydra Geyser, and Jelly Geyser.
Views of the National Parks: Whiskeytown
Views of the National Parks can be used in the classroom in many different ways. Most simply, it can be made available for students to explore on their own. Lesson plan available: Biodiversity Right Outside – Biodiversity is the abundance and variety of life-forms (animals, plants, fungi, and microorganisms) at all levels of organization (ecosystems, species, and genes). In this activity students will learn about biodiversity, the importance of biodiversity to ecosystems, and will conduct thei
You Decide: Should the US government be taking the lead to reverse Global Warming?
This educational guide focuses on the idea of global warming and whether it is a legitimate threat to the environment of the planet. It also deals with the media and government responses to the issue, and whether the issue has suffered distortion due to media attention. Students are invited to examine the arguments on both sides of the debate, developing critical thinking skills as they work through the activities. Students will learn how to support their arguments with evidence and reason. It i
