Robert Blodgett

Well Core Analysis: Capstone Activity for Historical Geology part of Geoscience in Two-year Colleges:Activities
As a capstone laboratory project for introductory historical geology, the class is divided into groups of 3 to 5 students to analyze a sedimentary rock core and associated geophysical log. Each group graphically describes and interprets 24 feet of split core, along with a gamma log for the same interval. The class is provided with hand lenses, binocular microscopes, , spray wash bottles, dilute HCl, a logging form, and with selected research papers on textures, structures, and fossils found in the core, regional paleogeography, and on the tectonics and paleooceanography at the time of deposition. Each group gives a 15-minute presentation of their core interval to the entire class and submits a graphic log for the interval. All students submit a two-page report summarizing their own observations and interpretations of the core interval. Assessment is based on a combination of the group presentation and individual report.