Example Exercises and Activities
- Directed Discovery of Crystal Structures
David Mogk and Kent Ratajeski, Montana State University
In this exercise, students download crystal structures for viewing and manipulation with visualization software. By answering a series of leading questions, the students learn about the spatial and chemical relationships in a variety of crystalline solids (including mineral and non-mineral species) and piece together for themselves "Pauling's Rules" which describe the fundamental principles of crystal structures. - Identifying Minerals with Chemical and Crystallographic Data
Kent Ratajeski, Montana State University
In this review exercise, students download crystal structures of unknown minerals for viewing with a visualization program such as XtalDraw or CrystalMaker, and through a series of leading questions, determine the identity of each unknown. - Order/Disorder Within Crystal Structures as a Function of Temperature
Kent Ratajeski, Montana State University
In this exercise, students download crystal structures of experimentally-synthesized olivines determined over a range of temperatures to investigate the mineral's unique order/disorder properties. - Crystal Structures as Geobarometers
Kent Ratajeski, Montana State University
In this exercise, designed for undergraduate igneous petrology or advanced mineralogy courses, students download a series of crystal structures from the American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database to explore the crystal-chemical basis that allows the clinopyroxene crystal structure to be used as a geobarometer. - An Examination of the Phase Tranformation in Clinopyroxene
Bob Downs, University of Arizona
In this exercise, students examine the structures of 3 different clinopyroxene crystals as a function of cell volume in order to understand the mechanism behind their phase changes. As part of the exercise, instructions are given about how to make animations that follow the volume changes.
We want to hear from you!
Do you have an idea for using crystal structure databases and visualization software in geoscience education? Would you like to contribute an exercise/activity to this collection? We can assist in formatting your exercise/activity as a webpage for this collection, or you may choose to make your contribution in another format (e.g., a Word document). Please contact Kent Ratajeski (kratajeski@montana.edu) or Dave Mogk (mogk@montana.edu) for more information or make a contribution.
Do you have an idea for using crystal structure databases and visualization software in geoscience education? Would you like to contribute an exercise/activity to this collection? We can assist in formatting your exercise/activity as a webpage for this collection, or you may choose to make your contribution in another format (e.g., a Word document). Please contact Kent Ratajeski (kratajeski@montana.edu) or Dave Mogk (mogk@montana.edu) for more information or make a contribution.
