Analyzing the Antarctic Ozone Hole (College Level)
Brian Welch, Saint Olaf College
College-level adaptation of a chapter in the Earth Exploration Toolbook. Examine satellite images of atmospheric ozone in the Southern Hemisphere to study changes in concentration over a time. -

Investigating Earthquakes: GIS Mapping and Analysis (College Level)
Brian Welch, Saint Olaf College
This is a college-level adaptation of a chapter from the Earth Exploration Toolbook. The students download global quake data over a time range and use GIS to interpret the tectonic context. -

Geologic Puzzles: Morrison Formation
Heather Macdonald, College of William and Mary
Images of faulted strata, tilted turbidites, and beach rocks bring the field into the classroom, giving students practice in doing what geoscientists do. These images are examples of geologic puzzles. -

The Sleeping Mountain
Rebecca Teed, Wright State University-Main Campus
In this role-playing scenario, students represent townspeople whose lives and livelihoods are endangered by an active volcano which may or may not erupt in the near future. -

Assesing the angle of subduction using GeoMapApp
Rory McFadden, Carleton College
This activity has students determine the angle of subduction using GeoMapApp. Students use datasets available within GeoMapApp to examine the influence of the age of oceanic lithosphere and convergence rate on the ...

Google Earth and Meandering Rivers
Amanda Schmidt, Oberlin College
This activity uses Google Earth to introduce students to a variety of measurements related to meandering rivers by looking at how rivers around the world have changed over time.

Geoscience education research project
Karen Kortz, Community College of Rhode Island
Students complete a scientific research project including asking a question, developing methods, collecting data, analyzing and interpreting data, and communicating results. The research question begins "What ...

NanTroSEIZE in 3-D
Don Reed, San Jose State University
We have developed a web-based virtual expedition, NanTroSEIZE in 3-D, based on a seismic survey associated with the NanTroSEIZE program of NSF-MARGINS and IODP to study the properties of the plate boundary fault ...

Course Information Survey
Don Reed, San Jose State University
This activity is a brief quiz to be completed at beginning of course that provides information to instructor about the internet access and computer resources of each student as well as assesses whether student has ...

Lag to peak with a stream table
Amanda Schmidt, Oberlin College
Students use a small stream table in groups to investigate how channel form determines the shape of the hydrograph (including lag to peak). They use three channels: no channel (just sediment filling the table), a ...

Melting ice cubes
Mirjam Glessmer, Hamburg University of Technology
Explore how melting of ice cubes floating in water is influenced by the salinity of the water. Important oceanographic concepts like density and density driven currents are visualized and can be discussed on the ...

Introduction to the Trilobites: Morphology, Macroevolution and More
Michelle Casey, University of Kansas Main Campus
The learning goals for this lab are the following: 1) to familiarize students with the anatomy and terminology relating to trilobites; 2) to give students experience identifying morphologic structures on real ...

In Search of GLOBE Data
Gary Randolph, GLOBE
Students use on-line GLOBE search tools to locate and display data from schools and use the data to answer questions regarding weather and climate. Answer key provided.

An abrupt global climate change event in Earth history- Evidence from the ocean
Kevin Theissen, University of St. Thomas (MN)
Students work in pairs to explore and synthesize key paleoceanographic evidence for the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM)as found in marine sediment cores collected and analyzed during Ocean Drilling Program ...

Systems Geobiology Powers of 10
Bruce Fouke, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Systems Geobiology is the study of complex interactions arising from the interplay of biological, geological, physical, chemical and even social systems across multiple spatial (microns to thousands of kilometers) ...

Visualizing Data from a Journal Article: A Critical Thinking Exercise
Jeannette Wolak, Tennessee Technological University
This is a take-home exercise for junior or senior-level students in a Sedimentation/Stratigraphy course. It may be used to bridge topics of geomorphology, depositional environments and clastic sedimentology. The ...

Topographic Maps
Lisa Walsh, University of Maryland-College Park
This geology lab is designed to teach students the basic skills needed to read, construct, and interpret topographic maps. The goal of this lab is to help students build direct connections between the topography ...

Campus Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory
Suzanne Savanick, Macalester College. Email: shansen2@macalester.edu Suzanne Savanick and Chris Wells co-taught a class like this for the Macalester College environmental studies senior seminar during spring 2008.
Students conduct a greenhouse gas emission inventory for their college or university. Students analyze findings and present information to the college or university community. -

Petrology and Geochemistry of the Ongoing Pu'u 'Ō'ō Eruption of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai'i (1983-2009)
Andrew Greene, Hawaii Pacific University
The current eruption of Kīlauea Volcano on the island of Hawai'i has been closely monitored and studied since its inception in 1983. This laboratory exercise utilizes the excitement of an ongoing eruption to ...

CCD & Calcareous Ooze Assignment
Cindy Lampe, Ventura College
The assignment pre-tests student understanding of the CCD, lysocline, calcareous ooze, and the deposition of marine sediments near mid-ocean ridges and ocean basins.