Raspberry Shake - "Dig Deeper into Seismology"
Leader
Gabriel Low, Mr.
Demonstration
At the Rendezvous, the main demonstration will be our free curriculum web resource (edu.raspberryshake.org), we will go through one of the lessons that are available on that resource, and we will demonstrate our EQ Locator interactive web-app. Also, a Raspberry Shake Seismiograph will be set-up and running for educators to see.
Abstract
This lesson is the second lesson in Raspberry Shake's introductory lesson plan sequence and focuses on students' fundamental understanding of earthquakes, seismic waves, and how earthquake epicenters are located. The lesson begins with a short presentation about the concepts of how earthquakes start, the different types of seismic waves, and an explanation of how seismologists are able to identify earthquake epicenters through triangulation and picking P and S waves. Students are then directed to locator.raspberryshake.net, where they can practice picking earthquake epicenters using data from the Raspberry Shake Citizen Science Seismic Network. The lesson outcomes are that: Students gain a complete and hands-on understanding of how earthquake epicenters are located, and how seismic waves work in general.
Context
The activity is a way for students to step into the shoes of scientists and practice a skill that siesmologists do as a fundamental part of their job. Students use their knowledge of math, physics, and earth science to complete the activity. The target audience is from 5-12 grade.
Why It Works
The activity is both effective and innovative because of the EQ Locator web-app where students can interact with live seismic data from thousands of stations worldwide to practice locating earthquake epicenters. Raspberry Shake is innovative in itself by being an affordable but professional-grade seismograph.