Plate Tectonics, the San Andreas Fault System, and How They Reorganized the Topography and Geology of Southern California.

Thursday 1:30pm-4:00pm E Building 104

Afternoon Mini Workshop

Convener

Tanya Atwater, University of California-Santa Barbara

The Californias are one of the few places on Earth where the geology of the land is intimately entangled with the details of the adjacent oceanic plate tectonic history and, as such, they present an exceptional vehicle for introducing and exploring both realms. I have developed a number of resources, both computer free-ware animations and physical models, to illuminate these relationships. In this workshop, we shall explore these resources, with particular emphasis on a hands-on model for the creation of Southern California's amazingly complex landscapes, rocks, micro-climates, and natural hazards.

Goals

By the end of this workshop, participants will:

Be introduced to a set of resources created for teaching plate tectonics, particularly focused on Southern California
Come away with materials or online resources to use in their own classrooms

Program

1:30pm "Entrance exam" and Background P T Fundamentals

Work through "Entrance exam" (then check against "cheat sheets"?) Subjects addressed:

Crust/mantle vs lithosphere/asthenosphere – composition vs strength
Continental crust vs oceanic crust – fill chart:
composition, age range, thickness, formation, variability
Continental lithosphere vs oceanic lithosphere -
buoyancy/anti-buoyancy: subduction vs cont. collision

Groups: discuss answers and formulate questions for discussion

Atwater and All: discuss common sticking points, plus...