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Research Project

Models of Local or Regional Change in the Geosphere

After you have finished all of the investigations in this unit, your group will do scientific research about how the geosphere changes in your community or region. You can study just about any feature of the geosphere, from volcanoes to earthquakes to stream erosion to how soil forms.

Your research should relate to one of the two chapters of this unit - large-scale forces that change the geosphere or surface processes that shape the geosphere. It should address the following CUES questions:

How does the geosphere change?
How do humans and the geosphere interact?

You will learn about many kinds of change as you do the activities in this unit. Examples of change that you could investigate include:

How waves build up or wear down (erode) coastlines of lakes or oceans.
How brooks, streams, or rivers erode or build up the land.
How glaciers erode or build up the land.
How rocks break down (weather) over time.
How soil forms or is eroded.
Earthquake activity in your region, including history, hazards, and risks.
Volcanic activity in your region, including history, hazards, and risks.
How mountains form or erode in your region, now or in the past.
How rock layers in your region have become folded or faulted.
How land moves due to gravity in your region.

**Please note that a great resource for research is DLESE (Digital Library for Earth System Education)!

HOW WAVES BUILD UP OR WEAR DOWN COASTLINES OF LAKES OR OCEANS.
	Oceans Alive: Oceans In Motion site by the Museum of Science, Boston National Geographic Wave Simulator site by the National Geographic Ocean World

HOW BROOKS, STREAMS, OR RIVERS ERODE OR BUILD UP THE LAND.
Virtual River site by the Geology Labs On-line Project. Chesapeake Bay: An Introduction to an Ecosystem: Erosion and Sedimentation Erosion Channel by The Exploratorium Sand On the Move by USGS

HOW GLACIERS ERODE OR BUILD UP THE LAND.
	National Ice Center by NOAA The Ice Cap and the first Icebergs site by Ronald Kramer Ice site by William Marsh Rice University International Ice Patrol site by the US Coast Guard

HOW ROCKS BREAK DOWN (WEATHER) OVER TIME.
Weathering of Rocks and Formation of Sediment site by Pamela J.W. Gore Rock and Mineral Uses site by rocksandminerals.com

HOW SOIL FORMS OR IS ERODED.
	State Soils by NRCS Smithsonian Soils Exhibit: Soils Sustain Life by Agronomic Science Foundation and Soil Science Society of America What is Soil Quality by NRCS Soil Science Education Homepage by GLOBE

EARTHQUAKE ACTIVITY IN YOUR REGION, INCLUDING HISTORY, HAZARDS, AND RISKS.
Recent Earthquake Activity in the USA site by USGS Earthquake Hazards Program An On-line Exhibit about Earthquakes site by The Tech Seismic Monitor site by IRIS Seismosurfing the Internet for Earthquake Data site provided by: The Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network

VOLCANIC ACTIVITY IN YOUR REGION, INCLUDING HISTORY, HAZARDS, AND RISKS.
	Geosphere: Volcanoes site by Museums Teaching Planet Earth, UCSB Discover Our Earth: Volcanoes site by INSTOC, Cornell University Cascades Volcano Observatory site by USGS Volcanoes Online Database a Thinkquest 1998 Project What are Volcanic Hazards? by USGS The World's Deadliest Volcanoes by NOVA Online Active Volcanoes and Plate Tectonics, "Hot Spots" and the "Ring of Fire" by USGS

HOW MOUNTAINS FORM OR ERODE IN YOUR REGION, NOW OR IN THE PAST.
Ordovician Ice Age by Earth and Sky Mountain Maker, Earth Shaker by PBS Tour of Park Geology- Mountain Building by NPS Pacific Province by USGS

HOW ROCKS LAYERS IN YOUR REGION HAVE BECOME FOLDED OR FAULTED.
	The Rock Cycle by rocksandminerals.com America's Volcanic Past - Volcanic Highlights and Features by USGS Exploratour - The Surface of the Earth by University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR)

HOW LAND MOVES DUE TO GRAVITY IN YOUR REGION.
What is a Glacier? by William Marsh Rice University Mass Movement by Duncan Heron. Email: heron@duke.edu

Chapter One
Nature of Science

Chapter Two
Large-Scale Forces that Change the Geosphere

Chapter Three
Surface Process that Change the Geosphere

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This project is supported, in part, by the National Science Foundation (grant no ESI-0095938). Any opinion, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.