This week's 27 November 2004 "Earth Science Sites of the Week" feature
1) historical weather maps,
2) snow crystals,
3) earth science interactives,
4) topography in 3-D,
5) San Francisco earthquake maps.
Features:
1) Animation: world vegetation
2) Teaching Tip: teaching tip archive
3) Neat Picture: oceans of Kansas - dinosaur images
4) Good Read: Faith-Based Parks? Creationists meet the Grand Canyon
5) Good Quotes: on eternity and good questions
6) Trivia: living in tuff and catastrophic outgassing
7) Humor: SBF (single, black, female) seeks male companionship
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SITES OF INTEREST
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1) U.S. DAILY WEATHER MAPS PROJECT - NOAA,(suggested by Eric Cohen,
Westhampton Beach, NY and Cheryl Dodes, Port Washington, NY), view
national weather maps going back to 1872. The maps need a simple
plug-in to download allowing you to zoom into specific sections of
maps. For a good example, pull up the November 10, 1975 map to recount
conditions that sand the Edmund Fitzgerald in Lake Superior.
http://docs.lib.noaa.gov/rescue/dwm/data_rescue_daily_weather_maps.html
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2) SNOW CRYSTALS - Caltech,(suggested by Kent Ratajeski, Montana State
University), this site "is all about snow crystals and snowflakes --
what they are, where they come from, and just how these remarkably
complex and beautiful structures are created."
http://www.its.caltech.edu/%7Eatomic/snowcrystals/
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3) DISCOVER EARTH - Cornell University,(suggested by Thomas McGuire,
Cave Creek, AZ) "Here you will find a wide range of information related
to the Earth sciences, accompanied by images, graphs, maps, and movies.
In addition, you will find two Java-based, interactive data analysis and
mapping tools that will allow customized access to a large variety of
Earth science data sets that are used by research scientists."
http://atlas.geo.cornell.edu/education/
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4) VISUALIZING TOPOGRAPHY - Steve Reynolds, Arizona State University,
(suggested by Holly Devaul, DLESE), Visualizing Topography is an
instructional tour that shows how to visualize topography in 3D. It
contains Quick Time movies and questions that help students visualize
two-dimensional topography in three dimensions.
http://geology.asu.edu/~reynolds/topo_gallery/intro_title.htm
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5) EARTHQUAKES AND FAULTS IN THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA - USGS,
(suggested by Joseph Kerski, USGS), The newest earthquake map (stock
#116286) of the greater San Francisco Bay Area depicts both active and
inactive faults and earthquakes with magnitudes of 1.5 to 7.0.
Twenty-two earthquakes with magnitudes of 5.0 and greater are indicated
on the map and listed chronologically in an accompanying table. The
data are compiled from records from 1970 to 2003. The map scale is
1:300,000 and the size is 36 x 48 inches.
http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/2004/2848
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FEATURES
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1) ANIMATIONS:
Vegetation NDVI, NASA, from the "Earth Observatory" site, the
Normalized Difference Vegetation Index, or NDVI is an index of green
leaf density. The higher the value, the more luxuriant the vegetation.
View annual fluctuations and patterns in global vegetation. Combine NDVI
with other archived variables to introduce correlations and interactions.
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Observatory/Datasets/ndvi.fasir.html
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2) TEACHING TIP:
University of Hawaii, (suggested by Virginia Malone, Hondo, Texas),
Find teaching tips for your future teachers in a well organized format.
This site is filled with all manner of teaching tips ranging from
assessment to critical thinking.
http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip
/teachtip.htm
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3) NEAT PICTURES:
Oceans of Kansas, Mike Everhart, (suggested by Virginia Malone, Hondo,
Texas), Most of Kansas once lay beneath an inland sea. This site
provides fantastic images of fossils, scientific papers, and general
information about the fossils. If you like sharks check outthis site.
http://www.oceansofkansas.com/
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4) GOOD READ:
Faith-Based Parks? Creationists meet the Grand Canyon, Time Magazine,
(suggested by Alice Kasten, NY Science Consultant) "At a park called
Dinosaur Adventure Land, run by creationists near Pensacola, Florida,
visitors are informed that man coexisted with dinosaurs. This fantasy
accommodates the creationists' view that the Earth is only 6,000 years
old and that Darwin's theory of evolution is false. Among the park
exhibits is one that illustrates another creationist article of faith.
It consists of a long trough filled with sand and fitted at one end with
a water spigot. Above the trough is a sign reading "That River Didn't
Make That Canyon."
http://www.time.com/time/columnist/jaroff/article/0,9565,783829,00.html
Thank you,
Mark Francek