Sunday, November 14, 1999 10:18:08 PM

Diana Taggart

Extension 3

EARTHQUAKES

Grade 10-12

Algebra II or Precalculus level math students

BACKGROUND

As part of a unit on Logarithms, we were discussing the meaning of the Richter Scale measurements. A rather interesting discussion followed about the recent major Earthquakes in Turkey and Taiwan. Some of my students had been in the one in Northern California when they were children, and I had been in the 1971 Earthquake in Los Angeles. Since there is a major fault line that runs down Wasatch Blvd. (a well traveled road not too far from my house and the school in which I teach), there was a lot of interest in this topic.

RESEARCH TOPICS

1. Explore the possibility and probability of a major Earthquake in Utah, and specifically Salt Lake City.

2. Explore the recent “increase” in major Earthquakes. (We thought it seemed like there had been more recently.

3. Explore the meaning of the term “major earthquake”. Richter Scale, location?

4. What procedures should be followed in the event of a Major Earthquake along the Wasatch Front: At home, school, work.

5. Explore the geology of the Salt Lake Valley vs. the bench areas and how the two distinct areas would be affected in the event of a major earthquake.

ACTIVITIES

The class would be divided into five groups. Each group would be assigned one of the above topics. Each group report should include the following:

1. A written report on the topic.

2. An oral presentation by one or more members of the group.

3. At least one visual aid appropriate to the topic, i.e. maps, charts, models.

4. Each report should include resources used, and suggestions for additional reading on the subject.

5. Each group should write at least three test questions covering their material.

I would meet with each group individually to discuss the assigned topic. Students should have the opportunity to ask me questions regarding their topic.

Suggested Resources:

http://www.seis.utah.edu/HTML/UtahSeismicityMaps.html

Salt Lake Tribune (http://www.sltrib.com) and/or The Deseret News

The following topics are just a few of the options listed when Jeeves (www.ask.com) was asked, “Where can I learn about Earthquakes?”

Where can I see a cool Shockwave model of earthquakes?

How can I learn to prepare for an earthquake?

What should I do before, during, and after an earthquake?

www.math.montana.edu/~nmp/materials/ess/geosphere/

GENERAL DISCUSSION

Is this project doable? I think it is, but I don't have a feel for the appropriate time frame. There have been many articles written in our local newspapers (during the past 5 years) that address Topics 1,4 and 5. As for Topics 2 and 3, I have been working with students on making judgment calls. Can you justify your position? If so, it doesn’t have to agree with mine.

Is it interesting? I believe it is based on the spontaneous classroom discussion resulting from the Richter Scale problem. Again, I have tied it to a local situation that students can readily identify with. Topics that are close to home are more tangible, more realistic and consequently more interesting.

Will I try it? Probably not in my present situation. The scope of the math curriculum at both of these levels is so big that there is not enough time to cover all that should be covered as dictated by the core curriculum. If, as I would like, I taught an integrated math/physics class with a physics teacher, this would be ideal. Also it would address the new push for an integrated curriculum as well as the use of Cooperative learning. I would like to try the “School within a School” approach. I could see a project like this being evaluated by the English teacher for form, by the Math./Science teachers for content, and it could also have applicability in the Social Studies curriculum. I’m all for tying it all together. I often wonder why education has become so compartmentalized. Mathematics is so chopped up that students have to get to Calculus before they really begin to see the connections. In my school, we’re trying to teach Physics without Math, because Math is perceived to be “hard” by the powers that be. I think that must be a bit like trying to teach literature without words!