Combinación de estrategias de innovación docente para la enseñanza de asignaturas de Ciencias de la Tierra: aprendizaje colaborativo y basado en proyectos como fuente de material para el aula invertida

Se han combinado diferentes estrategias de innovación docente para la creación de material de uso en el aula invertida. Grupos de alumnos han realizado micro-videotutoriales para la resolución de problemas básicos de cortes geológicos, realizando ellos mismos desde el guion hasta la edición, pasando por la grabación. Mediante esta actividad han tenido que desarrollar un proyecto y trabajar de forma colaborativa. El resultado de este trabajo ha sido una colección de microvideos que están siendo empleados en la formación de otros alumnos mediante el aula invertida en varias asignaturas de Ciencias de la Tierra. Los videos se han puesto a disposición de los alumnos a través de la plataforma Moodle de la UPM para que puedan aprender y repasar las técnicas de resolución de problemas de forma autónoma

Chapter 6 Economic Aspects of Continental Carbonates and Carbonates Transformed under Continental Conditions

Continental carbonates provide economic resources to a diverse set of industries, including the energy, chemical, construction and tourist industries. Many continental rift basins harbour lacustrine deposits comprising major hydrocarbon provinces, including those of Southeast Asia, West Africa and South America. In Southeast Asia, several hydrocarbon reservoirs have been recognized as “giant oil fields”. Lacustrine basins are the source of significant quantities of coal in areas in Greece and Turkey, and calcretes have recently emerged as outstanding tracers for gold exploration in Australia. Also in Australia, uranium reserves in so-called surficial deposits are economically significant, as are the ores of Namibia. Karsts formed by the dissolution of carbonate bedrock during subaerial exposure may contain economically important resources, such as hydrocarbons and bauxite. Karst also may result in significant aquifers. Finally, karst-affected and other terrestrial carbonates may be important to some areas due to their economic impact on the tourist industry

Flipped Classrooms of practical fiel work to be used teaching Sedimentary Petrology

El Proyecto pretende elaborar prácticas de campo virtuales para las asignaturas de Petrología Sedimentaria, así como desarrollar metodologías didácticas con Aulas Inversas (Flipped Classroom), de manera que se pueda introducir el aprendizaje práctico no presencial en el campo mediante la utilización de técnicas de realidad aumentada.The Project aims to develop practical virtual field for the subjects of Sedimentary Petrology and develop teaching methodologies as Flipped Classrooms. This will permit to teach and develop practical learning in the field using virtual reality techniques withough the real presence of the teacher.Depto. de Mineralogía y PetrologíaFac. de Ciencias GeológicasFALSEUCMsubmitte

Gypsum resources of Spain: Temporal and spatial distribution

Spain is one of the main gypsum producers in the world. Spanish gypsum reserves are large and a good knowledge of the location of the ore reserves permits to establish better exploitation strategies. Plotting the Spanish major gypsum outcrops, using a GIS base, helps to classify them by age, establish the main depositional character and determine the factors controlling their origin. Evaporitic deposits from Cambrian to Quaternary are preserved throughout Spain. The evaporites are formed by chemical precipitation of natural brines, either of marine or continental origin. The oldest evaporite vestiges in the Spanish geological record have been described in carbonate materials, as gypsum and anhydrite pseudomorphs, in Cambrian deposits of the Cantabro–Iberian basin (northern Spain). The first properly identified evaporite formation in Spain is located in the Triassic deposits that characterize central and northern Europe. In Spain, evaporites of this age appear well represented in 4394.5 km2 of outcrop area in the eastern part of the Iberian Peninsula. The Lower Jurassic (covering 1068 km2 of outcrop area) and the Cretaceous (covering 706.9 km2 of outcrop area) are periods of intense evaporitic sedimentation, and outcrops appear concentrated towards central and eastern parts of the Peninsula. More recently, in the Cenozoic, numerous continental and marine basins resulted from the tectonic activity produced by the Alpine Orogeny. Here, a combination of different factors produced thick and wide evaporite accumulations (outcrop surface is 13592.7 km2). In the Quaternary, evaporitic conditions are common in Spain, including various saline lakes (covering 1092.1 km2 of outcrop area) mainly in the Ebro basin and La Mancha zone. In addition, there are many artificial marine salinas. The evaporitic conditions in a basin strongly depend on factors such as climate, tectonics and brine composition. A study of the spatial distribution and age of the gypsum-bearing units in Spain suggests a wide variation in factors controlling the origin of gypsum deposits. The Spanish evaporite precipitation from Permian to Jurassic times was controlled by global conditions such as climate. They were formed during a global warming period. On the other hand, evaporites formed from late Cretaceous to Neogene were more influenced by regional factors that were related to the tectonic activity produced by the Alpine Orogeny. At present evaporite precipitation occurs due to the endorheic character of lakes in some parts of Spain

Enterolithic folds in evaporites as microbially induced sedimentary structures: New model of formation and interpretation in the geological record

Enterolithic structures are stratigraphically localized folds in gypsum beds found in certain saline evaporitic sedimentary units in a wide variety of basins. Different models of formation have been proposed, all related to inorganic processes. These models include: diagenetic transformation of gypsum beds producing either displacive growth of crystals or volume changes; mechanical folding caused by compressional stress; and folding produced by slumping. The analysis of three Cenozoic evaporite sequences in Spain reveals that none of the previous models explains their origin and existence. In these outcrops, gypsum enterolithic structures occur in horizontal beds with parallel troughs and crests of the folds. They appear in shoreline facies of lacustrine environments and did not undergo major diagenetic transformations after the primary lithification of the original sediment. Based on these observations, together with the study of a modern analogue in Minorca, Spain, a new model is proposed for the genesis of enterolithic structures. This new model is based on the existence of a microbial mat exposed to brine concentration–dilution cycles and strong wind events. The high wind flow events enhanced folding of the microbial mat that became subaerially exposed and lithified due to subsequent evaporation. Therefore, the presence of enterolithic structures could be used as an indicator of shallow water environmental conditions subject to variations in brine concentration in areas with strong wind flow events. Previous studies of some evaporitic successions should be revisited, taking into account the proposed model, which would imply new depositional environment interpretations. At the same time, the proposed model could explain the existence of Kinneyia‐type structures, also known as wrinkle structures, formed beneath microbial mats in peritidal zones. Moreover, considering enterolithic structures as microbially induced sedimentary structures could be useful as evidence of microbial life in the ancient geological record and on other planets such as Mars