96 research outputs found
Using paired teaching for earthquake education in schools
In this study, we have created 10 geoscience video lessons that follow the paired-teaching pedagogical approach. This method is used to supplement the standard school curriculum with video lessons, instructed by geoscientists from around the world, coupled with activities carried out under the guidance of classroom teachers. The video lessons introduce students to the scientific concepts behind earthquakes (e.g. the Earth's interior, plate tectonics, faulting, and seismic energy), earthquake hazards, and mitigation measures (e.g. liquefaction, structural, and non-structural earthquake hazards). These concepts are taught through hands-on learning, where students use everyday materials to build models to visualize basic Earth processes that produce earthquakes and explore the effects of different hazards. To evaluate the effectiveness of these virtual lessons, we tested our videos in school classrooms in Dushanbe (Tajikistan) and London (United Kingdom). Before and after the video implementations, students completed questionnaires that probed their knowledge on topics covered by each video, including the Earth's interior, tectonic plate boundaries, and non-structural hazards.
Our assessment results indicate that, while the paired-teaching video lessons appear to enhance student knowledge and understanding of some concepts (e.g. Earth's interior, earthquake location forecasting, and non-structural hazards), they bring little change to their views on the causes of earthquakes and their relation to plate boundaries. In general, the difference between UK and Tajik students' level of knowledge prior to and after video testing is more significant than the difference between pre- and post-knowledge for each group. This could be due to several factors affecting curriculum testing (e.g. level of teachers' participation and classroom culture) and students' learning of content (e.g. pre-existing hazards knowledge and experience). To maximize the impact of school-based risk reduction education, curriculum developers must move beyond innovative content and pedagogical approaches, take classroom culture into consideration, and instil skills needed for participatory learning and discovery
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GC Insights: Diversifying the geosciences in higher education: a manifesto for change
There is still a significant lack of diversity and equity in geoscience education, even after decades of work and widespread calls for improvement and action. We join fellow community voices in calls for improved diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice in the geosciences. Here, in this manifesto, we present a list of opportunities for educators to bring about this cultural shift within higher education: (1) advocating for institutional change, (2) incorporating diverse perspectives and authors in curricula, (3) teaching historical and socio-political contexts of geoscience information, (4) connecting geoscience principles to more geographically diverse locations, (5) implementing different communication styles that consider different ways of knowing and learning, and (6) empowering learner transformation and agency
Effect of logging wounds on diameter growth of beech (Fagus orientalis Lipsky) trees following selection cutting in Caspian forests of Iran
Background Logging damage to residual trees during selection cutting may lead to serious economic losses in terms of both timber quality and diameter growth reduction. In this study, we investigated the effect of logging operations on residual tree damage and the consequence of injuries on diameter growth in an uneven-aged mixed forest dominated by beech (Fagus orientalis Lipsky)
Changes of overweight and obesity in the adult Swiss population according to educational level, from 1992 to 2007
In many high income developed countries, obesity is inversely associated with educational level. In some countries, a widening gap of obesity between educational groups has been reported. The aim of this study was to assess trends in body mass index (BMI) and in prevalence of overweight and obesity and their association with educational level in the adult Swiss population.
Four cross-sectional National health interview surveys conducted in 1992/93 (n = 14,521), 1997 (n = 12,474), 2002 (n = 18,908) and 2007 (n = 17,879) using representative samples of the Swiss population (age range 18-102 years). BMI was derived from self-reported data. Overweight was defined as BMI > or = 25 and <30 kg/m(2), and obesity as BMI > or = 30 kg/m(2).
Mean (+/- standard deviation) BMI increased from 24.7 +/- 3.6 in 1992/3 to 25.4 +/- 3.6 kg/m2 in 2007 in men and 22.8 +/- 3.8 to 23.7 +/- 4.3 kg/m(2) in women. Between 1992/3 and 2007, the prevalence of overweight + obesity increased from 40.4% to 49.5% in men and from 22.3% to 31.3% in women, while the prevalence of obesity increased from 6.3% to 9.4% in men and from 4.9% to 8.5% in women. The rate of increase in the prevalence of obesity was greater between 1992/3 and 2002 (men: +0.26%/year; women: +0.31%/year) than between 2002 and 2007 (men: +0.10%/year; women: +0.10%/year). A sizable fraction (approximately 25%) of the increasing mean BMI was due to increasing age of the participants over time. The increase was larger in low than high education strata of the population. BMI was strongly associated with low educational level among women and this gradient remained fairly constant over time. A weaker similar gradient by educational level was apparent in men, but it tended to increase over time.
In Switzerland, overweight and obesity increased between 1992 and 2007 and was associated with low education status in both men and women. A trend towards a stabilization of mean BMI levels was noted in most age categories since 2002. The increase in the prevalence of obesity was larger in low education strata of the population. These findings suggest that obesity preventive measures should be targeted according to educational level in Switzerland
Review of GPS and Quaternary fault slip rates in the Himalaya-Tibet orogen
Previous studies related to the active deformation within the India-Asia collision zone have relied on slip rate data from major faults to test kinematic models for the region. However, estimated geodetic and Quaternary slip rates demonstrate large variability for many of the major faults in the region (e.g., Altyn Tagh and Karakorum faults). As a result, several studies have challenged the assumption that geodetic slip rates are representative of Quaternary slip rates. In this review, slip rate data from the Quaternary fault database for Central Asia are used to determine the overall relationship between Quaternary and Global Positioning System (GPS) slip rates for 19 faults. A least squares and Pearson correlation analysis are applied to investigate this relationship. To evaluate the sensitivity of the slip rate relationship to the presence/absence of individual faults and different Quaternary dating methods, the slip rates were systematically re-sampled. To account for the range of published uncertainties for slip rates, the Monte Carlo method was applied. Regression through 57 Quaternary/GPS slip rate pairs yields an r2 value of 0.71. Results from the re-sampling analysis show that the inclusion or exclusion of slip rate data from specific faults (e.g., the Ganzi fault, Karakorum fault, Himalayan Main Frontal thrust and Main Pamir thrust) have the highest influence on the strength of the correlation (changing the Pearson correlation coefficient by + 0.08, + 0.05, â 0.06, and + 0.06, respectively). Furthermore, there appears to be a systematic bias in the agreement between rates such that Quaternary rates tend to be higher than GPS rates. This bias is likely due to assumptions embedded in the geomorphic reconstructions of offset landforms used for estimating Quaternary slip rates in the dataset. Taken together, these results suggest that GPS slip rates are more likely to represent Quaternary slip rates when strict fault selection and geomorphic dating criteria are applied. Cases of inconsistencies in slip rates over different time scales may point to differences in the sensitivity of various fault slip measurement methods more often than secular rate changes
A Quaternary fault database for central Asia
Earthquakes represent the highest risk in terms of potential loss of lives
and economic damage for central Asian countries. Knowledge of fault location
and behavior is essential in calculating and mapping seismic hazard. Previous
efforts in compiling fault information for central Asia have generated a
large amount of data that are published in limited-access journals with no
digital maps publicly available, or are limited in their description of
important fault parameters such as slip rates. This study builds on previous
work by improving access to fault information through a web-based interactive
map and an online database with search capabilities that allow users to
organize data by different fields. The data presented in this compilation
include fault location, its geographic, seismic, and structural
characteristics, short descriptions, narrative comments, and references to
peer-reviewed publications. The interactive map displays 1196 fault traces
and 34âŻ000 earthquake locations on a shaded-relief map. The online database
contains attributes for 123 faults mentioned in the literature, with
Quaternary and geodetic slip rates reported for 38 and 26 faults
respectively, and earthquake history reported for 39 faults. All data are
accessible for viewing and download via
<a href="http://www.geo.uni-tuebingen.de/faults/" target="_blank">http://www.geo.uni-tuebingen.de/faults/</a>. This work has implications for
seismic hazard studies in central Asia as it summarizes important fault
parameters, and can reduce earthquake risk by enhancing public access to
information. It also allows scientists and hazard assessment teams to
identify structures and regions where data gaps exist and future
investigations are needed
Seismic monitoring of small alpine rockfalls â validity, precision and limitations
Rockfall in deglaciated mountain valleys is perhaps the most important
post-glacial geomorphic process for determining the rates and patterns of
valley wall erosion. Furthermore, rockfall poses a significant hazard to
inhabitants and motivates monitoring efforts in populated areas. Traditional
rockfall detection methods, such as aerial photography and terrestrial laser
scanning (TLS) data evaluation, provide constraints on the location and
released volume of rock but have limitations due to significant time lags or
integration times between surveys, and deliver limited information on
rockfall triggering mechanisms and the dynamics of individual events.
Environmental seismology, the study of seismic signals emitted by processes
at the Earth's surface, provides a complementary solution to these
shortcomings. However, this approach is predominantly limited by the strength
of the signals emitted by a source and their transformation and attenuation
towards receivers. To test the ability of seismic methods to identify and
locate small rockfalls, and to characterise their dynamics, we surveyed a
2.16âŻkm2 large, near-vertical cliff section of the Lauterbrunnen Valley
in the Swiss Alps with a TLS device and six broadband seismometers. During
37Â days in autumn 2014, 10 TLS-detected rockfalls with volumes ranging from
0.053âŻÂ±âŻ0.004 to 2.338âŻÂ±âŻ0.085âŻm3 were independently detected
and located by the seismic approach, with a deviation of 81â29+59âŻm
(about 7âŻ% of the average inter-station distance of the seismometer
network). Further potential rockfalls were detected outside the TLS-surveyed
cliff area. The onset of individual events can be determined within a few
milliseconds, and their dynamics can be resolved into distinct phases, such
as detachment, free fall, intermittent impact, fragmentation, arrival at the
talus slope and subsequent slope activity. The small rockfall volumes in this
area require significant supervision during data processing: 2175 initially
picked potential events reduced to 511 potential events after applying
automatic rejection criteria. The 511 events needed to be inspected manually
to reveal 19 short earthquakes and 37 potential rockfalls, including the 10
TLS-detected events. Rockfall volume does not show a relationship with
released seismic energy or peak amplitude at this spatial scale due to the
dominance of other, process-inherent factors, such as fall height, degree of
fragmentation, and subsequent talus slope activity. The combination of TLS
and environmental seismology provides, despite the significant amount of
manual data processing, a detailed validation of seismic detection of small
volume rockfalls, and revealed unprecedented temporal, spatial and geometric
details about rockfalls in steep mountainous terrain
Paired Teaching Approach to Earthquake Education: A Cross-country Comparison Between Dushanbe, Tajikistan and London, United Kingdom
Lack of access to science-based natural hazards information impedes the effectiveness of school-based disaster risk reduction education. To address this challenge, we have created 10 geosciences video lessons (https://www.youtube.com/user/EuroGeosciencesUnion) that follow an innovative pedagogy known as paired teaching. This approach is used to supplement the standard school curriculum with video lessons instructed by geoscientists from around the world and activities carried out by local classroom teachers.
To evaluate the effectiveness of these virtual lessons, we tested selected videos with 38 sixth grade students (12 years of age) and 39 nine grade students (12-13 years of age) from two school classes in Dushanbe (Tajikistan) and London (United Kingdom), respectively. By examining the same videos with two different groups of student populations, we aimed to identify potential factors (e.g., geographic location, culture, level of hazard experience) influencing studentsâ learning and/or teachersâ teaching of natural hazard information. We asked students from both groups to complete questionnaires before and after video implementations. Questionnaires probed students on topics covered by each video including the Earthâs interior, tectonic plate boundaries, and nonstructural hazards.
Prior to video implementation, a significant percentage of students from Dushanbe (71%) and from London (51%) demonstrated no conceptual framework about the Earthâs interior. However, when asked about the causes of earthquakes, 90% of London students mentioned plate tectonics in their responses while 51% of Dushanbe students only made references to mountains and volcanoes. Both groups responded similarly to questions concerning earthquake forecasting where most students said it is possible to know the location of future earthquakes, but not their exact time of occurrence. Similarly, both groups demonstrated some knowledge of nonstructural hazards found in typical school classrooms prior to video testing. Following video implementation, a notable portion of Tajik students (71%) showed an increased level of understanding of the Earthâs interior. This is 40% higher than the level of improvement observed in the responses of the UK students. Tajik students showed little improvement (23%) in their understanding of the causes of earthquakes, and continued to list mountains and volcanoes as the primary reasons for earthquake occurrence. For nonstructural hazards identification, both groups showed significant improvement in classroom hazard identification (60% and 80% for Dushanbe and London groups, respectively).
Our video testing and result comparison between two groups reveal a number of factors affecting curriculum testing (e.g., level of teachersâ participation and suitable classroom culture) and studentsâ learning of content (e.g., past hazard experience). In this presentation, we discuss these factors and how to maximize the impact of school-based risk reduction education
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