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9 July 2007
Today was such an exciting day! Our theme was climate change and finding evidence in the sediment cores of past climate change on Earth. Our lab time was spent working in groups to analyze nine cores from the North Pacific, South Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans. In teams, we described the lithography of each layer in the core in terms of color and particle size, and we recorded evidence of bioturbation and any other observations we had made. In sharing our findings, we learned that each of our cores had a "sharp" boundary between two very different layers, signaling to us that something major had happened at that time period on Earth.
Through various inquiry-based activities, Mark Leckie and Debbie Thomas led our entire group through a series of steps to gain knowledge about the PETM (the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum) — a time period in which Earth went through a rapid warming event that led to a variety of changes. While doing so, our group learned how scientists analyze carbon and oxygen isotopes to learn about oceanic temperatures of the past and the types of organisms that lived in those areas of the ocean at various time periods. Another highlight of the day was a fieldtrip to the Stable Isotopes Lab here at Texas A & M where we could see what a mass spectrometer looks like and hear an explanation from grad students of how it works. Debbie was even kind enough to show us her new lab, which is still under construction. Thanks, Debbie! We ended our day with time to collaborate and work on curriculum connections to make use of our newly-gained knowledge! Reported by Barbara Fortier
Contact us at learning@oceanleadership.org. |
