INTERACTIVE 3D VISUALIZATIONS OF GEOLOGY – CREATION, USE, AND ASSESSMENT

Geology, the most visual of the sciences, presents a wonderful opportunity to teach students how to visualize and reason in 3D. As part of the NSF-funded Hidden Earth Project and Hidden Earth Curriculum Project, we developed interactive QuickTime Virtual Reality (QTVR) movies and VRML worlds to teach students how to visualize topography, the subsurface geometry of geologic structures, and the 3D nature of geologic maps. Most materials were created with Corel Bryce5 by draping contour maps and geologic maps over digital topography and by constructing geologic blocks that could be rotated, sliced, and made partially transparent. MicroDEM was used to merge and manipulate digital elevation models (DEMs) and to generate grayscale topography images required by Bryce. Once a draped terrain or block was constructed, Bryce rendered (1) a single-view to use as a scrollable and zoomable QTVR panorama movie, and (2) views from various perspectives for merging into QTVR object movies. The movies and related images formed the basis for learning-cycle education modules constructed as web pages. Some terrains were also exported as VRML worlds for use in the GeoWall 3D stereo projection system.

The interactive materials were used in labs for introductory geology, structural geology, and field geology. In the introductory geology labs, materials were quantitatively assessed using control and experimental groups with geospatial and standard spatial-visualization pretests and posttests. We also collected qualitative data by observing and interviewing students. Our results, presented at the 2002 NARST conference, document that spatial ability can be improved through instruction and that differences in performance between the genders can be eliminated. Interactive movies and research results are available at http://reynolds.asu.edu/