GEOSITES: A WEB-BASED GEOLOGIC SITE INVENTORY AS A LINK BETWEEN THE CLASSROOM AND THE FIELD

GeoSites is a web-based inventory of 35 outcrops and other sites of geologic interest in southwestern Pennsylvania that was designed to be used as both an instructor and student resource in an urban university setting. Many of the outcrops are easily accessible by public transportation so that students may visit them at any time. In addition, the website will contain a series of exercises specifically designed for courses taught in the University of Pittsburgh’s Department of Geology and Planetary Science.

For each site, the inventory includes a site description, topographic map, directions to the site (both driving and mass transit, if available), a statement of safety issues (if any), a brief explanation of the geology of the site, one or more photos of the site, a list of fossils found at the site, and a list of references. In addition, the GeoSites website contains a summary of the regional stratigraphy, an overview of depositional environments, a catalogue of local fossils, and a reference list. Individual sites may be accessed by a hot-keyed geologic map, hot-keyed highway map, a hot-keyed stratigraphic column, or a site list.

The sites in the inventory may be used in several ways: 1) to provide background on the local geology for new faculty; 2) as a source for individual student field projects; or 3) as the basis for a class field exercise that may be done at the student’s leisure, say over a weekend or after classes. The website is dynamic and may be updated as new outcrops are created and old ones decay, or are destroyed in this rapidly changing urban to suburban environment.

The GeoSites website also provides: 1) a curriculum resource to local K-12 teachers and students, 2) a resource to other colleges and universities in the region, and 3) a list of publicly accessible sites for the general public to explore earth science. The URL for the site is www.geology.pitt.edu/GeoSites.