LYELL RIDES AGAIN IN UPSTATE NEW YORK: A PEDAGOGICAL VIRTUAL EXPEDITION TO EXPLORE THE PAST BASED ON MODERN FLUVIAL PROCESSES AND DEPOSITS

Access to field sites poses many problems to Earth science programs with limited budgets, time constraints, and those with inadequate training locations. This is a significant problem, as exposure to geologic features and processes is needed to fully understand the geologic sciences. Access to fluvial features can be even more taxing to a school system, due to safety considerations and additional resources needed. Students often become dependent on textbooks to help them comprehend these concepts, without the advantage of seeing the processes and products in context. One response to these problems has been a recent increase in virtual applications in the classroom, which gives students a chance to explore various geologic settings remotely.

Rivers and creeks are excellent places to bring students to study concepts related to fluvial geomorphology, sediment transport, the effects of large woody debris, and stratification processes. We have designed a Google Earth tour based on features of the Unadilla River, located in central New York State. Key components of our tour include a rich set of georeferenced data, which contain scaled photographs that document stream bank stratigraphy and channel processes, grain size distributions, and links to additional free information about the area online. When uploaded onto a computer, the pictures and data can be combined in a web environment, and mapped with Google Earth and Maps. This allows teachers to showcase multiple examples of geologic features, and challenge students to decipher the relationships between channel processes and fluvial stratigraphy. Essentially, our virtual field trip uses the present to interpret the past, an important aspect of geologic reasoning. We will provide some information on current models for alluvial stratigraphy, such as the legacy sediment model which states that historic sediment accumulation on floodplains following European settlement has resulted in high unstable mud banks. Our virtual tour presents an opportunity for students to discern whether or not this model applies to the Unadilla River. We hope this data will help Earth science teachers bring the field into their classrooms so students can develop a deeper appreciation for the fundamental and applied aspects of geological science.