Sedimentary geology and geoscience education: a combined study of sequence stratigraphy and spatial visualization using outcrop examples from the cretaceous tertiary of Utah

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Publication Type thesis
School or College College of Mines & Earth Sciences
Department Geology & Geophysics
Author Semple, Ian Laird
Title Sedimentary geology and geoscience education: a combined study of sequence stratigraphy and spatial visualization using outcrop examples from the cretaceous tertiary of Utah
Date 2011-08
Description Chapter 1 examines the stratigraphic architecture of the lower straight cliffs formation across the southwestern portion of the Kaiparowits Plateau in southern Utah. To determine the controls affecting deposition of marginal marine deposits, seven stratigraphic sections (each ~90-100m) and 729 paleocurrents were measured along a 20 km transect (A-A'). This study divides the lower Straight Cliffs Formation into four depositional units (DU), representing distinct and genetically-related depositional environments: prograding shoreface parasequences (DU-1), tidally influenced fluvial channels and estuaries (DU-2), a transitional sequence of shoreface deposits through fluvial deposits (DU-3), and downstream accreting fluvial deposits (DU-4). This interpretation represents both minor and more significant revisions to previous interpretations of this succession, and highlights the need for high-resolution stratigraphic studies to fully understand depositional compexity in this and similar settings. Earth scientists often use images to communicate scientific concepts, and they commonly provide cues establishing the scale of features shown ('hammer for scale,' etc). How effective are these kinds of scaling cues? Chapter 2 examines the effect of scaling cures and interactivity on the ability of earth scientists to extract information from 2 2D image. To evaluate both scaling cues and interactivity, a visualization test was created in which participants were asked to estimate the size of several boxes shown in outcrop photos. All test subjects first viewed a static image, followed by an interactive (gigapan) image of the same outcrop; two different outcrops of different sizes were used. Participants (test group =63, further testing in progress) represent a range of experience and education levels. Results show that scaling estimates are more difficult for larger/more distant outcrops. Scaling cues can also become a distractor for viewers of any experience level or background. It is important to realize that viewers internalize scaling cues differently, so different types of cues may help some viewers more than others. Also it appears that incorporating interactivity can increase accuracy, due to the ability to customize views that best fits an individual's learning style and internal sense of problem solving, The results of this study contain numerous educational implications for the application of scale and interactivity.
Type Text
Publisher University of Utah
Subject Geoscience; Sequence; Spatial; Straight Cliffs; Stratigraphy; Visualization
Dissertation Institution University of Utah
Dissertation Name Master of Science
Language eng
Rights Management Copyright © Ian Laird Semple 2011
Format Medium application/pdf
Format Extent 7,388,976 bytes
Identifier us-etd3,57014
Source Original housed in Marriott Library Special Collections, QE3.5 2011 .S36
ARK ark:/87278/s6wd4fcj
Setname ir_etd
ID 195705
Reference URL https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6wd4fcj