Earthquake Activities-High Schools

• Soils and Earthquakes

Students will make a soil profile and also learn and also learn about liquefaction through a hands-on experiment.

• Designing Structures to Perform Well During an Earthquake

Students will build wood frame, masonary, and steel frame

• IDEERS Model Building Competition-Challenge

First, you are required to Design and Construct a model of a building to a scale of roughly 1:25.  The model should stand up to the artificial earthquakes generated on the shaking table in the EERC laboratory. Then, Produce a presentation about: How your model was developed and why earthquake resistant buildings are needed.

• The AS-1 Seismograph-Magnitude Determination and Calibration

Procedure for determining  earhtquake magnitude from seismograms from the AS-1 seismograph.  Examples of AS-1 recording are shown.  A method of relative calibration of the AS-1 is also provided.

• Table-top Earthquakes

The apparatus consists of a heavy object that is dragged steadily with an elastic cord.  Although pulled with a constant velocity, the heavy object repeatedly slides and then stops.  A small vibration sensor, attached to a computer display, graphically monitors this intermittent motion.  This intermittent sliding mothion mimics the intermittent fault slippage that characterized the earthquake fault zones.  Detailed instructions are given for assembly and construction of this demonstration.

• Ideas for Developing a "PEPPy" Science Fair Project

The availability of research quality seismometers in schools has not been effectivly utilized.  This project will assist teachers and students by providing a.) Information and a checklist of pre-experimentation planning and protocols needed by students for science fair participation and b.) Listing of possible topics that could be developed into science fair projects.

• Investigating Earthquakes through Regional Seismicity

This SCEC educational module has been designed to provide students with the opportunity to interactively investigate the nature of earthquakes.  The module has been divided into three major sections, "What is and Earthquake","The Distribution of Earthquakes", and "Measuring Earthquakes".  Each section presents background material and interactive learning activities allowing students to understand such characteristics of earthquakes as their associated faults, rates of occurrence, magnitudes, and geographic distribution.

• Exploring the Use of Space Technology in Earthquakes

This educational module was designed to allow students to interactively explore the use of SCIGN and its data in earthquake studies.  It is divided into four major sections: Plate Tectonics, Earthquakes, GPS, and Space Technology at Work.  All of the sections includes background material and activities; the first three sections focus primarily on introducing satellite technology and tectonic phenomena, and the final section serves to integrate knowledge learned in the first three by allowing student to use real SCIGN data in their investigations into plate tectonics, earthquakes, and GPS.