1. Promote fundamental research in cognition and visualization
2. Adapt existing GIS technology and data sources for ease of use in
schools
3. Develop model curriculum at the middle school level to support
cognition and visualization research
4. Support implementation of national education standards in science,
math
and geography
The Principal Investigators are:
Daniel Barstow (TERC) directs the Kids
Network Curriculum Development Project and developed the Accu-Weather
Forecaster.
Eric Frost (SDSU) has applied
cutting-edge visualization and animation tools to teacher education and
research
in structural geography.
Lynn Liben (Penn State) has done
seminal cognitive research in spatial and geographical domains.
Sally Ride (UCSD CalSpace) has directed
efforts to use space shuttle photos and other imagery in education.
Randall Souviney (UCSD TEP) has worked
with teachers to develop applications of network technology to enhance
mathematics and science education.
The portion of Visualizing Earth that I am involved with is "Engines of
Change". Our main emphasis is on Earth
Science; Volcanoes, Earthquakes, and Plate Tectonics. We are conducting an
investigation into how best to convey
concepts of plate tectonics, with a cognitive research focus on understanding
the development of increasingly
complex visualization skills, and a technology focus on advanced tools of data
overlaying and 3-dimensional
rotations. We work with San Diego area teachers in elementary, middle, and
high schools, and help them to
incorporate GIS technologies into their curricula. Our main GIS tool is ER
Mapper, and we are fortunate to
have the company involved with our project. ER Mapper is a wonderful tool
that allows us to georeference
shuttle and other images so they can be layered with other data, including
digital elevation, and seismic data.
Relevant links include:
http://www-tep.ucsd.edu/VisEa rth/VisE.html
http://earthrise.sdsc.edu/
earthrise/main.html
"Visualizing Earth" addresses four primary goals: