Earth's Changing Landforms

A student wants to learn more about seismic activity. Which question should the student investigate to help them understand how seismic activity is measured?

• How do GIS maps measure the intensity of an earthquake?

• How do seismographs measure the intensity of an earthquake?

• How do satellite images show where an earthquake has happened?

• How do infrared images show where an earthquake has happened?

There has been frequent seismic activity in California. Which question should scientists ask to help them plan and predict when another earthquake may happen?

• What has the recent month of satellite imagery over California looked like?

• Have infrared images picked up the intensity of the vibrations of seismic activity?

• Has there been a pattern in the seismic activity read from the data on a seismograph?

• How does GIS maps help California understand how seismic activity relates to the elevation of the land?

A hurricane is approaching Florida with high speeds. Which question should meteorologists ask to help them plan and predict the destruction that could be caused?

• What is the most recent satellite image of the cities on the coast of Florida?

• What can GIS maps tell us about the expected flooding in Florida?

• Have the seismographs picked up any recent seismic activity?

• Have the infrared images located any high wind speeds?

Engineers are trying to plan for a bridge to be constructed in City A:

A large river runs through the southern half of the city.

The city is highly populated along the river banks.

What question should engineers ask to help them plan and develop the construction of the bridge?

• What are the most recent satellite and infrared images around the city?

• What can GIS maps tell us about the locations of flooding during heavy rainstorms?

• Have the seismographs in the area picked up any recent activity?

• What do the historical seismographs tell us about when earthquakes have occurred?

A student is developing an interactive model for her classmates using sand, red clay, and gravel.  She places a mound of each type of soil material in the middle of separate large pans so that the height of each mound is 10 centimeters tall.  She then measures 50 mL of water into three cups.  She creates one “rain cup” that has holes in the bottom and simulates rainfall on each of the mounds using 50 mL of water.  Finally, the student measures the resulting height of each mound and records additional observations in a table. Which question is the student most likely trying to answer by demonstrating this interactive model? 

• What soil material absorbs the most rainfall?

• How does soil deposition affect land after it rains?

• What soil material erodes the most during rainfall?

• Why do different materials experience weathering at different rates?

A farmer notices that water is regularly washing away the topsoil on the steep side of his property after big rainstorms. The farmer wants to learn more about contour plowing to see if this would be a possible solution to the problem. What would be the BEST question that the farmer could ask about contour plowing as a solution to limit the water erosion? 

• Does contour plowing prevent plant growth?

• Does contour plowing cost a lot of money to implement?

• Is contour plowing safe for the animals that live nearby?

• Does contour plowing help to limit water run-off down steep hillsides?

A well-populated beachfront community in the Outer Banks of North Carolina is trying to decide whether or not to fund the construction of a seawall to protect their homes.  To make their decision, they held a community meeting last week. Which of the following questions from the community meeting is most relevant to investigate in order to determine whether or not a seawall is needed? 

• How do the heights of sand dunes compare across the beachfront?

• How many tourists have visited the beach over the last 5 years?

• What are the measures of the size of the shoreline over the past 10 years?

• What is the rainfall total that took place last month with Hurricane Matthew?

 A man notices that water is regularly flooding the street near the front of his house. The flooding is also ruining the grass in his front yard. He wants to contact the county to see if they can put in a storm drain on the street outside of his home. What would be the BEST question that the man should ask about storm drains as a solution to limit the flooding?

• Are storm drains safe for the animals that live nearby?

• Do storm drains cause flooding to occur somewhere else on the street?

• Would he have to pay for the storm drain to be put in front of his house?

• Would a storm drain help to control the road flooding outside of his house? 

Meteorologists use satellite images to show citizens in a city the weather. Which question could citizens ask to understand why meteorologists use satellite images to help present the weather? 

• How do satellites predict weather to warn people of severe storms or hurricanes?

• How do satellites keep people at home whenever there is dangerous weather outside?

• How do satellites communicate the level of intensity that an earthquake will have?

• How do satellites keep people from getting lost when they use GPS?

What question should engineers ask to help them plan and develop the construction of the bridge?

• What are the most recent satellite and infrared images around the city?

• What can GIS maps tell us about the locations of flooding during heavy rainstorms?

• Have the seismographs in the area picked up any recent activity?

• What do the historical seismographs tell us about when earthquakes have occurred?