Texas Educational Seismic Project
Be Inspired. Be Inspiring.
Thank You to Young Women Energized!
Texas Educational Seismic Project had the support and pleasure to present a mathematics hands-on activity yesterday, November 14th, 2018. At the YWE Women and Girls in STEM Summit, we were joined by other nonprofit STEM outreach groups, leading local schools and Universities in Houston, Texas. Our student and parent audiences were able to learn the difference between linear and logarithmic graphs and plots. What did everybody gain? They learned that using the exact same data sets on two different types of graphs can present the same information in two different perspectives. It’s a neat little math trick that can help you later on in life when you are trying to propose a solution or request an increase rate of materials, money, Etc. The data set we used for comparison was breaking pasta! Yes, we borrowed a fantastic activity from IRIS; we broke different bundles of spaghetti to demonstrate how an earthquake’s energy substantially increases when using the earthquake magnitude scales.
Not only did the students learn about the exponential growth rate associated with the energy released, they also learned two different graphical representations of the same dataset. We pulled it all together with a little real life story- that you could use this nice little math trick to present to your boss an effective graph demonstrating why your next promotion should have a much higher increase in your wages. We all love to earn more money! So we wrapped up in a bow these elements: geology, geophysics, mathematics, messaging and real life applications of the example activity.
All we needed was just a little bit of spaghetti 🙂
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
FOLLOW-UP: Detecting Weather Patterns in Pennsylvania, Welcome Station NMPA!
We have recently observed the movement, intensity and paths of a few 2018 hurricanes. Ground motion, which is measured by a seismograph, can be detected as a storm approaches land fall and then moves across the States. (See TXESP’s example from 2017 Hurricane’s Season —>>click HERE).
When the air pressure, wind speed and temperatures changes, we can observe the combined affect on the ground measurements in a seismogram. Look at this snapshot from our friends in Newtown, PA who operate Station NMPA, recorded on an AS1 educational seismograph, can you estimate what the weather pattern is doing today (November 15, 2018???) compared to weather in Texas?
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
The Ocean Floor is Shaking!
This morning, November 11, 2018 at 14:03hrs UTC (08:03 am CST) a very large magnitude M6.3 #earthquake occurred in the #NorthernAtlanticOcean. Just North of South America, this event surprisingly had a shallow 10kms focal depth. The #epicenter was more than 100km from any shore, assuring citizens of almost no shaking and no #tsunami. This large earthquake follows the very large M6.8 earthquake in the #GreenlandSea on Nov 8, 2018. Generally, the North Atlantic Plate is a #spreadingcenter where new tectonic plate is created by deep sea volcanoes.
Shown is a comparison of #seismograms recorded on #RaspberryShakes across the #CentralAndEasternUS.
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
THE REAL WORLD happening now – Very Large M6.8 Earthquake in Greenland Sea
Current, LIVE SCREENSHOT of a very large magnitude M6.8 earthquake rolling across Houston, TX, USA right now! This event was 10kms deep and occurred at 01:49hrs UTC Near Olonkingyen, Svalbard and Jan Mayen (the Greenland Sea)
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
TEACHING US for a MOMENT
Texas Educational Seismic Project is excited and eager to attend Texas Women and Girls in STEM Summit in Austin TX, Dec 7, 2018. STEM Professionals or educators are encouraged to participate and network. We humbly thank the event sponsors for supporting our attendance!
Texas Women and Girls in STEM Summit
Friday, December 7, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Engineering Education & Research Center
The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
Join the Texas Girls Collaborative Project for our 2nd Annual Texas Women and Girls in STEM Summit designed to share best practices, connect organizations and individuals, and showcase outstanding efforts to increase the number of girls in STEM and support the retention of women in STEM careers. STEM professionals and all who are engaged in education, outreach, recruitment, and/or retention of women and girls in STEM are invited to join in.
This event is hosted during Computer Science Education Week (CSEdWeek), held in recognition of the birthday of computing pioneer Admiral Grace Murray Hopper (December 9, 1906), and is one of the many events or programs joining in the Greater Austin STEM Ecosystem’s CSEdWeek amplification.
Thanks to the corporate partners for supporting the Texas Women and Girls in STEM Summit.
- Summit Lead Sponsor: Emerson
- Session Track Sponsor: Thrivent Financial
- Summit Supporter: Cirrus Logic
Registration:
- Cost is $75 and includes parking validation, breakfast and lunch. Accepted presenters will receive a discounted registration rate. Register online by Wednesday, December 5.
- Presenters will be offered a $30 discounted registration fee.
- Limited registration scholarships are available. Inquire via email.
- Please also note that this is not an event designed for minors. Any minor presenting or in attendance must be chaperoned by a participating adult at all times.
- Who else is registered? Check out the list of organizations represented by registered participants.
Corporate Partnerships: Contact Tricia Berry at triciaberry@txgcp.org for information on how to support the Texas Women and Girls in STEM Summit or check out the sponsorship opportunities overview.
Social Media: Find us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @TXGCP. We’ll use hashtag #TXGCPSummit for the event.
Agenda:
- 8:30 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. Check-in, Networking, Breakfast Tacos & Coffee
- 9:15 a.m. – 10:20 a.m. Welcome, Stand Up for STEM Awards, Power of Mentors Panel
- 10:30 a.m. – 11:20 a.m. Breakout Sessions 1
- 11:30 a.m. – 12:20 p.m. Breakout Sessions 2
- 12:20 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Lunch, Networking, Meet Ups & Resource Sharing, Self-Guided Tours
- 1:30 p.m. – 2:20 p.m. Breakout Sessions 3
- 2:30 p.m. – 3:20 p.m. Breakout Sessions 4
- 3:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Breakout Sessions 5
- 4:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Closing Reception, Networking, Resource Sharing
Breakout Sessions:
Breakout session information will be shared in more detail soon. Titles of planned sessions include:
- Adult and Child Interactions to Foster Engineering in the Early Childhood Environment
- Bringing a Girls in STEM Event to Life
- Coaching early for STEM success
- Community Support: The Foundation for Leading and Learning
- Early Career programs to recruit and retain women in STEM
- Equitable Access to STEM | STEM is for Everyone
- Exploring the importance of computational & analytical skills to prepare for college readiness & STEM careers in high school
- Hands-On/Minds-On: Design Thinking in Integrated STEM
- Hearing Student Voices: What High School Girls in STEM Have to Say
- Inspiring the Next Generation of Innovators through FIRST Robotics
- Mouse: A Solution that Scales
- My STEM Career Path (Panel)
- Overview of the miniGEMS STEAM and Programming 2018 Summer Camp
- Questioning the Curriculum: Framing Your STEM Curriculum Development
- Research Experience for Teachers: Leading the Way to Implementing Engineering-based Classroom Lessons
- Solve it by Sunset: Inclusion, STEM, Entrepreneurship in a fun and exciting event
- STEM Insight – Connecting You To All Things STEM
- STEMINISTAS: Making Way for the Next Generation of Latina STEM Leaders
- The Importance of Soft Skills in a High Tech World
- When ALL Means ALL
- Young Scholars Program: A Bridge to Engineering in College
See the Texas Women and Girls in STEM Summit 2017 webpage for past presentations.
https://www.txgcp.org/texas-women-girls-in-stem-summit/
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
A “MISSING” TEACHING MOMENT
As Scientists, inquiry pushes us forward in our daily work. Inquiry challenges our assumptions and re-shapes our research scope. The creed scientists stand by: it’s not about finding the right or wrong answer, it’s about asking a better question.
The image below illustrates this principle beautifully. Scientific research includes making observation, taking measurements, interpretation and analysis. But what if you derive a conclusion which demonstrates no correlation? no new observations? What value does research contribute in the absence of data to analyze?
This is why Science shines so brightly and brings it’s practitioners much joy. You see, the absence of data, which was expected, is just as valuable as observations of present data. Stated in seismological terms, the ground motion data the instruments detect and record is just as fascinating as the data we do not detect. WHY !!?!
Magnitude 6.0 earthquake in the Philippines occurred on November 4th, 2018 at 07:55hrs UTC. It had an ultra-deep focal depth of ~600kms below Earth’s surface.
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
TEACHING MOMENT: Detecting Weather Patterns
We have recently observed the movement, intensity and paths of a few 2018 hurricanes. Ground motion, which is measured by a seismograph, can be detected as a storm approaches land fall and then moves across the States. (See TXESP’s example from 2017 Hurricane’s Season —>>click HERE).
When the air pressure, wind speed and temperatures changes, we can observe the combined affect on the ground measurements in a seismogram. Look at this snapshot from Station E1TX, recorded on an EQ1 educational seismograph, can you estimate what time the cold front blew into Houston??
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
Vancouver Island – Three Magnitude > 6.5 Large Earthquakes, Reports of Damages
THREE large earthquakes have shaken the Earth offshore Vancouver Island in the past few hours October 22, 2018. Initial damage and injury reports are fluid.
Here is what we know at 10:57 hrs UTC (05:57 am CST)…
From CBC (CANADA) – https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-earthquakes-1.4872470
The New York Post – https://nypost.com/2018/10/22/several-powerful-earthquakes-reported-near-canadian-coast/
Seattle – https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/magnitude-6-6-earthquake-strikes-near-port-hardy-canada/
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
LIVE – 3 Consecutive LARGE Earthquakes Strike Off Vancouver Island
THREE large earthquakes have shaken the Earth offshore Vancouver Island in the past few hours October 22, 2018. A magnitude M6.6 first occurred at 05:39hrs UTC, followed by a larger M6.8 quake at 06:16 hrs UTC, and finally a M6.5 event at 06:22hrs UTC. The USGS has not issued a tsunami threat despite the shallow depth of these quakes ~ 10kms. Initial damage and injury reports are fluid.
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
THE REAL WORLD happening now – Guatemala’s Crisis
LET’S DISCUSS GUATEMALAN REFUGEES
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**The simple answer is – I do not know what the solution may look like or how it is to be implemented**
In the first photo, officials estimate 1000s of Guatemalans attempting to pass into Mexico – a dangerous passage given the extreme load on the bridge. Courtesy of CNN, “As night fell, thousands of migrants remained packed together and exposed to the elements on the Suchiate River bridge connecting Tecun Uman, Guatemala, and Tapachula, Mexico, according to CNN crews on the ground.” This is a humanitarian crisis on many levels and in many Countries.
From this geophysicist’s perspective, it is not hard to understand why some Guatemalan citizens are fleeing – review the pictures below. Several major earthquakes have shaken the small country over the past few months creating wide damages and fatalities; and, it is not expected to be more stable in the near (and probably far) future.
But where to run? Should they return to their home country? Guatemala lies between two tectonic plate boundaries – the Pacific and the Caribbean plates. The edges of tectonic plates are at a high risk for earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis and volcanoes. Living proximal to these high risk areas translates to a high occurrence rate of moderate to catastrophic damages to the poor Guatemalan society.
We need a solution to provide safety for this culture – solutions which address **global** concerns: political, geohazard engineering, geophysical, oceanography and economic disasters. Multiple actions cannot be undertaken by the Guatemalan government and people alone – this is a Western Hemisphere crisis – the global “we” are all affected by the dangers present.
Do we re-distribute geohazard refugees across Nations? Do global geoscience foundations and organizations provide more detailed hazard assessments and geo engineering mitigation recommendations? Does the UN partially fund living costs in the interim? Does the World forbid habitats in these type of environments? The answer must contain a facet of each of the elements noted. The simple answer is that I do not know – it is far too complicated for one person, one nation, one global body to resolve in isolation. It takes, quite simply, a village to define these goals and implement solutions.
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
AMAZING Tsunami Video Footage From Sea
This video shows the FORMATION of tsunamis caused by landslides from the large magnitude M7.5 Indonesian earthquake on September 28th, 2018 at 10:02hrs UTC (05:02hrs CST).
Caution as there are some upsetting images seen in the video footage.
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Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
TEACHING MOMENT: interpreting the weather and 2 earthquakes!
TEACHING MOMENT : Can you find two large earthquakes and the onset of a cold front passing through Houston “hidden” in this seismogram?
A nice REAL WORLD example of signal convolution…. take a close look at the seismogram below. Station E1TX detected and recorded two magnitude M>6.0+ earthquakes AND a cold front weather system passing thru Houston. Can you identify the onset of these three events? Two views are shown of the same seismogram but with different applied filters. What could you do with the recorded data to make the events appear more distinctly? Is that possible?
Filtered at Low Pass – 10 sec
Filtered at Low Pass – 15 sec
Your generous financial support facilitates our #scienceeducational programs and ongoing solid earth geophysics >>> CLICK HERE!
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