Using the AS-1 Seismograph for Laboratory Exercises in an Introductory Geophysics Course: Turning Seismic Moments into Teachable Moments

Abstract

At Boston College, we teach a two-semester, first-year sequence in geology and geophysics for our majors. The course is divided into two parts, with the first semester focusing on geology and the second semester focusing on geophysics. Recently, we have also added some environmental topics in these courses, particularly in the first semester. In this paper, we describe laboratory exercises given in the second semester that are based on seismograms recorded on an AS-1 seismograph operating at Boston College. These lab exercises use topics in seismology to bring research experiences into a first-year undergraduate course and invite the students to think critically about what they learn in the course. In our experiences with bringing seismographs into classrooms (at the high school, middle school, and undergraduate levels), we have found that what is often missing are exercises based on experiments that address real research questions. We have attempted to fill that gap with the lab exercises described in this paper. After a seismograph is successfully installed in a classroom, there is initial excitement over the fact that earthquakes from around the world are being recorded right in the classroom. At this point in the process, just the presence of an operating seismograph is, in itself, an enhancement to science education. At some point, however, this excitement fades, and the inevitable question arises, “OK, now that I have a seismograph in my classroom, what can I do with it (other than just watch it record earthquakes)?” One major challenge is that of fitting a real research investigation into the curriculum. In high schools and middle schools, teachers usually have a set amount of time allocated to cover seismology, and then they are required to move on to other topics. In an undergraduate lab that meets for, say, two hours per week and …