The goal of the PALEOMAP Project is to illustrate the plate tectonic development of the ocean basins and continents, as well as the changing distribution of land and sea during the past 1100 million years. In the section on Earth history you can select any time period, read about that period, and see the plate distribution during that period. There is also a section on climate history where you can ... Full description.

This site presents a take-home web-based project for introductory geology students. The exercise has the students interpreting the sedimentary geology (lithology and fossils) of the Grand Canyon to create a geological history for the region. It is an open-ended exercise with no absolutely correct answer; it involves students acting as scientists - that is, the way real scientists think and combine ... Full description.

This publication provides an introduction to the theory of plate tectonics. It was intended as a companion to the map entitled 'This Dynamic Planet', published by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Smithsonian Institution. Topics include the history and development of the theory, lines of evidence, plate motions and interactions, hotspots, what drives plate motion, and extraterrestrial plate ... Full description.

Discovering Plate Boundaries is based on 5 world maps containing earthquake, volcano, topography, satellite gravity, and seafloor age data. The novel aspect of the exercise is the "jigsaw" manner in which student groups access the maps and use them to discover, classify, and describe plate boundary types. The exercise is based only on observation and description, which makes it useful at a wide variety ... Full description.

This information about geologic time and the geologic time scale defines the terms relative time (chronostratic) and absolute time (chronometric). Relative time can be thought of as the physical subdivisions of rock found in the Earth's stratigraphy and absolute as the measurements taken upon those to determine the actual time that has expired. Absolute time measurements can be used to calibrate the ... Full description.

This page has an illustration of the 4.5 billion year old Earth's time scale shown as a spiral with pictorial representations of both marine and terrestrial life. The text discusses how the age of the Earth is determined. The illustration is from the USGS General Interest Publication, Geologic Time by William L. Newman. Full description.

This outdoor exercise shows students the great expanse of time that has elapsed between the formation of Earth and the emergence of living creatures, particularly humans. The great length of the football field helps reinforce the idea of the vast amounts of time that have passed. Starting on one goal line, they will mark off distances representing the times of various events, rocks, fossils, or geologic ... Full description.

This lesson will inform students about the high level of confidence we have in the geological ages of an old Earth. At the same time, it should reveal an example of pseudoscience, which should be part of any effort to improve science literacy and critical thinking. Students are taken through a combination of background information and interactive experiences, and checked frequently by questions to ... Full description.

This web page addresses the question: How do we know the Age of the Earth? by citing radiometric dates from rocks and minerals of the Earth, Moon, and meteorites. The methods of radiometric dating are also discussed. Viewers will find a table of the common radiometric dating isotopes, their daughter elements, and their half-lives. This material was adapted from The Age of the Earth, by the Branch ... Full description.

This site contains 24 questions on the topic of geologic time, which covers dating techniques and unconformities. This is part of the Principles of Earth Science course at the University of South Dakota. Users submit their answers and are provided immediate feedback. Full description.