Peter D. Crowley DUE 9552107 Amherst College FY1995 $ 17,909 Amherst, MA 1002 ILI - Instrumentation Project: Geosciences Title: Integrated Geophysics Lab The Geology Department at Amherst college is adding to its course, Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, a quantitative 13-part laboratory analysis of a single objective (the local Deerfield basin) conducted with technology appropriate to the problem address and consistent with questions that modern scientists can raise and expect to answer. The laboratory engages students in an integrated application of refraction seismology, gravity and magnetic anomaly analysis, paleomagnetic study, major and trace element geochemistry, and geochronology to determine the evolution and present geometry of the Mesozoic rift basin in which the College is located. These "hands-on" laboratory investigations complement and invigorate the lecture portion of the syllabus where the class takes up the more generalized theory, implications, and applications of these earth systems and disciplines. The equipment is being used to conduct the refraction seismology and gravity survey portions of the integrated study. All other facilities or equipment required for this undertaking are available either at the College or in the laboratories of the University of Massachusetts nearby. The equipment will also be effectively used in the Department's Environmental Geology course and by majors undertaking senior independent research.
