Creation of Knowledge in the Geosciences: Creation of Knowledge in the Geosciences knowledge (‘nal – ij) 4. the sum of what is known; the body of truth, information, and principles acquired by mankind. 2. the fact or condition of knowing something with familiarity gained through experience or association 3. [Archaic] sexual intercourse Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary


Slide2: Observations Curiosity Hypothesis Technology Hypothesis Sci. Climate Observations Synthesis KNOWLEDGE Society/Politics History Sci. Climate Funding Interpretation Sci. Climate Imagination Technology “We blend the intuitive, subjective and objective to uncover truths.”


Example: Plate tectonics and sea floor spreading(ca 1965): Example: Plate tectonics and sea floor spreading (ca 1965) Society/Politics 1940s World War II, submarine warfare 1950s Exploration of the oceans 1950s- Cold War 1957 Sputnik 1960s Concern about nuclear testing Technology 1957 Project Moho (drill through the crust) 1960s Mass spectrometers to date rocks 1960s Ocean drilling project


Slide6: Observations Topographic ridge Ridge height = 3 km Ridge width = 3000 km Central valley at ridge axis Ridge offsets along broad fractures No sediments at ridge axis Progressively thicker sediments away from ridge


Slide9: Observations Entire seafloor composed of lava rock Below lava rock is basalt dikes (crack-filling lava) Sediment age increases away from ridge “Facts are not knowledge. Facts are facts, but how they form the big picture, are interconnected and hold meaning, creates knowledge. It is this connectivity, which leads to breakthroughs …”


Slide12: Observations Most of Earth is aseismic Earthquakes happen in narrow belts Marine earthquakes occur on oceanic ridges Detailed studies show ridge earthquakes restricted to axial valley and ridge offsets


Slide16: Observations Magnetic stripes Stripes are parallel to the ridge Stripes are symmetric about ridge axis Ages of seafloor at magnetic stripe boundaries consistent for all oceans


Slide17: Hypothesis Seafloor Spreading - Earth’s outer layer made of rigid plates. New seafloor created by lava at ocean ridges, where plates are spreading apart. “In Anderson, Krathwohl and colleagues revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy of learning, they put creativity, the ability to reorganize elements into a new pattern, structure, or purpose, at the pinnacle of learning”


Slide18: Observations/Interpretations Topographic ridge; 3km high, 3000 km wide Hot thermally-expanded ridge Central valley at ridge axis Location of spreading center No sediments at ridge axis Progressively thicker sediments away from ridge Seafloor age zero at ridge


Slide19: Observations/Interpretations Entire seafloor composed of lava rock All seafloor created at ridge axis by lava extrusion Below lava rock are basalt dikes (crack-filling lava) Dikes form in the crack created by seafloor spreading Sediment age increases away from ridge Seafloor age increases away from ridge


Slide20: Observations/Interpretations Most of Earth is aseismic Earth is divided into solid plates (plate tectonics) Earthquakes happen in narrow belts Action happens at plate boundaries Earthquakes occur on oceanic ridges Ridges are divergent plate boundaries Ridge earthquakes restricted to axial valley and ridge offsets Earthquakes occur where there is relative motion


Slide21: Observations/Interpretations Magnetic stripes Seafloor magnetized during lava cooling; stripes produced by field reversals Stripes are parallel and symmetric about ridge axis Stripes produced at ridge axis and transported by seafloor spreading


Slide22: Observations Curiosity Hypothesis Technology Hypothesis Sci. Climate Observations Synthesis KNOWLEDGE Society/Politics History Sci. Climate Funding Interpretation Sci. Climate Imagination Technology “We blend the intuitive, subjective and objective to uncover truths.”


Creation of Knowledge in the Sciences: Creation of Knowledge in the Sciences “Why do we as humans…seek knowledge and or truths? First, we as a species are naturally curious.” “Seeking knowledge is an effort to understand the world that surrounds us.” “Putting these pieces together is much like a jigsaw puzzle. Only certain pieces go with others. It’s like magnetic words on a refrigerator door that get put together many times until sense is made of the words.” “All of this is what keeps me up at night. It’s trying to solve a problem you don’t quite understand. It’s trying to understand a language you don’t fully speak. But the need and desire to know more … remains. It can become an obsession; it is the engine that drives the creative process.”


Creation of Knowledge in the Sciences: Creation of Knowledge in the Sciences “Why do we as humans … seek knowledge and or truths? First, we as a species are naturally curious.” “Seeking knowledge is an effort to understand the world that surrounds us.” “Putting these pieces together is much like a jigsaw puzzle. Only certain pieces go with others. It’s like magnetic words on a refrigerator door that get put together many times until sense is made of the words.” “All of this is what keeps me up at night. It’s trying to solve a problem you don’t quite understand. It’s trying to understand a language you don’t fully speak. But the need and desire to know more … remains. It can become an obsession; it is the engine that drives the creative process.” Creation of Knowledge in Modern Dance Professor Steve Koester, February 2004


Creation of Knowledge in the Geosciences: Creation of Knowledge in the Geosciences http://thermal.gg.utah.edu/links David S. Chapman Department of Geology & Geophysics