Simulations Laboratory for Undergraduate Geography Instruction

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This project is targeted at the development of an undergraduate laboratory for geographic and environmental simulations. The equipment is being used by students enrolled in general education courses, by geography majors, and by students from other programs taking courses in cultural geography, physical geography, meteorology, climatology, urban planning, and field techniques/geodata collection. The new equipment includes student computer stations, simulation software, and Internet resources that grant network accessibility to data. Implementation of this program is greatly increasing the opportunities for undergraduates to conduct hands-on simulations of a wide variety of geographic and environmental processes including climate change; the effects of birth, death, and migration rates on population; mountain building and continental movement processes; and surface water movement. Recently, collected environmental data is being used to make simulations as real as possible. The project is emphasizing the use of simulations as a means of reinforcing connections across major disciplinary boundaries such as biology, geology, and planning. In addition to providing a unique experience for both general education students and undergraduates enrolled in nontechnical geography courses, the equipment is being made available for undergraduate students to participate in supervised research activities. *