Digital Image Technology in Undergraduate Petrology Laboratories: A "Proof of Concept" Project in Siliciclastic Petrography

地质学(42)视觉内容的卓越使岩石学成为多媒体教学模块的理想主题。我们正在探索数字图像技术在岩石学教学中的应用，从本科水平的硅质碎屑岩石学测试案例开始。一个“虚拟岩石学导师”正在设计中，旨在让学生接触到图像和解释内容，其数量可与传统的沉积岩石学实验室练习相媲美。课程材料与现有的图像地图集(纸质副本和数字地图集)明显不同，因为图像附带高密度的交互式解释内容；拟议的综合处理水平也与目前在万维网或光盘上可获得的岩相学数据的类型有很大不同。在本项目中学习的教程设计和施工的实际方面将应用于岩石学的所有领域，以及利用图像形式的数据的其他领域(例如，冶金、组织学)。本科生和研究生正在参与该教程的开发，使他们能够在数字成像和多媒体创作方法方面获得经验。该教程的初步应用和正式评估将在沉积岩本科课程的两个学期期间进行(预计将有120至160名学生参加)。这里提出的开发和评估任务被设想为一个更雄心勃勃的项目的第一步，该项目旨在创建本教程的完整版，以分发本教程，并最终建立一个基于德克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校大量、高度记录和维护良好的岩石学收藏的岩相学图像数字图书馆。

Geology (42) The preeminence of visual content makes petrography an ideal subject for multimedia instructional modules. We are exploring the utility of digital image technology for teaching petrology, beginning with the test case of siliciclastic petrography at the undergraduate level. A 'virtual petrography tutor' is being designed to expose students to images and interpretive content comparable in amount to that included in traditional sedimentary petrography laboratory exercises. The curriculum materials differ markedly from existing image atlases (both paper copy and digital) in terms of the high density of interactive interpretive content that accompanies the images; the comprehensive level of treatment proposed is also a significant departure from the types of petrographic data currently available on the World Wide Web or on CD. Practical aspects of tutorial design and construction learned during this project will have application in all fields of petrology as well as in other fields which utilize data in the form of images (e.g., metallurgy, histology). Undergraduate and graduate students are participating in the development of the tutorial, allowing them to gain experience in methods of digital imaging and multi-media authoring. Initial application and formal assessment of the tutorial will take place during two semesters of an undergraduate course in sedimentary rocks (involving a projected 120 to 160 students). The development and assessment tasks proposed here are envisioned as the first step in a more ambitious project to create a full version of this tutorial for distribution and, ultimately, a digital library of petrographic images based on the large, highly documented, and well-maintained petrology collections at the University of Texas at Austin.