GSC 350 - NATURAL DISASTERS
Dr. Jeff Marshall
- Cal Poly Pomona University
Research Project:
Overview:
Students will work together
in teams of 2 or 3 students (maximum) to investigate the history and science of
a particular Southern California Natural Disaster. Each Poly-i Report Team will present their research results in two forms: 1)
an audio-visual class presentation (during last week of quarter), and 2) a
printed “fact sheet” (due on the last day of class). In addition to researching
your disaster in books, periodicals, and on the Web, each team should visit the
disaster site (or at least one affected location) to take digital photos or
video of the site as it looks today for use in your presentation and/or fact
sheet. Interviews with survivors or knowledgeable experts would provide an
added dimension to your report. Do your best to collect accurate and detailed
information about your disaster.
Remember to design your presentation to appeal to your fellow
classmates. Be creative and have fun!!
Due Dates:
First
Lecture After Mid-Term Exam – Topic Choice Due: Turn in a page with the names of your Poly-i Report
team members, and several sentences that describe the topic of your
report (see below for details on topic selection)
Last
Week of Class – Class Presentations:
Each Team will give their
presentation in class (see details below).
Day
of Final Exam – Fact Sheet Due:
The final fact sheet for your Poly-i Report is due (No late papers accepted!)
Assignment:
Each
team will choose a particular Southern California disaster to research for
their Poly-i Report. These events
could be: 1) a historical natural disaster that affected this region in the
past, 2) a recent or current natural disaster, or 3) a potential future
disaster that has been studied and described by experts. The topics may also be
limited to a certain aspect of a given disaster (For example: Damage to
downtown skyscrapers in the Northridge Earthquake). Be sure to choose a topic
that is interesting to you and for which information is available. I will
provide a list of suggested disasters.
During
the last week of class, each team will give a short presentation on their
chosen subject (maximum 5-10 minutes!).
Your presentations should be based around audio-visual aids such as digital
photos, video, audiotapes, PowerPoint, overhead transparencies, or posters. Be
sure to practice your presentation in advance, and involve all team members.
Have fun! Be creative!
Each
team should prepare a concise
report that closely resembles a USGS Fact Sheet (see examples provided by
professor, or search for USGS Fact Sheets on-line). Your Natural Disaster Poly-i Report should be two pages in length and printed in color, with essential
figures and photos that are chosen carefully for their content and supporting
data.
Your
final product should be formatted to look like a USGS Fact Sheet, but you're welcome to add a few creative
personalized variations. Also
submit a separate sheet of bibliographic references. These
should follow standard formats for referencing documents (see me if you need
help).
To
assemble the final fact sheet, you should use a computer program like Microsoft
Word or Adobe Acrobat. Use the program to format your paper like a USGS fact
sheet with columns of text, photos, and illustrations. You can do your original
text writing in any word processing program, and then, copy it and paste it
into your final document. You can also paste in digital photos and figures that
you have either created yourself (camera files or drawings from graphics
programs like Photoshop, Illustrator, Canvas), or that you have borrowed from
the Web (JPEG or GIF images). Be sure that images have a resolution adequate
for printing and projection. You must give credit and list a proper reference
in your bibliography for any image borrowed from the Web or other sources!!
Right
now, you should choose a subject, and begin collecting information from
reputable references like books, journal articles, academic or government
agency web sites, etc. Don't forget to write down the reference information on
anything you use to add to your reference list. Take notes, and begin writing
your text. Also, plan time to go visit sites affected by the disaster to take
photos, make video and audio recordings, and/or conduct interviews.
List of possible topics
for
Poly-I Disaster Report:
Earthquakes:
Wrightwood Earthquake 1812
Ft. Tejon Earthquake 1857
Santa Barbara Earthquake 1925
Long Beach Earthquake 1933
Imperial Valley Earthquake 1940
Kern County Earthquake 1952
San Fernando (Sylmar) Earthquake 1971
Imperial Valley Earthquake 1979
Whittier Narrows Earthquake 1987
Landers Earthquake 1992
Northridge Earthquake 1994
Hector Mine Earthquake 1999
Puente Hills Fault (Potential Future Event)
Sierra Madre Cucamonga Fault (Potential Future Event)
So. San Andreas Fault (Potential Future Event)
Rose Canyon Fault San Diego (Potential Future Event)
Tsunami:
Santa Barbara 1812 (Local Earthquake)
L.A. & San Diego 1960 (Chile Earthquake)
L.A. & San Diego 1964 (Alaska Earthquake)
Catalina Island 1975 (Hawaii Earthquake)
So. California Coast (potential future event from offshore landslides)
Landslides:
Del Mar Railroad Landslide 1934
San Gabriel Mountains Mud Slides 1978
Palm Desert Debris Flow 1979
Palomar Mountain Debris Flows 1987
La Conchita Landslide (Ventura County) 1995
Laguna Canyon Debris Flow 1998
Waterman Canyon & Devore Debris Flows 2003
Bluebird Canyon Landslide (Laguna) 2005
San Jacinto Mudslides 2006
La Jolla Landslides 1961 & 2007
Floods:
1861-62 – San Diego & Orange Co.
1916 – San Diego, Orange, & S. Bernardino Co.
1934 – All Southern California
1938 – All Southern California (esp. Orange Co.)
1952 – Los Angeles River
1962 – All Southern California
1964 – Los Angeles River
1969 – All Southern California (esp. In. Empire)
1976 – Coachella & Imperial Valleys
1978 – All Southern California (esp. San Gabriel Mountains, L.A., San Diego, Tijuana)
1980 – San Diego & San Bernardino Counties
1991 – San Diego County
1993 – Tijuana & San Diego County
1995 – All Southern California
1997 – Desert & Mountain Flash Floods
1998 – All Southern California
2003 – Desert & Mountain Flash Floods
2005 – All Southern California (esp. In. Empire)
Storms, Hurricanes, Tornadoes:
San Diego Hurricane 1858
San Diego Tornado 1926
Tropical Storms 1939 (“El Cordonazo”)
Santa Monica Tornado 1952
Chula Vista Tornado 1956
San Diego County Waterspouts 1961
El Niño 1972-73
Tropical Storm Kathleen 1976
El Niño 1977-78
Fullerton/Brea Tornado 1977
Huntington Beach Tornado 1978
El Niño 1982-83
Los Angeles Tornadoes 1983
So. Calif. Widespread Tornadoes 1991
Tropical Storm Linda 1997
El Niño 1997-98
Heatwaves:
Los Angeles Heat Wave 1939
So. Calif. Heat Wave 1997
So. Calif. Heat Wave 2006
Wildfires:
San Diego County Fires 1932
Topanga Canyon Fire 1961
So. California Fires 1966
Laguna Fire (San Diego County) 1970
Laguna Hills Fire 1993
So. California Fire Storm 2003
Day Fire 2006
Esperanza Fire 2006
Zaca Fire 2007
Canyon Fire (Malibu)
Ranch Fire (Castaic)
Buckweed Fire (Santa Clarita)
Magic Fire (Magic Mountain)
Grass Valley Fire (Lake Arrowhead)
Slide Fire (Running Springs)
Santiago Fire (Irvine)
Wilcox/Ammo/Horno Fires (Camp Pendleton)
Rice Fire (Fallbrook)
Poomacha Fire (Palomar Mountain)
Witch Fire (North San Diego County)
Harris Fire (South San Diego County)