| Chapter 1 examines the stratigraphic architecture of the lower Straight Cliffs Formation across the southwestern portion of the Kaiparowits Plateau in southern Utah. To determine the controls affecting deposition of marginal marine deposits, seven stratigraphic sections (each ∼90--100 m) and 729 paleocurrents were measured along a 20 km transect (A-A'). This study divides the lower Straight Cliffs Formation into four depositional units (DU), representing distinct and genetically-related depositional environments: prograding shoreface parasequences (DU-1), tidally influenced fluvial channels and estuaries (DU-2), a transitional sequence of shoreface deposits through fluvial deposits (DU-3), and downstream accreting fluvial deposits (DU-4). This interpretation represents both minor and more significant revisions to previous interpretations of this succession, and highlights the need for high-resolution stratigraphic studies to fully understand depositional complexity in this and similar settings.;Earth scientists often use images to communicate scientific concepts, and they commonly provide cues establishing the scale of features shown ("hammer for scale," etc.). How effective are these kinds of scaling cues? Chapter 2 examines the effect of scaling cues and interactivity on the ability of earth scientists to extract information from a 2D image. To evaluate both scaling cues and interactivity, a visualization test was created in which participants were asked to estimate the size of several boxes shown in outcrop photos. All test subjects first viewed a static image, followed by an interactive (gigapan) image of the same outcrop; two different outcrops of different sizes were used. Participants (test group n=63, further testing in progress) represent a range of experience and education levels. Results show that scaling estimates are more difficult for larger/more distant outcrops. Scaling cues can also become a distractor for viewers of any experience level or background. It is important to realize that viewers internalize scaling cues differently, so different types of cues may help some viewers more than others. Also it appears that incorporating interactivity can increase accuracy, due to the ability to customize views that best fits an individual's learning style and internal sense of problem solving. The results of this study contain numerous educational implications for the application of scale and interactivity. |
