South East Maps & Aerial Photographic Systems
SE MAPS
PROJECT UPDATE AND STATE PROGRESS REPORTS
VOLUME 1 ISSUE 1 NOVEMBER 1997
SE MAPS PROJECT OFFICE - CLEMSON UNIVERSITY
P.O. BOX 341908, CLEMSON U., CLEMSON SC 29634-1908

THE SE MAPS PROJECT IS FUNDED THROUGH THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION, GRANT #ESI-9452842, DIRECTORATE FOR EDUCATION AND HUMAN RESOURCES UNDER THE INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

elcome to the world of SE MAPS, an interdisciplinary science curriculum project involving eight southeastern states and incorporating aerial photography, satellite imagery, topographic and special-purpose maps, and other remotely sensed data in a series of investigative hands-on activities designed for middle school students. Instructional materials currently under development include a classroom set of large laminated lithographs, two CD-ROMs, and a Teaching Manual.  

VISIT OUR WEB SITE AT http://semaps.atmos.uah.edu

WEB SITE AND LISTSERVE OPERATIVE
Although thereís not much on it yet, the SE MAPS web site is up and running. Burgess Howell, our technical consultant, has agreed to house and maintain this site for us. When the format is fully operational, state development teams will be able to place draft versions of study area narratives and student activity questions on the web for review and comment. All issues of the SE MAPS NEWSLETTER, current lists of project participants, and procedures for the pilot testing of materials also will be available electronically. All postings of state information to the web site should be cleared through the state coordinator, then submitted directly to Burgess Howell at the Global Hydrology and Climate Center in Huntsville Alabama. The web site address is http://semaps.atmos.uah.edu.

To send an e-mail message to everyone participating in the development of SE MAPS, address your message to SEMAPS-L@clemson.edu. To send a message to one person (or a few), you can access the e-mail address from the hard copy list all participants were sent this past summer, or you can contact your state coordinator or the SE MAPS Project Office for this information.  

PILOT TESTING OF NEW MATERIALS

It was agreed at last summer's conference that for this academic year, pilot testing would be somewhat informal, because we still are missing so many of the cartographic products needed for effective testing. Each State Coordinator is to identify and select pilot schools in accordance with criteria established by Assessment Coordinator Phil Astwood and distributed to all SE MAPS developers earlier this summer.

Pilot testing is a logical and necessary part of any materials development project. As Phil also mentioned at the Clemson conference, it would be helpful to ask teachers using the materials to fill out a brief report. He intends this as a formative evaluation whose primary purpose is to guide you as you revise the materials and produce new ones. However, for the purposes of Philís own reporting about the project, it would be helpful if everyone used the same report form. As luck would have it (thanks to Phil), we now have such a form on the Web Page which you can use. Please have a look at the form, make any comments you like, and when it becomes appropriate, please use the from to report on your pilot tests. Please keep a copy of the completed form for your records and send a copy to Phil at the address or fax number on the form. Thanks very much.

IMPORTANT CONTACTS
SE MAPS PROJECT OFFICE  PROJECT DIRECTOR PILOT TESTING TECHNICAL CONSULTANT
NORMA ADAMS JOHN WAGNER PHIL ASTWOOD BURGESS HOWELL
(864) 656-1560 (864) 656-5024 (803) 777-7685 (205) 922-5908
NADAMS@CLEMSON.EDU JRWGNR@CLEMSON.EDU ASTWOOD@PSC.SC.EDU BURGESS.HOWELL@MSFC.NASA.GOV

WHY A NEWSLETTER?

Every curriculum project sponsored by the National Science Foundation is required to name an external auditor who will serve as a site visitor and evaluator for the project. We are privileged to have C.Q. Brown, Professor Emeritus from East Carolina University, serving in this capacity for SE MAPS. Dr. Brown has kept track of operations since the first year of project funding and was able to spend four days with us this past summer at the July SE MAPS conference at Clemson. He was unable to attend the first summer conference due to the two hurricanes that devastated the North Carolina coast in the early summer of 1996.

In his most recent report to NSF, Dr. Brown expressed concern about the effectiveness of the lines of communication between different levels of the SC MAPS project, specifically among the Project Office at Clemson, state coordinators, and the local development teams. He suggested a monthly newsletter as one way to keep everyone up-to-date about issues of mutual interest and concern. We are following his suggestion by mailing out a hardcopy newsletter, but also will post newsletter issues on the web site for future reference.

We are asking state coordinators for monthly updates on the study areas being developed under their supervision, as well as asking Burgess Howell to provide updated information on the availability of cartographic products. We will continue to publish newsletter issues monthly until the end of the project. 

CLEARING UP CONFUSION OVER $ $ $ $
A few summer conference evaluation questionnaires reported that development teams were hampered by lack of travel money. Reimbursement for expenses incurred as part of work on SE MAPS should not be a problem. Full reimbursement is possible for the following items: Also, stipends are available for any project personnel who must take the majority of a day away from other duties to travel or to meet with others as part of the development process. Although nominal stipends of $20 per day had been budgeted, we have recently received authorization to pay $40 per day. We realize that this still doesnít fully compensate you for the time you devote to the SE MAPS effort, but hope it will help acknowledge the high caliber of work being done.

Stipends are possible for the following individuals:

To receive stipends and/or reimbursements, you must send the relevant receipts, statements, etc. to the SE MAPS Project Office at Clemson. It is important to clear all requests for reimbursement/stipend through your state coordinator, preferably before such expenses are incurred. Although funds are allocated for participant support, amounts are limited and will be divided into approximately equal portions for the eight participating states. The money is there to be used, but we want to see it used as efficiently as possible. If you have any questions about what activities would qualify for reimbursement or stipends, please contact your state coordinator or the Clemson office. 

SUMMER CONFERENCE, JULY 1998

A decision was made last July to schedule one more summer conference at Clemson, July 7-9, 1998. Each state should send three teachers (one per pilot school), one state coordinator, and at least one other member to receive training. Please plan ahead and reserve that date.
LISTING OF STATE COORDINATORS
ALABAMA Greg Cox GHCC, 977 Explorer Blvd., U. Alabama Huntsville, AL 35806 (205) 922-5738 cox@atmos.uah.edu
FLORIDA Jon Arthur 
Jim Anderson		 FGS/FDEP, 903 W Tennessee St., Tallahassee, FL 32304-7700 
C2200 U. Ctr., Florida St U., Tallahassee, FL 32306-4015		 (904) 488-9380 
(850) 644-2883		 arthur_j@dep.state.fl.us 
janderso@garnet.cc.fsu.edu
GEORGIA Amy Millians Univ. Georgia, 1234 S. Lumpkin St., Athens, GA 30602 (706) 542-3350 acmillia@moe.coe.uga.edu
LOUISIANA Bill Craig UNO Lakefront Campus, Dept Geology, New Orleans LA 70148 (504) 280-6325 wcraig@geology.uno.edu
MISSISSIPPI Gail Russell Box 5044, Univ. Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406 (601) 266-4077 gail.russell@usm.edu
NORTH CAROLINA Fred Beyer CCSD, PO Box 2357, Fayetteville NC 28301-9286 (910) 678-2456 cn2951@coastalnet.com
SOUTH CAROLINA Peggy Cain 715 Camp Branch Road, Sumter, SC 29153-9364 (803) 495-2761 SCMAPS-L@clemson.edu
TENNESSEE Mike Clark Geol Sci, Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville TN 37996-1410 (423) 974-2366 clarkgmorph@utk.edu
  

STATE PROGRESS REPORTS

ALABAMA
The writing team for the Lookout Mountain Study Area has obtained draft copies of all its selected images and cartographic products and has completed its activity writing. Pilot schools for this area are currently being selected.

The National Geographic Society has funded an urban documentation effort which SE MAPS will utilize as the basis for the Birmingham Study Area effort. A black and white aerial photographic time series (1940-1990 has been ordered and will be made available during the writing teamís next scheduled session. NALC and Landsat images have been ordered. Discussions have also been underway with the Birmingham Historical Society.

The Alabama/Mississippi Gulf Coast Study Area (including Mobile Bay) is now being handled primarily by the Alabama development team. Discussions on writing assignments have been held with personnel from the Dauphin Island Sea Lab. Draft activities are to be completed by May, 1998, with writing teams in place by January, 1998.

No serious impediments have been encountered. We are behind schedule, but are confident that we will be able to prepare and pilot test three study areas by the end of the project.

Greg Cox - State Coordinator

FLORIDA
Burgess Howell has received the NAPP images for the Tallahassee Study Area. Jim Anderson apparently has access to additional data for this site which Burgess would like to use. A draft version of the student activities for this study area was circulated at the recent summer conference at Clemson.

Regarding the other two Florida sites, Burgess Howell has sent low resolution copies of several of the images to the Florida team for inspection, editing, and other input. The major writing emphasis on the two peninsular study areas awaits the final acquisition of remaining imagery.

GEORGIA
The Georgia effort is currently in a state of transition. State Coordinator Amy Millians has resigned her position at the University of Georgia to take a job in New York State. We are currently in the process of searching for her replacement. If you have not been contacted yet and wish to be considered for this position, contact John Wagner at the Project Office as soon as possible.

Work continues on the Pine Mountain Belt Study Area under the direction of Tom Hanley and also on the Georgia Coastal Corridor Study Area. We are still looking for some one to take charge of the Atlanta Study Area. Some imagery has been received

LOUISIANA
Louisiana also had circulated draft versions of sample student activities at the summer conference. According to Burgess Howell, the state development team has already acquired all necessary maps and images. All that is needed at this point is to transfer the data to Burgess Howellís computer for final printing. Some of the background information and student activities still need to be refined before pilot testing.

Pam Borne has expressed interest in getting a writing team together to start up a state level adaptation, LA MAPS, and is pursing state and local funding to accomplish this goal.

MISSISSIPPI
The Mississippi development team has concentrated on the Mississippi River Study Area (Vicksburg, etc.) and has transfered responsibility for the Alabama/Mississippi Gulf Coast Study Area to Alabama. Some members of the Mississippi team will assist with the barrier island portion of that site as needed. Apparently, Burgess Howell only has coastal NHAP coverage eastward to about the middle of Mobile Bay, but is working on some other leads.

Unfortunately for the Mississippi River Study Area around Vicksburg, Burgess has no NALC coverage to this date - everything from Memphis to Vicksburg is on order.

NORTH CAROLINA
North Carolina is one of the states for which imagery availability has proven to be a major headache. Recently, most of the NHAP and NAPP photos which were backordered have come through and are being scanned by Burgess Howell. About 40% of the NALC image likewise has been processed. A final decision on whether or not to use the ëspaceshotsí image of the Outer Banks Study Area needs to be made soon.

A first draft of the Carolina Bays Study Area background information and student activities section has been distributed, but additional work has been delayed until the images are obtained. Writers for the Blue Ridge Front Study Area also have produced early draft versions of local material, but are likewise waiting on imagery to work from. The coastal writing team has met, but no drafts have yet been distributed.

SOUTH CAROLINA
The draft version of the Columbia Study Area, which was distributed at the summer conference, is essentially complete and ready for pilot testing. Additional information on mill village life and its dependence on water power generated from the fall line zone replaces some of the material on urbanization and the ëmall cultureí which will move to the Atlanta Study Area. Several primary source language arts resources also have been added.

Work on the Myrtle Beach Study Area has focused on the offshore portion of that site. Arla Jessen and Scott Harris have been working to merge the side-scanning sonar image with existing bathymetry data. The digital aerial photography will be merged into the same composite sheet.

The Kings Mountain development team finally received the NHAP images, but they were black & white instead of color infrared. We canít blame Burgess Howell for this because we ordered them through our state cartographic center - months ago. Our contact has promised to straighten this out and get us the proper images. But at least we do have something to work with. We do have some draft versions of specific activities, but not in a form worth circulating yet.

TENNESSEE
In harmony with the research teams from bordering states, the TENNMAPS research group has identified three research sites within the Appalachian Highlands major geomorphic division that have the potential to excel in terms of providing exciting educational experiences for students of the earth sciences. Each site has striking attributes on the remote sensing imagery that occupy the ongoing research effort.

Work on the Cumberland Gap - Middlesboro Basin Study Area focuses on the origin of the gap (abandoned wind gap, cross-strike discontinuity, fracture trace, joint concentration, faulting, thinning of resistant stratigraphic units, etc.) and the origin of the Middlesboro Basin (intersection of structural weaknesses, concentration of easily weatherable rock units, unique fluvial erosional history, infilled ancient impact crater, etc.).

Research on the Great Smoky Mountains megasite focuses on landslide features, major structural features (e.g., carbonate-bedrock-floored coves as world-class examples of windows, etc.) and main aspects of vegetation (forest cover) and afforestation following establishment of the National Park.

Work on the Sequatchie Valley-Grassy Cove site is centered upon unroofing of a major faulted anticlinorium in the eastern Cumberland Plateau and karst development downplunge.

A literature search and development of a bibliography have largely been completed, and the group is waiting for imagery delivery. We fully understand the extreme difficulty involved in obtaining the requisite imagery through government channels and we realize that everything that can be done is being done in order to obtain the media as soon as possible.

Mike Clark - State Coordinator

Regarding some of the cartographic products, we have good news and bad news. The bad news is that we seem to be at a dead end regarding SLAR imagery of Tennessee. We have to find an alternate product. However, progress is being made with obtaining anaglyph products for the Tennessee Study Areas. Burgess Howell is working out possible deals with two companies and should have some samples soon.

SC MAPS PROJECT TIMETABLE

FALL, 1997

- State Coordinator selects pilot schools and schedules initial pilot testing of all state units for either Fall or Spring.

- state development team members continue writing activities according to state schedule and timetable of state coordinator.

- Burgess Howell gets draft versions of all cartographic products to state coordinators for distribution to team members.

- chapter background information and regional sections written at Clemson to correlate with regional cartographic products.

- development teams begin acquiring additional regional and local maps and images designated for the CD-ROM component.

SE MAPS PROJECT OFFICE
DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGICAL SCIENCES
BOX 341908 CLEMSON UNIVERSITY
CLEMSON, SC 29634-1908