Dino Jim - Teaching Geology Through The Radio

-Stage 4.3-

Geology Through The Radio

Where popular music is used to help explain geological concepts.

So sitting and listening to the radio, one song in particular has gotten my attention as containing some interesting geological concepts, Horse With No Name by America. SO I figure I would do like I have done for literature and make a creative exercise based on this. And we will see to how far this expands.

Available Work Packets -

Horse with No Name

Using America’s Horse With No Name

There are instances when you can listen to the radio and the words that come back to you can mean other things than what the artist initially intended them to. Whenever I listen to America’s Horse With No Name, I hear geological concepts being mentioned. So, that is what you are going to do here. You are going to take what is being said in the song, and use it to understand some geological concepts.

What are the environments mentioned in the song?

What types of conditions does the song use to define these environments?

Does this match what is geologically used to define the environments?

What did he find on the 3^rd day? And do you think you could see this feature in the desert? Find a picture of one if you think one exists.

What is the geological term for the change in environment described in the song (“desert had turned to the sea”)

What are the two (tectonic) possibilities to explain how this could happen?

The song states that “after 9 days…the desert had turned to the sea”. Assuming a really fast time period for this to happen is 100,000 yrs. How much faster is this event that America described?

“The ocean is a desert with its life underground”. Now assuming he meant underwater, do you agree with this statement? Why or why not?

Bonus Question: Why does the horse have no name?

Click below for the Horse With No Name directions in pdf format

Answers can be obtained by directly emailing me at Jazinator@hotmail.com

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