STEALTH EDUCATION
approach than others, but virtually every aspect of human society or history has been influenced in some manner by the Geosciences.
An excellent example of the concept of Stealth Education is present in the student edition of the The Professional Geologist in the article by Barney Paul Popkin titled ‘The Hohokam of Southern Arizona – Geologic Environment and Agriculture”. I recommend that all members read it to get the flavor of the approach. The article is based on the life style and decline of the Hohokam Culture in Arizona, but uti- lizes that vehicle to expand the understanding of the geoscience variables of climate change, hydrogeology, hydraulic engineer- ing, tectonics, dendrochronology, and the degree to which each of those elements interacted with the social interaction of the Hohokam culture. I recommend those interested in Stealth Education and Outreach to read this paper.
In my first editorial, I included a brief example of Stealth Education which involved climate change as it influenced the
development of the Egyptian Empire. It is my intention to pro- vide additional examples as this series of editorials continues. In these editorials, I will not provide full presentations, but rather a few illustrations that can be included in lectures on collateral subjects. Follow-up editorials will be designed to pro- vide examples of different topics with appropriate slides and commentary on geoscience elements appropriate for insertion into the presentation.
General example – Man and the Americas
The history of man’s entry into the Americas is highly complex, allowing the introduction of glaciation, ocean current movement, sea level fluctuations and the role of river systems and hydrology as migration pathways into the interior of the continents. The Bering Land Bridge figure below illustrates the changes related to sea level rise associated with glacial melting. This figure provides an excellent entree for introduc- ing the concept of glacial advances and retreats as well as the elements of geologic time related to the multiple cycles identi- fied in the geologic record. The inclusion of archaeological excavation sites on the figure also provides pathways for introduction of permafrost and fossil preservation, effects of permafrost melt- ing, geoscience-related factors influenc- ing human and animal migration and physiographic changes due to glacial advances and retreats (coastal terraces, meltwater lakes, inundated moraines as influences on commercial fishing activi- ties, etc.).
Figure 1 – Bering Land Bridge – University of Alaska, Fairbanks.
The Illustration can be included as background information for presenta- tions on travel to Alaska, archaeologi- cal and anthropological discussions of human migration, causes and effects of glaciation, multiple migration pathways associated with the entry of man into the Americas, commercial fisheries, coastal physiography, local and regional climate controls, etc.
A major potential pathway for early migration of humans from Asia into the Americas was by boat along the edge of sea ice along the coasts of Alaska, Canada, and the western United States. A facilitating element in that migration is the California Current, an oceanic current system along the west coast of the Americas.
Since the California Current flows southward, it provides an excellent pathway into the Americas, with the Canadian Inside Passage, Vancouver Island and the California Channel Islands, providing stepping-stones for southward movement from Beringia
Figure 2 – Ocean Currents in the Gulf of Alaska Potentially Affecting Holocene Coastal Migration Routes, Oceanography Web Site.
42 TPG •
Jul.Aug.Sep 2021
When combined with figure 3, illus- trations of this type provide excellent entrees for insertion of discussions on Oceanography, oceanic circulation pat- terns and causes, bases for coastal climatic zonation, adiabatic influences on rain forest and inland desert forma-
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