One of my pet peeves with using the internet for instructional purposes is the "page turner" effect. Most Internet savvy teachers have seen the sites -page after page of lesson plans to be used in a paper/text classroom. That is fine if all you are after is information. However the dynamics of a web-based instructional environment offers so much more than a "page turner."

I am a strong proponent for the use of shareware/freeware applications which can be used in conjunction with web-based instruction. This is especially true in the science content area in general, and Earth/Space science in particular. Some of these programs rival the best commercial software applications available anywhere. A few excellent ones are NIH Image, Scion Image, Pov-Ray, MacDEM, DEMView and STELLA Run Time. See the next page concerning the use of Pov-Ray, MacDEM, and DEMView in developing 3D landscape images for use in geology lessons.

Take a look at how I used information from the Web and developed a model based upon a speech by Steven Hawkings given during the Whitehouse Millennium Series of 1998. The Real Audio Streaming speech is housed at the Sun Microsystem Web site. You will need RealAudio to listen to and view this 75 minute webcast. To look at the model, you will need to download this STELLA population model.

To manipulate the model, you will need to download the run time STELLA software to run it. It is available from High Performance Systems Corporation at no charge. Make sure the software is saved in a convenient area of your computer. Follow the directions and run the model. If you wish to learn more about these types of models, visit MIT's System Dynamics in Education site.

NIH Image - NIH Image is a public domain image processing and analysis program for the Macintosh.

Scion Image - Scion Corp. PC version of NIH Image.

POV-Ray - Freeware program for creating stunningly beautiful 3D graphics. Great for creating 3D images based upon USGS DEM data. Read a tutorial on converting DEM files to be used in this program

DEMview (Macintosh) DEMView is a US Geological Survey Digital Elevation Model file viewer. With it you can view USGS Digitized terrain data files. Zoom and scroll around in them and save them as 8 bit gray scale images.

MacDEM - A freeware (Not public domain) for viewing, editing, and converting USGS DEM data. Can export DEM converted images to POV-Ray.

DEM Reader A Mac program for reading and converting USGS SDTS data to elevation or relief maps in color or gray scale

STELLA Run-Time "State-of-the-art, yet easy-to-use modeling and simulation software for students, educators and researchers. Builds capacity for understanding dynamic interrelationships within biological, social and physical systems.

DEMMaker & DEMView (Window PC)