Mathematica as a powerful and practical tool for displaying animated three‐dimensional structures of the Earth's interior

Abstract

[1] Seismic tomographic studies have determined three-dimensional (3-D) velocity structures, in detail, of the crust and the upper mantle of the Earth. Yet, simple two-dimensional (2-D) sections have generally been used to present 3-D tomographic results. Here we show 3-D views and animations of the Earth's structure that are made as easy as 2-D sections, by using Mathematica. As an example, low-velocity zones in the upper mantle are shown in three dimensions, together with major volcanoes, mid-crustal reflectors, earthquake hypocenters, the Moho discontinuity and the upper plane of the subducted slab, that are observed in northeastern Japan. Low velocities in volcanic areas generally correspond to high temperatures, and indicate possible presence of magma. The 3-D animations enable us to investigate the spatial relation between low-velocity zones, volcanoes, reflectors, earthquakes and the slab, and thus enable us to study magma ascent pathways in detail.Components: 3027 words, 1 figure, 2 videos.

Dynamic Interactive Visualizations: Implications of Seeing, Doing, and Playing for Quantitative Analysis Pedagogy

“…Ramsden (1997, p. 15) stated that the new (at the time) technology tool Mathematica "opens up new, exciting avenues for educators" and explained, "the revolutionary potential of new technology lies, however, in our finding new things to do with it." Since its first release in 1998, Mathematica has been widely adopted in education subjects such as math (e.g., Liu and Deng 2011), science and technology (e.g., Sato et al 2003), and engineering (e.g., Saunders-Smits et al 2005). However, the more recent advanced features, especially the interactive visualization functionalities, provided by Mathematica have just started to be integrated in teaching practices, and the evaluation of the impacts of such features on pedagogy has been sparse.…”