Slip Sliding Away: Glacier Dynamics

Chasing Ice

James Balog

3:33

Explore How Glaciers Move

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• Get a handful of white glacier goo
• Place it in a mound on a transparency or on the top of an overturned cup
• With a vis a vis pen, draw 3 lines on your goo
• Sketch your glacier in your notebook
• Take a slow motion movie or several photos over 5 minutes
• Draw arrows on your sketch to show how the glacier moves

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How do Glaciers Move?

Explore the model with your group:

1. U-shaped valley (rain gutter)

2. Elevation (books)

3. Glacier (glacier goo)

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Materials available:

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U-shaped valley

Elevation (books)

Sandpaper

Spray oil

Toothpicks

Blue goo

White goo

Markers

With your group, brainstorm questions that can be

investigated with the glacier goo and materials.

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In your notebook make a list of possible independent

(manipulated) and dependent (responding) variables.

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Share ideas about variables

How does the

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angle of elevation…

How does the

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location across the surface of the ice…

How does the

location from top surface to bottom…

How does the

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surface of the glacier bed…

Weak questions—can be answered with a “yes” or “no”

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Do glaciers move at different speeds?

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Does a glacier move faster when the angle of the slope is larger?

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Does the top move faster than the bottom?

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Do the sides move faster than the middle?

Better questions—multiple answers

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How does the angle of the slope affect the speed of the glacier?

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How does speed change across the surface of a glacier?

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How does speed change from the top to the bottom?

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How does the amount of snow at the top of the glacier affect its speed?

Designing better investigable questions

Design your investigation:

• Write your question.

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• Collect and record data.

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• Write a conclusion:
• Restate:  We were investigating…
• Claim:  The data suggest…
• Evidence:  Data that support this are…
• Reasoning:  I think this because..

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20 minutes

Internal deformation-weight and mass + gravity

Sliding-water at bottom

Basal sliding-soft sediment bed that has water

Materials available:

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U-shaped valley

Elevation (books)

Sandpaper

Spray oil

Toothpicks

Blue goo

White goo

Markers

Wheel of Inquiry

How does the

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angle of elevation…

How does the

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surface of the glacier bed…

How does the

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location across the surface of the ice…

How does the

location from top surface to bottom…

…affect the speed of the glacier?

Wheel of Inquiry

How does the

​

angle of elevation…

How does the

​

surface of the glacier bed…

How does the

​

location across the surface of the ice…

How does the

location from top surface to bottom…