http://www.teachengineering.org/view_lesson.php?url=collection/cub_/lessons/cub_natdis/cub_natdis_lesson06.xmllessontext/xmlIntegrated Teaching and Learning Program, disasterconstructionearthquakefloorhazardhousematerialsnatural disasteroceanseasea floortsunamiwaterborebuoydetectenergypyroclastic flowsea floorsensortectonic platetsunamiwave

Students learn about tsunamis, discovering what causes them and what makes them so dangerous. They learn that engineers design detection and warning equipment, as well as structures that that can survive the strong wave forces. In a hands-on activity, students use a table-top-sized tsunami generator to observe the formation and devastation of a tsunami. They see how a tsunami moves across the ocean and what happens when it reaches a coastline. They make villages of model houses to test how different material types are impacted by the huge waves.

Engineers use their creativity to save lives and decrease the destruction caused by tsunamis. While tsunamis cannot be prevented, engineers can design monitoring equipment to help scientists gather data to detect them early so people can be warned and evacuated to safety. Cameras continually watch volcanoes, seismometers measure tremors, GPS receivers measure mountain swelling, pressure sensors monitor air waves caused by explosions, and radar and satellites communicate the height, size and location of ash plumes. Some engineers design structures that can survive tsunamis. Other engineers design warning systems such as harbor disaster sirens, automated news media bulletins and emergency communication centers. Describe a tsunami as a large wave that is caused by the movement of the sea floor.List some causes of tsunamis, including earthquakes, volcanoes and landslides. Relate that engineers use special sensors to detect tsunamis.Explain how engineers are working to create buildings that can survive tsunamis. 15TeachEngineering.orgGeoffrey HillMalinda Schaefer ZarskeDenise W. Carlsonhttp://www.dictionary.comhttp://www.its.caltech.edu/~sciwrite/journal03/A-L2/elliott.htmlhttp://www.tsunamiwave.info/http://senseable.mit.edu/tsunami-prajnopaya/http://www.tsunami.noaa.govS114172BInternational_Technology_Education_Association-ITEA_STL_StandardsTechnologyB. People have made tools to provide food, to make clothing, and to protect themselves.35S11425A1ColoradoSciencea. Analyze and interpret data identifying ways Earth's surface is constantly changing through a variety of processes and forces such as plate tectonics, erosion, deposition, solar influences, climate, and human activity 55S11425A2ColoradoScienceb. Develop and communicate an evidence based scientific explanation around one or more factors that change Earth's surface55United StatesCopyright 2012 - Integrated Teaching and Learning Program, College of Engineering, University of Colorado at Boulderhttp://www.teachengineering.org/policy_ipp.phphttp://www.teachengineering.org/2011-09-225Teacher