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Living Labs

Legacy Curriculum

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What is a Living Lab?

Scientists and engineers around the world use data to describe and to understand the way the world works. We get these data through observation and experimentation. These Living Labs offer students and teachers a chance to practice analyzing data to solve a problem or answer a question, in much the same way that scientists and engineers do every day. For example, can you use the data in the Renewable Energy Living Lab to decide if your school can be powered with solar energy? How close is your house to a recent earthquake? Science is most fun when you work with others, so be inquisitive and share what you learn. And most importantly, remember to have fun!

Renewable Energy Living Lab

Renewable energy comes from natural resources such as wind, plant material, water (rain or tides), geothermal, or sunlight and is naturally replenished. The United States right now relies heavily on coal, oil, and natural gas for its energy. These fossil fuels are nonrenewable, which means that the sources will eventually dwindle, becoming too expensive or too environmentally damaging to retrieve. Renewable energy technologies have a much lower environmental impact than conventional energy technologies.

This Living Lab offers you a chance to evaluate the renewable energy sources in the U.S. Both renewable and non-renewable energy sources are used to generate electricity, power vehicles, and provide heating, cooling, and light. Renewable sources of energy vary widely in their cost-effectiveness and in their availability across the United States. Although water, wind, and other renewables may seem free, the cost comes in collecting and transporting the energy to the places where energy is needed. For example, to utilize energy from water, a dam must be built along with electric generators and transmission lines. Explore the energy sources below to look at the available renewable energy sources.

More Renewable Energy Resources

Explore the Data

Preview of the NREL interactive renewable energy map

Explore the NREL Interactive Renewable Energy Map

Renewable Energy Living Lab Activities

K-8 Activities:

9-12 Activities:

Earthquakes Living Lab

Earthquakes occur nearly every day, and they occur around the world! The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that about 500,000 detectable earthquakes occur in the world each year. Of those, 100,000 can be felt and 100 of them cause damage. Earthquakes occur as a result of geology—when two blocks of the Earth's crust suddenly slip past one another along a fault or fault plane. The release of energy takes the form of seismic waves, sort of like ripples on a pond. The seismic waves shake the Earth as they move through it, and when the waves reach the Earth's surface, they shake the ground—and us!

The Earthquakes Living Lab offers you a chance to investigate earthquakes all around the world. You will find that many earthquakes have happened this week! What instruments, methods and data do scientists and engineers use to measure and locate earthquakes? How do scientists use evidence to explain the theory of plate tectonics? What are some effects of earthquakes that influence how much damage they cause? What are the best designs for buildings located in earthquake-prone regions? This Living Lab uses four focus areas (Chile, San Francisco, Japan, and Southern California) to help guide you toward answers to these questions—and many more. Rock your world by looking at real data from around the globe!

Examine these four active seismic areas to inquire about different aspects of earthquakes!

Watch: how a seismogram works (video)

Want more info on recent earthquakes? Visit the USGS Real-Time Earthquake Map!

USGS logoData provided by USGS

Earthquakes Living Lab Activities

K-8 Activities:

9-12 Activities: