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Although Geography resides comfortably within the humanities faculty, it is also infused with application of the scientific method. A particular example of such ‘Scientific Geography’ is the use of experiments to examine landscape evolution up close. Changes in the physical landscape normally happen slowly and much of it therefore remains unseen by most. This is where scale experiments come in: they speed up real changes whilst miniaturising the landscape to fit inside a box.
In experiments, students can build landforms like meanders, waterfalls, gorges, and deltas. Key concepts such as ‘lateral erosion’ make more sense when they happen in front of your eyes. The most difficult ‘crux’ problems in learning about landscapes involve gaining an understanding of how changes happen over time and in space whilst examining the connectedness within the natural system. Experiments make the subject come to life.
One could argue that the inclusion of such experiments ought to be standard practice in teaching. However, the use of such experiments has traditionally been confined to scientific research. Dr Reesink’s experience with research in experimental geoscience allows him to introduce such state-of-the-art ideas into the curriculum. It is a unique opportunity for students to be able to extend their learning by ‘thinking inside the box’.
Dr Arjan Reesink, Geography Department
Jemima W, Fourth Form, writes:
'We created our own mini landscapes in Geography using sand, water and clay. It was very fun and interesting to get out of the classroom and experiment with making different landforms and seeing how they develop. My favourite part was watching the meanders form and seeing how much they could bend before forming a mini oxbow lake! The experiment really helped me understand more and have a clear idea about how the different landforms are made. I was very surprised about how much water it took for the sand to become completely saturated so that the water could start to form a river. It was amazing to see processes like erosion and deposition, which we learnt about in the classroom, creating different landforms - like they would in real life (but on a much smaller scale!).'
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