GeobraryDevelopment on mobile devices of useful tools for geology teachers and students

Abstract

The Geobrary project is an application for mobile devices (smartphones, tablets) and computers, available for Android or Apple iOS operating systems (iPhone, iPad). Its purpose is to gather comfortably and straightforwardly the information that can be used by teachers and students of Geology from any educational field. The app provides at the present-day stage of development, a series of basic knowledge applicable to the study and observation in different areas of Geology, especially in the fields of Paleontology and Mineralogy. This tool has been designed to help with the identification of common fossils and minerals in hand samples, by using simple dichotomous keys. It also features primary related to Palaeontology and Mineralogy, such as the idea of fossil, its types, forms of life and processes of fossilisation and states of conservation, or the definition of a mineral, classification system and occurrences. Also, the app enables access to remote multimedia databases and image galleries, and it includes a compiled glossary of terms and valuable tools useful in other areas of Geology, such as Stratigraphy, Sedimentology or Petrology. These areas of expertise still need to be completed in a future stage and will be a part of a new app version. Thus, this interactive educational resource can enhance the role of mobile learning in the education of the Geology in the broadest sense.