Olduvai P rof. Sept wanted to engage students in the detective work fundamental to human origins research by making available real evidence from the famous FLK-Zinj site Mary Leakey discovered in the Olduvai Gorge. Dr. Sept presented the data that anthropologists and others have found in Olduvai Gorge and then challenged students to analyze the data. Students learn how to recognize and interpret patterns of artifacts and fossil remains recovered at this site. Students can compare their analyses with the conclusions of other researchers.
Interactive features allow student exploration of the data.
For example, students can examine surface features and geological cross-sections of a geologic time period and hear a brief comment on the period's most important events. Students can learn about early stone tools by watching digital movies of tools being made and used. They can analyze artifact data from the site for themselves in order to answer questions about the dawn of technology in Africa. Students keep notes in a fieldbook which is saved to the local hard drive. Originally produced in HyperCard, the project evolved into an interactive CD-ROM published by IU Press.