Heidi Daxberger

Heidi Daxberger
Associate Professor, Teaching Stream
Telephone number
416 208-5136
Fax number
416 287-7204
Building EV 466
Website My Website Rednet

Teaching Interests

  • EESB15H3F - Earth History
  • EESB19H3S - Mineralogy
  • EESB20H3S - Sedimentology and Stratigraphy
  • EESC36H3F - Petrology
  • EESC37H3F - Structural Geology

Expertise, Teaching and Research Interests:

As applied, spatial and 3D-visualization skills are fundamental to any type of geologic work (e.g. mapping of three dimensional geologic structures, 3D-modelling of ore deposits or understanding of groundwater flow in the subsurface), my collaborators (University of Toronto, Dr. Tasca Santimano, School of Earth, Environment and Society - McMaster University, Dr. Alex Peace & Dr. Rebecca Moumblow) and I are trying to determine which tasks conducted in the classroom, laboratory and in the field, are most effective and help students to develop basic and advanced spatial and 3D-visualization skills. Such exercises include for example the use of physical and virtual 3D-teaching objects, foldable paper models, drawing exercises, virtual field exercises. The information provided by students, will enable us to implement the most effective teaching strategies in our geoscience courses and curriculum, and hence maximize student’s learning outcome achievements and strengthen student’s confidence in their profession skills.

Additionally, my collaborators and I developed innovative virtual teaching materials to enhance inclusion and accessibility in the geoscience curriculum and to adapt to the switch to online teaching (see Virtual Educational Resources below). The past and present initiatives are financed by the University of Toronto-Scarborough Dean’s Office, University of Toronto-Scarborough Office of the Vice-Principal Research & Innovation, University of Toronto-Scarborough Center of Teaching and Learning, University of Toronto-Scarborough Department of Physical and Environmental Sciences and McMaster University’s School of Earth, Environment & Society and the Government of Ontario (eCampus).

Beside my interest in course and curriculum development, I am interested in structural and petrologic geologic analysis of deformed and metamorphosed rocks that were part of crustal deformation processes. I am also interested in tectonomorphologic studies of deformation driven landform development using Geographical Information Systems (GIS). 

Design and Development of Virtual Educational Resources:

The Geology of Southern Ontario - ArcGIS StoryMap is an evolving digital open access resources that is created in collaboration with the University of Waterloo, the Geological Survey of Ontario (OGS), the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC), and the Oil, Gas, Salt Resource Library (OGSRL).
The Geology of Southern Ontario (arcgis.com)

Urban Geotrail – A Geological Building Stones Tour of the UofT St. George Campus (Toronto). Developed in collaboration with the APGO Education Foundation, McMaster University and University of Toronto St. George Campus https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/0d83509c04984d05be460dfbab734a77/

Virtual Petrography Resource – A web database of digitized geologic thin sections and hand samples. Developed in collaboration with Dr. K. Kennedy, S. Sookhan (ABD-PhD), Dr. R. Moumblow
https://planetearth.utsc.utoronto.ca/VirtualMic/

Virtual Field Exercise of Albion Falls (Hamilton, Ontario, Canada) https://planetearth.utsc.utoronto.ca/timeline/albion_t1b.html

Virtual 3D models of minerals, rocks and geologic outcrops (Sketchfab) https://sketchfab.com/Daxberger

eCampus Virtual Learning Strategy (2021) Resources

Developed in collaboration with University of Toronto-Mississauga Atlas of the Central Metasedimentary Belt Bedrock Geology in Southern Ontario: LiDAR-Derived Digital Outcrops, 3D Hand Samples, Petrography and Geochemistry https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/altasofsouthernontariocmb/

Atlas of the Central Gneiss Belt Bedrock in Southern Ontario: LiDAR-Derived Digital Outcrops, 3D Hand Samples, Petrography and Geochemistry https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/atlasofsouthernontariocentralgneissbelt/

Interactive Virtual Geotrail: Chedoke Radial Trail (Hamilton) Developed in collaboration with McMaster University https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/65987cf0debb4df3a5b695e66e1639ae

 

Awards and Grants

University of Toronto-Scarborough Faculty Teaching Award (2020)

Publications

N. Putkinen, P. Sarala, N. Eyles, H. Daxberger, J. Pihlaja, A. Murray, 2020. Reworked Middle Pleistocene deposits preserved in the core region of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet. Quaternary Science Advances. Vol. 2. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.qsa.2020.100005.

C.G. Bank, H. Daxberger, 2020. Concept maps for structuring instruction and as a potential assessment tool in a large introductory science course. Journal of College Science Teaching. Vol. 49-6, p. 65-71. Impact Factor: 0.81

R. Shankar, A.K. Singh, G. P. Satyam, H. Daxberger, 2020. Active tectonics in the Satlui River basin in and around Rampur, Himachal Himalaya, India. Arabian Journal of Geosciences. Vol. 13. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-020-05473-w . Impact Factor: 0.92

M. Pandey, R. Devrani, A. Arora, Y. Ray, H. Daxberger (Abstract submitted for Special Issue 2020). Do geomorphic indices behave differently in different thrust sheets? Implications to active tectonics in a Himalayan River Basin. Special Issue: Remote Sensing and GIS applications in the Quaternary Science. Quaternary International Journal.

U. Riller, M. Clark, H. Daxberger, I. Lenauer, S. Plath, T. Santimano. 2017 Fault-slip inversion: Their importance in terms of strain, heterogeneity and kinematics of brittle deformation. Journal of Structural Geology. Vol. 101, p. 80-95. Impact Factor. 2.884

H. Daxberger and U. Riller. (2015) Analysis of geomorphic indices in the southern Central Andes (23°-28°S): Evidence for pervasive Quaternary to Recent deformation in the Puna Plateau. Geomorphology. 248, p.56-76. Impact Factor: 2.577

H. Daxberger and U. Riller. (2015) Kinematics of Neogene to Recent upper-crustal deformation in the southern Central Andes (23°-28°S) inferred from fault-slip analysis: Evidence for gravitational spreading of the Puna Plateau. Tectonophysics. 642, p. 16-28. doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2014.12.003. Impact Factor: 2.866.

H., Daxberger, R., Dalumpines, U., Riller, and D.M., Scott. (2014) The ValleyMorph Tool: An automated extraction tool for transverse topographic symmetry (T-) factor and the valley width to valley height (Vf-) ratio. Computer and Geosciences. 70. 154-163. doi:10.1016/j.cageo.2014.05.015. Impact Factor: 1.525.

M.K. Pandit, H., DeWall, H., Daxberger, J., Just, M., Bestmann, and K.K., Sharma. (2011) Mafic rock from Erinpura gneiss terrane in the Sirohi region: Possible ocean-floor remnants in the foreland of the Delhi Fold Belt, NW India. Journal of Earth System Science. 120 (4). 627-641. Impact Factor: 0.794.

Conference Presentations & Posters:

Introducing a virtual database of rock outcrops of Southern Ontario. Earth Educators Rendezvous July 2022. P. Ashwell, S. Ballantyne, H. Daxberger, P. Ruscica, P. Attanasio, A. Ghanie, A. Hamid, Ch. Peng, J. Wanzo, D. Rios.

Visualizing the subsurface geology of southern Ontario: from virtual to tactile model. GAC-MAC Halifax May 2022. H.A.J. Russel, J. Clark, T. Carter, H. Daxberger, J. Johnston

Consolidating digital geologic data into Virtual Reality (VR) field experiences for teaching geoscience. GAC-MAC Halifax May 2022. P. Ruscica, H. Daxberger, S. Ballantyne.

Bringing Southern Ontario’s local geology into the classroom. GAC-MAC Halifax May 2022. H. Daxberger, S. Ballantyne, P. Ashwell, P. Ruscica, P. Attanasio, A. Ghanie, A. Hamid, C. Peng, J. Wanzo, D. Rios.

Comparing student learning achievements using traditional versus virtual microscopes for Mineralogy and Petrology. GAC-MAC London November 2021. Virtual, London, Ontario, Canada. H. Daxberger, K. Kennedy, R. Moumblow and S. Sookhan.

Virtual Petrography – Expanding the Microscope Laboratory with a New Interactive Online Tool. Virtual Earth Educators Rendezvous July 2021. USA. H. Daxberger, K. Kennedy, R. Moumblow and S. Sookhan.

An Integrated Approach for 3D-Visualization Skill and Spatial Ability Training in Geosciences. GACMAC Conference May 2019. Quebec City. Canada. H. Daxberger and R. Moumblow. p. 78

Upper-Crustal Kinematics of Continental Plateau Formation in the Southern Central Andes – Inferred from Fault-Slip Analysis. 23rd Latin American Colloquium of Earth Sciences, GAEA Heidelbergensis. Heidelberg, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany. March 2014. Presenter(s): U. Riller, H., Daxberger. Abstract book page 133.

Poster: Assessing the Morphotectonic Evolution of the Southern Central Andes Using the River Transect Tool. 23rd Latin American Colloquium of Earth Sciences, March 2014, GAEA Heidelbergensis. Heidelberg, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany. H., Daxberger, R., Dalumpines, U., Riller, D.M., Scott. Abstract book page 58.

Causes for Neogene to Recent horizontal extension in the Southern Central Andes. EGU General Assembly. April 2012. European Geoscience Union. Vienna. Austria. H., Daxberger and U., Riller. p. 3650.

Significance of Fault-Slip Analyses in Active and Fossil Orogens. EGU General Assembly, April 2012. European Geoscience Union. Vienna. Austria. U., Riller. I., Lenauer, H., Daxberger and T., Santimano. p. 3258.

Poster: Ductile Shear Zones along the Western Boundary Fault of the Delhi Fold belt (NW India). 2nd International Conference on Precambrian Continental Growth and Tectonism. February 2009. Dept. of Geology Bundelkhand University Jhansi, India. Authors: H., Daxberger, S., Schoebel, J., Just, H., deWall, M., Bestmann, M.K., Pandit and K.K., Sharma. Abstract book page 69.