department of geosciences school of natural sciences and ... › pdf ›...

D e p a r t m e n t o f G e o s c i e n c e s S c h o o l o f N a t u r a l S c i e n c e s a n d M a t h e m a t i c s

GEO NEWS Spring 2011Vol. III, No. 1

Also in This Issue

3 UTD Geosciences gets a new home! by Raza Shah

4 Interview with Geosciences Department Head Professor John Oldow by Chris Mace

5 A New Visitor Federico Martina by Keegan Smith

5 Dr. James L. Carter: Profile of a Geo-Celebrity by Emily Smith

6 GeoClub President Kathleen Smith by Todd Lynch

7 2010 GSA Conference in Denver by Jordan Newman

8 GeoClub Highlights by Kathleen Smith

9 Intramural Sports by Caleb Joiner

New year, new moustacheDr. John Geissman brings paleomagnetic research back to UTD

by Richard Benson

Paleomagnetism is the study of the record of Earth’s magnetic field preserved in rocks. For

example, igneous rocks such as ba-salt contain minerals (e.g., magne-tite) that are capable of acquiring a net, permanent magnetic moment that is aligned with the Earth’s magnetic field at the time the rocks cooled, and this “remanent magne-tism” can be measured in the labo-ratory. This information can be used to determine the latitudinal position and orientation of geologic units (e.g. specific continents or parts thereof) relative to the magnetic poles at the time the magnetic field was “locked in” or acquired by the rocks. In the early- to mid-1950s,

paleomagnetic studies provided key evidence supporting the hypothesis of continental drift, which in turn paved the way for the theory of plate tectonics. Paleomagnetism, and the very related field of rock magnetism, are very fruitful and multifaceted re-search techniques, so UTD’s Geosci-ences Department is excited about our newest faculty addition; paleo-magnetist Dr. John Geissman. In the mid-1970s the Geosci-ences Department included paleo-magnetic researcher Dr. Chuck Hels-ley and numerous graduate students worked in his lab. With the arrival of Dr. Geissman, paleomagnetic re-search is being resumed at UTD after about a 35-year hiatus. The Paleo-magnetism Laboratory, located in

New paleomag lab will be one of the largest in the world. Photo by Chris Mace.

continued on page 2

Spring 20112 GEO NEWS

GeoNews is published annually as a class project by the students of GEOS 4390, Advance Writing, under the direction of Dr. Robert Stern.

We encourage you to contribute to future GeoNews editions—any input is welcome!

Edited by Dr. Robert Stern Layout by Chris Mace

the northwest part of the first floor of the ROC building, is presently un-der construction. The low magnetic field space (or magnetic shield) in the laboratory is being constructed by Dr. Gary Scott (former Helsley student) and his colleagues. In fact, this magnetic shield is the 50th one built by Dr. Scott—fit-ting that he returns to his alma mater for this signal event! Some of the instrumenta-tion for the laboratory has already arrived, and will begin to be tested out and used in early April. The fi-nal touches to the laboratory should be completed by September. Dr. Geissman received his BS, MS, and PhD in Geology from the University of Michigan. His princi-pal PhD advisor was Professor Rob Van der Voo. In the late 1970s he held a post-doc-toral research posi-tion at the University of Toronto, where he worked with Profes-sor David Strangway In 1980, he joined the faculty in the Geologi-cal Engineering De-partment at the Colo-rado School of Mines, and then moved to the Department of Earth and Planetary Scienc-es at the University of New Mexico in 1984, where he has been until now. Dr. Geissman is a devout vegetarian and adores the heat on his food. “The restaurants around

here leave a bit to be desired; I ask for a side of jalapeños and then doc-tor my food up.” He is an avid cyclist who enjoys mountain biking, but he also street cycles, including riding his bike to UTD. He has been bicy-cling since “forever” and prefers to not drive somewhere he can bike instead. Dr. Geissman is an avid fan of the Grateful Dead and loves Fleet-

wood Mac as well as classical music. Dr. Geissman was raised just west of Chicago (Rockford, home of Es-twing hammers). When asked what got him into geology, he responded

“Oh, that’s an easy one.” He and his father used to travel regularly up to the Quetico Provincial Park, in southwest Ontario just north of the US border, every summer to go canoeing, starting when he was 7. Dr. Geissman remembers this as an especially beautiful place with spectacular geologic exposures that just naturally got him excited about

learning about geol-ogy. On July 1st this year, Dr. Geissman will be-come President of the Geological Society of America (GSA; see ar-ticle about 2010 GSA meeting in Denver). As one goal during his term as President, he hopes to see GSA and the American Geo-physical Union (AGU) continue improving their interactions, a process that has be-gun this year. Both GSA and AGU are large and successful professional organi-zations with much in common. AGU, like GSA, provides oppor-tunities for research and communication, through publications and meetings, among its members. Dr. Geiss-man was Editor of the GSA Bulletin for seven years and was Edi-tor of Eos, the weekly newsjournal of AGU, for ten years. “One of the other things we are

trying to do is galvanize the many geoscience associations to work together.” Dr. Geissman thinks that it may be the only way to im-prove Earth Science education at the K-12 level, across the country. n

“paleomagnetism” continued from p.1

Dr. John Geissman. Photo by Chris Mace

Spring 2011 3GEO NEWS

by Raza Shah

The Geosciences De-partment has moved to a new building: the ROC building (Research and

Operations Center), located at 17217 Waterview Parkway (Dallas 75080), just NW of the intersection of Drive A and Waterview. ROC is a two-story building that was previously used by Raytheon for manufacturing and as a call center. UTD bought the building around sum-mer 2009, according to Chief Infor-mation Officer and Vice President Jim Gary. In addition to the Geosciences Department, the ROC building also houses UTD Information Resources, Enrollment Management, Information Security, and Audit and Compliance. All these groups are housed on the upper floor. The bottom floor is now being renovated and will contain Geoscienc-es laboratories as well as an “incuba-tor” space for start-up businesses. Con-struction should be finished in June, 2011. Although the distance from the main UTD campus makes it harder for students to get to other classes, there are many advantages for the Geosci-ences department’s new location. There is more space than there was in Founder’s Annex and faculty offices are together. There are conference rooms, lounges, a classroom, and we will soon have a computer classroom. Parking is much more convenient. There are no offices for graduate students yet but there will be when construction on the first floor is finished. We are enjoying our new home, including an exhibit of mineral specimens set up by Dr. James Carter (see article on Dr. Carter in this newsletter). Be sure to drop by some-time, maybe after a departmental seminar, and enjoy refreshments and conversation with faculty, staff, and students. n

UTD Geosciences has a new home!

Above: ROC Front. Photo by Raza Shah. Below: ROC location.


by Christopher Mace

Dr. Oldow was last inter-viewed for the 2008-2009 newsletter a few months after he joined UTD Geo-

sciences as its Head of Department. At that time he outlined plans for the future growth of the department. This year we asked him how these plans were developing, how the department was progressing thus far and what he saw as the challenges ahead. The most obvious change is that Geosciences has a new home, the aptly named ROC building (see article about ROC building, page 3). While the move to the ROC building came as a surprise to some students, Dr. Oldow notes that it was always part of the plan. When asked if he felt pleased with the progress of the department since he joined, Dr. Oldow replied sim-ply, “Yes.” He then went on to point out that since 2009 the department has added three professors: Dr. Alex Braun, Dr. Georgia Fotopoulos, and Dr. John Geissman (see article about pa-leomagnetism, page 1), and that there

are plans to add two more in the near future. “Things are going pretty much according to plan, and that’s good.” Many students have concerns about how the shrinking state budget will affect their education and the De-

partment’s growth. Dr. Oldow said that while financial constraints are likely to affect when we are able to add new faculty, he does not see it adversely af-fecting the quality of the department. In the end, he said, “We’ll be just fine.” On a more personal note, at the behest of the women of GeoClub, I asked Dr. Oldow if he would share the secret of his “amazing hair,” to which he coolly replied “I don’t know what that means. The question does not compute.” Being only minimally ac-quainted with hair care myself, I had no idea what it meant either. Sorry ladies, the world may never know. After that mild embarassment I decided not to press my luck by asking for a ride in his Aston Martin. n

An Interview with Geosciences Department Head, Professor John Oldow

Dr. Oldow describing terrane accretion in the north-western United States to field camp students in 2010. Clockwise from left: David Aguinaga, Todd Lynch, Mohammad Naqi, Richard Benson, Eric Schrimsher, Alan Philips, Raza Shah, Emily Edwards, Jeff Bender, Sarah Dunn, Dr. Oldow, Hannah Branning, and Kath-leen Smith (and Dr. Oldow’s terrier Howie!). Photo by Alex Biholar

Dr. Oldow with undergrads Nick Mueller (left) and Colby Carter (right) in Hells Canyon, Idaho during field camp 2009. Nick would go on to become one of Dr. Oldow’s graduate students in 2011.


by Keegan Smith

There has been a new face in the Geoscience Department lately. Dr. Federico Martina, also

known as ‘Fede’, comes to us from Ar-gentina and is staying with us from late January through late March. He came to continue his research regarding vol-canic rocks of northwestern Argentina, invited by Dr. Stern. As soon as he arrived in Dal-las, Fede noticed a big contrast with his home country. Our society, in his opinion, is very dispersed and designed around the automobile. The layout of his hometown of Cordoba has a more European style of compactness and centrality which allows him to travel by bicycle or foot. After riding his bike from his place in Richardson between Arapaho and Campbell to UTD, he noted “in the time it took me to arrive

at school, I could have reached almost every place in my town (Cordoba popu-lation is ~1.4 million).”

Dr. Martina began studying geoscience due to a passion for out-door activities in the Andes mountains. Outdoor activities that he engaged in as a kid allowed him to admire this

landscape and strive to understand the processes that made it. He attended the Universidad Nacional de Cordova where he received his Bachelor’s and PhD in Geology. Dr. Martina is now studying Mississippian age volcanic rocks of northwestern Argentina. He is enjoying working with Dr. Manton on Sr and Nd isotopic analyses of these rocks using the UTD geoscience geochemical lab and mass spectrometer. An added benefit to him was the opportunity to improve his English. He plans on taking his research results back to his team in Cordoba. Their long-term goal is to continue analysis and compare the Mississippian tectonic and magmatic evolution of NW Arentina with that of the US Basin and Range province. Because of his ex-perience and the knowledge he has re-ceived from UTD professors, he would enjoy returning for further research op-portunities. n

Visiting Scholar: Dr. Federico Martina

by Emily Edwards

Dr. James Lee Carter has been a UTD Geosci-ences fixture for the past 47 years. It began in the

Southwest Center for Advanced Stud-ies (SCAS), now UT Dallas, as a result of a seminar he attended as a graduate student at Rice University in 1964. The speaker, Henry Faul, talked about the goals of the new SCAS—to provide a high level of research and state-of-the-art equipment—and what the future held for the research center. This foun-dation is what has appealed to Dr. Cart-er for his long tenure at the University. At UTD, Dr. Carter has taught 27 different courses and lead or co-lead 55 field trips. He considers Rocks and Minerals to be one of the most impor-

tant undergraduate courses because it provides a foundation for becoming a geologist. He added, “I think that any course that takes you out in the field is important because that is where you see geology, where you can rub your nose in it. You can’t just get it off a com-puter screen or out of a book; you have to go out and do it.” Although he is now retired from classroom teaching, he still has many projects. A current interest includes developing a system for discovering mineral specimens and ore deposits. He also wants to educate people on the importance of minerals and how thay are used in our everyday life. To do this, he plans to set up exhibits in the base-ment of the UTD McDermott Library, which will have displays of large rocks and a geologic timeline. This museum

would convey the importance of miner-als and other natural materials to mod-ern technology by showing how they are used to make parts of an iPhone. Dr. Carter also designed all the display

Dr. James L. Carter: Profile of a Geo-Celebrity

Dr. Carter in front of the mineral exhibits in the ROC Geosciences Department office.

continued on page next page


cases that house the mineral collec-tion in UTD’s ROC building (see article about Geosciences new home, page 3), McDemott Library, and the Founders building. He also plans to make a bro-chure to explain more about the miner-als in these displays. Other areas of interest through-out Dr. Carter’s career include the stud-ies of the crust and upper mantle, as well as geochemical exploration. His interest in ore exploration has taken him to ev-

ery continent but Australia. Dr. Carter has also analyzed lu-nar “soil” from the Apollo missions and used this knowledge to create lunar soil simulants for NASA to help test space equipment on Earth. He has made over 40 tons of simulant and just finished building his own mill to manufacture this, as well as other types of simulant. In addition, he has also helped discover and recover a well-preserved neck of a Late Cretaceous sauropod dinosaur in Big Bend National Park that is the larg-est ever found in the world.

Some have attributed his suc-cesful geoscientific career to luck, but he says “success is just when preparation meets opportunity.” Dr. Carter considers his greatest acheivement to be helping UTD Geoscience students reach their goals: “I feel that when they walk out of here that they are capable of knowing how to approach a problem and solv-ing it. I always tell students when they walk out the door, I am not in their hip pocket. I hope I have helped them apply basic principles. Education is the basis of everything, in my opinion.” n

“Carter” continued from p.5

by Todd Lynch

I had the pleasure of sitting down with Geo-sciences senior and the 2010-2011 GeoClub Pres-

ident Kathleen Smith. Kathleen was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma and lived there for only 3 months be-fore her family moved to Houston, where she lived until her freshman year in college at UT Austin. When Kathleen came to UTD she had three degrees in mind — Art History, Psychology, and Geology—so the first semes-ter here she took a class in each. She decided on Geology, based on part because of the job pros-pects, salaries, and the advanced degree options. Kathleen also had a childhood fascination with dino-saurs, volcanoes, and enjoys being outdoors. She feels that there is something spiritual about study-ing the interconnectedness of things in this world, so studying Geol-ogy appealed to her spirit. She ran for GeoClub President for two reasons. At the time she was considering attending the Naval Of-ficer Candidate School and wanted to hone her leadership skills. Also dur-ing her junior year she was in a “carpe diem” mode and decided, “Why not?”

During her time as President, Kathleen has been especially happy with GeoClub as a social organiza-tion. Meeting attendance has been high and she notes that “the club has gained many enthusiastic new mem-

bers who are doing things to quickly become important to GeoClub.” Geo-Club serves to bring students together who otherwise might not have met. President Smith notes that GeoClub is unique because it “reiterates the tight-ness of the Geoscience Department as a whole.” The Geoscience Department is one where the faculty are respected

by the students and the students by the faculty. Kathleen opines further: “GeoClub is a fraternity for non-frater-nity people.” She notes that GeoClub should serve to instill leadership in its members.

President Smith is leading the effort for GeoClub’s efforts to cele-brate Earth Day this year (April 22) and hopes that it is a success for us. It just makes sense for the Geo-Club to take charge for this event, and she thinks it will be exciting to work with other campus organiza-tions to make it a reality. For more information on Earth Day at UTD, please see the article on GeoClub in this newsletter (page 8). When asked about the pros-pects of a different food being served at the meetings other than CiCi’s Pizza, Kathleen is open to trying Chipotle or Freebird’s bur-ritos, at least for one meeting anyway. Although currently not a main focus for Kathleen, the end-

of-the-year camping trip is something that she would like to see happen. The location will probably be Broken Bow, Oklahoma because it offers interest-ing geology and has fun things to do. Looking back on her Presi-dency thus far, Kathleen is proud of

GeoClub President Kathleen Smith

continued on page next page


the fact that GeoClub has grown both in members and in caliber. She has tried to lead by example and make a strong effort as the President. Her advice to the 2011-2012 President and officers would be, “Be prepared to be self-motivated. No one is going to make you do anything and your ser-

vice is based only on your commit-ment. It will be easy to be lazy but you must lead. Don’t give up when you have a good idea; you must keep the momentum.” I asked Kathleen what type of rock or mineral she identifies with and why. She answered “gold, because it is stable, valuable, and eternal.” I found this to0 interesting because

those are the qualities I attribute to GeoClub. Our time as members of GeoClub may be limited to our years of study at UTD. GeoClub is a family of students and faculty and an oppor-tunity for members to form lasting friendships. And so in taking the min-eral that President Smith identifies with, GeoClub is “stable, valuable, and eternal.” GeoClub is gold. n

“GeoClub Pres.” continued from p.6

by Jordan Newman

Every autumn the Geological Society of America holds their national con-

ference and we are pleased to participate. UTD geoscientists, from undergraduates to profes-sors, attend knowing that they are in for a rewarding experi-ence. Dedicated to the ad-vancement of the Geosciences, GSA hosts the Annual meet-ing at various cities in North America in the Fall – in 2010 it was in Denver – as well as Sec-tional meetings in the Spring (2011 South-Section meeting is March 27-29 in New Orleans). GSA also publishes research in its several journals and pro-vides funding through grants. The highpoints of the Denver meeting included a wide range of oral and poster presentations, many exhibit booths, employment matching and interview services, and honors for outstanding scientists and educators. The subjects of presentations at the Denver meeting spanned the geosci-ence spectrum, including geophysics, structural geology, hydrology, envi-ronmental geology, seismology, and climate change. Anyone can attend the convention and meet experts, hear new ideas and the debates that follow, and make new friends and contacts.

UTD Geoscienes is especially proud to participate in GSA meetings because the current Vice-President and future President of the society, Dr. John Geissman, recently joined the UT Dallas faculty (see article about Dr. Geissman in this newsletter). UTD Geosciences was very visible at the Denver meeting. More than twenty students helped run the meeting, in exchange for free regis-tration. Several professors presented their research. Graduate student Alex Biho-lar presented some of his research at the GSA Annual meeting for the fourth consecutive year. When asked

how GSA benefitted his aca-demic career Alex states: “GSA gives you an opportunity to meet people who are interest-ed in the problem that you are working on and how it relates to what they are working on. Being able to present your work allows you to feel comfortable with the material. Students will start to make network connections that may shape their academic and professional careers. Even if a student has no research to pres-ent, they should still attend GSA Annual and Section meetings. For those presenting, good luck, do the best science that you can do, and having confidence whilst presenting your work will naturally follow.” UTD Geosciences had an ex-hibit booth showcasing the re-

search activities of our department, especially in Cybergeology. The booth was designed to provide infor-mation about departmental activities and to recruit new graduate students. Emphasizing our commitment to technology, students showcased a 3D LIDAR imaging model displayed on a high resolution monitor complete with 3D viewing glasses as functional as they are fashionable. The Annual GSA meeting fell on Halloween this year. In addition to daytime business, UTD Geosciences students dressed up in costumes and celebrated Halloween in downtown Denver. n

2010 GSA Conference in Denver

Nick Mueller demonstrating 3D glasses at 2010 GSA


by Kathleen Smith

The Geosciences depart-ment saw a lot of growth in 2010 with new faculty, new labs, and a new build-

ing. The department is also experiencing a growing population of bright, enthusi-astic undergraduates and, as a result, GeoClub attendance is better than ever. The Geosciences department has a unique sense of camaraderie at UTD. Small classes and academic semi-nars provide environments that encour-age student-professor interactions, and lasting friendships are built on camping trips and through GeoClub. GeoClub is a channel through which new students are welcomed into the department, and it provides a tight-knit social network that young geoscientists can carry with them into their careers. Needless to say, the recent growth is a very good thing. GeoClub kicked off the Fall 2010 semester with a back-to-school barbeque. Shortly after, GeoClub host-ed their biannual bake sale fundraiser where graduate student Judah Epstein stole the show in his Cookie-Mon-ster costume. Guys and gals lined up for photographs with cookie-monster in the UTD Student Union. The GeoClub bulletin board in the Student Union won the “Pimp my board” competition held by the Student Organization Forum. We were awarded $100 in catering from any on-campus vendor. In October, the GSA Na-tional Convention experienced a Texan invasion when GeoClub did Denver (see article about Denver GSA meeting). Over twenty students from UTD attended the meeting, many of whom served as student vol-unteers. GSA coincided with Hallow-een, so GeoClub hit the town. Suffice it to say that we came back with a story or two.

In November, The Internation-al Thanksgiving Potluck was a huge success. Over sixty hungry students, faculty, and staff attended the event. In the geosciences, food never fails to generate good attendance. Also in November, UTD Geosciences alumnus David Williamson came to GeoClub as a representative of Pioneer Natu-ral Resources. Pioneer has expressed interest in strengthening their rela-

tionship with UTD students, which is a very exciting development for Geo-Club. We hope that alumni at other companies will also visit UTD Geosci-ences and GeoClub in the future! GeoClub is also having an ac-tive Spring semester. The GeoClub T-

shirt theme “Born to Rock” generated a lot of interest thanks to the clever design by Vice-President David Katap-ody. T-shirts will arrive just in time for the GSA South Central Section Meet-ing in New Orleans. GeoClub also has big plans for Earth Day which falls on Friday, April 22. In collaboration with Students for Environmental Awareness and the Student Organization Forum, Geo-

Club plans to host a clothing and electronics recycling drive, in ad-dition to a “Trashion Show”, in which UTD students are encour-aged to submit creative ideas for showcasing recycled materials as clothing. GeoClub members have gen-erated great ideas this year, and will celebrate their accomplish-ments at the annual end-of-the-year camping trip. Broken Bow, Oklahoma has been suggested as a possible destination.

The future success of GeoClub depends on student participation. Thanks to growing numbers of talented young geoscience majors and graduate stu-dents at UTD, we can say with confi-dence that GeoClub has a very bright future. n

GeoClub Highlights

Annual GeoClub camping trip to Possum Kingdom State Park in May of 2010. From left to right: Judah Epstein, TJ Patel, JD Gill, Christine Kuo, Jeremy Miller, David Katapody, Kathleen Smith, Nick Mueller, Alex Biholar, and Deborah Encontra


by Caleb Joiner

The fierce competition, the camaraderie, the feel of sweat on your brow in the heat of battle. This

describes the GeoClub attitude when it comes to intramural sports. In Fall 2010, Geoscience students fielded intramural teams in football and volleyball, with a team called “The Schist”. Winning may not be everything but it does feel good when it happens. In this regard, the football season was a rough one (1-3) with stiff competition from other teams but still Geoscience players had a great time. Our volleyball season was more encouraging. The Geoscience volleyball team excelled (2-2), posting multiple wins as well as having a good time. This Spring Geosciences is fielding a basketball team. Basketball is a sport that requires intensity along with tenacity. The GeoClub team best-ed their competition in these virtues

even if it did not always reflect on the scoreboard. This intensity led one of our star players, David Katopody, to be ready for anything, including the verbal side of sports. In one instance an oppos-ing player said, “We were born to win,” to which Mr. Katopody replied with no hesitation, “We’re GeoClub, we were

born to rock.” Such fierce team loyalty shows how close the GeoClub team is. The Schist lost all 3 regular season games but advanced to the playoffs, where they won their first game but were eliminated in the second game. David also noted “GeoClub en-joys an intermingling of graduate and undergraduate students that is unique to our organization, our intramural teams enjoy the same intermingling. Our graduate students bring a lot to the table in terms of both athletic skill and academic life experience. This in-termingling provides a good opportu-nity for undergraduate and graduate students to get to know each other better. One of the best things about playing on the GeoClub teams is you get to network with people who have more scholastic and professional expe-rience in the Geosciences than a typical undergraduate.” Win or lose, participating in intramural sports only leads to great things. On top of this, being part of a GeoClub intramural sports team al-ways leads to a good time. n

Intramural Sports

UTD GeoClub Volleyball team. Back row, L-R: Roberto Falcon, Arman KhaXar, Deanne Marine, Mohammed Naqi, Ernesto Oropeza. Front row, L-R: brent Vollmar, David Katopody

From left to right: Craig Bremer, Sarah Dunn, Ranyah Kharwat, Brian Burnham, Jeremy MillerSquatting is Nick Mueller


The Department of Geosciences invites you to join our Fall 2010 Geoscience Seminar Series featuring the

following distinguished guest speakers.

SEP 10 - CRAIG GLENNIE, UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

Mobile Terrestrial LIDAR Scanning for High Accuracy Applications

SEP 17 - KURT L FRANKEL, GEORGIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Spatial and temporal constancy of seismic strain release along an evolving segment of the Pacific-North

America plate boundary

OCT 1 - GINNY CATANIA, THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN

Understanding the influence of supraglacial lakes in Greenland using surface-based geophysics and a

physical model

OCT 8 - ANNA M CRUSE, OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY

Applications of Geochemistry to the Understanding of Black Shales

NOV 5 - TAYLOR PERRON, MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Untangling River Networks

NOV 12 - HERB DRAGERT, GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA, SIDNEY, B.C.

The Nature of Episodic Tremor and Slip Along the Northern Cascadia Margin

NOV 22 - JAMES P COWEN, UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII, OCEAN LEADERSHIP DISTINGUISHED LECTURER

Life in the Vast Subseafloor Basaltic Aquifer

DEC 3 - MATTHEW PRITCHARD, CORNELL UNIVERSITY

Observing the changing shape of the Earth from space: Earthquakes, volcanoes, and more

DEC 10 - JOLANTE VAN WIJK, UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

Small-scale convection at the edge of the Colorado Plateau?

JOIN US FOR THE

GEOSCIENCES SEMINAR

FALL 2010

Date and Time: Friday 4-5 PM Location: SLC or Founders North - tba Contact: Gloria Eby (972) 883-2404

Refreshments will be served 15 minutes prior to 4:00 p.m. seminar in FA 3.102 in the Geosciences Office.


The Department of Geosciences invites you to join our Spring 2011 Geoscience Seminar Series featuring the

following distinguished guest speakers.

FEB 18 - TERRY PAVLIS, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS EL PASO

Interplay of erosion and tectonics in a glacially dominated orogen: Overview of the St. Elias Erosion

and tectonics Project (STEEP)

FEB 25 - FRANK PAZZAGLIA, LEHIGH UNIVERSITY

Tectonics and Topography of the Cenozoic Appalachians

MAR 1 - GARY SCOTT, BERKELEY GEOCHRONOLOGY CENTER

The Chronology of Early Humans - The Last 4 Million Years of Evolution

MAR 4 - THORSTEN BECKER, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Convective dynamics of the upper mantle from global geodynamic modeling

and structural seismology

APR 1 - DAVID BLACKWELL, SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY

Conventional and Unconventional Geothermal Resources of the US

APR 22 - PETER VAN KEKEN, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, GeoPRISMS-MARGINS DISTINGUISHED SPEAKER

Dynamics of subduction zones and the recycling of water to the deep Earth

APR 29 - GLEN MATTIOLI, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT ARLINGTON

GPS constraints on circum-Caribbean plate boundary processes

JOIN US FOR THE

GEOSCIENCES SEMINAR

SPRING 2011

Dates: Friday 3:30-4:30 PM (NEW TIME) Location: TI Auditorium, ECSS2.102 Contact: Gloria Eby (972) 883-2404

Refreshments will be served after the seminar at 4:40 p.m. in ROC 2.301 in the Geosciences Main Office.


Front row, from left: Keegan Smith, Chris Mace, Kathleen Smith, Emily Edwards. Back row, from left: Raza Shah, Todd Lynch, Caleb Joiner, Richard Benson, Jordan Newman, and Dr. Robert Stern.

The geos 4390 Newsletter Staff

department of geosciences school of natural sciences and ... › pdf ›...

Documents