Geology Job Openings in California

A few notes on some opportunities in California:

The California Division of Oil, Gas & Geothermal Resources currently has two classifications of jobs posted for numerous vacancies – they are looking to recruit through universities for both recent graduates as well as those who have years of experience in the petroleum industry for a senior classification. Geology or petroleum engineering and related fields are where they are looking to recruit from.

Here is a link to their web page announcements. http://www.conservation.ca.gov/

The California Community Colleges Registry is listing part-time teaching opportunities in geology at Cerritos College, North Orange County, Marin, and San Francisco. Check for updated listings here.

Pictures posted from Fall 2002 Meeting at CSU Sacramento

Pictures have been added to our Facebook page archives, showing scenes from the Fall 2002 meeting, sponsored by CSU Sacramento. The field trip photos are from the tour of hydraulic mine pits in the Sierra Nevada Mother Lode. Although the wreckage from the mining is terrible, time has softened some of the edges, and places like Malakoff Diggings State Park have a strange kind of beauty. Check out the pictures here.

The guidebook for the meeting, including geological road guides, is called "Hydraulic Mining, Delta Land Use, and Water Resources of the Sacramento and American Rivers", and was prepared by Walter Swain and Henry Miyashita. It is available on the Far Western Section Website.

The Far Western Section Outstanding Earth Science Teacher of the Year: Nick Crooker

Nick Crooker, an earth science teacher at Modesto High School in Modesto, California, is the Far Western Section OEST award winner for 2010. Nick came out of a background in biology and returned to school for an education in earth science so he could develop a well-rounded program at his school.

Nick has been a member of the NAGT for a number of years, attending conferences and field trips in the Far Western Section. He helped prepare the guidebook for the FWS Lava Beds National Monument conference in 2007.

Nick describes several important traits in a good teacher: Steadfastness helps in the teaching profession when the political environment tends to erode quality support in the classroom. Patience with each student helps him make them the best they can be. Flexibility enables him to handle unexpected problems and teaching situations in the classroom. Humor helps keep the instructor sane and the students interested in the subject matter. All of this is under the umbrella of a broad science background in the physical, environmental, and biological sciences. He is able to draw upon years of experience and incorporate this in classroom instruction.

Nick's classroom has rock displays and pictures coordinating with the State Standards. With tight budgets, field trips are an impossibility. With document cameras and LCD projectors, he shares with his students exciting places of geological interest via the internet and from his own personal travels.

Currently, he participates with the A.V.I.D. program at Modesto High School. This program takes selected students who will be the first to go on to a college education in their family, and engage them in a rigorous academic program throughout their four years in high school. He has also taught the natural and physical sciences for the local Adult School for the past 23 years.

Nick receives the Far Western Section OEST Award at the Fresno Meeting

Congratulations, Nick!

Reflections on an Accretionary Wedge: Why I am a Proud Member of the NAGT

(cross-posted at Geotripper.blogspot.com)

I recently contributed to the latest Accretionary Wedge by talking about my first geology field trip, a 5 day backpack in the depths of the Grand Canyon way back in 1976. Part of the subsequent fallout was the unearthing of pictures of that trip, courtesy of Joy, who was one of my fellow travelers at the time (Facebook has some positive aspects, actually). I am a visually oriented learner, and my memories are most strongly reinforced by photographs, so this was a real pleasure to be able to relive part of my past with these grainy reminders (weren't Kodak Instamatics a wonderful form of photography?). For instance, I don't remember his name, but the bearded gentleman on the left was a very vocal vegetarian, but during the trip he seemed to get hungrier and hungrier, and when we reached the rim at the end of the five days, he looked at the menu in the Grand Canyon Lodge, and ordered a huge steak...

The professor who led that trip into the canyon was my inspiration to become a teacher of geology. That's him in the picture above, explaining to us how the basaltic sills were able to intrude the sediments of the Grand Canyon Supergroup, and how they helped us to place a date on the formation of those sediments. I still remember the shock of realizing that I really could almost literally travel through time by holding and understanding the origin of rocks that were hundreds of millions years old (imagine seeing the imprint of a raindrop that hit the ground 800 million years ago!). Looking at a picture of Marlin at work, I realize that I can trace many of the ideas I use in teaching to the things that he did all those years ago. Innovative ideas in teaching appear all the time, and they can be very effective, but I am reminded that the geological sciences are among the most historical of the academic disciplines as well. I mean this in the sense that there is an academic lineage that gives us a direct link to the founders of the science of geology, and that those brilliant and perceptive minds continue on with a different form of immortality (I wrote about this for a different Accretionary Wedge two years ago). I think what I am really saying is that people often become geologists and teachers not so much because they planned on it the way kids plan on being firefighters or police officers, but because they were inspired to pursue it because of the dedication of their teachers. I know I am over-generalizing about this, but I just don't see someone pursuing an MBA because he or she was inspired by a particularly good economics teacher, though I am willing to listen to counter-arguments! People have many different motivations for choosing their academic goals, after all.

I am thinking about this because I am preparing to drove down to Fresno to attend the fall meeting of the Far Western Section of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers at CSU Fresno (there is still room if you want to drop everything you are doing and drive on into the center of California and see some excellent Sierra Nevada and Coast Range geology- details are here). I joined NAGT nearly fifteen years ago, and have found in my involvement with the organization a sense of history and tradition of excellent teachers, and a myriad of innovative ideas and approaches to the teaching of the geological sciences. It has been a real privilege to work and share ideas with my colleagues from California, Nevada and Hawaii, as well as from all over the country. It's one thing to be inspired to follow an academic discipline because of the work of one or two excellent teachers, and quite another to travel with a large group of talented and innovative teachers who are collectively inspiring hundreds of students. And for that matter, because we encourage students to attend these meetings, it is great to see how they are laying the groundwork for the future of the earth sciences.
1976...that was 34 years ago. Wow. I still have that orange Alpenlite backpack with the innovative wrap-around aluminum frame (I actually worked in their factory for a few months all those years ago). I tried it on the other day, the way someone might try on the tux they wore to the high school prom. And just like the tux, the aluminum frame must have shrunk. Aluminum can shrink, right? I know I haven't changed and gotten...bigger. The frame obviously has shrunk!

Fossil Discovery Center in Madera County is Opening!

Painting by David Douglas for the Fossil Discovery Center

(Cross-posted at Geotripper.blogspot.com) If you live anywhere near the geographical center of California, there is some exciting paleontology news! Since the early 1990's Fairmead Landfill has been the source of thousands of specimens of a diverse Pleistocene fauna, including horses, camels, mammoths, sabertooth cats, giant ground sloths and many other fascinating inhabitants of the Central Valley thousands of years ago (I've posted several items about the excavations here and here). For years the San Joaquin Valley Paleontology Foundation has been planning to develop a center where students and visitors can learn about the intriguing history of our valley. And their plans are coming to fruition.

The San Joaquin Valley Paleontology Foundation is sponsoring the Grand Opening Celebration of the Fossil Discovery Center of Madera County. The journey began in 1993 with the discovery of a seven-foot mammoth tusk. Today their expedition into a pre-historic era continues, opening the past to students, scientists and community. Come and be a part of this historical event.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Ribbon Cutting -10:00 a.m.

Reception—5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Fossil Discovery Center of Madera County
19450 Avenue 21 ½
Chowchilla, CA 93610
Take the Hwy 99 Exit 164, SW corner of Road 19 ½ & Avenue 21 ½

Refreshments will be served & tours provided.
--
San Joaquin Valley Paleontology Foundation
Board of Directors
sjvpaleo@gmail.com
http://www.maderamammoths.org/

Come and check it out!

Reminder! Exploring the Sierra Nevada and the Coast Ranges:An Invitation to the Fall Meeting of the Far West Section Meeting

If you ever wanted to get out and see some of the great geological sites in California, and wished you had a knowledgeable guide and mentor to explain what you are seeing, check out this wonderful opportunity coming up on October 8-10, 2010: The Field Conference of the Far Western Section of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers, sponsored by California State University, Fresno. You don't have to be a teacher or a member to attend, and students of the earth sciences are especially encouraged to join us. Here are some of the field trips that are lined up:

Saturday Field Trips:

Topographic Evolution of the Kings River Canyon: Fluvial, glacial and Hillslope Erosion in Response to Late Cenozoic Uplift and Climate Change (Greg Stock, Park Geologist, Yosemite National Park)

Coeval mafic-felsic magmatism in the intrusive suite of Yosemite Valley (Kent Ratajeski, University of Kentucky)

Emplacement of oceanic lithosphere into the western Sierra Nevada and its welding into continental basement by batholithic emplacement (Jason and Zorka Saleeby, Cal Tech)

Growth and internal evolution of Jurassic and Cretaceous magmatic plumbing systems: an examination of the tilted Jurassic Guadalupe Igneous Complex and comparison to the Cretaceous Tuolumne Batholith (Scott Patterson, USC, and Keith Putirka, CSU Fresno)

Southern Diablo Range geology: Recorder of past subduction and current active tectonics (John Wakabayashi, CSU Fresno)

Sunday Field Trips:

Anomalous subsidence and uplift along the southwestern Sierra Nevada in relation to underlying mantle dynamics (Jason and Zorka Saleeby, Cal Tech)

Ice Age (Middle Pleistocene) Fossils at the Fairmead Landfill, a Visit to the Madera County Fossil Discovery Center (Bob Dundas, CSU Fresno)

Geology and Natural History of the McKenzie Table Mountain Preserve (Craig Poole, Fresno City College, and Chris Pluhar, CSU Fresno)

Friday and Saturday Trip:

The San Andreas fault in Central California (Ramon Arrowsmith, Arizona State University)

Presenters:

Friday Evening:

Chris Pluhar (CSU Fresno), Table Mountains and Tectonics, What Canyon-Filling Lavas of the sierra Nevada Reveal About Miocene California

Saturday Evening:

Jason Saleeby (Cal Tech), Sierra Nevada Geology from the 225 km Mantle Seismic Discontinuity to Mt. Whitney Summit Elevations

Our invitation extends to anyone who is interested in learning more about California geology. These conferences are wonderful ways to get familiar with the geology of a fascinating region, the western coast of the United States. Special discounts are offered to students, and costs are low for this kind of opportunity. We will also have a vast array of California and Nevada geology field guides and other resources available for sale. You do not need to be a member of the NAGT to participate. Information and registration forms can be accessed on the Far Western Section website. For questions and more information, please contact conference coordinator Paul Troop.

(cross-posted at Geotripper.blogspot.com)

Job Opportunities for Recent Geology Graduates

The California Division of Oil, Gas & Geothermal Resources currently has two classifications of jobs posted for numerous vacancies – they are looking to recruit through universities for both recent graduates as well as ones who have years of experience in the petroleum industry for a senior classification. Geology or petroleum engineering and related fields are where they are looking to recruit from.

Here is a link to their web page, under the first header “News” they’ve placed the announcements for these two separate job announcements. Today or tomorrow they will be extending the August 31st final filing date to September 30th for the Senior Oil & Gas Engineer position. http://www.conservation.ca.gov/dog/Pages/index.aspx

Questions? Contact: Sonja Williams

Fall Meeting of the Far West Section of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers: Sierra Nevada to the Coast Ranges - Oct. 8-10

The Far Western Section of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers would like to extend an invitation to all geologists, teachers, and students who are interested in the geology of California. We are having our Fall Conference at CSU Fresno on October 8-10, and will be offering a wide ranging roster of field trips to Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park, Yosemite National Park, the Sierra Nevada foothills, Carrizo Plains National Monument, the Diablo Range of the Coast Ranges, and a look at the brand new Madera Fossil Discovery Center and the excavations of Ice Age faunas at the Fairmead Landfill. We will also have a vast array of California and Nevada geology field guides and other resources available for sale. You do not need to be a member of the NAGT to participate.

Special discounts are offered to students, and costs are low for this kind of opportunity. Information and registration forms can be accessed on the Far Western Section website. For questions and more information, please contact conference coordinator Paul Troop.

Losing Serpentine as the State Symbol of California? Why not educate instead?

Crossposted from Geotripper...

Serpentine is not asbestos, exactly. Well, it is, but only sometimes. Serpentine is one of several minerals that includes an asbestiform crystal form, the finely spaced fibrous threads that turned out to be a great fire retardant. The thing is, of course, certain forms of asbestos cause mesothelioma and other diseases. But the most dangerous forms do not necessarily include chrysotile asbestos, the form derived from serpentine. The most dangerous stuff comes from the amphibole crocidolite. It is dangerous, but serpentine as a learning tool is something all together different.

I note this because there is a movement afoot to remove serpentine as the official state rock of California. While I understand the reasons certain organizations support this plan, I think a better approach is to use the state rock as a teaching and awareness tool. If you remove the state designation, you have a story about mesothelioma for a day. Keep the designation, you have an education tool more or less forever. Serpentine is a fascinating rock that is uniquely Californian. There are some really good reasons to maintain serpentine (actually serpentinite) as our state rock, enough that I have written a number of posts about it. If you agree, please consider writing to the principal people involved with this movement (see note at end of post):

From my earlier post in the Other California series:

At the same time that gold was selected as the state mineral, serpentine was designated the state rock. Serpentine (more properly called serpentinite) is a metamorphic rock derived primarily by the alteration of peridotite (a rock from deep in the earth's mantle composed of the gemstone peridot, also known as olivine). Chemically it is a magnesium silicate. It is a relatively common rock in California and relatively rare in most other places, and was picked for an ironic reason: it is a source of asbestos, which at the time was considered a valuable resource. The dangers of asbestos in building construction was not generally realized at the time.

For different reasons, I think serpentine was an excellent choice for our state rock. The fact that the source of the rock is deep in the earth's mantle, beneath the 15-25 mile thick crust, is a revelation and acknowledgement of the incredible forces that have shaped the state. Imagine what it takes to bring masses of rock from such great depths! California has the incredible scenery that it does because of forces of movements along plate boundaries, whether the lateral movements along the San Andreas fault, the vertical churning that occurs along convergent boundaries, where ocean crust is driven underneath the edge of the continent, or the splitting that occurs at the divergent boundary in the far south of the state.

The rock is also quite pretty, to this geologist's eye. It ranges in color from black to intense jade-green. The journey from deep in the crust to the surface along fault zones usually leaves beautiful polished surfaces on the rock.

There is a second consideration: Serpentine based soils are a uniquely Californian biological environment. Again, from the Other California series:

Oh, that's right, it's epidemics we're supposed to worry about. An endemic refers to plant species found in specific limited locations. There are a number of these in the Red Hills "Area of Critical Environmental Concern", a rather high-falutin' name for an area that less than two decades ago was barely more than an open garbage dump scarred by numerous off-road vehicle trails. The rare and endemic species are there for a very geologic reason, the subject of this post.

...I've been following a regional theme, traveling through the northernmost provinces, but the Other California has a temporal pattern as well, and late March is the perfect time to talk about the Red Hills, located in the Sierra Nevada Mother Lode near the Gold Rush town of Chinese Camp (I talked about the area around La Grange a few days ago for the same reason).

Much of lowland California is currently covered with a green carpet of grass (mostly of exotic and invasive origin) along with the occasional oak tree, but as you can see in the pictures above, there are a few places where the grass and oak trees are missing, and a profusion of flowers and scattered pines thrive instead. Why are the oaks and grass missing?

The Mother Lode is famous as the source of the ores during the Gold Rush in 1848-53, and many people know of the association of quartz veins with the gold. What is perhaps less known is that the Mother Lode consists mostly of metamorphic rocks like slate, greenstone, and marble, not the granite that is found in the higher parts of the Sierra Nevada. These metamorphic rocks are the twisted and baked remains of sea floor muds and silts, lime from tropical reefs and shelves, and volcanic rock from the oceanic crust. These collections of crustal rocks (called "exotic terranes") were transported across the Pacific Ocean and slammed (in the geologic sense; they moved at maybe 2 inches a year) into the western edge of the North American continent, mostly in the late Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras (the Mesozoic, from around 251 to 65 million years ago, is best known as the "age of the dinosaurs"). The different terranes are separated from one another by major fault systems.

At times the crustal terranes also include rocks from beneath the crust. This rock hails from the underworld of the earth's mantle, and includes dunite and peridotite, composed primarily of the mineral olivine (known to most people as the gemstone peridot). The rock readily alters to serpentine, California's state rock. These rocks are also collectively called ultramafic rocks, for their high content of magnesium and iron (fe, the 'fi' part). They also contain small, but significant amounts of nickel and chrome.

When ultramafic rocks are brought to the surface, they are far out of chemical equilibrium with the ambient conditions, which means they are easily attacked by oxygen, water and organic acids. Clay is a common product of this process, as well as red or yellow iron oxides (from which the Red Hills take their name). The surface layer resulting from this weathering process is of course soil. We tend to think of soil as a rich surface layer that supports plant life, but some soils lack the necessary nutrients for most kinds of plant growth. This is definitely the case for soils developed on ultramafic rocks, which lack nitrates, phosphorus, and potassium. To make things worse, chrome and nickel are actually toxins. Hence, only specialized species can thrive on these rocks.

The shrubby Ceanothus, or Buckbrush (above) and Gray Pine (below) are two plants that are more or less indifferent to the odd soil conditions. They grow elsewhere, but compete very well in ultramafic soils. A large number of flower species are also indifferent to the soils, but the only grasses found in the region are native species. The European and Asian grass species that have overwhelmed most of the prairies in the Central Valley, Coast Ranges and Sierra foothills cannot grow on the serpentine soils.

There are a number of endemic species that grow on these soils, and at least one is found nowhere else in the world (California verbena, Verbena californica). Other rare endemics include Rawhide Hill onion (Allium tuolumnense), Layne's butterweed (Senecio layneae), Congdon's lomatium (Lomatium congdonii) and the Red Hills soaproot (Chlorogalum grandiflorum). A fairly common serpentine endemic is the Milkwort Jewelflower (Streptanthus polygaloides). Alas, I arrived very late in the afternoon and had no time to search them out (and to be truthful, I am better at identifying rocks and minerals).

Though closely associated with the rocks of the Mother Lode, the serpentine and dunite were remarkably free of gold, and so the Red Hills were mostly ignored by the miners. Farmers couldn't grow much in the soils, and grazing conditions were not favorable, so the when the federal government came into possession of these lands in 1848, they couldn't even give them away! So this swath of land, about 7,000 acres worth, was administered, somewhat indifferently, by the Bureau of Land Management. The landscape suffered the abuses of modern civilization, with trash heaps, motorcycle trails, and unrestrained target shooting. The recognition that the area was a unique geologic and biologic treasure led to the restriction of shooting and off-road vehicle use in 1991. Private groups assisted in cleaning up the trash heaps and a trail network was established, so today the Red Hills are a delightful place to visit, especially in the spring when the wildflowers are at their stunning best. And I could be wrong, but I don't think I've seen any postcards with pictures of the area.

If you want to learn more, or pay a visit, information about the Red Hills can be found on this BLM website , and the nature trail brochure PDF can be found here

Serpentine in California is part of a journey of the mind that can take us towards the deepest interior places of our planet. Again, from the Other California:

How many of you tried to dig a tunnel to China in the backyard when you were a kid? Given the soil conditions in the yard I grew up in, I'm probably lucky to be alive. I dug tunnels looking for buried treasures, gemstones, fossils and sometimes I was just curious what was down there. Geologists, I've found, are the kids who tried to find all those things, and never really grew up.

So how far do these overgrown kids get? It turns out that the deepest tunnels that humans have ever been able to dig reach depths of about 12,800 feet, a little over 2-1/2 miles. That might seem like a lot from our point of view, but the depth to the center of the Earth is around 4,000 miles. We've barely scratched the surface, yet the temperatures of the rock at these depths is well over 100 degrees, and the rocks are under so much pressure that explosions of rocks from the walls are a constant danger to the miners. Kids, there's got to be a better way to see what lies deep below. And there is, in the Other California, one of those places not found on the postcards. The adventure lies in the Klamath Mountains, and the most dangerous thing you have to face is slipping on a slick river rock, because geological processes have brought the rocks many miles up from the depths. You need only explore the rivers flowing off the mountains to see what the deep interior of the earth looks like.

The Klamath Mountains are a collection of bits and pieces of the earth's crust that have been carried great distances from their point of origin and slammed (at geologic speeds of inches per year) into the western edge of the North American continent. A huge variety of igneous and metamorphic rocks are found around the province, and some of the most interesting are those that once resided deep in the Earth's mantle, a layer that extends from just below the crust, from maybe 15 or 20 miles beneath our feet, to a depth of about 1,800 miles. Here are a couple of bits of the Earth's deep hidden places that I found on a short trip to the Eastern Klamath Terrane in the vicinity of Gazelle.

The oceanic crust is usually described as being made of basalt, but a few miles down in the crust the basaltic magma cools slowly to form a coarse-grained basaltic rock called gabbro. Sometimes, as can be seen above, the crystals that form are huge, with black hornblende and white feldspar crystals several inches long. Igneous rocks with such large crystals are called pegmatites.

Going even "deeper" into the interior, we pass the Mohorovicic Discontinuity, the dividing line between the crust and mantle. The upper part of the mantle is composed of olivine-rich rocks like dunite or peridotite. Olivine is best known to most people as the green gemstone peridot. That's right, much of the Earth's interior is made up of gems! The rock in the picture above is dunite, in part slightly altered to serpentine.

In many parts of the Klamath Mountains, the mantle rocks are completely altered to serpentine, the state rock of California. These ultramafic rocks are fairly rich in a number of unusual metal ores, including platinum, nickel, magnesium and mercury. One of the most important ores is chromite, which is the only significant source we have for chromium, the metal that puts the "stainless" in stainless steel. We import most of the chromium that we need from foreign sources, but in wartime (especially the two World Wars), the ores were mined domestically, and a number of operations were present in the Klamaths. The black semi-metallic crystals in the picture above are chromite, with green serpentine across the top.

The bill was introduced by Sen. Gloria Romero, a Los Angeles Democrat, and the California Assembly Natural Resources Committee approved the legislation, stripping serpentine of its official designation, and sent the bill to the Assembly floor for consideration. An earlier version of Romero’s bill previously passed the California Senate.

Field Trips at the October 8-10 Fresno Conference of the Far West Section Announced

If you ever wanted to get out and see some of the great geological sites in California, and wished you had a knowledgeable guide and mentor to explain what you are seeing, check out this wonderful opportunity coming up on October 8-10, 2010: The Field Conference of the Far Western Section of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers, sponsored by California State University, Fresno. You don't have to be a teacher or a member to attend, and students of the earth sciences are especially encouraged to join us. Here are some of the field trips that are lined up:

Saturday Field Trips:

Topographic Evolution of the Kings River Canyon: Fluvial, glacial and Hillslope Erosion in Response to Late Cenozoic Uplift and Climate Change (Greg Stock, Park Geologist, Yosemite National Park)

Coeval mafic-felsic magmatism in the intrusive suite of Yosemite Valley (Kent Ratajeski, University of Kentucky)

Emplacement of oceanic lithosphere into the western Sierra Nevada and its welding into continental basement by batholithic emplacement (Jason and Zorka Saleeby, Cal Tech)

Growth and internal evolution of Jurassic and Cretaceous magmatic plumbing systems: an examination of the tilted Jurassic Guadalupe Igneous Complex and comparison to the Cretaceous Tuolumne Batholith (Scott Patterson, USC, and Keith Putirka, CSU Fresno)

Southern Diablo Range geology: Recorder of past subduction and current active tectonics (John Wakabayashi, CSU Fresno)

Sunday Field Trips:

Anomalous subsidence and uplift along the southwestern Sierra Nevada in relation to underlying mantle dynamics (Jason and Zorka Saleeby, Cal Tech)

Ice Age (Middle Pleistocene) Fossils at the Fairmead Landfill, a Visit to the Madera County Fossil Discovery Center (Bob Dundas, CSU Fresno)

Geology and Natural History of the McKenzie Table Mountain Preserve (Craig Poole, Fresno City College, and Chris Pluhar, CSU Fresno)

Friday and Saturday Trip:

The San Andreas fault in Central California (Ramon Arrowsmith, Arizona State University)

Presenters:

Friday Evening:

Chris Pluhar (CSU Fresno), Table Mountains and Tectonics, What Canyon-Filling Lavas of the sierra Nevada Reveal About Miocene California

Saturday Evening:

Jason Saleeby (Cal Tech), Sierra Nevada Geology from the 225 km Mantle Seismic Discontinuity to Mt. Whitney Summit Elevations

Check out the Far West Section NAGT Website, or contact Paul Troop for more details (registration information will be posted soon). Meetings of the Far West Section are economical ways to see a lot of California, Nevada and Hawai, usually less than $150, and lodging in the Fresno area is economical. Our invitation extends to anyone who is interested in learning more about California geology. These conferences are wonderful ways to get familiar with the geology of a fascinating region, the western coast of the United States.

(cross-posted at Geotripper.blogspot.com)

Just Curious: Specialized Vehicles for Teaching in the Field?

Cross-posted from Geotripper...

I'm thinking of shooting the moon and applying for a grant to purchase a rolling laboratory for field trips, and I'm having a hard time choosing which way to go with this. It's pie-in-the-sky in all likelihood, but what would you do if you could design a vehicle to enhance teaching of earth science in the field?

I'm thinking of a utility vehicle or even a small van-sized RV that could handle fairly tough road conditions (gravel roads at least) that is outfitted with a satellite link and wi-fi router that could provide internet access in isolated campsites, as well as a printer and scanner. We've thought of the most rudimentary RV type of vehicle because a toilet and inside or outside shower can be a godsend in some circumstances (like when someone gets sick). Fridge and small stove maybe.

One very expensive option is a Jeep-based unit from a Colorado company that is an absolutely stripped RV (fridge, bath, shower and queen-sized bed...really!) that can go on literally any road. I like that the electricity is provided by the engine and a roof-mounted solar array. It gets reasonably good mileage, too. Made by special order. And very expensive. Did I say that already?


On the other hand, Roadtrek offers a complete (and very comfy, but you didn't read that) RV that is packed into a van chassis that is no longer or wider than an 8 passenger van. It has all the stuff already listed plus a lot more storage space. But I look at it and think, "wow, six students could work at once on projects on their computers and desk surfaces!" but I have this uncomfortable feeling that a grant evaluator would think "this professor wants a nice place to sleep" (not true, I like sleeping under the stars). This option is actually about $30,000 cheaper than the Jeep.
These might be over the top, so perhaps a truck with utility cabinets, camper shell and an electronic array under the seats in the cab? No place to work, no printers, etc., but a lot cheaper.

Does anyone have anything like this? Have you ever thought about it and what you could do with such a resource? I would love some feedback about the teaching possibilities of something like this. For those who are new to Geotripper, I teach geology at a community college, and usually deal with introductory-level geology students.

Far Western Section NAGT-CalESTA Joint Conference, Bishop California

A few pictures from our recent field conference in Bishop, California:
Convict Lake is dammed by a recessional moraine of the Tioga glaciation in the eastern Sierra Nevada. The mountain in the distance is composed of marble and slate of Paleozoic age; they are the rocks that existed prior to the intrusion of the Sierra Nevada batholith in Mesozoic time.

Mono Lake is a remnant of the ice age pluvial lakes that once extended across much of the Basin and Range Province. It was once a freshwater lake hundreds of feet deep, but today is saltier than seawater. It hosts only two life forms, fairy shrimp and brine flies, but these two species support several million migratory birds which pass through the region every year.

Violet-green Swallows live and nest in the tufa towers that are found around the lake. The tufa towers (below) are composed of calcium carbonate (calcite), and form where freshwater springs flowed into the lake. They were exposed as the lake level dropped 50 feet when Los Angeles started diverting streams that once replenished the lake in 1941. The diversions threatened to destroy the complex ecosystem, which is international in scope (some of the migratory birds travel 15,000 miles). Efforts are now ongoing to raise lake level to about where it was in 1963, roughly midway between the 1941 level and the low point in the 1980's.

More pictures can be accessed here. Do you have pictures of the trip? Send them along, and I'll post them!

Thanks to Wendy Van Nordon, Mark Boryta, and everyone who helped organize a great trip!

Dispatches from the Road: Far Western Section Conference in Bishop, California

A few preliminary views from the road at the joint NAGT/CalESTA field conference at Bishop California. One of our stops: the Mono Lake Tufa Towers. The tufa is made of calcium carbonate, and forms near freshwater springs in the intensely salty and alkaline lake.

The lake supports brine shrimp and brine flies which in turn provide sustenance for millions of migrating birds. The lake has been threatened by water diversions that caused to shrink to a shadow of its former size, but lawsuits and legal agreements are stabilizing lake levels.

The lake formed in a volcanic-tectonic depression, and active volcanoes are found in and near the lakeshore. The white island in the distance is formed by uplift of the lake sediments by volcanic intrusions.

Subaru/GSA Minority Scholarships Announced

From the Geological Society of America:

We are pleased to announce that Subaru of America, Inc., in partnership with GSA, has funded a scholarship program to encourage minority undergraduate students to continue their studies in the geosciences.

The Subaru Minority Student Scholarship Program provides $1,000 to one student at an accredited university or college in each of the six North-American GSA regional Sections as nominated by the GSA Campus Representatives. The funds are to be used to purchase text books, pay college fees, or attend GSA field trips or conferences.

In addition to the cash award, a complimentary registration for this year’s GSA Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado will be provided. The awardees will be acknowledged at a student awards reception on Monday, 1 November.

We are asking our Campus Reps to nominate one (1) minority student whom they believe will benefit and be encouraged to continue their studies in the geosciences by receiving this award.

Student Requirements for Nomination:

Be a U.S. citizen and a member of a minority group (a ‘minority’ is described by the U.S. Census Bureau as being of Hispanic or Latino, African-American or Black, Asian, American-Indian, Alaskan Native, or Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander ethnicity/race);

Has taken at least two (2) introductory (first year) geoscience courses;

Be enrolled in additional geoscience courses in the upcoming academic year; and

Be a GSA student member in good standing.

Campus Rep Responsibilities and Timeline

Verify with the student that he/she is a member of a minority group as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Verify that the student has completed two introductory geoscience courses and is enrolled in geosciences classes for the upcoming academic year.

Complete and return the nomination form via email to awards@geosociety.org no later than 17 May 2010.

Nominations will be forwarded to the GSA Diversity in the Geosciences Committee for review by 1 June 2010.

All awards with be announced by 1 August 2010.

We hope you take advantage of this opportunity for your minority students, sponsored by Subaru of America, Inc.

Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions that you may have.

Diane Lorenz-Olsen
Grants, Awards, and Recognition
The Geological Society of America
3300 Penrose Place, Boulder, CO 80301
awards@geosociety.org
(303) 357-1028

Spring Conference, Far Western Section NAGT

NAGT-Far Western Section
In association with California Earth Science Teachers Association and NESTA
Spring Field Conference 2010

When: Friday, April 30- Sunday, May 2

Where: Bishop, CA

Join us for a rustic reprise of our 1998 in this beautiful and geologically inspiring locale, the Owens Valley and eastern Sierra Nevada.

Friday night, April 30th: Join us at Pleasant Valley Campground for an informal get-together! We will have a pot-luck dinner followed by the Business meeting.

Location: Via U.S. 395, 6 miles NW of Bishop. Turn north on Pleasant Valley Road. Less than 1 mile to campground. http://www.inyocountycamping.com/pleasant_valley_campground.html

PLEASE NOTE that the campground does NOT have grills or potable water available!! Pit Campground site is $2/vehicle per night; floodplain camping is $10/vehicle per night.
(For those of you who prefer soft beds and hot showers, there are plenty of lodging options in Bishop)

Saturday, May 1- Continental Breakfast and Make-Your-Own-Lunch will be provided. Full day field trips to be announced. We will carpool to decrease the size of the caravan.

Saturday night: choice of another pot-luck at the campsite or dinner in town. Speaker or stargazing after dinner!

Sunday, May 2: Continental Breakfast will be provided. Guided stops heading South.

Cost: $50 to include field guide, 2 Continental Breakfasts and 1 Lunch.

To apply, send the following with a check written to NAGT-FWS and mail to

Mark Boryta
2642 Saint Albans Drive
Los Alamitos, CA. 90720

For more information email: mboryta at mtsac.edu or call (562) 221-7246

Joint CalESTA and NAGT-FWS Field Trip: NSF Support Available

CalESTA and NAGT-FWS Field Trip
California Earth Science Teachers Association
In association with NAGT-FWS and NESTA

High School Teacher Geology Field Trip: Geology of the Owens Valley

When: Friday, April 30- Sunday, May 2

Where: Bishop, CA

Friday night, April 30th : Join us at Pleasant Valley Campground for an informal get-together. We will be part of the NAGT-FWS conference.

Location: Via U.S. 395, 6 miles NW of Bishop. Turn north on Pleasant Valley Road. 1 mile to campground. http://www.inyocountycamping.com/pleasant_valley_campground.html

(For those of you who prefer soft beds and hot showers, there are plenty of lodging options in Bishop)

Saturday, May 1- Full day field trip. We will carpool to decrease the size of the caravan. We will visit geologic sites from Bishop to Mono Lake, including glacial moraines, faults, gorges, volcanic features, hot springs and tufa towers. There will be opportunities for collecting and photography. Lunch will be provided.

Saturday night: choice of dinner in town or pot luck at campsite. Possible NAGT-FWS speaker at campsite

Sunday, May 2: Field trip travels South, stopping at Lone Pine Earthquake scarp, Alabama Hills, Owens Lake overview, Charcoal Kilns, Fossil Falls, and Red Rock Canyon. Lunch included. Field trip will conclude approximately 2:00 pm.

Cost: $50 to include field guide and 2 Lunches.

IMPORTANT: $100 stipend to Earth Science teachers of grades 9-12, courtesy of National Science Foundation. Limit: 25 teachers on a first come-first serve basis.

To apply, send the following with a check written to Harvard-Westlake School and mail to

Wendy Van Norden
Harvard-Westlake School
3700 Coldwater Canyon
No. Hollywood, CA. 91604

Please include your name, email address, phone number, school, and grades taught.

For more information email: wvannorden at hw.com or call (818) 487-6665 or 818 378-6048 (cell)

Geology Professor Opening at Northern Virginia Community College

It's out of the Far Western Section, but a full-time position for a community college geology professor is available at Northern Virginia Community College, Annandale Campus. Information is available here.

Two part-time positions are available at community colleges in California, in the North Orange County and San Francisco Community College Districts. Check the CCC Registry for details.

GSA/ExxonMobil Bighorn Basin Field Award

GSA/ExxonMobil Bighorn Basin Field Award

A FREE professional development opportunity for undergraduate geology students and professors

August 1-6, 2010

GSA and ExxonMobil are excited to announce their 2nd Annual Field Seminar in the Bighorn Basin of north-central Wyoming, which emphasizes multi-disciplinary integrated basin analysis. Expenses including hotel, airfare, and meals will be covered. This year, undergraduate students and faculty are eligible.

To apply, please submit the following items by 1 April, 2010, to rock.geosociety.org/ExxonMobilAward/2010/index.asp:
• A resume or curriculum vitae,
• Academic transcripts,
• Two letters of recommendation, and a
• Cover letter indicating your background, your plans for the future and how you feel this trip will help you accomplish these plans.

Questions? Contact Jennifer Nocerino, jnocerino at geosociety.org.

New Blog on Northwest U.S. Geology: Road Trips!

From Geotripper...

Are you interested in geology field guides for the northwestern United States? You might want to check out a new blog by Dave Tucker at Western Washington University: Northwest Geology Field Trips. It has a wealth of information and some fun looking trips; check it out!

Dave is also the director of the Mount Baker Volcano Research Center, which has a website here. For those who are less familiar with the volcanoes of the Pacific Northwest, Mt. Baker seemed to be on the verge of erupting in 1975-76, and has had a fair amount of activity in late Pleistocene and Holocene time. That's Mt. Baker in the photo above, as seen from Whidbey Island.

Evolving Earth Foundation Student Research Grants

From the Evolving Earth Foundation...

The Evolving Earth Foundation has launched its 2010 student research grant program in the earth sciences. A total of ten grants are available annually, for amounts of up to $3000 per grant. Undergraduate students, graduate students, and post-doctoral researchers at accredited U.S. colleges and universities or research institutions are eligible and encouraged to apply for grants. The deadline for application is March 1st, 2010.

The Evolving Earth Foundation is dedicated to research, education, and understanding in the earth sciences. Award emphasis will be on research topics that relate to the mission and priorities of the foundation. Please visit the Evolving Earth Foundation web site at http://www.evolvingearth.org/ for full grant program details.

On the Cutting Edge Opportunities!

From Cathryn Manduca, Executive Director of NAGT:

A full list of this years offerings is given below and on the Cutting Edge website: http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/workshops.html

WORKSHOPS

Developing Student Understanding of Complex Systems in the Geosciences
Application deadline: February 1, 2010
Carleton College, Northfield, MN April 18-20, 2010
Conveners: Cathy Manduca, Dave Mogk, Jim Slotta, David Bice, Eric Pyle
http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/complexsystems/workshop2010/index.html

Workshop for Early Career Faculty: Teaching, Research, and Managing Your Career
Application deadline: March 3, 2010
College of William and Mary June 6-10, 2010 (NSF visit June 11)
Conveners: Heather Macdonald and Richelle Allen-King
http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/earlycareer2010/index.html

Preparing for an Academic Career in the Geosciences (a workshop for graduate students and post-docs)
Application deadline: March 10, 2010
Stanford University July 29-August 1, 2010
Conveners: Heather Macdonald and Robyn Wright Dunbar
http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/careerprep2010/index.html

Using GIS and Remote Sensing to Teach Geoscience in the 21st Century
Application deadline: March 20, 2010
Montana State University, Bozeman, MT August 8-11, 2010 (Optional day, GIS in the Field, August 12, 2010)
Conveners: Barbara Tewksbury, Mohamed Abdelsalam, Brian Hynek, Mark Manone, David Mogk
http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/gis10/index.html

Teaching Geoscience in the Field in the 21st Century
Application deadline: March 20, 2010
Montana State University, Bozeman, MT August 13-16, 2010 (Optional day, GIS in the Field August 12; Optional Regional Field Trip: August 17-19, 2010) Conveners: David Mogk, Steve Whitmeyer, Sarah Kruse, Bob Bauer
http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/field/workshop10/index.html

VIRTUAL WORKSHOPS
Teaching Geoscience with Service Learning
* First session: February 3-5, 2010
* Second session: February 8-9, 2010
Convenvers: Dave Mogk, Ed Laine, Suzanne O'Connell, and Cathy Manduca
Application deadline extended; new applications are still being accepted
http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/servicelearning/workshop10/index.html

Designing Effective and Innovative Courses in the Geosciences
Application deadline: April 1, 2010
* First Session: May 26-27, 2010
* Second Session: June 3-4, 2010
Conveners: Barb Tewksbury, Charlotte Mehrtens

Teaching Geoscience Online
Application deadline: May 7, 2010
* First session: June 23-25, 2010
* Second session: June 27-28, 2010
Conveners: Cathy Manduca, Bill Hirt, and Karin Kirk

PARTNERSHIP WORKSHOPS - Associated with other meetings or organizations

Teaching Geodesy in the 21st Century (part of the Cutting Edge - Follow-on Workshop Program)
UNAVCO Science Workshop, Boulder, Colorado, March 8, 2010
Leaders: Susan Eriksson and Shimon Wdowinski

Pursuing an Academic Career: A Workshop for Graduate Students and Post-Dcos (part of the Cutting Edge Follow-on Workshop Program)
In association with the GSA Northeastern/Southeastern Section Meeting, Baltimore, MD, March 13, 2010
Leaders: Rachel Beane and Jon Lewis
http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/careerdev/AcademicCareer2010/index.html

Geology and Human Health (part of the Cutting Edge Follow-on Workshop Program)
In association with the North Central and South Central sectional GSA, Branson, MO, April 11, 2010 8:00 -12:00
Leader: Syed Hasan
http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/health10/index.html

Teaching Geochemistry
In association with the Goldschmidt 2010 Conference, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, June 11-12, 2010
Convener: David Mogk

Teaching Climate Change from the Geologic Record
In association with the AMQUA Biennial Meeting
University of Wyoming - Laramie
August 10-11, 2010 (with optional field trip on August 12)
Conveners: Cathy Manduca, Cathy Whitlock, Alison Smith, Greg Wiles, Rolfe D. Mandel, Karin Kirk

Cathryn A Manduca
Director, Science Education Resource Center
Executive Director, National Association of Geoscience Teachers
Carleton College
1 N College Street
Northfield, MN 55057
507 222 7096
cmanduca@carleton.edu
serc.carleton.edu

From CSTA: Deadline looming for Sacramento Conference

From CSTA:

Only 10 days remain to submit a proposal to present a workshop at the 2010 California Science Education Conference.

CSTA is actively seeking science teachers to present one-hour workshops at the 2010 California Science Education Conference, October 22-24 in Sacramento, CA.

Visit http://www.cascience.org/csta/conf_wsprop.asp for more information about workshop proposals. There you will find submission guidelines, links to the standards, and a downloadable proposal form. Presenting at the conference can be fun and earn you a complimentary registration to the conference (please see the website for details regarding complimentary registration).

Deadline for Workshop Proposals: February 1, 2010.

Sincerely,

California Science Teachers Association
3800 Watt Ave., Suite 100
Sacramento, CA 95821
(916) 979-7004
Fax: (916) 979-7023
www.cascience.org

Student Opportunity in Redwoods National Park

Students currently enrolled in college degree programs have an opportunity to work in Redwood National Park in Northern California this summer as full-time interpretive rangers, earning $13-$15/hour. Information can be found here on the USAJobs site. The application deadline for applications is February 1.

Deadline Approaching: Subaru Outstanding Woman in Science Award

The Subaru Outstanding Woman in Science Award, the only Geological Society of America (GSA) award specifically for women at the post-doc level, recognizes the accomplishments of successful female geoscientists early in their careers.

The Subaru Outstanding Woman in Science Award will be awarded to a female whose Ph.D. research has had a significant impact on the geosciences. Women are eligible for the first three years following receipt of their degree. The US $2500 cash award will be presented at the GSA Annual Meeting in Denver in October 2010.

We ask that you take advantage of this opportunity to recognize a stellar female colleague by submitting a nomination.

Nominations are due by 1 February 2010. Materials required are a nomination form, nominating letter, short summary of the research, brief resume with a list of publications, and a copy of the dissertation abstract, published abstracts and/or reprints, as available.

For complete nomination guidelines and nomination forms, please visit:
http://www.geosociety.org/awards/index.htm#sowisa

Geological Society of America
Grants, Awards, and Recognition

Meet the Far Western Section Outstanding Earth Science Teacher of the Year!

Laura Hollister teaches the earth sciences at Pitman High School in Turlock, California. She attended Modesto Junior College and California State University, Stanislaus, where she earned a BS in Geology. She worked several years in the geological consulting business before deciding to pursue a teaching career.

Laura is a very engaging teacher and strives to bring her philosophies to fruition by designing lessons with applicable, real-world experiences. She has created many multimedia presentations that include personal trip photos that demonstrate concepts in a vivid, virtual-type setting. She assures that the information presented within them is understood by all students with the creation of scaffolded notes. The notes allow students to fill-in important information to the pre-made lecture outline so that the kids can spend more time concentrating on the visuals, while at the same time teaching the students how to outline useful notes when they get into college. Laura also incorporates labs that encourage a hands-on approach to exploring and discovering the intricacies of the geosciences. At the completion of the day's exercises, students are required to write a song or poem, draw a picture, or create some other form of art to help them process and thoroughly remember what they learned in class.

Laura participates in Wildlink, which is run through the Yosemite Institute, whose goal is to provide access to and education about the greater Yosemite National Park Region. Students who are chosen for the program spend a week in Yosemite learning about wilderness ethics and the ecology and geology of the park. Laura is a co-advisor for the Pitman High Science Bowl and Science Olympiad teams. She also volunteers in the geology field studies program at the local community college, and has led trips for conferences of the Far West Section of NAGT.

See other current information in the NAGT Newsletter