Msaʼs 85Th Anniversary Resources for Teaching Petrology in the 21St Century

Volume 20, Number 2, May 2004 st The Newsletter of the Resources for teaching petrology in the 21 century Mineralogical So ci ety of America he NAGT On the Cut- projects, and on-line galleries excellence in science and the Subscription and mem ber ship ting Edge program of photomicrographs. training of geoscientists. information sponsored the Teaching • A collection of educational is on page three. TPetrology in the 21st Century resources used in igneous and We invite the MSA com- workshop last summer. The metamorphic petrology cours- munity to regularly use these 1015 18th St NW Ste 601 goals of this workshop were to es. The collection includes lab collections and services. In Washington, DC 20036-5212 U.S.A. explore new methods of teach- exercises, classroom activities, addition, we need your help to ISSN 1526-3746 ing igneous and metamorphic problem sets and more. The continue to grow these collec- petrology in the context of mod- purpose of this collection is to tions. We have systems in place ern advances in understanding allow for the sharing of materi- on the website to make it easy the Earth system, analytical and als within the community of for you to submit suggestions of fi eld methods, and information petrology teachers. additional web-based resources, Table of Contents technologies. The workshop in- • A registry of analytical to post your best teaching ac- equipment. This service is Presidentʼs Letter ......................p. 2 cluded a pre-meeting fi eldtrip, tivities, and to register your Notes from Washington .............p. 4 demonstrations of laboratories provided to help: lab managers analytical equipment. Please Historical glimpse ......................p. 6 and computer-assisted learning build their user base; research- send any additional queries Am Min Stats at a Glance..........p. 9 activities, and general sessions ers, instructors and students or comments to: Dave Mogk, BioGeosciences.org launches...p. 9 addressing current issues in to gain access to analytical [email protected]. Contributors and Benefactors.. p. 10 Lattice deadline ........................p.12 teaching petrology. An out- equipment to support scholarly This project was funded by Clathrates Upcoming in Am Min! ....p. 13 growth of this workshop is an work; and build capacity by the National Science Founda- Member in the News........................p. 13 extensive array of web-mediated optimizing the use of existing tion, Division of Undergraduate Goldschmidt.......................................p. 13 instructional resources and ser- analytical equipment to support Education. New Members...................................p. 17 vices (http://serc.carleton.edu/ Meetings calendar ............................p. 19 In Memoriam .....................................p. 23 NAGTWorkshops/petrology/ index.html). On this website MSAʼs 85th Anniversary you will fi nd: 2004 is an anniversary year for MSA. MSA was founded • The workshop program on December 30, 1919, and was up and running with a pub- with activities, discussion sum- lication at the start of 1920. The timing may seem remark- maries and related documents able, but MSA did not spring up from nothing. As early as Institutional subscribers • Supporting instructional 1916 Edward H. Kraus was organizing an effort for a new are entitled to electronic resources; a digital library of society. Although delayed by the war, he corresponded with ac cess to American Min er - internet resources intended potential members and sought their advice and support. al o gist; con tact business@ to help faculty in teaching or The result was the invitational letter on December 30 to minsocam.org to give us designing petrology courses. your IP address. interested individuals for an organizational meeting. There Many of the resources are were 28 people who attended. At that meeting the fi nal offer lecture notes or PowerPoint to transfer ownership of the American Mineralogist, which presentations that are illus- had been founded in 1916, was made and accepted. trated with useful diagrams, graphs and fi gures. There are also course syllabi, petrology 2 The Lattice, May 2004 The Lattice, May 2004 3 Letter from the President Generosity of members helps to sustain student grants and out- reach programs of MSA by Michael Carpenter ne of the pleasant community take the trouble scheme seems to appeal even American Mineralogist are duties that fall to the to send in complaints about to our newest members and, also calculated to just cover President of MSA is aspects of the activities of this year, about 25% of mem- the actual costs involved. It Oto correspond with members the society that they are not bers have given the society is the additional funds from from all over the world. Di- happy with, as this gives us a total of nearly $25,000. member donations that have verse and interesting email a chance to put things right. A full list of members who sustained the other activities messages and letters are al- Without a doubt, however, have made donations to MSA that the society undertakes ways arriving. For example, the pleasantest task involves is given elsewhere in this is- to support its members and some kind members were writing to individual mem- sue of The Lattice. I thought promote our science. Alex quick to point out that I had bers to thank them for their that their generosity should Speer put together the fol- mistaken V.M. Goldschmidt generosity in making dona- be acknowledged by explain- lowing data to show how (crystallographer) for V.M. tions to MSA over and above ing in my column how the these additional funds have Goldschmidt (geochemist) in their dues. Many members society uses the money. grown. Note that the steady my last column in The Lat- have given generously year Member dues are cal- income from donations has tice. Another senior member after year but, when Bill culated to just cover the minimized the impact of sent me some personal remi- Carlson was President, he costs accompanying indi- stock market declines, which niscences about E.H. Kraus introduced a voluntary con- vidual memberships, such have affected MSAʼs other (founder of MSA) whom he tribution scheme in which as the newsletter, ballots, long-term investments. had known at the University members were invited to and mailing. Short courses, The first of the programs of Michigan. It is also reas- donate $1 for every year RiMG volumes, and indi- that goes beyond the normal suring that members of our since they had joined. This vidual subscriptions to the publishing and member- 2 The Lattice, May 2004 The Lattice, May 2004 3 The Lattice is published quarterly (February, May, August, November) by the Mineralogical Society of America. It is distributed to MSA members and subscribers as a service. Articles and letters are welcome. The Mineralogical Society of America is composed of individuals interested in mineralogy, crystallography, and ship activities was established in the early 1970s through petrology. Founded in 1919, the Society promotes, through a donation of shares worth about $10,000 by E.H. Kraus. education and research, the understanding and application He specified that this fund, the Edward H. Kraus Crystal- of mineralogy by industry, universities, government and lographic Research Fund, should be used to provide small the public. research grants to support the work of young researchers Membership benefits include: American Mineralogist, in the field of crystallography. At first the grants were for published bi-monthly; 25% discount on volumes in the $1500 and could only be offered every few years. The grant Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry series; The Lat- tice; special subscription rates for Mineralogical Abstracts, is now worth $5000 and is awarded annually. What we un- Physics and Chemistry of Minerals, Journal of Petrology, derstand by the term “crystallography” has changed greatly Rocks and Minerals, and Mineralogical Record; reduced in the intervening years and the Kraus Crystallography Grant registration fees at MSA short courses; member rates for the committee encourages applications in crystallography in the MSA/Geological Society of America annual meeting and broadest sense of the subject. A list of recipients of grants member rates at MSAʼs spring meeting with the American from this fund and the titles of their projects is given on Geophysical Union; participation in a Society that supports the societyʼs website (www.minsocam.org/MSA/Awards/ the many facets of mineralogy. Crystallography_Award.html). Dues for 2004: professional members $55; student members The first MSA Grant for Student Research in Mineral- $5. American Mineralogist subscription: members add $40 ogy and Petrology was given in 1981 (to Bill Carlson for (paper and electronic); $10 electronic. Membership is on a an “Experimental Investigation of subsolidus equilibria in calendar year basis. Individuals who join after January 1, feldspathic peridotite and gabbro”!). Funds to sustain this 2004 will be sent all back issues of volume 89 for 2004. grant have accumulated through member generosity and Additional membership information and an application, the list of awards on the website (www.minsocam.org/ and/or a price list of the Societyʼs publications are else- MSA/Awards/Min_Pet_Award.html) again makes interest- where in this newsletter, or contact the Business Office. ing reading. MSA is now able to fund two grants of $5,000 Institutions may subscribe to the 2004 volume of American each year. Any student is eligible to apply. There are few, if Mineralogist for the annual rate of $625 in the US and $650 any, national research funding agencies that offer equivalent for non-US addresses. The subscription price includes any types of grants to researchers at this very earliest stage of new volumes of the Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochem- their careers. Anyone who has ever served on the Min/Pet istry series and issues of the Lattice published during the calendar year of the subscription. Payment must be received grant committee will certainly have been impressed by the in full before a subscription will be started.

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