THE GEOCHEMICAL NEWS Quarterly Newsletter of the Geochemical Society
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
THE GEOCHEMICAL NEWS Quarterly Newsletter of The Geochemical Society NUMBER 104 ISSN 0016-7010 JULY 2000 Weeping Rivers: Cyanide Spills in Romania - p. 14 Mineral Surface Reactivity - p. 18 Martian Chronology - p. 20 Goldschmidt 2000 September 3-8, 2000 Oxford, U. K. John C. Winters www.campublic.co.uk/science/conference/Gold2000/ 1924-1999 - p. 10 In this issue: Goldschmidt 2001 Letter From The President.............................3 May 20-24, 2001 Goldschmidt 2000..........................................8 Roanoke, Virginia, U.S.A. John C. Winters............................................10 Weeping Rivers: CN Spills in Romania..........14 Mineral Surface Reactivity: Report..............18 http://cass.jsc.nasa.gov/meetings/gold2001/ Martian Chronology: Report........................20 gold2001.1st.html Meetings Calendar .........................................22 GS Special Publications..................................26 2 The Geochemical News #104, July 2000 THE GEOCHEMICAL SOCIETY The Geochemical Society is a nonprofit scientific society founded to encourage the application of chemistry to the solution of geologi- cal and cosmological problems. Membership is international and di- verse in background, encompassing such fields as organic geochem- istry, high and low-temperature geochemistry, petrology, meteoritics, OFFICERS - 2000 fluid-rock interaction, and isotope geochemistry. The Society pro- duces a Special Publications Series, The Geochemical News (this PRESIDENT quarterly newsletter), the Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry Michael F. Hochella, Jr., Virginia Polytechnic Institute Series (jointly with the Mineralogical Association of America), the journal Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta (jointly with the Mete- VICE PRESIDENT 3 Judith McKenzie, ETH, Zurich oritical Society), and co-publishes the electronic journal G (jointly with the American Geophysical Union); grants the V.M. PAST PRESIDENT Goldschmidt, F.W. Clarke and Clair C. Patterson Awards, and, Michael J. Drake, University of Arizona jointly with the European Association of Geochemistry, the Geochem- istry Fellows title; sponsors the V.M. Goldschmidt Conference, SECRETARY David J. Wesolowski, Oak Ridge National Laboratory held in North American in odd years and elsewhere in even years, jointly with the European Association of Geochemistry; and co-spon- INTERNATIONAL SECRETARY sors the Geological Society of America annual meeting and the S. Ross Taylor, Australian National University American Geophysical Union spring meeting. The Society honors our first President, F. Earl Ingerson, and our first Goldschmidt Med- TREASURER Rebecca Lange, University of Michigan alist, Paul W. Gast, with the Ingerson and Gast Lectures, held annu- ally at the Geological Society of America Meeting and the V.M. CHAIR, ORGANIC GEOCHEMISTRY DIVISION Goldschmidt Conference, respectively. The Geochemical Society is Mike Engel, University of Oklahoma affiliated with the American Association for the Advancement of Sci- ence and the International Union of Geological Sciences. SECRETARY, ORGANIC GEOCHEMISTRY DIVISION Peggy Ostrom, Michigan State University Members of the Organic Geochemistry Division are individuals with interests in studies on the origin, nature, geochemical signifi- cance, and behavior during diagenesis and catagenesis of naturally occurring organic substances in the Earth, and of extraterrestrial or- DIRECTORS ganic matter. GS members may choose to be affiliated with the OGD without any additional dues. The OGD presents the Alfred E. Treibs Thure Cerling, University of Utah Award for major achievements in organic geochemistry, and Best Jochen Hoefs, Universität Göttingen Paper awards (student and professional) in organic geochemistry. Albrecht W. Hoffman, Max Planck Institut f. Chemie Alexandra Navrotsky, University of California - Davis R. Keith O’Nions, Oxford University Editor’s Corner K. Vala Ragnarsdottir, University of Bristol Everett L. Shock, Washington University Neil C. Sturchio, Editor-in-Chief Phone: 630-252-3986 The Geochemical News Fax: 630-252-7415 Argonne National Laboratory Email: [email protected] 9700 South Cass Ave., ER-203 EDITORS Argonne, IL 60439-4843 U.S.A. GEOCHIMICA ET COSMOCHIMICA ACTA Frank Podosek, Washington University ASSOCIATE EDITORS David Cole, Oak Ridge National Laboratory GEOCHEMICAL NEWS Neil C. Sturchio, Argonne National Laboratory Yoko Furukawa, Naval Research Laboratory John M. Hanchar, University of Notre Dame INTERNET COORDINATOR Kenneth Johnson, Texas Tech University Bob Nichols, Washington University Mitch Schulte, NASA Ames Research Center Angelina W. M. G. Souren, Armadillo Research, Amsterdam SPECIAL PUBLICATIONS AND REVIEWS IN MINERALOGY AND GEOCHEMISTRY (CO-EDITOR) ASSISTANT EDITOR Scott Wood, University of Idaho Dolores Sturchio, Oswego, Illinois Newsletter of The Geochemical Society The Geochemical News #104, July 2000 3 · From monies earned through financial investments of por- From the President tions of our endowment, we contribute $10-15K per year to the organizers of the Goldschmidt and occasionally other meetings. The great majority of this money is used to sup- What we do, and don’t . port student attendance. · The Board of Directors of We keep you informed through The Geochemical News, our the Geochemical Society meets an- quarterly newsletter that you are reading right now. This nually at the site of the Goldschmidt product has been substantially improved in recent years be- Conference for one day before the cause of the foresight and hard work of Editor-in-Chief Neil meeting. This year’s meeting will be Sturchio. on September 2 in Oxford, England. As I prepare for this upcoming event, All of the above activities, and several others for which space it is a good time to think about what does not allow mention, are due to the volunteer effort of more this Society does, and also what we than 60 professional geochemists. Without them, none of this don’t do that perhaps we should. So would be possible. But given our situation, is there more that we to start with the former: could do? Certainly. And we will be discussing certain items along these lines at the Oxford Board meeting. We can do a bet- ter job at making the Geochemical Society truly international. To · Under the steady hand of Executive Editor Frank Podosek this end, we will hopefully approve a plan to hold the 2003 and his staff, we produce the world’s best geochemistry jour- Goldschmidt meeting in Japan. We could award more medals nal in cooperation with Elsevier. GCA’s impact factor is far given the increasing number and diversity of geochemists in the ahead of all other geochemistry journals, and is essentially world today. To this end, we will be discussing the possibility of the same as Earth and Planetary Science Letters. GCA is awarding medals in the future that are discipline specific. And I fully back on schedule, and judging from submissions, it is could go on and on. as popular with authors as ever. What ideas do you have that we should be considering? What does the GS not do now that you think it should? Let me know! · We co-publish Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry I’m at [email protected]. I will organize your ideas and discuss (RiM&G), formerly Reviews in Mineralogy (RiM). RiM has them with the Board. sold over 200,000 books in the last 25 years through the Mineralogical Society of America (MSA). Now that MSA And finally . and the GS have teamed up to produce and sell RiM&G, we can look forward to an ever brighter future. The ultimate Before I sign off this quarter, allow me to thank those goal is to produce books of the highest scientific quality at committee members whose terms have just ended. They are: the lowest possible cost (non-profit) for our membership and Laura Crossey and Patricia Dove (Clarke), Dean Presnall and other scientists. Currently, this effort is headed up for the GS Jonathan Patchett (Nominations), Gerry Wasserburg by Scott Wood and Jodi Rosso. (Goldschmidt), Larry Edwards (Program), and Malcolm McCulloch and Judith McKenzie (Patterson). I have just sent · We set up and coordinate the world’s best geochemistry meet- personal letters to all, but perhaps nothing is better than a public ings, the annual Goldschmidt Conferences. The upcoming thanks. And why not. These people, in many important ways, Oxford Goldschmidt is the 10th annual meeting. Each year, have made the Society function and work over the last three years. the meeting gains in popularity and diversity, defining Thanks! geochemistry in an ever-broadening sense. Mike Hochella President of The Geochemical Society · We choose the recipients and award the world’s most presti- gious medals for geochemistry (the Goldschmidt, Treibs, Geochemical Society Business Patterson, and Clarke Medals). Many of the scientists that Please address all inquiries and correspondence we have chosen for these awards made their names within concerning memberships, subscriptions, address changes, our branch of science, but they are known also as important and charitable contributions to: international-class pioneers in many other fields and disci- plines. Business Manager, The Geochemical Society Washington University · We approve, coordinate, and sequence all geochemistry ab- Earth and Planetary Sciences stract submissions for annual GSA meetings and spring AGU One Brookings Drive, Box 1169 meetings. This large task is handled through our program St. Louis, MO 63130, USA committee, currently headed by Susan Stipp and Pat Brady. Tel. 314-935-4131; Fax. 314-935-4121 e-mail: