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GEOLOGY & GEOPHYSICS NEWS Yale University I Department of Geology and Geophysics Fall 2011 New Faculty in Geology & Geophysics The arrival of new young faculty, married postdocs and graduate students has brought the sounds of juvenile voices to the halls of Geology and Geophysics. Here is a gathering of the parents and their children who attended the recent Chair’s annual Fall Reception. Chairman’s Letter involved in the modernization of the Department in the David Bercovici ([email protected]) mid 1960s that ushered in the fields of geophysics and atmosphere, ocean and climate dynamics that we see Dear Friends and Family of blooming today. Karl’s retirement marks the end of Yale Geology & Geophysics, an era. However he has started a new phase of his life I’m happy to once again as a Research Scientist and continues with his many report on recent activities in projects including editing the monolithic Treatise on our Department. Geochemistry. Although no new faculty This last June the Department underwent the joined our department this last University’s required quinquennial External Review, year, we continue to explore which actually last happened 15 years ago. This new frontiers, including involved a major self-study report about the status geobiology, crustal geology, and future of the department carried out by the surface processes, energy Department faculty, which then provided the launching David Bercovici science and exoplanetology, point for the External Review. The Review Committee in preparation for possible hiring in the near future. continued on page 2 Even so, the overall size of the Department has grown dramatically in numbers of students and postdoctoral Inside this Issue scholars, to the point that we have now used up almost every available square foot of space in Kline G&G Postdoc News . 2 Geology Lab. Faculty Research . 3 July 1, 2011 witnessed the retirement of Karl Field Studies and Field Trips . 7 Turekian from his Professorship. Karl taught at Yale Visiting Faculty . 11 since 1956 and was—as many of you know so well— Recent Awards and Honors: Faculty . 12 one of the pillars on which today’s Department was Recent Awards and Honors: Students . 13 built. Karl has been a superstar of geochemistry for Student News . 15 decades, and in many ways is one of the fathers Recent Awards and Honors: Alumni . 17 of modern isotope geochemistry. He was deeply Alumni News . 20 GeoloGy & GeopHysiCs News Fall 2011 Letter continued from page 1 in general continues to fund and facilitate research in was comprised of Steven renewable energy, carbon sequestration, adaptation Sparks (Chair) from University in developing countries, climate change science and of Bristol, Margaret Leinen impacts, building efficiency, shale gas research and former Director of the NSF much more. The YCEI also had a review by its External Geosciences Division and Advisory Committee, which includes several G&G now CEO and Founder of the alumnae, David Lawrence from Shell Corporation, Joe Climate Response Fund, Peter Greenberg from Alta Resources, and Dan Schrag from Olson from Johns Hopkins, Harvard University. George Philander from Finally, I should note that this will be my last Princeton, Brian Wernicke letter as Chair, since I will be stepping down at the from Cal Tech and John Flynn end of the 2011–2012 year. The next Chair is not A recent photo of Karl from the American Museum. yet designated but this decision will be made next Turekian, Sterling Professor The committee met with Spring. Looking back on the last nearly 6 years, I’m Emeritus. faculty, staff, students and very happy and proud of all that the Department has postdocs for two days and reported their findings accomplished, both in its growth and in the role it has to the Provost. The report was released to the played in the University at large. It was an honor and a faculty and was very favorable and generous to the pleasure to serve the Department during this time. Department and made various recommendations Once again, thank you for your support and interest about future directions and initiatives that we are in the Department. I hope this newsletter finds you already acting on. well, and I wish you all the best for the coming year. One such initiative involved our on-going investigation of future areas of geoscience, which the department had been doing through exploratory G&G Postdoc News symposia (starting Spring 2010 and going through Yahya Al-Khatatabeh (yalkhatatbeh@simons-rock. Spring 2011), in preparation for considering where edu) who was working with Kanani Lee, is now a we should be going in the next ten to twenty years. Postdoc in the Department of Physics at Bard College May 2010 saw our first symposium on Frontiers in at Simon’s Rock in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Paleontology and Geobiology, and in Fall 2010 there Richard Krause ([email protected]) who was a symposia on Frontiers in Crustal Geoscience. was working with Derek Briggs, is now a Research The final symposium, in May 2011, was on Earth Assistant in the Department of Paleontology at the Surface System Interactions, concerning exchanges Institute of Geosciences in the University of Mainz, of volatiles like water and carbon between the Germany. Chris Brierley ([email protected]) who atmosphere, ocean and solid Earth. Information about was working with Alexey Fedorov, is now a Lecturer past and future symposia can be found at www. (faculty rank of Assistant Professor) at the University geology.yale.edu/seminars. College of London. Gabe Bever ([email protected]) The Department continues its deep involvement in who was working with Jacques Gauthier is now an the Yale Climate & Energy Institute (YCEI). The YCEI Assistant Professor in the Department of Anatomy worked toward the establishment of the new Energy at the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine. Sciences Institute on the West Campus, which was Yue Jian Wang ([email protected]) who was recently given a gift of $25M by Thomas Steyer and working with Kanani Lee, is now an Assistant Professor Kathryn Taylor to help launch the new science and in the Physics Departemnt at Oakland University in technology institute (see the Yale Daily Bulletin Story: Rochester Michigan. Peter Van Roy (peter.vanroy@ http://dailybulletin.yale.edu/article.aspx?id=8865). ugent.be) who was working with Derek Briggs, This institute will focus on both renewable energies is now a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of like solar fuels, as well as transitional technologies Ghent in Belgium. Marc LaFlamme (LaflammeM@ (like carbon sequestration and shale gas), so there si.edu) who was working with Derek Briggs is a is a very big role for the Department to play in Smithsonian Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department this new venture. The YCEI is also spear-heading of Paleobiology at the Smithsonian Institution in the development of a new Energy Curriculum and Washington, DC. Certificate program, in which the Department is again playing a critical role in offering classes on resources and sustainability, fossil fuels and energy transitions, and natural renewable energies. The YCEI 2 GeoloGy & GeopHysiCs News Fall 2011 FaCulTy ReseaRCH Mineral and Rock Physics Laboratory Shun Ichiro-Karato (the lithosphere) and sea-water—a When melting occurs in the upper project on this process (chemical mantle, magma rises upward to Yale’s Mineral and Rock Physics reactions of CO2-rich fluids with form a volcano. However, when Laboratory was established rocks) is underway in collaboration melting occurs under deep Earth when Shun Karato joined the with faculty colleague Zhengrong conditions, magma may sink rather faculty in August, 2001. The lab Wang (zhengrong.wang@yale. than rise upward. This is due to is designed to conduct studies edu) and undergraduate student the high compressibility and iron- on the properties of materials in Catherine Padhi ’14 (catherine. rich compositions of the melts. order to understand the structure [email protected]). Metamorphosed We have conducted systematic and dynamics of Earth and other oceanic crust together with the experimental studies on the melt planets (Figure 1). underlying cold lithospheric density and composition, and also Earth is a dynamic planet in mantle, returns to the mantle at developed a new theory of silicate which solid melts. In this materials slowly theory, we employ move both the concept that horizontally and the compression vertically. These of silicate melts processes occur occurs mostly not only at the through a change surface but also in in the geometrical the deep interior. arrangement Evidence for of nearly rigid active motion “molecules”. We deep inside Earth have proposed a and resultant universal equation chemical of state for silicate reactions has melts by which been obtained we can calculate through the density of any geophysical and Fig. 1: The members of the Yale Mineral and Rock Physics. First row from left: Lowell Miyagi, silicate melts if geochemical George Amulele, Shun Karato, Jun Yi, Zhenting Jiang, the second row from left: Robert the composition is Farla, Tolulope Olugboji, Zhengyu (Andy) Cai, far back from left: Duojun Wang, Kazuhiko studies. In the Otsuka, Catherine Padhi. given. This work is Mineral and Rock the core of a PhD Physics Lab, we investigate a range subduction zones. These materials study of former graduate student, of physical and chemical properties sometimes sink to the bottom of Zhicheng Jing, G ’10 (zjing@ of materials that control the the mantle (~2900 km deep), but uchicao.edu), now a post-doc at processes in order to interpret the sometimes they stay in the middle the University of Chicago. The motions. We use both experimental of the mantle. During these slow studies are now being extended to and theoretical approaches. motions in the Earth’s interior, the lower mantle.
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