DOCSLIB.ORG

2016 Newsletter

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
2016 Newsletter Contents be banned from India for publishing articles on the seismic hazards of the Himalaya and the Indian subcontinent. Dena Letter from the Chair ...................... 2 Smith will depart CU this summer to become a Program Di- Notes from the Advisory Board ...... 3 rector for the Sedimentary Geology and Paleobiology Pro- Faculty News ................................. 4 gram at the National Science Foundation. We extend our New Faculty .................................. 6 best wishes to Roger and Dena. Mary Kraus was appointed Faculty Awards .............................. 6 On The Cover ................................ 7 Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies. Lang Farmer was CU’s Mission to Mars ..................... 8 appointed to replace Mary as the Associate Dean for Natu- Front Office News .......................... 9 ral Sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences. Kevin Ma- Save The Date ............................. 10 han is successfully promoted to Associate Professor with New Electron Microprobe ............ 11 tenure and Jen Stempien was reappointed as Instructor. Pete Birkeland Scholarship Fund . 12 We officially welcomed Kristy Tiampo to the faculty in fall Philanthropy Helps Students ........ 12 2015. See page 8 for more on her background and future Field Trips .................................... 13 work. We warmly welcome three new faculty to join us in fall Mars Rover / From the Field ......... 15 2016: Dr. Sebastian Kopf, a geobiologist; Dr. Boswell Wing, Graduate Research ..................... 16 a geobiologist, and Dr. Michael Willis, a geodesist. We will Student Activities ......................... 17 Mentoring / Publications .............. 18 feature them in the next Newsletter, so stay tuned. Student News and Awards .......... 19 The number of Geology majors in Spring 2016 stands Degrees Awarded ........................ 20 at 340, continuing an upward trend that has experienced Alumni News ............................... 22 ~50% growth over the past five years. The field opportuni- In Memorium ............................... 23 ties and experiences the department offers remain a strong attraction for students. The second Global Seminar field course takes place in summer 2016 in southeastern Austra- Letter from the Chair lia, thanks in part to a generous alumni donation. Students Shemin Ge will learn critical geological principles in an international setting that contrasts with the traditional settings in Ameri- With the support of our staff and faculty, I survived the ca. Our graduate student population is at 69 with approxi- first year as Dept Chair. The guidance and wisdom from the mately 20% MS and 80% Ph.D.. The graduate student former Chair Lang Farmer and the assistance from Associ- numbers have remained relatively stable in the past 5 years, ate Chairs Greg Tucker and Tom Marchitto were critical to fluctuating between 60 and 80. In fall 2015, we welcomed ensure a smooth passing of the baton. 22 outstanding graduate students from a pool of approxi- As always, we have much to celebrate with regard to mately 200 applicants. Lon Abbott and Bob Anderson again faculty and student accomplishments. Here are a few fac- led the annual Bradley new graduate student field trip, as- ulty highlights. Robert Anderson was bestowed one of the sisted by continuing graduate students and Advisory Board four University Distinguished Professorships, the highest members Joe Zamudio, Houston Kempton and Dean Miller. honor given to faculty in the University system. Bob was We continued the tradition of holding Departmental gradua- also the recipient of American Geophysical Union’s 2015 tion ceremonies in both winter and spring. Featured speak- G.K. Gilbert Award for his remarkable contributions to the ers, Advisory Board member Cheree Stover in the winter field of surface processes. Becky Flowers was selected and Professor Bruce Jakosky in spring, were the great as one of the three 2015-2016 Mineralogical Society of hits for the students. For the first time, we held the Spring America Distinguished Lecturers, recognizing her research ceremony in the lawn outside Benson because the record on relating cratonic surface histories and mantle dynamics, number of attendees exceeded our indoor seating capac- as well as dating the Grand Canyon incision. Chuck Stern ity. Although we can no longer claim the outdoor ceremony was awarded the Herbert Thomas Prize by the Geologic “homey,” we preserved the intimate flavor of the occasion Society of Chile for his outstanding contributions to under- as we later gathered in the atrium in Benson for champagne standing the geology of Chile by a non-Chilean scientist. and conversation. Paul Weimer received the Doris Malkin Curtis Medal from There are a few changes in our front office. We celebrated the Gulf Coast Section of the Society of Economic Paleon- Joanne Brunetti’s retirement with a great appreciation of her tologists and Mineralogists for his career contributions to service of 14 years as accountant in Geology. Our new ac- understanding the geology of the Gulf of Mexico Basin and countant, Marilynn Bender, not just steps into Joanne’s big other basins globally. Professor Emeritus John Andrews is shoes but also handles a much larger and more complex awarded the 2016 Penrose Medal by Geological Society financial system due to our increased research volume. Un- of America. John was chosen for original contributions to dergraduate Program Assistant, Kristine Johnson, will soon understanding the history and dynamics of the Pleistocene assume the role of Graduate Program Assistant that was ice sheets. previously held by Susan Pryor and Melissa Green. The Of- After a distinguished career of 30 years, Roger Bilham fice Manager and Assistant to the Chair, Carmen Juszczyk, was promoted to Professor Emeritus, which has allowed was promoted to the Coordinator for University’s Residential him a greater degree of freedom to chase earthquakes Academic Program. We are pleased to welcome Ruth Mans- around the globe and further his research on monitoring back to lead the Department office. During these transitions, deformation on plate boundaries. He still retains his privi- Kristine Johnson has been a steady and indispensable force leged position of being the only scientist in the world to that ensured continuity of the office operation. 2 We welcomed three new Advisory Board members: Florie Reflecting on my first year as Chair, I struggle to ad- Caporuscio of Los Alamos National Lab, John Roesink of equately express my pride for the accomplishments of our Jagged Peak Energy Management, and Sean Sundermann students and faculty, my gratitude for the support from our of Fugro Consultants Inc. Board member Tyler Kane rotated staff and alumni, and the feeling of privilege to be part of off. We deeply appreciate his service and the unique contri- this extraordinary Department. CU-Boulder, once again, butions of the Advisory Board. Please see more in the letter was ranked by the World News as the second best global below from the Advisory Board Chair, Dean Miller. university in Geosciences in the world. The Benson Earth One of our greatest needs is to enhance our capability to Sciences building, inaugurated in 1997, is an inseparable provide graduate fellowships. With the help of the Advisory part of our continued successes. We are planning a 20th Board, alumna Dr. Margaret Berry, and the Advancement anniversary celebration of the Benson Earth Sciences Office, we established the Peter Birkeland Scholarship building in fall 2017 (page 10). Finally, we will be thrilled to Fund, in honor of Emeritus Professor Peter Birkeland for his hear from you, whether it is your career or family news or a distinguished career in the field of soil geomorphology and donation to your favored funds listed on the back cover of his legacy in mentoring students. Please see the announce- this publication. ment on page 12 for more details. Best wishes to all of you. Notes from the Advisory Board The Board held another career night for undergraduate by Dean Miller and graduate students. The depressed state of both the oil and gas and mining industries make these efforts more important than ever. Please let us know if you know of any Greetings from the Alumni Advisory Board, internships or other opportunities for students. These are exciting times in the Department, with the ap- Last August, the Department once again held the annual pointment of Shemin Ge as the new Department Chair, and Bill Bradley Field Trip for the twenty-two new graduate stu- the arrival of new faculty, staff, and students, as well the dents that came into the Department. The trip starts off with continued success of existing members of the Department Department faculty and some Board members introducing community. The Board said goodbye to Tyler Kane this incoming graduate students to the local geology. The trip spring. We appreciate his service, and hope that he may includes an overnight stay at the Mountain Research Station rejoin the Board when he completes his graduate stud- near Ward on Saturday night, with a hike up Niwot Ridge on ies. On the plus side, we welcomed Florie Caporuscio of Sunday morning, which is led by Bob Anderson. This year, Los Alamos National Laboratory and Sean Sundermann of we will have a similar number of new graduate students Fugro Consultants, Inc. as new Board members. coming into the Department, so it should be a fun trip. The Board has enjoyed working with the new Depart- If you have the opportunity to donate to the
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Environmental Science Challenge for the Seventies
    Environmental Science Challenge for the Seventies NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD 1971 IVAltIliJiTit4iU1J REPORT OF THE NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION 1971 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C. 20402- Price 40 cents LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL January 31, 1971 My Dear Mr. President: It is an honor to transmit to you this Report, prepared in re­ sponse to Section 4(g) of the National Science Foundation Act, as amended by Public Law 90-407, which requires the National Sci­ ence Board to submit annually an appraisal of the status and health of science, as well as that of the related matters of manpower and other resources, in reports to be forwarded to the Congress. This is the third report of this series. In choosing environmental science as the topic of this Report, the National Science Board hopes to focus attention on a critical aspect of environmental concern, one that is frequently taken for granted, whose status is popularly considered to be equivalent to that of science generally, and yet one whose contribution to human welfare will assume rapidly growing importance during the decades immediately ahead. The National Science Board strongly supports the many recent efforts of the Executive Branch, the Congress, and other public and private organizations to deal with the bewildering array of environmental problems that confront us all. Many of these prob­ lems can be reduced in severity through the use of today's science and technology by an enlightened citizenry. This is especially true of many forms of pollution and environmental degradation result­ ing from overt acts of man.
    [Show full text]
  • Quaternary) Climates in New Mexico
    Lucas, S.G., Morgan, G.S. and Zeigler, K.E., eds., 2005, New Mexico’s Ice Ages, New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science Bulletin No. 28. 115 RIVER RESPONSES TO ICE AGE (QUATERNARY) CLIMATES IN NEW MEXICO FRANK J. PAZZAGLIA Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Lehigh University, 31 Williams, Bethlehem, PA 18015, [email protected] Abstract–Rivers shape landscapes by responding to a range of external forces including climate and climate change. This paper examines the general role that Quaternary climates play in river channel form and process and how rivers in New Mexico have responded specifically to Pleistocene and Holocene climatic changes. The impact of Quaternary climates on New Mexican streams is cast in the context of how channel form and process has evolved through the Phanerozoic and in light of a large and growing data set for measurable changes in channel form and watershed hydrology over human time scales. Changes in channel form and process are commonly equivocal; there is no single unique response that follows from a given change in climate. Neverthe- less, geomorphologists have developed process-response models that limit the range of expected responses and help guide an interpretation of how Quaternary climates ultimately have shaped the New Mexican landscape. Long-term landscape evolution trends like the rate of valley incision and human-scale trends like the arroyo incision-aggradation cycle are discussed in the context of Quaternary climates. The general conclusion is that climate change through the Quaternary has had a major impact on pacing the rate of valley incision and defining the geomorphic thresholds that control arroyo incision, but that other factors, including tectonics and humans, also contribute.
    [Show full text]
  • Union County Glacier
    In Memory of Luna B. Leopold e c n e i c S y r a t e n a l P 1915–2006 & h t r a E f o . t p e D y e l e k r e B C U y s e t r u o c o t o h P una Leopold, professor emeritus at the University of Cali- 1972 to 1986 he held the position of professor of earth and plane- fornia, Berkeley, and former chief hydrologist of the U.S. tary science and of landscape architecture at the University of Cal- LGeological Survey died at his home in Berkeley on February ifornia, Berkeley. “He made crucial discoveries about the nature of 23, 2006. The son of conservationist Aldo Leopold, Luna Leopold rivers, especially their remarkable regularity,” William Dietrich, a became widely recognized as one of our country’s most distin- UC Berkeley colleague of Leopold’s and professor of earth and guished earth scientists and will be remembered for his pioneer- planetary science, said in a news release. “He showed that this ing studies of rivers and fluvial geomorphology and for his tire- regularity of form applies to all rivers, whether they are in sand less work toward protecting and restoring rivers, water resources, boxes or draining entire continents, at scales of a laboratory flume and the environment. or the Gulf Stream.” Luna Leopold was born in Albuquerque. His father, Aldo During his time with the U.S. Geological Survey Leopold was Leopold, was pursuing his career with the U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • 50Th Annivmtnforpdf
    50th Anniversary The Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research 1951–2001 University of Colorado at Boulder 50th Anniversary The Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research 1951–2001 Scott Elias, INSTAAR, examines massive ground ice, Denali National Park,Alaska. Photo by S. K. Short. 50th Anniversary The Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research 1951–2001 University of Colorado at Boulder Contents 1 History of INSTAAR 29 Memories & Vignettes INSTAAR Photographs 57 INSTAAR’s News 81 Fifty Years of INSTAAR Theses credits Many past and present INSTAAR members contributed to this book with history, news, memories and vignettes, and informa- tion. Martha Andrews compiled the thesis list.The book was col- lated, edited, and prepared for publication by Kathleen Salzberg and Nan Elias (INSTAAR), and Polly Christensen (CU Publications and Creative Services). ©2001 Regents of the University of Colorado History of INSTAAR 1951–2001 his history of INSTAAR of arctic and alpine regions. Dr. Marr was has been compiled by Albert W. appointed director by the president of the TJohnson, Markley W.Paddock, university, Robert L. Stearns.Within two William H. Rickard,William S. Osburn, and years IAEE became the Institute of Arctic Mrs. Ruby Marr, as well as excerpts from and Alpine Research (IAAR). the late John W.Marr’s writing, for the pe- riod during which John W.Marr was direc- 1951–1953: The Early Years tor (1951–1967); by Jack D. Ives, former director, for 1967–1979; Patrick J.Webber, The ideas that led to the beginning of the In- former director, for 1979–1986; Mark F. stitute were those of John Marr; he was edu- Meier, former director, for 1986–1994; and cated in the philosophy that dominated plant James P.M.
    [Show full text]
  • It Is an Honor to Receive the Kirk Bryan Award. I Am Especially Pleased To
    Quaternary Geologist & Geomorphologist Newsletter of the Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology Division http://rock.geosociety.org/qgg Spring 2004 Vol. 45, No.1 Glacial lake that drained from head of Grasshopper Glacier, northern Wind River Range, Wyoming, in October, 2003. View is to west. Lake drained beneath glacier to north, and flooded to north then east down the drainage of Grasshopper Creek, to Down’s Fork Creek, and to Dinwoody Creek. Outwash deposits along the Down’s Fork Creek where an ephemeral lake ponded at Down’s Fork Meadows near the confluence of the Down’s Fork and Dinwoody creeks. Dinwoody Lakes are seen at upper left. View is to east. (More details of this event inside on p. 2) Photos provided by Dennis Dahms, courtesy of Liz Oswald, South Zone Hydrologist, Shoshone National Forest, Lander, Wyoming 1 Cover: Jökulhlaup at Grasshopper Glacier, Wind River Mountains, Wyoming A jökulhlaup, or glacial outburst flood, burst from an ice-dammed lake at the head of the Grasshopper Glacier, Wind River Mountains, Wyoming, in early September this year. The 30-acre lake drained an estimated 850 million gallons of water downslope, underneath the glacier, and, charged with subglacial sediment, flooded tributary valleys and into the Dinwoody River valley. The event was recorded at the USGS gage site (USGS 06221400 Dinwoody Creek above Lakes, near Burris, WY) about 20 mi downstream from the ice-dammed lake. The Grasshopper Glacier is situated at the continental divide nested between high-level erosion surfaces and the eastward-facing cirque walls of the mountain front. The glacier, oriented south to north, drops from an elevation of 12,000 ft down a steep (0.11) slope to its snout at about 11,300 ft elevation.
    [Show full text]
  • Interview with Robert P. Sharp
    ROBERT P. SHARP (I) (1911-2004) INTERVIEWED BY GRAHAM BERRY December 18, 1979–January 9, 1980 ARCHIVES CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Pasadena, California Subject area Geology Abstract Interview in three sessions in late 1979 and early 1980 with Robert P. Sharp, Sharp Professor of Geology emeritus, who chaired the Division of Geology (later the Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences) at Caltech from 1952 to 1968. Begins with his recollections of growing up in Oxnard and of life during his undergraduate years [1930-1934] at Caltech, including his career as quarterback on Caltech’s football team, and his one graduate year there. In 1936 he moved to Harvard for further graduate study, doing his thesis work on the Ruby/East Humboldt Range in Nevada. From 1938 to 1943 he taught at the University of Illinois; he discusses expeditions in the Grand Canyon (1937) and the Yukon (1941). After three years with the Army Air Force in Alaska, he joined the faculty of the University of Minnesota, then returned to Caltech as a professor in 1947. He discusses the early history of Caltech’s geology division under J. P. Buwalda, the importance of the Seismological Laboratory, and the demise of vertebrate paleontology at Caltech after the death of Chester Stock. Discusses the expansion of the division under his chairmanship into geochemistry and planetary science and other events of his chairmanship; chairing the search committee for a new president upon the retirement of Lee DuBridge; and the advent of Harold http://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechOH:OH_Sharp_1 Brown. Recalls his participation in the efforts of Eugene Shoemaker and Leon Silver to raise money for a named chair by guiding trips in the Grand Canyon, and his establishment of field trips for the division non-academic staff.
    [Show full text]
  • Karl William Wegmann, Ph.D., LG, LEG
    Karl William Wegmann, Ph.D., LG, LEG North Carolina State University Dept. of Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences 2800 Faucette DR, Campus Box 8208, Jordan Hall RM 1125 Raleigh, NC 27695-8208 Phone: 919.515.0380 | E-mail: [email protected] Websites: https://wegmann.wordpress.ncsu.edu/ https://hazmapper.org PROFESSIONAL INTERESTS Teaching and research interests intersect across the domains of Geomorphology (surface processes), Active Tectonics, Natural Hazards, and Geoarchaeology. EDUCATION 2008 Ph.D., Earth and Environmental Sciences Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA 1999 M.S., Earth and Planetary Sciences The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA 1996 B.A., Geology, Cum Laude, with Honors Whitman College, Walla Walla, WA, USA PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE 2017– Center for Geospatial Analytics, North Carolina State University Faculty Fellow 2015– Dept. of Marine, Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina State University Associate Professor 2008–2015 Dept. of Marine, Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina State University Assistant Professor 2004 Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources – Division of Geology & Earth Resources Geologist 3 / Natural Resource Scientist 3 1999–2004 Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources – Division of Geology & Earth Resources Geologist 2 2000-2004 Peninsula College, Port Angeles, WA Distance Learning Instructor - Geology Updated May 20, 2021 1 1998 New Mexico Bureau of Mines & Mineral Resources and Univ. of New Mexico Office of Contract Archeology Contract Geologist 1996 U.S. Geological Survey – Seattle, WA NAGT Geology Intern PROFESSIONAL LICENSES 2002–present Washington State Licensed Geologist & Engineering Geologist (License # 733). RESEARCH FUNDING 2020-2021 RAPID: Sparta Earthquake Surface Deformation Characterization | National Science Foundation | $29,752 | Co-Principle Investigator.
    [Show full text]
  • Dendrochronology 459
    DENDROCHRONOLOGY 459 Taylor, R. E. (1987). Radiocarbon Dating: An Archaeological Wintle, A. G. (1973). Anomalous fading of thermoluminescence in Perspective. Academic Press, New York. mineral samples. Nature 245, 143–144. Tuniz, C., Bird, J. R., Fink, D., and Herzog, G. F. (1998). Wohlfarth, B., Bjo¨ rck, S., Possnert, G., et al. (1993). AMS dating Accelerator Mass Spectrometry: Ultasensitive Analysis for of Swedish varved clays of the last glacial/interglacial transition Global Science. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL. and potential difficulties of calibrating Late Weichselian ‘‘abso- Wagner, G. A. (1995). Age Determination of Young Rocks and lute’’ chronologies. Boreas 22, 113–128. Artifacts. Springer, Berlin. Zreda, M., and Phillips, F. (2000). Cosmogenic nuclide buildup in Wehmiller, J. F., and Miller, G. H. (2000). Aminostratigraphic dating surficial materials. In Quaternary Geochronology, Methods methods in Quaternary geology. In Quaternary Geochronology, and Applications (J. S. Noller et al., Eds.), pp. 61–76. Methods and Applications (J.S.Nolleret al., Eds.), pp. 187–222. American Geophysical Union, Washington, DC. American Geophysical Union, Washington, DC. Westgate, J. A., and Naeser, N. D. (1995). Tephrochronology and fission-track dating. In Dating Methods for Quaternary Relevant Website Deposits (N. W. Rutter and N. R. Catto, Eds.), pp. 15–28. Geological Survey of Canada, Ottawa. http://www.gg.rhul.ac.uk – Royal Holloway: Department of Geography. Dendroarchaeology see Plant Macrofossil Methods and Studies: Dendroarchaeology DENDROCHRONOLOGY D Smith and D Lewis, University of Victoria, Victoria, precipitation (Stallings, 1937). The first recorded Canada application of dendrochronology occurred in 1737 ª 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. when Du Hamel and De Buffon noted a prominent frost damaged tree ring in recently felled trees that was later recorded in both Sweden and Germany Dendrochronology (Studhalter, 1955, 1956).
    [Show full text]
  • Memorial to Luna B. Leopold (1915–2006) CLAUDIO VITA-FINZI Natural History Museum, London
    Memorial to Luna B. Leopold (1915–2006) CLAUDIO VITA-FINZI Natural History Museum, London Luna B. Leopold’s scientifi c career spanned 70 years. It was primarily devoted to the study of natural river channels, but an abiding concern with the ethical aspects of human land use, which he shared with his father, the pioneering ecologist Aldo Leopold, became more explicit during the last three decades of his life. Leopold was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on 8 October 1915, one of fi ve children, all of whom became naturalists, with three gaining election to the National Academy of Sciences. After a happy, largely rural childhood, during which he acquired many practical skills that proved invaluable in his fi eld studies, Leopold went to the University of Wisconsin, Madison, where he graduated in 1936 with a B.S. in civil engineering. He worked for the U.S. Soil Conservation Service in New Mexico for four years and for the U.S. Army Weather Service for six, during which he received training in meteorology at the University of California at Los Angeles and gained an M.S. in physics– meteorology. Leopold was able to apply and develop these skills at the Pineapple Research Institute in Hawai’i, where he served as chief meteorologist until 1950. That year, Leopold joined the Water Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), but was given leave to complete the graduate studies he had begun some years earlier under Kirk Bryan at Harvard. His Ph.D. thesis was titled, “The erosion problem of the Southwest”, an issue that was to stay with him the rest of his life.
    [Show full text]
  • The Papago Country, As the Term Is Used in This Paper, Is a Region of About 13,000 Square Miles in Southwestern Arizona
    EROSION AND SEDIMENTATION IN THE PAPAGO COUNTRY, ARIZONA, WITH A SKETCH OF THE GEOLOGY. By KIRK BRYAN. INTRODUCTION. The Papago country, as the term is used in this paper, is a region of about 13,000 square miles in southwestern Arizona. As shown on. Plate IX (in pocket), it is bounded on the north by Gila River, on the east and west by Santa Cruz and Colorado rivers, respectively, and on the south by the boundary between the United States and Mexico. It is a part of the'vast region of northern Sonora and southern Arizona which was known to the early Spanish explorers as the Pimerfa Alta, but which later, when the Spaniards came tb distinguish the Papagos or nomadic agriculturists of this region from the more sedentary Sobaipuris .and Pimas of the Santa Cruz and Gila valleys, they called the Papagueria. The mean annual rainfall of the Papago country ranges from 3£ to 11 inches. The mean annual temperature at Tucson is 67° F. and at Yuma 72° F. The mean temperature at Ajo in 1919 was 70° F. The small rainfall and high temperature with consequent excessive evaporation combine to make the region one of the driest parts of the United States, and much of it is, in fact, true desert. .The cli­ matic conditions have produced a striking assemblage of plants, in which large cacti, numerous trees, and woody shrubs are character­ istic.1 This arboreal desert has a deceiving verdure that is in great contrast to the scarcity of watering places. The broad expanse of desert has a characteristic topography.
    [Show full text]
  • Late Holocene Geoarchaeology in the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming 261 Figure 9.1
    9 INTRODUCTION Late Holocene In celebrating a career renowned for defining work Geoarchaeology in the on bison bone beds and Plains Paleoindian culture Bighorn Basin, Wyoming history, I have chosen my role in this volume to remind readers that George Frison’s archaeological roots lie in the dry, dusty rockshelters of Wyoming’s Bighorn Judson Byrd Finley Basin. When we spoke recently about his early expe- riences, George suggested that had he not visited Spring Creek Cave near his Ten Sleep, Wyoming, ranch during the winter of 1953, he might have never pursued the career we reflect on in this volume. As most readers know, that calling, now more than six decades in the making, led George to the most mag- nificent archaeological sites in the northwestern High Plains and Central Rocky Mountains—Paleoindian, Archaic, Late Prehistoric, and Historic alike. I first encountered Spring Creek Cave’s perishable artifacts in the early 1990s as a University of Wyoming fresh- man when my fledgling self was fixed on stone tools as the sole record of past lives. The realization that perishable things survived into the present shifted my own perception of the past in a major way. My perspective shifted again later in my undergraduate education, this time toward geology as George guided me to the works of Kirk Bryan (Bryan and Ray 1940), John Moss (1951), Luna Leopold and John Miller (1954), and, of course, Vance Haynes (1968). Little did I know at the time that, while rockshelters were not central to Vance’s scholarship (but see Haynes and DOI: 10.5876/9781607324539.c009 259 Agogino 1986; Huckell and Haynes 2003), I would trace my future work directly to his legacy, too.
    [Show full text]
  • Kirk Bryan Award for Research Excellence
    2010 MEDALS & AWARDS KIRK BRYAN AWARD staggering.” Rolfe goes far beyond previous Quaternary Science. Dr. Reid Ferring put work in the Central Plains by systematically it best: “In this very real way I believe that FOR RESEARCH investigating the stratigraphic record of (Rolfe) mirrors the standards established by EXCELLENCE valleys through the drainage hierarchy. The the namesake for this award.” We should result is a comprehensive picture of how the all be proud to recognize Rolfe, our friend Presented to region’s entire fluvial system behaved during and colleague, with this, the 2010 GSA Rolfe D. Mandel a period of major environmental change. He Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology uses alluvial and soil stratigraphic studies Division Kirk Bryan Award. supported by a robust radiocarbon chronology to thoroughly demonstrate that response of the fluvial system to climate and vegetation Response by Rolfe D. Mandel changes varied systematically through the Thank you, Alan and Art, for your kind drainage hierarchy. words, and for nominating my article for The second major accomplishment of the 2010 Kirk Bryan Award. I also thank my the paper is resolution of a long-standing friends and colleagues who supported the archaeological debate about the region’s nomination. I feel honored that the QG&G first inhabitants. He applies his extensive Kirk Bryan Award Committee selected me for stratigraphic data set to addressing reasons such recognition, and I am truly humbled to for the apparent paucity of Central Plains be in the company of the previous awardees, Paleoindian sites, while surrounding parts of many of whom are my heroes.
    [Show full text]