2012 ® GSA Medals & Awards Presented at the 124th Annual Meeting of the Geological Society of America S 5 November 2012 Charlotte, North Carolina, USA 2012 MEDALS & AWARDS RIP RAPP has conducted geophysical investigations on oriented geophysical classes at UNL, more than a dozen units of the National Park participated in numerous archaeological field ARCHAEOLOGICAL Service ranging from Fort Clatsop and Chaco schools, and was also an instructor for annual GEOLOGY AWARD Canyon to Abraham Lincoln’s Home and National Park Service training courses in Hopewell Culture National Historical Park. His remote sensing; in all these ventures retaining Presented to research has included work at important sites a firm commitment to technical precision John W. Weymouth on St. Catherine’s Island, in South Carolina, and expertise. He presented his findings at Cahokia and Fort des Chartes in Illinois, Spiro, archaeological, geological, and geophysical Deer Creek and Edwards in Oklahoma, and conferences and through publications and the Cowen site in Iowa. Dr. Weymouth has technical reports produced an unparalleled done important work on historic sites ranging body of work spanning four decades that from Fort William in North Dakota, Fort researchers continue to learn from. Atkinson in Nebraska, to Fort Davidson in Missouri and Fort Larned in Kansas. He has worked on historic Indian village sites, pioneer Response By John W. Weymouth farmsteads, and the Rock Creek Station on the Being honored with the Rip Rapp Oregon Trail. Although Dr. Weymouth began Award by the GSA is like being given his research with a focus on magnetic surveys, the cherry on top of the confection since he has also incorporated resistivity and ground I have so thoroughly enjoyed working penetrating radar into his arsenal of skills and with archaeologists on interesting sites. continually refined these techniques, pioneering Back in the early 70’s I was contentedly their use in wide range of prehistoric and teaching Physics and doing research in John W. Weymouth historic contexts in North America, Europe and materials science when archaeologists of my Professor Emeritus, University of Nebraska Japan. acquaintance at the University of Nebraska Dr. Weymouth’s most recent work has challenged me with some science problems been the mapping of a major Ohio Hopewell in their discipline. Out of my reading, talking earthwork with a cesium gradiometer. His and thinking on these problems I developed a Citation by Mark Lynott work has demonstrated the importance of seminar course in “Science in Archaeology”. and Rinita Dalan geophysics for re-mapping and relocating With such a broad title we could study a wide prehistoric earthwork sites that have been range of applications. I did some research in The 2012 recipient of the Rip Rapp severely degraded by two centuries of x-ray diffraction of ceramics but it became Award in archaeological geology is John agriculture. Dr. Weymouth’s work has inspired clear that there was a need to develop tools Weymouth. John completed his Ph.D. in the efforts of younger scholars to learn about and field expertise in evaluating sites being Physics at the University of California- the use of geophysics in archaeology and considered for excavation. The literature Berkeley in 1951. Throughout the 1960’s, he his efforts have transformed geophysical showed me that magnetic surveying of sites explored the application of x-ray diffraction prospection in North America from a type had been pioneered in Europe and should to archaeological ceramics. In the 1970s of special analysis to an invaluable and be able to be used in this country. There he shifted his research to the application standard component of contemporary followed years of development of instruments of geophysical sensing techniques in archaeology. He has consulted with countless and field work at various sites in this country archaeology. At that time, John was part of archaeologists and repeatedly demonstrated and in Japan and Greece. Working with a a small number of international scientists the important role of geophysical prospection wide variety of archaeologists and students with training in physics that were working to in archaeological research. has been very satisfying. It is especially develop instruments and methods that would In sum, Dr. Weymouth’s ground- gratifying that one of my PhD students is now help archaeologists locate subsurface features breaking work paved the road for geophysical a professor of Physics teaching and working at archaeological sites. applications in archaeology. His meticulous and in magnetic prospection in Greece on Crete. John’s pioneering work, to use prolific studies demonstrated the usefulness of I wish, particularly, to thank Drs. Rolf magnetometers as a survey tool for subsurface these techniques for a wide range of prehistoric Mandel, Mark Lynott, Rinita Dalan and mapping of archaeological features, was and historic sites and inspired others to follow George Rapp for their input to this award conducted throughout the United States and in his wake. He served as a bridge between the and to thank in general the many others Europe and demonstrated the essential need for geophysical community and archaeologists, with whom I have had the privilege to geophysical surveys in advance of archaeological establishing and encouraging connections with work and agonize over data and equipment excavations. His most notable early contributions archaeological practitioners on a national, breakdowns. The award helps to emphasize were magnetometer survey at Sakakawea but also on an international, level. He served the importance of applying geophysical Village at Knife River Indian Villages in North as both teacher and scholar in developing methods to investigation of sites and to Dakota, and Walth Bay site at Oahe Reservoir geophysical techniques for archaeological encouraging the wider use of such methods to near Mobridge, South Dakota. These important application, working closely with National extend sound site evaluation. studies introduced North American archaeologists Park Service staff, mentoring students at Thanks again to George Rapp for creating to the potential of geophysics for improving University of Nebraska-Lincoln and elsewhere, this award to encourage interdisciplinary archaeological research. and collaborating with many archaeologists efforts across the barriers that sometimes seem Much of John Weymouth’s work has been and geophysists. He taught archaeologically- to isolate areas of research. in assistance to the National Park Service. He THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2012 MEDALS & AWARDS GILBERT H. CADY U.S. coal resources. The coal characterization Response by Leslie F. Ruppert efforts fully integrated knowledge of I would like to thank the Coal Geology AWARD mined-out areas and coal quality issues in Division of GSA for this award. It’s an honor a comprehensive analysis of the resources. Presented to I never expected to receive, so I am surprised These innovative studies were published Leslie “Jingle” Ruppert and deeply appreciative. I also thank Jim as USGS Professional Papers and were Hower, my colleague and often co-author, for summarized in a 2002 paper in International nominating me to join the illustrious company Journal of Coal Geology. of Gilbert H. Cady award recipients. Through her career, she has been a Unlike many of my colleagues, I valued colleague to people both in and stumbled into a career in geology. As a out of the USGS. Perhaps nowhere is this philosophy major, I needed six science collaboration more evident than in Kentucky credits. My future husband suggested I where she has a long history of cooperation should choose either rocks or stars: I picked in coal assessment and quality studies with rocks. With great trepidation, I signed up for the Kentucky Geological Survey and the Introductory Geology with Geza Telecki at Center for Applied Energy Research and in GWU, and my future career suddenly came West Virginia where she has worked closely into view. Later, Roy Lindholm opened my with the state geological survey on coal eyes and my imagination to sedimentary assessment and coalbed methane projects. geology and I thank him to this day. With respect to coalbed methane and gas At USGS, I have benefitted from shale, she is collaborating with physicists from collaboration with many extraordinarily Leslie “Jingle” Ruppert CSIRO, Australia, in the use of the Extended U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA talented scientists, both inside and outside Q-Range Small-Angle Neutron Scattering the Survey. In my first project, I was part Diffractometer (EQ-SANS) instrument at of a team that included Blaine Cecil, Ron Oak Ridge National Lab (ORNL) to examine Stanton and Brenda Pierce. Later, I had the how pores in gas shales are connected. pleasure of working with Sue Tewalt (USGS) Citation by James C. Hower Jingle is also using the Ultra Small Angle and State geological survey scientists on the Neutron Scattering (USANS ) instrument Leslie “Jingle” Ruppert was born on 14 Appalachian coal assessment. at the National Institute of Standards and June 1953 in Washington, DC. Through her There have been many memorable Technology (NIST) to identify the amount of +30-year career at the U.S. Geological Survey, moments along the way, but in addition to internal volume of the shale that is accessible she has distinguished herself through her work those mentioned above, I’ve benefited from to methane. in coal geochemistry and mineralogy, coal working with international colleagues. In Most recently, she compiled coal rank geology, coal resource evaluation, and coalbed 1989, my USGS colleague Tim Moore, data from throughout the Appalachians from methane. moved to New Zealand. With the help of varied sources and, working with regional Jingle got her BS and MS degrees from the early Internet, we completed a paper on experts, developed Pennsylvanian thermal George Washington University in 1979 and Indonesian peats - online! No more “paper maturation maps to complement thermal 1987, respectively. Upon joining the U.S has not yet been received” excuses.