Earth Sciences Commons^™

Volcanic Ash In Lincoln County, Kansas, Logan Erichsen

SACAD: John Heinrichs Scholarly and Creative Activity Days

This report outlines the analysis of Pearlette volcanic ash in Lincoln County Kansas. Both field and lab methods were used to compile this report. Fort Hays State University alumni Dr. Ron Whitmer allowed use of his property on which the ash is found. Auguring was utilized as the main form of field work which allowed mapping of the subsurface ash layer. The ash was analyzed by UMKC using their scanning electron microscope (SEM). At Fort Hays, the SEM reports were compared to thin sections of the ash using plane and cross polarized light in petrographic microscopes. The ash is comprised …

Glacial Resource Analysis – Castner Glacier, Alaska, Logan Erichsen

SACAD: John Heinrichs Scholarly and Creative Activity Days

Glaciers cover much of the 49th U.S. state of Alaska. While many of these are deep blues, just as many are “rock” glaciers which means the glacier is covered in sediment. This sediment can be transported many miles through the mountain ranges. With the current climate melting these glaciers they are receding. Sediment and rock samples can now be safely collected from different locations where glaciers have released sediment that was locked in the ice for an untold number of years. Much of the USGS data comes from the 1940’s through 1960’s due to the size and remoteness of Alaska. …

Climatology Of Tornadoes In Kansas, John P. Wasinger, Todd Moore

SACAD: John Heinrichs Scholarly and Creative Activity Days

Recent studies report changes to the climatology of tornadoes in the United States (US). Changes with the most supporting evidence include an increase in the intra- and inter-annual variability, increased concentration of tornadoes in bigger outbreaks, and a geographic shift of the densest tornado activity away from Tornado Alley in the Great Plains and toward the Great Lakes and Southeast regions of the US. Broad, national-level changes are valuable, but they can mask changes occurring at the state and sub-state levels where mitigation efforts are most effective. Kansas is of interest due to its reputation as a hotbed of tornado …

Subsurface Mapping Of Intra-Arbuckle Shale In North-West Kansas Using Well Log Data, Cole M. Denny

SACAD: John Heinrichs Scholarly and Creative Activity Days

The aim of this research was to enhance knowledge of Intra-Arbuckle Shale (IAS) distribution and structure through new maps, cross sections, and well log correlations. Understanding the shale(s) ultimately advances the discernment of complex Arbuckle reservoirs that are critical to the Kansas petroleum industry. IAS has been intercepted by oil wells throughout Kansas, but this study focuses on their presence in portions of Ellis, Rooks, Graham, and Trego counties. To study the distribution and structure of IAS, data from micro-resistivity and gamma ray well logs were collected from more than three hundred Arbuckle oil and gas wells. On each well …

Critical Convergence: Mapping The Boundaries Of How Faculty Interrogate Whiteness In The Geoscience Educational Landscape, James E. Hobbs

Educational Leadership & Policy Studies Dissertations

This study examined the role of faculty members in interrogating whiteness within geoscience education. The dominant reliance on whiteness as the primary way of knowing in geoscience education has long perpetuated a singular perspective that serves as a mechanism for reinforcing existing power structures rooted in white supremacy. Drawing on tenets from Critical whiteness Studies, Curriculum Theory, and Transformative Learning Theory, this research investigated U.S. higher education faculty members' strategies and challenges in disrupting whiteness within the geoscience curriculum.

Through critical qualitative narrative inquiry, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with geoscience faculty members across multiple institutions across the United …

Modeled Uranium Series Disequilibria In A Heterogeneous Mantle Underlying Iceland, Dana Andersen

Honors Theses

Regional lithologic heterogeneities in Earth’s mantle may significantly contribute to variations in magma productivity and crustal generation. Such heterogeneities may be a key factor in the anomalously high rates of magmatism and thickened crust of Iceland, which are not fully explained by the presence of a mantle plume. However, the exact lithologic composition of the mantle underlying Iceland is largely unknown. Recent trace element modeling has suggested a two-component melt source beneath Iceland, consisting of a typical upper mantle peridotite mixing with one of several compositions of pyroxenitic material. This study further investigates these potential melt sources by calculating U-series …

Critical Workforce Skills For Bachelor-Level Geoscientists: An Analysis Of Geoscience Job Advertisements, Gregory W. Shafer, K. Viskupic, Anne E. Egger

Geological Sciences Faculty Scholarship

Understanding the skills bachelor-level geoscientists need to enter the workforce is critical to their success. The goal of this study was to identify the workforce skills that are most requested from a broad range of geoscience employers. We collected 3668 job advertisements for bachelor-level geoscientists and used a case-insensitive, code-matching function in Matlab to determine the skills geoscience employers seek. Written communication (67%), field skills (63%), planning (53%), and driving (51%) were most frequently requested. Field skills and data collection were frequently found together in the ads. Written communication skills were common regardless of occupation. Quantitative skills were requested less …

A Mixed Methods Case Study: Effects Of Instructors’ Beliefs On Incorporation Of Sustainability Curriculum At A Midwestern University, Anna Oetting

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The degree to which sustainability is taught is often varied and inconsistent across colleges, departments, and higher education institutions. However, educating students and future generations regarding the different pillars of sustainability, including economic, social, and environmental topics, is increasing in importance and urgency. A mixed methods case study utilized surveys and interviews to investigate why instructors incorporate sustainability, what impacts course incorporation of sustainability, and barriers that instructors face. This study found that instructors’ beliefs regarding the importance of sustainability relate to the extent to which sustainability is incorporated into their curriculum. Topics of sustainability incorporated into a class are …

Analysis Of Skills Sought By Employers Of Bachelors-Level Geoscientists, Gregory Shafer, Karen Viskuptic, Anne E. Egger

Geological Sciences Faculty Scholarship

Bachelors-level geoscientists make up the majority of the geoscience workforce, and positions for entry-level geoscientists are expected to grow rapidly over the next decade, with some jobs anticipating upward of 10% growth (National Center for O*NET Development, 2021). Are geoscience departments adequately preparing undergraduate students to succeed in these positions?

Biochar: Properties And Potential Benefits For Agricultural Soil In Rwanda, Andromede Uwase

Honors Theses

Physical and chemical soil degradation is becoming a major challenge for agricultural productivity in Rwanda, which is the most important part of the country’s economy. The wide spreading soil degradation in Rwanda is mainly a result of naturally poor soils coupled with unsustainable soil management leading to, for example, accelerated soil erosion, acidification, nutrient loss, compaction, and to decreasing yields. Biochar, as an end product of pyrolysis of biomass in the absence of oxygen, has been proposed as a soil amendment in remediation strategies because of its positive effects on soil productivity relevant parameters such as soil pH, structure, nutrient …

Glaciology, Geomorphology Giant Roger Hooke Passes Away At 82, Division Of Marketing And Communications

General University of Maine Publications

Roger Hooke, beloved University of Maine mentor and researcher and giant in the fields of glaciology and geomorphology, died March 10 [2021] at the age of 82.

Hooke joined the School of Earth and Climate Sciences and Climate Change Institute in 2000 as a research professor and adviser. One of Hooke's interests during his time at UMaine involved examining what glacial landforms in Maine revealed about the Laurentide Ice Sheet.

Environmental Activism, Ellen Dexter, Lydia Dexter

Honors Expanded Learning Clubs

An after school book club that follows Greta Thunberg's book of speeches No One is Too Small to Make a Difference , as well as uses hands-on activities to teach the importance of environmental activism.

Emotional Response To Climate Change Learning: An Existential Inquiry, Jennifer Hutchinson

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This qualitative study aims to explore and explain the existential underpinnings of learning about climate change and potential emotional responses to climate change learning. Undergraduate students in environmental sciences and studies classes at the University of Washingrounded theory on in Seattle, WA participated in semi-structured interviews. Participants were asked about their experiences learning about climate change and how they responded emotionally to the learning. This dissertation examines the responses from those interviews and builds a theory out of the data analyzed. Constructivist Grounded theory as outlined by Kathy Charmaz (2014) was used to analyze the interviews. Codes were created and …

Earth News, V43, Winter 2020, University Of Northern Iowa. Department Of Earth And Environmental Sciences.

Earth News

Inside this issue:
--From the Department Head
--Faculty Updates
--Staff Updates
--SGE Chapter News
--Outreach-Global Visit
--Student Recognition
--Sunday at the Quarry
--Student Spotlights
--Student Research
--50th Anniversary
--Alumni Updates
--Homecoming 2019
--Gifts from Alumni & Friends
--Contribution Form

Art And The Environment, Ellen Dexter, Lydia Dexter

Honors Expanded Learning Clubs

After school club that teaches the importance of sustainable practices and conversation activities through art projects and imagination.

Earth News, V42, Summer 2019, University Of Northern Iowa. Department Of Earth And Environmental Sciences.

Earth News

Inside this issue:
--From the Department Head
--Faculty Updates
--SGE Chapter News
--Student Recognition
--Sunday at the Quarry
--Student Spotlight
--Student Research
--Hydrology News
--Faculty and AIPG Awards
--A Trip to New Mexico
--Big Bend 2018
--The Importance of Geology
--Field Work
--Alumni Updates
--Gifts from Alumni & Friends
--Contribution Form

Interview Of Alice L. Hoersch, Ph.D., Alice L. Hoersch Ph.D., Selena Bemak

All Oral Histories

Alice Lynn Hoersch was born in 1950 in Abington, PA to Albert and Alice Hoersch. She moved to Honey Brook, located in Chester County, PA at two-years-old. Hoersch lived in Honey Brook until she finished graduate school in 1977. She attended Honey Brook Elementary School. She graduated as valedictorian from Twin Valley High School in 1968. Hoersch studied geology at Bryn Mawr College, graduating in 1972. She received both her master’s and Ph.D. in metamorphic petrology from Johns Hopkins University in 1974 and 1977, respectively. The same year she obtained her Ph.D., Hoersch began teaching as an assistant professor of …

Ua66/8/2 Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Geography & Geology Centers & Institutes, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Records created by and about Centers and Institutes administered by the Geography & Geology Department. Including:

• Center for Cave & Karst Studies
• Center for Local Government Services
• Hoffman Environmental Research Institute
• Kentucky Climate Center
• Resources Management Institute
• Small Public Water System Technology Center

The Second Decade Of Numeracy: Entering The Seas Of Literacy, H. L. Vacher

Numeracy

This multipurpose editorial explores and tries to count the many types of literacy that are referred to by name in Wikipedia and Numeracy. Wikipedia’s Category:Literacy page identifies 44 kinds of literacy that are the subject of articles, ranging from numeracy and graphicacy to braille literacy and diaspora literacy. In addition, searching Google finds more than 30 adjective-literacy or noun-literacy collocations, including quantitative literacy, adult literacy, and document literacy, that do not have Wikipedia pages of their own but are mentioned on other Wikipedia pages. The sum puts this modest literacy count in line with the more than 70 bodies …

Geological And Environmental Sciences - 2018

Geological and Environmental Sciences News

• Greetings from the Chair
• Faculty Updates
• Welcome to Dinosaur Park - New modules and upcoming additions to the park
• Hydrogeology Field Course
• CoreKids
• Field Course in Marquette
• Advisory Council
• Alumni Achievement Award
• MGRRE (Michigan Geological Repository for Research and Education)
• Michigan Geological Survey
• Student updates - SEG, AAPG, Geology club, Welcome new graduate students
• Department Achievements - Grants, Donors, Awards, and Publications

Improving Spatial Thinking Through Experiential-Based Learning Across International Higher Education Settings, Kyle C. Flynn

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Research in geographic education has a strong focus on the improvement of spatial thinking. For Millennials, spatial thinking curriculum could benefit from the inclusion of experiential-based learning activities. However, as universities are faced with larger class sizes, new approaches need to be incorporated by the instructors to offer improved learning environments. Courses introducing basic geography skills often incorporate lessons concerned with spatial thinking and global perspectives. Thus, the instruction of geographic tools such as Global Positioning Systems (GPS), longitude, latitude, and remote sensing offer prime opportunities for experiential-based learning in geographic pedagogy. This research aimed to employ a low-cost experiential-based …

Forewarned Is Forearmed: Review Of Curbing Catastrophe: Natural Hazards And Risk Reduction In The Modern World By Timothy H. Dixon (2017), Jason Makansi

Numeracy

Timothy H. Dixon. 2017. Curbing Catastrophe: Natural Hazards and Risk Reduction in the Modern World. (New York, NY: Cambridge University Press) 300 pp. ISBN 978-1108113663.

Curbing Catastrophe for the most part lives up to what is claimed in the foreword: “…a compelling account of recent and historical disasters, both natural and human-caused, drawing on common themes and providing a holistic understanding of hazards, disasters, and mitigation for anyone interested in this important and topical subject.” This is a pretty thorough treatment of an extraordinarily complex subject, and the gaps identified in this review should be considered explications more than …

Echoes Of The Past: The Effect Of Background Experience On Far Transfer, Graham H. Hummel-Hall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Far transfer is the application of knowledge learned in one setting to a problem in a very different setting. This multi-method study looked at far transfer in humans and whether it could be facilitated, inhibited, or remain unaffected by the number of courses or years a student at a university spent learning about the subject matter of the knowledge being transferred. Through quantitative and qualitative analysis of pretest and post-test data from an introductory undergraduate earth science course, I found that students with more physical science background experience more frequently engaged in successful and accurate transfer of physics information to …

Msu And Citizen Cate: A High Definition Look At The Sun’S Inner Corona During The 2017 Solar Eclipse Over Hopkinsville, Kentucky., Jessie Anderson, Ethan Caudill

Celebration of Student Scholarship Poster Sessions Archive

No abstract provided.

Earth News, V41, Spring 2018, University Of Northern Iowa. Department Of Earth And Environmental Sciences.

Earth News

Inside this issue:
-- From the Department Head
-- Faculty Updates
-- SGE Newsletter
-- Student Awards
-- Sunday at the Quarry
-- Alumni Spotlight
-- A Unique Honor
-- In Memorium
-- Lake Michigan Ozone Study
-- Student Research
-- Hydrology News
-- Carver Grants
-- 2017-2018 Pictures
-- Alumni-in-Residence
-- Alumni Updates
-- Solar Eclipse Party
-- How Many Snowflakes
-- Geology and Interior Design
-- Beta Project
-- Stem Story
-- Gifts From Alumni & Friends
-- Contribution Form

Ua37/42 Faculty Personal Papers Nina Hammer, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Personal papers of Nina Hammer, Bowling Green Business University Registrar 1938-1963; WKU Registrar 1963-1969.

Extracting Pollen, Spores, And Algae From Paleocene And Eocene Sediments, Kristina F. O'Keefe, Thomas Demchuk, Chris Denison

Celebration of Student Scholarship Poster Sessions Archive

No abstract provided.

Analyzing Thermal And Non-Thermal X-Ray Emission From Supernova Remnant Rcw 86, Mikal T. Gibbs, Thomas G. Pannuti

Celebration of Student Scholarship Poster Sessions Archive

No abstract provided.

Earth News, V40, Spring 2017, University Of Northern Iowa. Department Of Earth And Environmental Sciences.

Earth News

Inside this issue:
-- From the Department Head Siobahn Morgan
-- Department Growth
-- Faculty Updates
-- SGE Newsletter
-- Congratulations 2016
-- Sunday at the Quarry
-- Alumni Spotlight: Aaron Stolley
-- Alumni Spotlight: Allyson Anderson
-- Congratulations to Faculty
-- Carver Grants
-- Hydrology News
-- Student Research
-- Donor Spotlight: Leslie Knapp

A Twenty-Year Look At “Computational Geology,” An Evolving, In-Discipline Course In Quantitative Literacy At The University Of South Florida, Victor J. Ricchezza, H. L. Vacher

Numeracy

Since 1996, the Geology (GLY) program at the USF has offered “Computational Geology” as part of its commitment to prepare undergraduate majors for the quantitative aspects of their field. The course focuses on geological-mathematical problem solving. Over its twenty years, the course has evolved from a GATC (geometry-algebra-trigonometry-calculus) in-discipline capstone to a quantitative literacy (QL) course taught within a natural science major. With the formation of the new School of Geosciences in 2013, the merging departments re-examined their various curricular programs. An online survey of the Geology Alumni Society found that “express quantitative evidence in support of an argument” was …