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In This Issue:
- Departmental News
Geosciences in the Media
University News
Job Opportunity
Upcoming Talks (Geosciences)
Upcoming Talks (UA)
Later Upcoming Talks
DEPARTMENTAL NEWS
From the Head
 Reminder! Please save Friday evening, April 4 for this year’s GeoDaze Party. The party will be from 7 to 10 PM at the Tucson Botanical Gardens, 2150 N. Alvernon Way. Food and drink for all!
Karl W. Flessa
Professor and Head [top]
36th Annual GeoDaze Symposium, Posters and Presentations April 3-4, Field Trip April 5
It's time for the annual GeoDaze Symposium, a student-run showcase of graduate and undergraduate research in the Earth Sciences at the University of Arizona. This year's keynote speaker will be Tekla Harms, who obtained her doctorate from the Department of Geosciences in 1986. This year's field trip will be led by George Davis and will take a close look at the Catalina Granite on the northwest side of the Catalinas. For more information on the symposium, including the schedule for talks and posters, see the link below.
Keynote: Tekla A. Harms, Department of Geology, Amherst College
What: A Map-Scale Sheath Fold in the Tobacco Root Mountains, Montana, and Its Role in the Evolution of
the 1.78-1.72 Ga Big Sky Orogeny
When: Friday, April 4, 3:00-4:00 pm
Where: Memorial Student Union, Ballroom A
Additional Information: http://earth.geo.arizona.edu/geodaze/08/index.php
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Final Call for GeoDaze Pictures
Due to historically low picture turnout thus far, we will extend the deadline for GeoDaze photos through next Tuesday. Get your pictures in now. Here: http://earth.geo.arizona.edu/geodaze/08/slide.php
The slideshow doesn't come together overnight, nor should it, so if you're going to submit photos, please submit them now.
Thanks to all who have contributed so far...please send in more from your Spring Break adventures. Scenic, funny, horrific...we want it all!
Thanks,
Slideshow committee (Alison, Andy, Ryan)
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Owen Davis Selected as Candidate to Represent College of Science in Faculty Senate Primary Election
The Committee on Elections met on March 6, 2008 and has announced the results of the Spring 2008 General Faculty PRIMARY Election, and Owen Davis was selected as a candidate to represent the College of Science. The final selection for senate positions will occur during the second balloting phase, the General Faculty GENERAL Election, which will take place online from March 24-April 3.
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Reminder: Long Term Care Insurance Open Enrollment Ends March 26
The open-enrollment deadline for long-term care insurance is this next Wednesday, March 26. For on-line info, go to http://www.hr.arizona.edu/04_cb/ltc/oeprior.php.
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GEOSCIENCES IN THE MEDIA
Peter Reiners Featured in the Sunday, March 16, Edition of the Arizona Daily Star
Geoscientist likes seeing his subject in plain sight, http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/229938.php
Geoscientist Peter Reiners came from Yale University and the often soggy, relentlessly green East Coast to the University of Arizona and the parched tan of Tucson. He's pleased with the raw, in-your-face geology and nature of this place.
Comment by reader: "Clearly this man smokes A TON of pot."
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UNIVERSITY NEWS
Joaquin Ruiz to Give First Saturday Science Outreach Lecture for B2 Institute
Who: Joaquin Ruiz, Dean of the College of Science and Professor of Geosciences, University of Arizona
What: Earth Evolution: The Formation of Our Planet
When: Saturday, March 22, 1:00 pm
Where: Biosphere 2
The Spring, the B2 Institute is pleased to inaugurate its new Saturday Science outreach program, a series of public lectures and other events on the Biosphere 2 campus. This coming Saturday, March 22, our speaker will be Dr. Joaquin Ruiz, Dean of Science and Professor of Geosciences , who will talk on "Earth Evolution: The Formation of Our Planet." Admission to the lecture is included with the cost of admission to Biosphere 2, and a 50% discount is offered to you and your direct family upon presentation of your CatCard. You may also consider our membership program, which offers unlimited annual visits to Biosphere 2 as well as additional benefits. For more details, consult our website http://www.b2science.org/.
Pierre Meystre
Director, B2 Institute
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JOB OPPORTUNITY
Open Geo-Tech position for Copper Triangle Mining Services, Superior AZ
Job Begins: Immediately
Estimated Pay: $200 per day (depending on experience)
Job Requirements: Picking up core samples, logistics, measuring of core samples, and logging of core data. Applicant must also have a truck preferably with 4 wheel drive.
Contact Information:
Ana Guerrero
Copper Triangle Mining Services
16 N. Magma Ave
Superior, AZ 85273
(520) 689-5200
Coppertriangle@worldlinkisp.com
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UPCOMING TALKS (GEOSCIENCES)
Department of Geosciences Colloquium
Who: Victor Baker, Departments of Geosciences and Hydrology, University of Arizona
What: Megafloods
When: Thursday, March 27, 4:00-5:00 pm
Where: Koffler Building (CBS) Room 216
Semester Schedule: http://www.geo.arizona.edu/events/colloquium.htm
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Joint WRRC/SAGA Seminar, Co-Sponsored by Geosciences and Others
Who: Steven Schneider, Environmental Biology and Global Change, Stanford University
What: Global Warming: Is the Science Settled Enough For Policy?
When: Thursday, March 27, 3:30–5:00 PM
Where: Gallagher Theater, Student Union
The Southern Arizona Geography Association (SAGA) and the Water Resources Research Center (WRRC) at The University of Arizona are sponsoring a talk by Dr. Stephen Schneider, a nationally renowned climate change researcher from Stanford University. A discussion and snacks will follow starting at 5:00 pm in the Presidio Room, 4th floor of the Student Union. All free to the public.
Dr. Schneider is a professor in Environmental Biology and Global Change at Stanford University, founder and editor of the journal Climatic Change. He has authored and co-authored over 450 scientific papers, written numerous books on climate change, etc.
More Information: http://cals.arizona.edu/AZWATER/events.php?rcd_id=58
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UPCOMING TALKS (UA)
Lunar and Planetary Laboratory Colloquium (Tuesday)
Who: Linda Powers, Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Arizona
What: MicroBioengineering: Sensors for Microbial Contamination
When: Tuesday, March 25, 3:30 pm
Where: Kuiper Space Sciences Building Room 308
Semester Schedule: http://www.lpl.arizona.edu/calendar/calendar_plus.php
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Lunar and Planetary Laboratory Evening Lecture Series (Tuesday)
Who: Robert Strom, Lunary and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona
Title: Mercury and the MESSENGER Mission: Preliminary Results from the First Flyby
When: Tuesday, March 25, 7:30-8:30 pm
Where: Kuiper Space Sciences Building Room 308
Semester Schedule: http://www.lpl.arizona.edu/COLPL/
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Hydrology and Water Resources Seminar (Wednesday)
Who: Steve Gorelick, Sustainability and Kisiel Lecturer, Stanford University
Title: Talk Title TBA
When: Wednesday, March 26, 4:00 pm
Where: Harshbarger Building Room 206
Semester Schedule: http://aegir.hwr.arizona.edu/calendar/Seminars/Seminars%202008/HWR%20-%20Fall%202007%20Schedule%20-%202.htm
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Special Lecture, Professional Science Master's Program in Applied Science and Business
Who: Ford Burkhart, Former Foreign News Editor, The New York Times
Title: Selling Science: Writing About Research for Everybody Else, or How to Use The New York Times as Your
Journalism School
When: Wednesday, March 26, 5:15-6:30pm
Where: Marley Building 230
Free and Open to all
What do scientists and others need to know when they become writers of the news and features in the press, and not just consumers? Lessons in good writing about science and technology and related skills are available daily, for $1.25, in the form of The New York Times, along with others parts of the prestige press. This talk will analyze the Times, and how it puts science and other complex news into the world's daily agenda for public discussion. With many examples, the talk will cover how technical science can be turned into compelling and enjoyable journalism. It will include the many ways that a science student can contribute to the media, from the lab and beyond, in corporate or nonprofit work. The media are assets for any business and for a society itself, but more important they are the way a society engages in elevated discourse about its most serious topics.
Ford Burkhart is an independent writer based in Tucson. He worked at The New York Times from 1996 to 2007, mainly on the Foreign Desk and writing occasionally, including Portraits of Grief after 9/11, Voices from the Storm after Hurricane Katrina and science feature obituaries. He has written on science for the University of Arizona and the Research Corporation in Tucson. He has a Ph.D. in public administration from ASU, and has taught writing on several Fulbrights, at the University of Arizona and at Stanford and Columbia Universities. He has also worked for the Los Angeles Times, the Miami Herald and The Associated Press. The Portraits of Grief package won a Pulitzer Prize.
Questions? Contact Alaina Levine at Alaina@u.arizona.edu or 621-3374.
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U.S. Geological Survey Tucson Area Colloquium (Friday)
Who: Jeff Pigati, USGS Earth Surface Processes Team and Geosciences Alumnus
Title: Snails, Ciénegas, and the Science of Paleowetland Deposits
When: Friday, March 28, 10:00-11:00 am
Where: ENRB Building, Room 253A
ABSTRACT: Ground-water discharge deposits, also called “spring” or “wetland” deposits, form in arid environments as water tables rise and breach the ground surface during periods of enhanced effective precipitation. Where preserved, these deposits contain information on the timing and elevation of past ground-water highstands. Spring deposits have been identified in all of the major deserts of North America, but they have been studied in detail at only a handful of localities. I will present the results of recent studies in the San Pedro Valley of southern Arizona, located at the boundary of the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts, and Valley Wells, located in the eastern Mojave Desert. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that hydrologic conditions at both locations remained relatively constant during full glacial times before falling at the end of the late glacial period, rebounding briefly during the Younger Dryas cold event, and falling again at the onset of the Holocene. In sum, our investigations provide records of past hydrologic conditions in the American Southwest, and also further validate the concept of ground-water discharge deposits as recorders of past climate change.
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LATER UPCOMING TALKS
Water Resources Research Center Brown Bag Seminar Thursday, April 3
Who: Sharon Megdal, Director, UA Water Resources Research Center, and Joanna Bate, Graduate Research Assistant
What: Conserve to Enhance: Voluntary Municipal Water Conservation to Support Environmental Restoration
When: Thursday, April 3, 12:00 to 1:30 pm
Where: Sol Resnick Conference Room, Water Resources Research Center, 350 N. Campbell Ave.
Amidst growing demands for water in almost all water use sectors, innovative strategies are needed to meet water needs of the environment. How can we provide water to the environment? And how can we connect residential water conservation with the motivation to restore and enhance riparian areas?
With funding from the United States Bureau of Reclamation, the Water Resources Research Center has explored environmental enhancement efforts in Arizona. With the assistance of former student Andrew Schwarz and many stakeholders, we have developed the Conserve to Enhance mechanism, which is designed to bring the environment to the table as a water customer. The voluntary mechanism connects municipal water conservation to the purchase of water supplies for environmental enhancement projects. Participants that reduce water use can pay for water they did not use, creating a fund to purchase water for environmental purposes. We also propose a simpler program as an alternative. This stage of the project seeks to pilot the Conserve to Enhance mechanism. Sharon Megdal and research assistant Joanna Bate will share with us some of the background work for Conserve to Enhance and describe the opportunities for the future.
To find out more about the project, read the latest Arizona Water Resource Public Policy column, which can be accessed from http://www.ag.arizona.edu/AZWATER/columns.php.
Events Schedule: http://cals.arizona.edu/AZWATER/
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Water Resources Research Center Brown Bag Seminar Monday, April 14
Who: Dr. Pam McRae-Williams, Research Director of Water in Drylands Collaborative Research Centre (WIDCORP),
University of Ballarat, Australia
What: Water in Drylands: Changes Brought About by Major Water Reform in Australia
When: Monday, April 14, 12:00 to 1:30 pm
Where: Sol Resnick Conference Room, Water Resources Research Center, 350 N. Campbell Ave.
The Water in Drylands Collaborative Research Program (WIDCORP) is a flagship research program of the University of Ballarat. It is a multidisciplinary program working collaboratively across the University Research Centres and other research organizations and agencies to study the impact of major water reform in dryland rural regions. The research uses the construction of the Wimmera Mallee Pipeline as a case study. It focuses on identifying water uses and water values, how communities balance the competing demands for water and how communities can best maximize opportunities of the changes in water supply expected from the pipeline.
The presentation will provide an overview of current water reform in Australia. It will then focus on dryland rural regions and describe how these water reforms have or are expected to improve water supply and security. It will outline some of the research done by WIDCORP to date and identify some of the areas of emerging research interest.
Dr. McRae-Williams is the Research Director of WIDCORP. Her role is to lead, integrate and coordinate this research program. She has experience both in academia and through consultancies in environmental management and sciences and regional development.
If anyone would like to meet with Dr. McRae-Williams after the presentation please contact Jane at 792-9591 Ext. 55.
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