The 2010-11 LSU Department of Geology & Geophysics
Alumni Magazine
Geology & Geophysics
Geology & Geophysics Magaziner
TABLE OF CONTENTS
EDITOR & DESIGNER Josh Garland Carol Wicks CONTRIBUTORS Emilia Gilbert Ann Marie Marmande Geology & Geophysics faculty, staff, and students The LSU Geology & Geophysics Newsletter is published annually for alumni and friends of the department. This publication reflects information and events occuring between July 1, 2010, and June 30, 2011.
STUDENT NEWS
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FIELD CAMP
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INTERNATIONAL FIELD TRIP
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FACULTY PAGES
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ALUMNI NEWS
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ATRIUM UPDATE
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DEVELOPMENT
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OUTREACH
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Greetings, Alumni!
Letter from the Chair
The faculty, staff, and students from Geology & Geophysics hope you had a good year and a very pleasant summer. We also hope that you enjoy catching up on news from us as you read this Newsletter. We have had a busy year. Dr. Sam Bentley has joined the Department as the holder of the Billy and Ann Harrison Chair in Sedimentary Geology. Sam started in January and within months was featured on CNN. We have included two shorts articles about Sam so you can get to know him better. We hired Dr. Peter Clift, who will hold the McCord Chair in Petroleum Geology. Peter will join us in January 2012. We are looking forward to his arrival. Also, relatively new to G&G in 2011 Josh Garland, Coordinator of Alumni & Corporate Relations. Some of you might have met Josh at 2010 AAPG convention in Houston. As I write this, fall 2011 semester is right around the corner. There will be 61 graduate students (17 PhDs and 44 MS students) in the department. We look forward to welcoming the new students into the program. We will not know undergraduate enrollment until the semester actually starts. However, last year, there were more than 100 undergraduate majors and this fall, enrollments in Sedimentology and in Petrology are more than 40 students each. Our numbers are increasing! After more than 40 years, Dr. Jeffrey Hanor stepped down from teaching in May 2011. He remains active in research and in guiding graduate students through the program, but he no longer has to teach or attend faculty meetings. I must also tell you that Drs. Laurie Anderson and Annette Engel have both accepted faculty positions at other universities - truly losses for the Department. The dedication that Dr. Anderson showed to the department and to the alumni will be very hard to replace. Similarly, Dr. Engel’s dedication to the G&G students will be difficult to replace. As fall starts, we are looking forward to the Rock Star Lagniappe Poster Competition, fall recruiting, arrival of new students, and the general hubbub of campus in the fall! As always, please call or email me if you have questions!
Carol Wicks, Chair Discover Geology at LSU
Student News
Andrew Sampson, 2010-11 AAPG Student Chapter president, and I would like to greet all our alumni of LSU. The 201011 year for AAPG chapter has built upon our strong corporate relations and continued our traditional social events. We also remained involved in helping the Baton Rouge community. The year has also seen growth in the graduate student numbers, which has translated into an increase in AAPG student members, due in no small part to the continued sponsorship of student membership fees by Chevron. Funding and donations have played and will continue to play a key role in the success of our chapter, and I sincerely hope we keep that support as we move through a financially difficult period for all organizations at the University.
AAPG 2010-2011 STUDENT CHAPTER
tion took place in the energy capital Houston in 2011. It was great to see as many students and recent graduates at the LSU alumni reception as there were professors and Tiger alums. I would like to thank Scott Tipple, Elizabeth Chamberlain, and Jeff Fabre for making the trip to Houston with me, exploring the multitude of booths, talks, and events, and representing our students well. We would like to thank Marathon Oil for their donations to help cover the cost of travel to the convention. It wouldn’t be a complete year for the AAPG Chapter if we didn’t have a crawfish boil to cap it all off. Devon Energy has been the sponsor for this traditional spring event, and without their support we would not have been able to continue with it. Another thank you goes to Nicole and Clyde Copeland, who offered their home for the boil. The crawfish boil brought many students, faculty, and Devon employees, including Mark Durkee and Adam D’Aquin, together for a great Saturday afternoon.
My thanks also go to James Crane, current PhD candidate, and his father, Dr. James Crane, a geophysicist with independent Badger Oil, for generously organizing and presenting on “Late Field Development in the HI A309.” Finally, Timothy Mullen of Newfield Exploration joined us late in the year to provide an insightful talk on an assessment of an unconventional play in the The AAPG Student Chapter continues to Eagle Ford shale. Thank you all very much grow and evolve, and with the continufor the support to this organization and its ing support from the students, alumni, purpose. and company sponsors, we can continue to sustain a healthy chapter with plenty It’s not always easy to get people fired up over volunteering and community projects of educational and fun events held each Stacey Halphen, the previous year’s Cor- compared to a tailgate or TGIF, but we were year. Officers for the 2011-12 year are porate Relations Director, will be missed able to bring a few department students out Scott Tipple (President), Jake Daugherty by the department as she moves forward for a Saturday morning trip to a Habitat for (Vice-President), Elizabeth Chamberlain (Secretary), Will Torsch (Treasurer), and Humanity build site last fall. with her new job in LSU Career SerZach Hendershott (Social Chair). Scott vices. We welcome and congratulate her A staple of AAPG is the annual Imperial and I have already spoken to recruiters replacement, Josh Garland, as he settles Barrel Competition through which teams from BP, who seem eager to promote into his new position. Josh and the AAPG from various schools across the nation com- AAPG students through a variety of chapter have been active in bringing compete regionally for a chance at international activities. I am certain that next year panies and recruiters to campus through recognition. LSU completed its third year the LSU AAPG chapter will grow and bethe fall and spring. of the competition, and the results were come even stronger than it is today. Technical presentations, designed to give great. Team members James Crane, Austin students a window into the energy indus- Cardneaux, Will Torsch, Timmon Drumm, and Jake Daugherty gave the judges a very try today, have been a major success for Best Regards, our spring semester. I would like to thank tough decision, and ultimately took second place in the regional division, falling just alumnus Erik Scott of Marathon Oil for Andrew Sampson behind University of Texas at Austin. As it his talk on defining deep water systems 2010-11 AAPG Student Chapter President stands, Texas went on to win the national with spectral decomposition. Angela competition in Houston, so congratulations Thomas and Jennifer Connolly of Shell out of New Orleans were able to present to our team’s excellent effort! their team’s work on production geology The AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibiin deepwater Gulf of Mexico. No stranger to tailgates, LSU boasts some of the finest college football in the nation. AAPG has kept a tradition of inviting the department to a tailgate every fall to cheer on the Tigers during a big home game. Marathon Oil supports the students and faculty at LSU and invited AAPG and the Geology department to join them at their tailgate for the LSU-West Virginia match. Looking forward, Jake Daugherty and James Crane, two active members of the AAPG chapter, have plans to bring us some very exciting tailgates next fall.
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2011 AAPG National Convention: Student Perspectives
Scott Tipple 2010-11 AAPG Student Chapter Officer
My decision to attend AAPG’s 2011 National Convention was mostly born out of curiosity. I wanted to get a firsthand glimpse at what the organization truly was beyond its four-letter acronym and LSU’s local chapter. When I first walked into the George R. Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston, my suspicions were initially met with an organized chaos of industry vendors and a multitude of other oil and gas-related companies demonstrating their newest products with huge, sometimes even 3D, screens at production quality booths. Consequently, I was fairly awed and dizzied my first few hours at the convention until I visited LSU’s booth and received some guidance from Dr. Wicks and Josh Garland. Their assistance soon led me to an astonishing amount of science posters, all of which change daily, and a network of rooms upstairs where talks related to industry and academia occur all day, every day, separated by subject. Needless to say, this added another, albeit more relevant, chaotic dimension to my days. Even so, when I started to truly absorb these talks and posters, I realized how important AAPG and this convention are to the earth sciences. Not only does it give people an outlet to present their research on a more national scale, it brings together all facets of geology, and creates an atmosphere conducive to interdisciplinary discussion and subsequent growth. Overall, the convention was a very enjoyable experience. Now that I have one under my belt, I hope to be in Long Beach, CA, in 2012-but this time, much more prepared.
AAPG National Convention Booth Department of Geology & Geophysics
Jeff Fabre Geology MS Student
Current students and recent alumni gather at the 2011 AAPG LSU Alumni & Friends Reception held in conjuction with the National AAPG Convention.
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Geology & Geophysics Magazine
Student News
As an LSU AAPG Student Chapter officer, I decided it was prudent for our chapter and our student body to be represented at the AAPG Convention. Two other graduate students and I were interested in the recruiting section of the convention, so we drove four hours to Houston to take part in it. While at the convention, I was able to explore and visit many booths, read numerous posters from all over the world, and attend many interesting presentations. I learned more about technical and scientific aspects that are used in the petroleum industry. I also attended the LSU alumni reception, where I was able to meet with current and past students and faculty. The AAPG Convention was an outstanding experience. I hope to attend the convention next year and participate in field trips and recruiting.
Student News
Students’ Future Impact Kathleen Brennan Awarded NSF Graduate Fellowship Kathleen Brennan received a National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship. The program recognizes and supports outstanding students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based master's and doctoral degrees at accredited U.S. institutions.
LSU IBA Team Places 2nd in Regional Competition
Kathleen will recieve three years of support, a $30,000 annual stipend, $10,500 cost-of-education allowance, international research and professional development opportunities, and TeraGrid Supercomputer access.
LSU Geology Students Receive Grants Through AAPG The LSU Department of Geology & Geophysics recognizes Clint Edrington (left), Brendan Headd (middle), Scott Tipple (right), and Hongjiao Yu (not pictured), who were awarded grants recently through AAPG. The grants are explained below: Clint Edrington: The R. Dana Russell Memorial Grant is awarded annually to a deserving graduate student for research in petrology and petrography, or oceanography, through the American Association of Petroleum Geologists Grants-in-Aid program. It is endowed by the AAPG Foundation with a generous contribution from Russell’s friend, Dr. August Goldstein. Brendan Headd: The Edward B. Picou, Jr. named Grant is awarded annually to a deserving student at LSU through the American Association of Petroleum Geologists Grants-in-Aid Program, and is endowed by the AAPG Foundation with generous contributions from Edward B. Picou, Jr. Scott Tipple: The Paul Danheim Nelson Memorial Grant is awarded annually, with first preference given to a deserving graduate student whose study relates to impact geology; environmental geology; resource development, management and conservation, including hydrocarbons; geology of landscapes and formation (buried streams and valleys); or linear pattern geology and/or geologic development of landscapes. This grant is awarded through the American Association of Petroleum Geologists Grants-In-Aid program and is endowed by the AAPG Foundation, through generous contributions from Paul Danheim Nelson. Hongjiao Yu: The Arthur A. Meyerhoff Memorial Grant is awarded annually to two deserving graduate students through the American Association of Petroleum Geologist Grant-in-Aid program. It is endowed by the American Association of Petroleum Geologists Foundation with generous contributions from his friends and associates, with special thanks to Dr. Grover E. Murray for his efforts in contacting the many individuals who contributed toward the grant.
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The 2011 LSU IBA team presented a second place award-winning presentation on Bristol Bay Alaska. The IBA team members consist of (from left to right in above photo) Austin Cardneaux, Jake Daughtery, William Torsch, James Crane, and Timmon Drumm. Ten teams participated in the regional event, including University of Louisiana at Lafayette, University of New Orleans, University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M, University of Houston, Rice University, Stephen F. Austin University, University of Alabama, and Auburn University. The Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies awards the 2nd place LSU IBA team with a $2,000 check and trophy. The AAPG IBA program is an international competition in which University teams of graduate students analyze a complete dataset in six to eight weeks prior to the competition. Each team delivers their results in a 25-minute presentation to a panel of industry experts. The program is rigorous and contributes to AAPG’s mission of promoting petroleum geoscience training and advancing the careers of geoscience students. Students gain valuable experience with an industry dataset and benefit from the feedback from the industry panel. The first place winner of regional competitions advances to the national competition.
Geology Club Update
2010-2011
Scholarship Recipients
Greetings, Alumni!
Charles L. Jones Shane Cone, Christopher Trantham
The Geology Club at LSU is driven by its membership to engage with the community and strive for excellence in every endeavor.
Dr. A. E. “Sandy” Sandberg Kathleen Brannen
The Geology Club visits with elementary through high school students in the Baton Rouge area to share our love and interest in the study of Earth science.
Halliburton Field Camp Carson Allen, Chase Billedeau, Ian Carillo, William Clemenceau, Carter DuVal, Matthew O’Leary, Michael Thoma, Matthew Smith, Vann Smith
The organization’s commitment to service goes beyond outreach within schools. The club also participates in educational events at LSU and around Baton Rouge. Every year, the Geology Club participates in the annual Ocean Commotion event at LSU by organizing and running a geology-related booth that emphasizes hands-on science participation.
Harriet Belchic Field Camp Marielle Ausburn
GeoClub members have also helped with a Boy Scout Merit Badge hike. Our volunteers participate in other regional events, including the Rockin’ the Swamp event at Baton Rouge Bluebonnet Swamp, Girl Scouts Merit Badge Day in St. Francisville, Louisiana, and 4-H Achievement Day.
Howe Memorial Shane Cone Imperial Barrell General Austin Cardneaux Laurice Sistrunk Lindsay Prothro
Thanks, Kathleen Brannen 2010-2011 Geology Club President
Choppin Honors Convocation
Marathon GeoDE Graduate Teresa Brown, Dennis Donaldson Marathon GeoDE Undergraduate Megan Arias, Dakoriye Charles, Amelia Tech Chen Chia, Elizabeth Ingram Marathon Oil Graduate General Will Torsch Marathon Geology Graduate Philip Bergeron, Nicole Copeland Marathon Geophysics James Crane, Laurie Richards Monica Donellan Memorial Dustin Boyd New Orleans Geological Society James Crane Patrick F. Taylor Lindsay Prothro
Awardees, from left to right, along with Dr. Brooks Ellwood: Lindsay O’Neal Prothro, Outstanding Sophomore Shane Gregory Cone, Outstanding Junior Dustin W. Boyd, Outstanding Senior Kathleen Merritt Brannen, Outstanding Undergraduate Research Award
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Student News
Hess Oil Poster Sarah Keenan, Boluwatife Owolana, Carlos Enrique Santos Sr.
Field Camp
2011 FIELD CAMP
Discovering the possibilities in beautiful Colorado
The Field Camp program of 2011 was another great success. This was the 83rd consecutive year that the Charles Barney LSU Geology Field Camp Program has been run at its location in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains near Colorado Springs, Colorado. Our students once again benefited tremendously from their visit to this geologically ideal location to learn. We had 20 senior geology students and 10 freshmen students at camp this year. The senior group consisted of 16 LSU students and four Tulane students. The senior students worked very hard in the hot and dry summer that we had. Dr. Erik Scott joined us at camp for the first week and shared his knowledge of and enthusiasm for sedimentology with the students as they investigated the stratigraphy of the camp property. During the second and third weeks of camp, the seniors worked hard to become expert geologic mappers on the LSU property and at Twin Mountain, near Canon City. During the fourth week of camp, our plans to map the volcanic rocks of the Valles Caldera were changed by the largest wildfire in New Mexico history. We substituted a tour of volcanic features of the southwest including stops in New Mexico, Arizona, and Colorado. The fifth week of camp was spent doing a detailed stratigraphic
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correlation study of the Dakota formation at localities ranging from the Garden of the Gods area to Canon City. During the last week of camp, the seniors camped at Golden Gate Canyon State Park to the west of Denver in order to study and map the metamorphic rocks which are present there. We had a special opportunity this year to partner with Pikes Peak Community College in order to use their GIS lab. The students used their digital data to create very nice digital geologic maps and cross sections. The Freshman Field Camp Program was led this year by Stephanie Welsh. Stephanie is a two-time alumna of the department and is currently an instructor at Southeastern Louisiana University. This was Stephanie’s fourth time at camp – including summers as a kitchen helper, senior student, and TA. The group of 10 students in the freshmen group was made up of five geology majors and five petroleum engineering majors. The group was very enthusiastic and took advantage of the amazing opportunity they had to learn introductory geology in this intensive setting. Their program was highlighted by a weeklong trip to the Grand Canyon. We were joined this year by a new Kitchen Director, Pat Mahon. Pat is the
Geology & Geophysics Magazine
Director of Nutrition at Episcopal High School in Baton Rouge. Pat is used to preparing food for 1,400 students daily and enjoyed his “small batch” cooking at our camp. The food was terrific and blew the students away. Pat has returned to the tradition of serving really good food at camp with a lot of Louisiana favorites. We made some progress with camp renovations in this past off season. The Lower Ferrell cabin was fully renovated. It is now beautiful and in fantastic shape. It is ready to serve us for many more years to come. I hope that this serves as a model for future renovations. We have created another group of Field Camp alumni who will no doubt remember this as one of the best summers of their lives. In addition to having a great time, the opportunity to study field geology in such a perfect setting has truly given them a perspective that they did not previously have and has transformed them into geologists. -Dan Kelley, Field Camp Director
INTERNATIONAL FIELD TRIP: ICELAND Thoughts about the Trip
“Iceland is a tangible geologic masterpiece, with volcanoes strewn across the country, majestic waterfalls, and geothermal hot springs. The small island of 320,000 inhabitants offered a great example of how our planet was formed by the geologic processes occurring right below our feet.”
John Anthony, Junior Geology Major
“I was taught to look for things that I would’ve never thought were important geologically. It seemed like everywhere we were, there was something new to see and learn about.”
Eric Orphys, Sophomore Geology Major
During this past summer intersession, Dr. Dan Kelley taught a fieldbased course on the geology of Iceland. Dr. Kelley, along with Dr. Gary Byerly, took 22 students on an 11-day trip, during which they entirely circled the island. The studentsconsisted of sophomorethrough senior-level geology undergraduates along with both master’s and PhD level graduate students. The class covered a variety of topics, including volcanology, igneous petrology, glaciers, tectonics, geothermal energy, and environmental science. This unique course offered students the ability to study many geologic features which they have not seen before while enjoying the culture of someplace quite different from Louisiana.
“I had the most amazing time learning about the culture and geology of Iceland. It is definitely one of the top places I’ve been and I’ll never forget it.”
Dan Kelley, Field Trip Director
Lindsay Prothro, Junior Geology Major
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Tina Hoang, Non-matriculating graduate student “As someone who normally studies Archean metamorphic rocks, seeing the much younger rocks in Iceland uniquely reinforced the expansiveness of Earth’s history in a way that may not have been possible anywhere else on the planet.” Celina Will, MS student “The Iceland class was a great opportunity because it was fresh, challenging, and informative. We were able to take a hands-on and discussion-based approach to topics that I’ve previously studied in lecture-style classes only.”
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Focus on the Faculty
Sophie Warny’s Remarkable Find
Nothofagus: A Key Genus in Antarctic Eoceand Miocene Cores Kathryn Griener and Sophie Warny Two cores from Antarctica have yielded much information about the presence of Nothofagus in Antarctica in the Eocene and Miocene. Nothofagus pollen has been found through much of two well-dated Antarctica Cores: ANDRILL in the Ross Sea and SHALDRIL in the Weddell Sea.
In the ANDRILL core, pollen from this genus increased by over 60-fold in samples from ~312 to 310 mbsf or ~15.7-15.5 Ma during the Mid-Miocene Climatic Optimum. This abundance of Nothofagus pollen, combined with that of the conifer Podocarpidites, reflects recolonization of the area by stunted woody plants. The terrestrial palynomorphs, including Nothofagus, indicate that summer temperatures reached at least 10°C.
have happened by ~13.85 Ma in the Dry Valleys and after 12.8 Ma in the Antarctic Peninsula. The demise of the vegetation is thought to have occurred as the Antarctic climate became progressively cooler and drier. However, quantifying these changes (e.g., increased aridity) is difficult due to the scarcity of outcrops (i.e., sedimentary features) and associated plant fossils.
A study is currently proposed to combine palynological analysis with a new method Nothofagus pollen is dominant in SHALof isotope analysis, Single Pollen Isotope DRIL Core 3C. The palynomorph assemRatio AnaLysis (SPIRAL), in conjunction blage from Core 3C contains a high level of at least 10 species from the Nothofagus with Nothofagus pollen. This technique will fusca group, which may be partially caused allow us to measure δ13C values in grains of Nothofagus pollen. These values can by windblown pollen from neighboring be used to understand plant water-use efareas. Still, it is believed that this is reflective of a relatively high level of diversity in ficiency. Combining the palynological and isotopic analysis may potentially help to southern beech species. quantify these changes in aridity, as well as, Ongoing research at LSU gauge the response of Nothofagus to these changes in both temperature and aridity. Changes in the plant fossil record show that the Antarctic climate deteriorated To find out more information and references throughout the Neogene, culminating in about this article, please contact Sophie the demise of tundra and the extinction Warny at swarny@lsu.edu. of most plant species on the southernmost continent. This event is believed to
Jeff Hanor’s Extraordinary Achievments Awarded Carleton College’s Receives $278,000 Distinguished Acheivement Award National Science Foundation Grantrant Five members of the Class of 1961 received awards from Carleton at a Spring 2011 convocation. The Distinguished Acheivement Award recognizes alumni for outstanding achievement within a particular field or fields of accomplishment or community service. Jeff Hanor was awarded this honor for his distinguished achievement in geochemistry.
One of the more significant environmental problems facing the Baton Rouge area is the salinization of its groundwater supplies, and the role of the Baton Rouge fault as a conduit-barrier to saltwater encroachment is not completely understood at present. Frank Tsai, Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Jeff Hanor are currently working on these problems. Tsai and Hanor recently received a three-year, $278,000 grant from the Hydrologic Sciences diviJeff is considered to be a world expert on the geochemistry of flu- sion of NSF for the study of “Modeling and epistemic uncertainty ids in sedimentary basins, and the myriad implications that carries analysis of faults as conduit-barriers to fluid flow and salinization in for understanding oild fields, limiting contamination from mining, siliciclastic aquifer systems.” Epistemic uncertainty refers to uncerand more. A number of Jeff’s papers have led the way for whole tainty arising from limitations on the data available in a study. fields of additional research across disciplines. This research complements research currently being supported by a three-year, $218,000 grant Tsai and Hanor received in July In addition, Jeff’s supporters noted that he brings a kindness, openness, and infectious enthusiasium to his work that “lures all 2010 for the study of “Hierarchical Multimodel Saltwater Intrusion types of students into enjoying science” and he is an “outstanding Remediation and Sampling Designs: A BMA Tree Approach”. BMA refers to Bayesian model averaging, a technique designed to help teacher, mentor, and colleague.” account for uncertainty in selecting appropriate groundwater models. MS graduate students Callie Anderson and Elizabeth Chamberlain are currently working with Jeff Hanor on the hydrogeologic aspects of the research projects.
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Sam Bentley Bringing 20+ Years to Departmentt Dr. Bentley, a University of Georgia Alumnus, joins the LSU Geology & Geophysics faculty as an associate professor with over 20 years of combined industry and research experience. Dr. Bentley is the first candidate to hold the Billy and Ann Harrison Chair in Sedimentary Geology. After completing his doctorate in 1998 from the University of Georgia, he joined the LSU Department of Oceanography & Coastal Sciences as an assistant professor. From 2001 to 2007, Dr. Bentley served as an adjunct professor within the LSU Department of Geology & Geophysics and in 2003 was awarded the LSU Excellence in Teaching Award.
Alex Webb Teaching and Tectonics Alex Webb, a structural geologist, joined the department in fall 2008. In his first three years with the department, he has established a research group with three PhD candidates and two master’s students. Alex and the members of his research group spend months in the Himalaya Mountains attempting to decipher the complex tectonic history of the region. One main tool that Alex and the students use is geochronological techniques that he and his students learned in collaboration with colleagues from Germany. Alex spends most summers traveling between field sites in the Himalaya and Germany. During the academic year, Alex teaches the Structural Geology class, including the week-long field trip to Big Bend National Park. This course is required for all geology majors regardless of concentration area. The course is popular with Petroleum Geology majors. When the field trip leaves for Big Bend, Alex usually had four vans full of students and two trailers full of gear.
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Focus on the Faculty
Dr. Bentley’s expertise is in deltaic sedimentology, sediment radiochemistry, and bioturbation. Several accomplishments include past president of the Geological Association of Canada (Newfoundland and Labrador Chapter), 2001 US National Science Foundation Career Award winner, and Co-Author of dozens of geological publications around the world.
Huiming Bao
Sam Bentley
The semester year is highlighted by the excitement of a new discovery made by our group led by PhD student Tao Sun, i.e., thermal-gradient induced non-massdependent isotope fractionation, and by the emotional roller coaster associated with the peer-review process on its publication. I have come to accept the fact that an “unbelievable” discovery is by definition hard to believe for many. This discovery may steer the research focus of my group into a new territory in the next few years.
Please refer to featured article on page 10.
On other fronts, the summer of 2010 was spent mostly in the hills of South Chain and Kimberley of Western Australia. The fieldwork was related to my continued interest in “snowball” Earth condition occurred ~635 million years ago. Meanwhile, we published a paper in the journal Nature on a series of massive sulfate aerosol deposition events ~28 million years ago that were associated with volcanic eruptions in Northern High Plains, North America. The timing of its publication coincided with the April 2010 Iceland eruptions, which closed down almost all air traffics for many days in Europe.
stone belt in South Africa. With colleagues Don Lowe (Stanford) and Christoph Heubeck (Berlin) we have our map of the Barberton Mountains in review with GSA. This reflects over 30 years each for Don and me and nearly two dozen graduate student research projects at LSU and Stanford. We currently have a $500,000 grant from the International Continental Drilling Program to support five scientific cores from Barberton.
Gary Byerly
Last year Dr. Byerly saw Matthew Huber finish his MS on Barberton komatiites, and head off to Vienna to work on his PhD Two new students have started working with me, one on geochronology of the diachronous contact of the Fig Tree and Onverwacht Groups in South Africa; and the other Issaku Kohl and Yongbo Peng received their PhD deon a major unconformity in the middle of the Onverwacht grees and exited our group in early 2011. Kohl is curthat has great potential for understanding the diversity of rently a postdoctoral research at Caltech/JPL and Peng life at 3.4 billion years ago. Melanie (Thompson) Stiegler a lab manager/postdoctoral researcher at University of Maryland. Riding on the same exit wave, outgoing PhD (LSU, BS, 2003; Stanford, PhD, 2009) has joined me as a postdoc continuing her work on the sedimentology, diagenesis, student Tao Sun has accepted the competitive NASA and volcanology of komatiites of the Onverwacht Group. Postdoctoral Fellowship and will start to work at Johnson Space Center in September 2011. Two new graduate We have recently published a third chapter from her thesis, and are working on several others. students, Bryan Killingsworth and Justin Hayles, joined my group this semester year. Byerly is still very active in studies of the Barberton green-
Phil Bart
Byerly currently has $13 million in federal funding to support training of secondary teachers who receive a Masters degree in Natural Sciences at the end of their program. Bylery is also the rector of the Science Residential College, a living-learning experience for 215 LSU freshmen majoring in science and living in Evangeline Hall.
Phil Bart has been a faculty member in the department since 1997. Most of you have probably met Phil at some point during the intervening years. Phil has focused his research program on understanding ice sheet migration Dr. Dutrow’s research efforts continue to focus on underin Ross Sea. Phil teaches History Geology, an introductory course for standing the mineral and textural development of metamorphic rocks through combined computational modeling geology majors and one that satisfies the general education physical science sequence. Phil, and other faculty of heat and mass transport coupled with irreversible thermodynamic modeling. This work provides a new method who teach introductory courses, balances the needs with which to extract time scales of thermal events in the of the majors with the needs of the general education middle crust and highlights the importance of heating rates students-not an easy task. Phil also teaches the very popular Seismic Stratigraphy and Sequence Stratigraphy and fluid flow on mineral development. Field studies provide guidance and constraints to our modeling work. courses that many of the graduate students take.
Barb Dutrow
Faculty
Together with students, they continue to explore and decipher the billion year geologic history contained in metamorphic rocks found in the high wilderness area of the Sawtooth Mountains (SM), ID. MS student Kyle Metz defended his thesis comparing two metamorphic areas in the SM where he discovered significant differences in their pressure-temperature history. As such, the complex likely represents tectonic slices juxtaposed after initial metamorphism during continental collision. These rocks lie at the cratonic edge of ancestral North America and provide insights into the ancient crust and tectonic history at the edge of the NA Cordillera. Dr. Dutrow also worked closely with professional organizations that work diligently to enhance the role of the geosciences. She serves as the Mineralogical Society of America’s representative, as well as chair, of the Elements Executive Committee. Elements is joint publication of 16 international mineralogic, petrologic, and geochemical societies from around the world. During the Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster in March and due to the lack of reliable information, they made available free of charge our issue covering spent nuclear fuel and the Nuclear Power Cycle. It was picked up by the AP as well as the International Radio Broadcasters Association - demonstrating the relevance and importance of our science. Over 2000 additional downloads occurred. She was also elected as Councilor of the Geological Society of America and gave they keynote address for “Teaching Mineralogy” at the International Mineralogical Association meeting in Budapest, Hungary.
Brooks Ellwood Ellwood is working with ex-graduate students Lawrence Febo and Rebecca Tedford; current faculty member Sophie Warny and one of her students, Kevin Jensen; departing faculty member Laurie Anderson; and Emeritus Professor Barun Sen Gupta, plus a host of Floridian geologists, to look at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary exposed in Florida, Alabama, and Mississippi. We have identified the boundary interval and are redoing the lithologic nomenclature. We have tied these sections to the GSSP (Global boundary Stratotype Section and Point) in Italy. The work includes interpretation on climate, sea-level variations, and timing of events to ~10 kyr. Ellwood, along with current PhD student Matthew Clark and faculty members at universities in Ohio, Texas, Vietnam, and China, is working on global mid-late Permian
sequences, with an eye toward understanding the timing of critical extinction events. Funding is from National Science Foundation. With faculty members in other departments at LSU, as well as in industry, we are working on the CenomanianTuronian boundary interval exposed in Colorado, including the GSSP in Pueblo, not too far from our field camp, and sections in England and Germany. We are also working with industry to acquire access to sections in Texas and hopefully secure funding for an additional MS-PhD student for the project. Along with a faculty member in the Center for Energy Studies at LSU, we are working on a stratigraphic problem that appears on its surface to be a simple cyclothemic system in outcrop; using geophysical tools we have identified a complex series of cycles that normally would be completely missed in the geological interpretation of these Pennsylvanian rocks. This work points to the necessity to look toward other methods in geological interpretations and provides many new areas of study. In several of these papers, we are testing the application and reliability of laboratory and field-based geophysical and geochemical methods in climate studies and as proxies for climate variability. This is of interest to academics as well as to folks working in Oil and Gas.
Jeff Hanor This past spring 2011 semester marked the 82nd semester I have been at LSU. Former graduate student Stephanie (“Hit-Girl”) Welch (M.S. 2009, see picture) was kind enough to organize a TGIF beer and pizza party to celebrate the event. She was ably assisted by current grad student Callie (“Red-Mist”) Anderson and several of her student colleagues. Gary Byerly, Sam Bentley, and Barun Sen Gupta made some kind remarks, and a good time was had by all! The spring 2011 semester also marked my last teaching semester at LSU. I will have become a professor emeritus in August and will continue doing research and working with students for a few more eons. I have enjoyed the last 41 years here and the many students, faculty, alumni, and staff I have worked with. In the meantime, the Alumni Association of my undergraduate alma mater, Carleton College, was kind enough to give me a Distinguished Achievement Award for my work as a research scientist and teacher. A surprise, but much appreciated.
Updates
Darrell Henry
Juan Lorenzo
Over the last year the common themes in my research efforts have been on determining the nature of the ancient rocks of Yellowstone National Park (YNP) and on completing some tourmaline studies that have been ongoing.
Juan Lorenzo served as technical chair for the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Meeting in Sao Paolo, Brazil, in August 2010, where he gave a presentation, “Geophysical Characterization of Flood Protection Barriers, New Orleans.” He gave similar presentations in June at the University of Barcelona and the Jaume Almera, National Research Institute for Earth Sciences.
The YNP project is an NSF-funded Research Experience for Undergraduate (REU) program that involved LSU, Montana State University, and University of Florida. During the summer of 2010, 12 undergraduate geoscience students from multiple institutions across the US gathered in Bozeman, MT, together with David Mogk (MSU) and me to investigate the Archean rocks in northern YNP. Scientific activities focused on a ~20 mile transect along the Black Canyon of the Yellowstone River. The field studies included reconnaissance mapping of all major units, contacts, and structures, and follow-on detailed mapping or sampling (e.g., measured stratigraphic sections) in areas of particular interest. The 170 samples collected were processed by the REU students for follow-up petrologic, geochemical and geochronological analysis. During the fall of 2010, each of the REU students returned to their respective campuses and carried on research with their local advisors, and some visited analytical labs to acquire additional data central to the research. Three talks were given at different national meetings on the educational and learning outcomes of the summer 2010 group, and eight additional posters were presented by REU students at the 2011 Rocky Mtn. GSA meeting. Of particular interest is that there are several 2.8-billion-year-old plutons that cut a series of turbidites that contain detrital zircons as old as 3.7 billion years. This last year saw a number of tourmaline projects published. After eight years of effort, the official nomenclature of the tourmaline supergroup minerals was published in American Mineralogist. I was one of the editors of a special volume of Canadian Mineralogist entitled “Tourmaline: an ideal indicator of its host environment,” in which there were 24 contributed papers constituting the 406-page volume. Finally, Barb Dutrow and I are co-editors of a special issue of Elements magazine on Tourmaline that will appear in October, 2011.
Daniel Kelley Please refer to featured article on pages 7-8.
Juan received notification of two new research awards, obtained in collaboration with professors in the Petroleum Engineering Department. Both awards will fund new PhD students and support university overhead expenses. One new project will investigate over the next two years “Alternative Techniques for hydraulic fracturing Monitoring to Maximize Safe Recovery of Shale Gas Resources” and is funded by the Louisiana Board of Regent Industrial Ties Subprogram. Lorenzo as Co-PI, will receive half of the award amount $140,000 . A second project, currently funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, will be sustained for three more years by support from Shell Oil company. As co-PI, Lorenzo will received half of $300,000 for this study which focuses on laboratory-scale seismic experimentation for “Real-Time Integration of Diverse Data for Surveillance, History Matching, and Optimization.”
Jeff Nunn Nunn has a grant from the Louisiana Board of Regents along with Dutrow and researchers in PE and Mathematics to develop a research and graduate training program in geothermal energy. Two students recently completed master’s theses on the geothermal resource potential of a salt structure and adjacent geopressure sediments in Vermillion Parish; and an area of high heat flow in Caddo Parish. Nunn also has been working on the Haynesville in north Louisiana. He is investigating processes of natural hydrofracture and chemical resealing. So far, he has done numerical modeling on geopressure formation associated with disequilibrium compaction and hydrocarbon generation. A new student will gather additional data and do more sophisticated modeling. Another student is studying the Eagle Ford in south Texas. His recent paper on subsidence associated with seasonal groundwater with-
Faculty
drawal, primarily rice farming, in southwest Louisiana shows that subsidence can occur even if there is no long term drop in water levels. Nunn and Tsai in CEE plan to submit an NSF grants to study subsidence associated with fluid withdrawal. Nunn presented work on Google Earth at a workshop at Google’s headquarters in January. He plans to create additional graphical information on Louisiana water usage that will be available online. Nunn continues his long-term collaboration with Hanor on fluid flow and solute transport involving several students working in the Gulf of Mexico and the North Slope of Alaska. Nunn has two new students working on seismic amplitude analysis of data sets donated by industry. Other activities of note include overseeing the ADG program and LSU’s Imperial Barrel Award team, which finished second out of ten teams in the GCAGS regional competition in 2011.
Sophie Warny Sophie Warny is an assistant professor of palynology in the department and curator at LSU’s Museum of Natural Science. She has received one of the most prestigious awards handed out by the National Science Foundation – its CAREER Award, meant to support junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher, mentor, and scholar through outstanding research, scholarship, and educational outreach. Warny’s research focuses on climate change in the historical past of Antarctica. Already, Warny and her research team have discovered a previously unknown Antarctic warm period approximately 15.7 million years ago through the analysis of frozen fossils of pollen and spores, called palynomorphs. The $582,000 that comes with this award shows how important this research is. Warny’s research group is composed of two PhD students, Kate Griener and Marie Thomas. Kate and Marie's research is supported thanks to a generous fellowship from Marathon. Kate works on coupled isotopic and palynological analysis of the Nothofagus genus, as this genus is one of the last ones that survived the climate deterioration in Antarctica. Marie will use palynomorphs to study sedimentary systems offshore Papua New Guinea, a project in collaboration with Dr. Sam Bentley. Warny also has four master's students. Kevin Jensen is conducting a biostratigraphic study of the Eocene/Oligocene boundary at St. Stephen Quarry in Alabama; this project is done in collaboration with BP. Carlos Santos and Sandra Garzon are conducting a palynostratigraphic analysis of upper Cretaceous formations in the Middle Magdalena Valley Basin,
in Colombia. The Middle Magdalena Valley Basin is one of the most productive oil basins in Colombia. Their projects is a collaboration between Warny's lab, Ecopetrol, and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama. Since starting on tenure-track in the department three years ago, she graduated two master's students, Russell Crouch and Lee Foersterling who are now employed with EDG and Devon, respectively. Warny also co-advises one PhD student, Dr. Rebecca Tedford, who is now a biostratigrapher with BP in Houston. Since at LSU, Warny has raised $1,721,140 in grants to support her laboratory. She recently remodeled CENEX, the Center for Excellence in Palynology at LSU.
Alex Webb Please refer to featured article on pages 10.
Carol Wicks Carol Wicks is a professor in the Department of Geology & Geophysics and continues to integrate studies of ecology, geochemistry, and fluid flow in karstic basins. Wicks’ research group includes two PhD candidates, Ben Maas and Randy Paylor, one Master student, Scott TIpple, and one undergraduate major, Ed Lo. Ben is focusing his research efforts on the geochemistry of saline water issuing from springs along the Bromide fault near Bromide Oklahoma. Ben has completed several sampling trips and will write his proposal during fall 2011. Randy is focusing on sediment transport processes in sediment-depleted and sediment-rich cave streams. Randy has a proposal pending with the National Science Foundation and received funding from Geological Society of America. Scott will focus on numerical modeling of dual-density flow along the saline water – fresh water mixing region in the karstic Edwards Aquifer. Scott is funded by GSA, AAPG, and GCAGS. During summer 2011, Scott was a teaching assistant at Field Camp. This will be Scott’s fourth summer at Camp – once in Freshman Camp, Senior Camp, and twice a TA! Ed started in the research group in January 2011. He quickly learned how to operate the laboratory’s ion chromatograph and helped Ben with sample analyses. Ed spent Summer 2011 participating in an NSF-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates at Georgia Tech where he studied flow dynamics around free swimming copepods.
Updates
Faculty Publications & Presentations
Publications Arif, M., Henry, D. J. and Moon, C. (2010) Genesis and mineral exploration significance of Cr-bearing tourmaline from Swat, NW Pakistan. American Mineralogist, 95, 799-809. Bao, Huiming, Yu, Shaocai, and Tong, Daniel Q., 2010, Massive volcanic SO2 oxidation and sulphate aerosol deposition in Cenozoic North America. Nature, doi:10.1038/nature09100 Benedetti, M.M., Haws, J.A., Funk, C.L., Daniels, J.M., Hesp, P.A., Bicho, N.F., Minckley, T.A., Ellwood, B.B., and Forman, S.L., 2010. Late Pleistocene raised beaches of coastal Estremadura, central Portugal, Quaternary Science Reviews, 28, 3428-3447, doi:10.1016/j. quascirev.2009.09.029 Birdwell, J.E., and Engel, A.S. (2010) Characterization of dissolved organic matter in cave and spring waters using UV-Visabsorbance and fluorescence spectroscopies. Organic Geochemistry. 41: 270280. Ellwood, B.B., Kafafy, A., Kassab, A., Abdeldayem, A., Obaidalla, N., Howe, R.W., Sikora, P., 2010. Magnetostratigraphy Susceptibility Used for High Resolution Correlation among Santonian (Upper Cretaceous) Marine Sedimentary Sequences in the U.S. Western Interior Seaway and the Western Sinai Peninsula, Egypt. In Modern Stratigraphic techniques: Theories and Case Histories, eds. Ratcliffe, K. and B. Zaitlin, SEPM Special Publication 94, p. 155-166. Ellwood, B.B., Kafafy, A., Kassab, A., Tomkin, J.H., Abdeldayem, A., Obaidalla, N., Tandall, K.W., and Thompson, D.E., 2010. Magnetostratigraphy susceptibility used for high-resolution correlation among Paleocene-Eocene boundary sequences in Egypt, Spain, and the U.S.A. In Modern Stratigraphic techniques: Theories and Case Histories, eds. Ratcliffe, K. and B. Zaitlin, SEPM Special Publication 94, p. 167-179. Engel, A.S., Meisinger, D.B., Porter, M.L., Payn, R., Schmid, M., Stern, L.A., Schleifer, K.-H., Lee, N.M. (2010) Linking phylogenetic and functional diversity to nutrient spiraling in microbial mats from Lower Kane Cave (USA). The ISME Journal. 4:98–110; doi:10.1038/ ismej.2009.91 Engel, A.S. (2010) Microbial diversity of cave ecosystems, in Barton, L., Mandl, M., and Loy, A. (eds.), Geomicrobiology: Molecular & Environmental Perspectives, Springer. p. 219-238. doi:10.1007/97890-481-9204-5_10. Engel, A.S. (2011) Karst ecosystems, in Reitner, J., and Thiel, V. (eds.), Encyclopedia of Geobiology, Springer Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series (EESS, formerly Kluwer Edition), Berlin Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series, pp. 521-53. DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4020-9212-1. Engel, A.S. (2010) Incorporating the Deepwater Horizon oil spill into geomicrobiology courses. National Association of Geoscience Teachers e-News Magazine. Sept. 2010. <http://nagt.org/nagt/enews/sep10/summers.html> Engel, A.S. (2010) Book Review - Cave Biology: Life in Darkness. Aldemaro Romero: Integrative and Comparative Biology. 50 (4): 689691. doi: 10.1093/icb/icq067 First published online: June 4, 2010.
implications for pathways and mechanisms of solute transport. Geofluids, v. 10, p. 83-93. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-8123.2009.00271.x. Krull-Davatzes, A.E., Byerly, G.R., and Lowe, D.R., 2010, Evidence for a low-O2 Archean atmosphere from nickel-rich chrome spinels in 3.24 Ga impact spherules, Barberton greenstone belt, South Africa, Earth and Planetary Science Letters 296:319-328. Leroy, S.A.G., Warny, S., Lahijani, H., Piovano, E.L., Fanetti, D., and Berger A.R., (2010). The role of geosciences in the improvement of mitigation of natural disasters: five case studies. In: Geophysical Hazards: Minimizing Risk, Maximizing Awareness. Series: International Year of Planet Earth. Beer, Tom (Ed.) 2010, XIX, 262 p. 121 illus., 75 in color., Hardcover. ISBN: 978-90-481-3235-5. Lorenzo, J.M., (2010). Seismology in Sport Seismological Research Letters.V 81/3, 526-529. Mueller, P.A., Wooden, J.L., Mogk, D.W., Henry, D.J. and Bowes, D.L. (2010) Rapid growth of an Archean continent by arc magmatism. Precambrian Research, 183, 70-88. Plessen, B., Harlov, D.J., Henry, D.J. and Guidotti, C.V. (2010) Ammonium loss and nitrogen isotopic fractionation in biotite as a function of metamorphic grade in metapelites from western Maine, USA. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 74, 4759-4771. Schaefer, Martha W.; Schaefer, Bradley E.; Rabinowitz, David L.; Tourtellotte, Suzanne W., (2010), Phase curves of nine Trojan asteroids over a wide range of phase angles, Icarus, Volume 207, Issue 2, p. 699-713 Stiegler-Thompson, M.E., Lowe, D.R., and Byerly, G.R., 2010, The petrogenesis of volcaniclastic komatiites in the Barberton greenstone belt, South Africa: A textural and geochemical study, Journal of Petrology 51:947-972. Tucker, J.M., M.D. Dyar, M.W.Schaefer, S.M. Clegg, R.C. Wiens, (2010) Optimization of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy for rapid geochemical analysis, Chemical Geology 277 (2010) 137–148 Wicks, C.M., Noltie, D.B., Peterson, E.W, and Dogwiler, T., 2010, Disturbance events in streambed habitats of Macrocotyla glandulosa (Kenk),Ecohydrology, v. 3, no., 1, p. 116-125. Yin, A., Dubey, C.S., Kelty, T.K., Webb, A.A.G., Harrison, T.M., Chou, C.Y., Célérier, J., 2010, Geological correlation of the Himalayan orogen and Indian craton: Part 2. Structural geology, geochronology, and tectonic evolution of the Eastern Himalaya. Geological Society of America Bulletin. v. 122, p. 360-395. Yin, A., Dubey, C.S., Webb, A.A.G., Kelty, T.K., Grove, M., Gehrels, G.E., Burgess, W.P., 2010, Geological correlation of the Himalayan orogen and Indian craton: Part 1. Structural geology, U-Pb zircon geochronology, and tectonic evolution of the Shillong Plateau and its neighboring regions in NE India. Geological Society of America Bulletin. v. 122, p. 336-359. Zhou, Chuanming, Bao, Huiming, Peng, Yongbo and Yuan, Xunlai, 2010, Timing the deposition of 17O-depleted barite at the aftermath of Nantuo glacial meltdown in South China. Geology, 38 (10), 903-906.
Ertl, A., Marschall, H.R., Giester, G., Henry, D.J., Ntaflos, T., Schertl, H.P., Reinecke, T., Luvizotto, G.L., Nasdala, L. and Tillmans, E. (2010) Metamorphic ultrahigh-pressure tourmalines: Structure, chemistry, and correlations to PT conditions. American Mineralogist, 95, 1-10.
Dutrow, B., 2010. Minerals in Context: The Earth, Rocks and Society. 2010 International Mineralogical Society, Budapest,Hungary
Hanor, J.S., and Mercer, J.A., (2010) Spatial variations in the salinity of pore waters in northern deep water gulf of Mexico sediments:
Ellwood, B.B., Tomkin, J., Huang, Wei-Hsung, Babcock, Loren, L., and Clark, M., 2010 (invited). High Resolution Magnetostratigra-
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Invited Talks
phy Susceptibility (MS) and Gamma Radiation (GR) Measurements from Cambrian and Cretaceous GSSP Sections: Testing MS and GR Variability in Differing Marine Sedimentary Settings, American Geophysical Union Annual Meeting, San Francisco. Engel, A.S., Jan 11-14. Invited Speaker and Participant, 7th Okazaki Biology Conference: “The Evolution of Symbiotic Systems", Kakegawa, Japan. “Unexpected endosymbiont diversity from lucinids in Thalassia (turtle grass) siliciclastic sediments, Florida and The Bahamas”
Proceedings and Presentations Beltran, L. G., S., Warny, S., Delaparra, P., and Jaramillo, C., 2010. Palynomorphs from Upper Cretaceous sequences in central Colombia: Using paleopalynology as a correlation tool for oil exploration. AAPG Annual Meeting, New Orleans, April 11-14, 2010.
Hesp, P.A., Evans, A., Ellwood, B., Warny, S., da Silva, G., and sen Gupta, B., 2010. Potential submerged Palaeoindian sites in the Gulf of Mexico. American Association of Anthropologists, November, New Orleans. Lucia Garzon Beltran, S., Warny, S., Jaramillo, C., and de la Parra, P., 2010. Santonian to Lower Maastrichtian palynomorphs from central Colombia: correlating strata and deciphering relative sea-level fluctuations of an oil-producing basin. American Association of Stratigraphic Palynologists, Annual Meeting, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Mogk, D., and Dutrow, B., 2010. Exsolution as an Example of Complex-System Behavior. EOS Transactions of the American Geophysical Union. ED21A-0653. Mogk, D.W. and Henry, D. J. (2010) The Yellowstone REU Site Project: Building confidence, competence and capacity. Fall American Geophysical Union Meeting.
Covington, M.D., Banwell, A., Gulley, J., Saar, M.O., Wicks, C.M., Willis, I.C. and N. Arnold (2010). “Recharge-discharge relations for glacial conduit systems: a simple theoretical approach,” Eos Trans. AGU, Fall Meet. Suppl.
Mogk, D. W., Henry, D. J., Mueller, P.A. and Foster, D.A. (2010) Evolution of Precambrian rocks in Yellowstone National Park – An NSF/ REU Site Project. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, 42, 5, 562.
Covington, M.D., Luhmann, A.J., Wicks, C. M. and M.O. Saar (2010). “Process length scales: a conceptual tool for karst hydrogeology, geomorphology, and hydroecology, GSA Annual Meeting.
Mueller, P.A., Wooden, J.L., Mogk, D.W. and Henry, D.J. (2010) Hadean-Archean crustal evolution constrained by trace element abundances and Lu-Hf of detrital zircon. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, 45, 5, 128.
Crane, J., Lorenzo, J. M. 2010 A new impulsive seismic shear wave source for near-surface (0-30 m) seismic studies, Eos Trans. AGU, San Francisco, 13-17 December, Fall Meet. Abstract NS41A-1507. Dutrow, B., Foster, C.T., Gable, C., and Travis, B., 2010. Timescales of contact-regional metamorphic events: Constraints from heat and mass transport modeling. GeoCanada 2010. Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Dutrow, B., Foster, C.T., Gable, C., and Travis, B., 2010. Time-dependent 3-D modeling of contact-regional metamorphism suggests reactions occur in < 1 Ma. 2010 Goldschmidt Conference, GCA. Dutrow, B., Foster, C.T., and Gable, C. 2010. The relation of polymetamorphic textures to transient thermal regimes in regional-contact terranes with multiple intrusions. GSA Abstracts with Programs, vol. 42, no. 5, p. 392. Dutrow, B.L. 2010. Developing visual interpretation of complex geosystems. On the Cutting Edge Workshop, "Developing student understanding of complex systems in the geosciences". http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/complexsystems/workshop2010/dutrow.html Foersterling, L., Warny, S., and Askin, R.A., 2010. Plant and phytoplankton response to the first phase of the Mid Miocene Climatic Optimum in Antarctica. Antarctic Drilling Program meeting, Erice, Italy, April 4-11, 2010. Hannah, M., Raine, I., Warny, S., Askin, R.A., Mohr, B.A.R., 2010. Palynomorphs recovered from the ANDRILL SMS sediment cores provide first proximal environmental characterization of the Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum. Antarctic Drilling Program meeting, Erice, Italy, April 4-11, 2010. Henry, D. J. and Dutrow, B.L. (2010) The course-embedded research project in undergraduate geoscience education: introduction to
Nunn, J., (2010), Geothermal Resource Assessment of the Gueydan Salt Dome and the Adjacent Southeast Gueydan Field, Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, GCAGS transactions, p. 307-324. Nunn, J., (2010), Seasonal Groundwater Withdrawal in Southwestern Louisiana: Implications for Land Subsidence and Resource Management, GCAGS transactions, p. 515-524. Nunn, J., (2010) Delineation of a Produced Water Plume in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana, GCAGS transactions, p. 623-634. Popescu, S., Warny, S., Suc, J.P., 2010. Early Pliocene vegetation distribution in Europe. AGU Fall Meeting, San Francisco, California. Raine, J.I., Askin, R.A., Hannah, M., Mildenhall, D.C., Mohr, B.A.R., Prebble, J.G., Warny, S., 2010. Cenozoic vegetation and climate in coastal Victoria Land. SCAR meeting, Buenos Aires, August 2010. Smolkin, David E, Lorenzo , Juan M. White, Chris Kosar, T., Tyagi, M, Allen, Gabrielle. 2010 Seismic Physical Reservoir Modeling Experiment in a Sand-Tank Facility, Eos Trans. AGU, Foz do Iguassu, Brazil. 8-13 August, Spring Meet. Suppl., Abstract NS- 853347. Tucker, J.M., M. D. Dyar, M. W. Schaefer, S. M. Clegg, R. C. Wiens, Multivariate LIBS analysis of geologic materials, LPSC XVI, abs. #1970 (2010) Turner, R.E., Hooper-Bùi. L.M., Anderson, L., DeLaune, R., Engel, A.S., Fry, B., Overton, E., Sen Gupta, B., Warny, S., and White, J., 2010. Community-level Stressors, Northern Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Conference, New Orleans, Nov. 1-2. Will, C.N., Henry, D.J. and Mueller, P.A. (2010) Barium metasomatism in Archean rocks: Evidence from mafic xenoliths within the Mesoarchean granitic rocks of the Beartooth Mountains of the northern Wyoming Province. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, 42, 5, 308.
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FacultyPublications & Presentations
Henry, D. J. and Dutrow, B.L. (2010) Incorporation of fluorine in tourmaline: internal crystallographic vs. external environmental influences. International Mineralogical Association 2010 Meeting, Budapest, Hungary.
research, development of communication skills and means of programmatic assessment. GeoCanada 2010, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
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Monday, October 10, 2011 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. Minneapolis, MN Hilton, Directorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Row 4
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Monday, April 23, 2012 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. Long Beach, CA Location TBA (Booth #645)
Alumni News Updates from Alumni Kathryn Watts
2011 AAPG
LSU Alumni & Friends Reception
Graduated from the department with her undergraduate in 2006. She went on to The University of Oregon and is finishing her PhD. She has been selected to receive a very prestigious USGS Mendenhall Fellowship.
Travis Atwood Graduated from the department with his masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in Geology (Vertebrate Paleotology). He has recently accepted a position as a science educator at the Bishop Museum, the State Museum of Cultural and Natural History, in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Submit an update to us at geology@lsu.edu and you could be featured in next yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Alumni Magazine! Also, we are updating all alumni email addresses, so please keep us informed!
Barun Sen Gupta
Food At AAPG Alumni & Friends Reception
Harry Roberts & Al Picou
Chester Young & Jeff Nunn
Awarded Prestigious Raymond C. Moore Medal At the recent AAPG/SEPM meeting in Houston, Barun K. Sen Gupta, H. V. Howe Distinguished Professor Emeritus, was awarded the Raymond C. Moore Medal for Excellence in Paleontology. The citation reads: To Barun K. Sen Gupta, in recognition of his fundamental contributions to science in the study of modern and Cenozoic benthic foraminifera and a distinguished career as a respected educator and scientific mentor.
Barun Sen Gupta, Dag Numendol, and Clyde Moore 18
Geology & Geophysics Magazine
Clarence P. Cazalot Jr. and Marathon Oil Corporation Atrium
Posters are displayed along with new tables and chairs in the newly renovated Clarence Jr./Marathon Oil Corporation Atrium Students now are benefiting from a fully renovated Atrium, adorned with 12 new tables, 20 new chairs and dozens of undergraduate posters. Dr. Wicks states, “I have never seen so many students utilize this space until now...it is amazing. Students are constantly studying and interacting in the atruim and now can effectively use the space and feel completely comfortable.”
The van den Bold Scholarship For many students, people of LSU become part of their family. When Michiel “Mike” van den Bold began as an undergraduate, one person was already part of his. Mike’s father, Professor W. A. van den Bold, was a faculty member in G&G from 1958 to 1990. The elder van den Bold taught igneous and metamorphic petrology, advanced historical geology, and introductory geophysics and was an instructor at LSU’s Geology Field Camp in the Front Range of Colorado. The Geology Field Camp was a special place for the van den Bold family. Mike and his siblings grew up spending their summers there, and his undergraduate experience culminated in his attendance in 1983. Mike earned his bachelor’s degree in 1984 and his master’s in 1987 and began his career as a geologist at BP. Recently he retired from Mariner Energy where he served as senior vice president and chief exploration officer. In honor of his time at field camp and of Professor van den Bold’s educational legacy, Mike and his wife, Lea Ann, have established an endowed scholarship for field camp students through the LSU Foundation. “Field Camp is the highpoint of undergraduate education for geology students, and we want to make sure every student can experience it to the fullest,” van den Bold stated. Mike and Lea Ann invite other alumni and friends to contribute to the Professor W. A. van den Bold LSU Geology Field Camp Scholarship. For more information or if you wish to donate please contact the department chair, Dr. Carol Wicks, or Ann Marie Marmande at annmarie@lsu.edu.
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Michiel van den Bold
Patrick F. Taylor Foundation
George Belchic Jr.
Baker Hughes Foundation
Gary Byerly & Maud Walsh
Fred Meendsen Jr.
Angela LaGrange Scott
David Morgan
Barbara Lowery-Yilmaz
Jimmy Whittington
All Other Supporters Alan Ambuehl Byron Ayme Sharon Barrell Robert Bates Laurence Bland Sid Bonner Daniel Bonnet David Bouquet Jerry Bullock Thomas Byrd Hendrik Carleton Ursula Carmena Carolyn Cavaroc
Harrison Curole Luzmaria de Leder William Donnaway Jr. Hindman Doxey Jr. William Drennen III Anthony Duplechin Jr. E H S Technical Solutions Michael Eger John Exnicios Robert Gerdes Harold Green Ted Hampton Stewart Henry
Charles Horne Thomas Isacks Robert Jemison Jr. Walter Kessinger Jr. Donna Klinedinst John Laker Bobby Lane Robert LoPiccolo Pamela Lulich Duncan MacKenzie III Jonathan Marcantel Lawrence Menconi Glen Merrill
Judith Monte Stephen Moshier Stephen Murray Eugene Murrell Linda Pett-Conklin Richard Provensal Norbert Psuty Michael Raymond Robert Reese Timothy Ross Barbara Saffer M. H. Santiago Stacy Smith
Julie Stagg Kathy Vail Amanda Veazey Alan Warren Lynda Whittington Shannon Wiley Rebecca Wolhart Jack Woods George Young Jr.
* Thank you to all of our alumni and corporate partners who have given generously to the Department. Your donations are being used to support the most critical needs in the department, and we hope you continue your support. We make every effort to be as accurate as possible in reporting gifts. If there is an error, please let us know. Names listed reflect donations made to G & G through the LSU Foundation from 7/1/2010 - 6/30/2011.
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Geology & Geophysics Magazine
Development
$5,000 - $ 9,999
Donor Spotlight: James Painter
An Interview with James How would someone describe you? Tall, bald, and loud. I am very positve in life and tend not to panic and reflect on the negative. I am fairly methodical and think ahead for what is needed in the long-term. What do you do when you aren’t working or volunteering? Anything outdoors, mostly hiking and scuba diving.
1980 alumnus James Painter is an ardent and dedicated supporter of LSU Geology. He is the executive vice president of exploration at Cobalt International Energy in Houston, and volunteers with several organizations in the Houston area. He also serves on the College of Science Executive Committee and Geology & Geophysics Advisory Council. James’ involvement increased after joining the College of Science board. “I came in at a time when I was looking to do something more and crossed paths with the newly hired department head, Dr. Carol Wicks. I liked her vision and felt I had ideas to offer as well.”
What’s your fondest memory of LSU Geology & Geophysics? Field camp. It brought together everything that I was taught at LSU in one unified experience that I claim made me the geologist I am today. Where would you like to see the department in the next five years? I hope the department successfully transitions from the professors I had that did so much for me to a new generation of faculty that are just as high caliber.
In May 2011, James contributed $350,000 to the development of the LSU Charles Barney Geology Field Camp What would you tell other alumni who are near Colorado Springs, Colorado. His gift was driven by thinking about making contributions to the his own experience at camp and other exceptional LSU department? alumni whose professional success and philanthropy have inspired him. “Frank Harrison is a legend and pioneer in Find an area that you are passionate about and feel raising funds for field camp. Charles Barney was the first connected to. Frank Harrison’s passion for field camp person to give me a job, and is legendary in generous gifts. I want to follow in their footsteps and continue their is honorable, and when you’re that passionate about tradition,” Painter said. something, its easier to get others on board. From Reflecting on how LSU helped him to be successful, James recalled, “LSU provided the type of preparation that you need in life - different groups of people, unique experiences, and a great education. My advisor, Dr. Morgan, made me take electives that at the time I thought were pointless. Today, my education has taught me more things about the world than I realized at that age.”
his passion and my great field camp experience, I want future geology students going to field camp to have it better than when I was there...and having a little more hot water wouldn’t hurt either!
“I want people to know that the energy levels the faculty, staff, and department head bring are contagious. The Dean of the College of Science, Dr. Kevin Carman, and Dr. Wicks know the type of balance our students need in the curriculum, and I look forward to working closely with them in the future.
Personally, I am recently engaged and look forward to getting married. Professionally, I am not really sure but I do know that I will always be tied to the oil and gas industry.
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What are your plans for the future?
Impacting our Youth:
Graduate Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Education Outreach
In June 2011 a group of third grade students from the LSU Laboratory School and their instructor, Trisha Fos visited the LSU Geology and Geophysics department to view our mineral collections and learn about the field of geology. I volunteered my time to set up a display and answer questions. The display consisted of examples of each of the three basic rock types, as well as various common and economically valuable mineral samples. Students were taught the difference between igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks, and learned a little about the common household uses of minerals. Students also learned about mineral properties including cleavage, though handson breaking of calcite. I was impressed by the students from the moment they walked in. One student immediately identified an unlabeled mineral sample before class discussion. Everyone in the group seemed aware of the basic types of rocks. I was pleasantly surprised by their interest and how much they knew about geology. Most of the questions were about the samples on display and about geology in general. Students expressed sincere interest in learning, with one student even asking about a mineral that we had not covered. Before the students left I told them about how geology is a fun and exciting science that goes beyond just rocks. My hope is that one day at least one of these students will return to LSU with an interest in starting a career in geology. - Justin Hayles 2010-11 Geology Graduate Student
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