Dialing in 5 GPa on a diamond anvil cell
On a visit to the Geophysical Laboratory of the Carnegie Institution, Callan contemplates a diamond anvil cell and with a small adjustment changes the pressure by an extraordinary amount.
The final days of sub-400 ppm carbon dioxide
This is probably the last week our planet’s atmosphere will have less than 400 parts per million of carbon dioxide. When are we going to stop letting this heat-trapping waste gas pile up in our home?
“Making North America,” episode 2: Life
The PBS series NOVA has a new three-part series called “Making North America” that premiered last week. Hosted by the director of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History, Kirk Johnson, the series will explore the tectonic assembly of terranes that resulted in the bedrock of the continent, the panoply of diverse creatures that … Read more
Friday fold: ptygmatic in northern India
Another image from northern India’s Himalayas, courtesy of Martin Schmidt: The “intestine-like” aspect of this fold has a descriptive adjective in geology: ptygmatic. Gorgeous! Thanks for sharing, Martin. Happy Friday!
Norman Bowen’s papers
I got a special treat the week before last – one of my students this semester works at the Geophysical Laboratory of the Carnegie Institution in Washington, DC. During our unit on igneous rocks, he was prompted by the “Bowen’s reaction series” discussion to let me know that Norman Bowen’s notebooks were still extant at … Read more
Friday fold: Himalayas, northern India
My colleague Martin Schmidt of the McDonogh School, who I know through the National Association of Geoscience Teachers eastern section, recently shared a bunch of fold photos with me. They have a “dated” feel because they were originally shot on slide film, but the folds themselves of course are timeless. I’ll be featuring a bunch … Read more
“Making North America,” episode 1: Origins
The PBS series NOVA has a three-part series coming out next week called “Making North America.” Hosted by the director of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History, Kirk Johnson, the series will explore the tectonic assembly of terranes that resulted in the bedrock of the continent, the panoply of diverse creatures that have … Read more
Between the World and Me, by Ta-Nehisi Coates
I have mentioned that I’m on a year-long effort to diversify my reading list. There are so many great books to be consumed, and I’ve been spending far too much time with white, male authors. When I heard a few weeks ago that the new cadre of MacArthur fellows was announced, I read their biographies … Read more
Corridor H virtual field experience
My Historical Geology class was in for a new experience for the semester’s capstone field trip. Before we headed out into the field (to the exceptional roadcuts along Corridor H in Grant and Hardy Counties, West Virginia), we had them examine all the outcrops virtually, in the comfort of the classroom, using digital imagery. I … Read more
Tool marks, trace fossils, and flute casts from the Brallier Formation
Another gem from Saturday’s Historical Geology field trip: the bottom of a fine sandstone bed in the Devonian Brallier Formation, showing a variety of primary sedimentary structures, including tool marks, trace fossils, and several flute casts. Current flow direction here would have been from upper left toward lower right. Here’s a version of the photo … Read more