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5 July 2009
A geology geek to the core (Accretionary Wedge #18)
Sitting here in Zion National Park, one of the last spots I visited on my first geology field course, I feel like I’m coming full circle to some of the reasons that I’m still doing geology. (I also feel like I could receive wifi through my teeth. Twenty plus wifi points? Really?) Anyway, it’s a perfect chance for me to answer Volcanista’s question: So July’s topic is about your inspiration …
28 January 2009
Best labs for introductory geology courses?
My department will be restructuring some of their introductory geology labs soon, and I was asked my opinion of the labs that I taught last semester. I was pretty brutal about some of them: they were difficult both to teach and to get the students to understand. When you’re spending most of your time apologizing for the shortcomings of a flow chart that the students are supposed to be using …
9 January 2009
Geology and the movies again…or “Why Disney’s Pocahontas Briefly Makes Me Want To Scream At The TV”
This is actually an older post I’ve been sitting on, but I wanted to get something posted this week, even if it’s not about current events. I love watching Disney movies, but occasionally the scientist gets in the way of the nostalgic enjoyment. I was reminded of this when “The Virginia Company” came up on my music player’s shuffle list. Pocahontas, which came out in 1995, is set in an …
1 January 2009
Go for the art, stay for the volcanoes
Happy New Year! Here’s to a successful, productive, safe, and above all fun new year. I’ve recently noticed that I’ve been added to a list of the 100 Best Blogs for Earth Science Scholars, which is quite an honor, and especially since I’m in such great company. Seems like a good way to start off the year to me! A few days ago I went to Washington DC to get …
13 October 2008
Happy Earth Science Week!
I’m a day late, but only because I was visiting Niagara Falls yesterday with my dad – and if that doesn’t fit with this year’s theme (“No Child Left Inside”), I don’t know what does. See the Earth science? See it? Earth Science Week is a yearly outreach campaign run by the American Geological Institute (the people who publish Geotimes-now-Earth-Magazine, run GeoRef, and represent more than 44 other geoscience organizations …
10 September 2008
Close encounters
A few days ago, in the process of selling some unwanted furniture (Craigslist is my new best friend), I found myself in an interesting situation. The gentleman who came to buy my chair and I were making polite conversation; he noticed that I had an out-of-state license plate on my car and I told him that I’d moved here for graduate school. He asked what I was studying, and I …
24 August 2008
Accretionary Wedge #12: Geology as a connector science
Hooray! I finally have both a working computer and internet connection. Definite cause for celebration, since I can now get back to blogging – at least as much as grad school allows, that is. Even more cause for celebration: This is post #100! I think it’s fitting that it should be an Accretionary Wedge entry, since at least part of the reason I started blogging was to connect with other …
14 July 2008
Earth: The Biography – Impressive footage, but lacking in substance
Last night I watched an episode of the BBC’s new series Earth: The Biography, which is currently showing on the National Geographic Channel. The series has 5 episodes – “Atmosphere,” “Ocecans,” “Ice,” “Volcanoes,” and “Rare Planet” – and is hosted by Dr. Iain Stewart of the Science Channel’s Hot Rocks. It’s been pretty heavily promoted by NG, and since it’s a BBC production I’m assuming it’s showing on their science …
15 May 2008
Because Earth science does way more than rock
Here’s a good resource for anyone who’s introducing students to Earth science, trying to keep it in or add it to a curriculum, or anyone who wants to see really cool animations. It’s AGI’s “Why Earth Science” video, which they’ve recently posted on the web. There’s also an accompanying brochure available for downloading in English and Spanish versions.
7 January 2008
Where on (Google) Earth #86
Excitement! After solving my first WoGE (#85, a river in southern Turkey), I’ve been accorded the honor of hosting the next installment. Ladies and gentlemen (and others – because I know at least a few geologists who definitely don’t fit those categories), for your viewing pleasure: The view is oblique to the North at about 4 km altitude; because it may turn out to be pretty easy for some people, …
Jessica Ball is a volcanologist at the U.S. Geological Survey, researching volcanic hydrothermal systems and stability, and doing science communication for the California Volcano Observatory. She previously worked at the Geological Society of America's Washington DC Policy Office, learning about the intersection of Earth science and legislative affairs. Her Mendenhall postdoc and PhD focused on how water affects the stability of volcanoes, and involved both field investigations and numerical modeling applications. Her blogging covers a range of topics, from her experiences in academic geosciences to science outreach and communication to her field and lab work in volcanology.