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1 December 2023
Friday fold: a Massanutten cross-section from a century ago
The Friday fold digs deep into the historical archives for a near-century old illustration of the geology of the Massanutten mountain system in Virginia’s Valley & Ridge geologic province.
3 November 2023
Friday fold: Neoproterozoic rhyolite (of the Konnarock Formation?)
The Friday fold returns!
Today we join the Virginia Geological Field Conference to look at primary volcanic flow banding in a Neoproterozoic rhyolite, and consider what it might have to tell us about the ancient Snowball Earth glaciations.
22 March 2017
Pocketknife for scale
Geologists often use pocketknives as a sense of scale. Here’s why that may not be such a good idea!
28 October 2013
Monday macrobug: baby stinkbugs
Here’s a recently hatched clutch of stinkbug eggs seen in September on a houseplant that we let live out on the porch for several months: The cute little bugs there are juvenile brown marmorated stinkbugs.
10 October 2012
Dinosaur eggs from Devil’s Coulee, on display at the Royal Tyrrell Museum, Drumheller
Each one is the size (and shape) of a nice sourdough boule – Because they were in a glass case, I couldn’t get a good sense of scale in the same focal plane.
1 August 2011
Commonality contest
Here’s a contest for you: tell me what all the following items have in common. Though there are several sub-themes (readily apparent), I’m looking for the one overriding commonality for all the following 105 items: Hi-Lo Inferno The Good Life Country Squire Wildcat Wilderness Challenger Flair Catalina Sport Alpine Coach Designer Carriage Maxum Wildlife Artic Fox Crested Butte Jazz Copper Canyon Adventure Surveyor Navion Sportsmen New Vision Montana Mirada Pleasure …
Callan Bentley is Associate Professor of Geology at Piedmont Virginia Community College in Charlottesville, Virginia. He is a Fellow of the Geological Society of America. For his work on this blog, the National Association of Geoscience Teachers recognized him with the James Shea Award. He has also won the Outstanding Faculty Award from the State Council on Higher Education in Virginia, and the Biggs Award for Excellence in Geoscience Teaching from the Geoscience Education Division of the Geological Society of America. In previous years, Callan served as a contributing editor at EARTH magazine, President of the Geological Society of Washington and President the Geo2YC division of NAGT.