HISTORY OF GEOLOGY SESSIONS

Note that the annual Luncheon and Awards Presentation is on SUNDAY.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

GSA History of Geology Division Luncheon & Awards Reception, 12:00 Noon - 2:00 PM

Colorado Convention Center, Room 204 Ticket Cost: $33

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2004

8:00 AM - 12:00 Noon,  Colorado Convention Center: 601

T57. The Concept of Layer-Cake Stratigraphy-Then and Now. GSA History of Geology Division; GSA Sedimentary Geology Division. Charles W. Byers, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Presiding.

The concept of layer-cake (time-parallel) stratigraphy was widely accepted during the nineteenth century. It was eclipsed by the facies concept for decades but has made a resurgence in the guise of sequence and event stratigraphy.

Paper #  Start Time

              8:00 AM       Introductory Remarks

77-1       8:15 AM       Petit-fours rather than layer cakes: American geologists’ thinking on stratigraphy in the first half of the Nineteenth Century. Newell, Julie R., Social and International Studies Program, Southern Polytechnic State Univ, jnewell@spsu.edu

77-2       8:30 AM       Layercake stratigraphy in the American West: Perspectives from the Powell, Hayden and King surveys. Aalto, K.R., Geology, Humboldt State Univ, kra1@axe.humboldt.edu

77-3       8:45 AM      The icing on the cake - glaciology in Europe and America: Frank Leverett’s year abroad with Penck, Bruckner and other glaciologists. Baclawski, Diane, Geology Library, Michigan State Univ, baclaws2@msu.edu

77-4       9:00 AM       Kleinpell’s biostratigraphic analysis of California’s Miocene strata: his alternative to layer cake stratigraphy. Berry, William B.N., Earth and Planetary Science, Univ of California, bberry@uclink.berkeley.edu

77-5       9:15 AM       Anticipating the sequence lesson: K.M. Waage’s approach to the Dakota problem in the Black Hills. Byers, C.W., Dept. of Geology & Geophysics, Univ of Wisconsin, cwbyers@geology.wisc.edu

77-6       9:30 AM       Greenhorn Limestone (Cretaceous, U.S. Western Interior): Case study in layer-cake stratigraphy. Hattin, Donald E., Indiana University - Bloomington, hattin@indiana.edu

77-7       9:45 AM       Eo-Ulrichian to Neo-Ulrichian views: The renaissance of "layer cake stratigraphy." Brett, Carlton E. and McLaughlin, Patrick I., Dept of Geology, Univ of Cincinnati, carlton.brett@uc.edu

              10:00 AM     Break

77-8       10:15 AM       Paleozoic cratonic stratigraphy in the North American continental heartland, a complex "layer cake." Witzke, Brian J., Iowa Dept of Natural Resources, Iowa Geol Survey, bwitzke@igsb.uiowa.edu and Ludvigson, Greg A., Iowa Dept of Natural Resources.

77-9       10:30 AM       Cambrian sheet sandstones of the cratonic interior of North America; Using classic methods toward a "modern" stratigraphic understanding. Runkel, A.C., Minnesota Geological Survey, Univ of Minnesota, runke001@tc.umn.edu Miller, James F., Dept of Geography, Geology, and Planning, Southwest Missouri State Univ; McKay, R.M., Geological Survey Bureau, Iowa Dept of Nat Res; Palmer, Allison R., Institute for Cambrian Studies; and Taylor, John F., Geoscience Dept, Indiana Univ of Pennsylvania.

77-10      10:45 AM      Decorah Formation of the Upper Mississippi Valley: Facies versus key-bed correlation. Emerson, Norlene R., Dept Geol/Geog, Univ of Wisconsin - Richland, nemerson@uwc.edu and Byers, C.W., Dept of Geol and Geophysics, Univ of Wisconsin.

77-11      11:00 AM      Layer-cake stratigraphy from the geobakery or the classic flatland geology of the MidContinent (USA). Merriam, D.F., Kansas Geol Survey, Univ of Kansas, dmerriam@kgs.ku.edu

77-12      11:15 AM      Clarifying 50 years of definitions ascribed to the maximum flooding surface with fuzzy if-then classifiers and inference systems. Parcell, William C., Dept of Geology, Wichita State Univ, william.parcell@wichita.edu

77-13      11:30 AM       Plio-Pleistocence cyclothemic layer cake stratigraphy in eastern North Island, New Zealand. Haywick, Douglas W., Earth Sciences, Univeristy of South Alabama, dhaywick@jaguar1.usouthal.edu

                11:45 AM      Discussion

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History of Geology and Earth Sciences History

Gary D. Rosenberg and Lillian Hess Tanguay, Presiding

Paper #   Start Time
100-1      1:30 PM       Nicolaus Steno’s "Chaos." An overlooked document from the 17th Century sheds light on geology’s place in the scientific and religious revolutions of western Europe. Rosenberg, Gary D., Indiana Univ-Purdue Univ, grosenbe@iupui.edu

100-2      1:45 PM      The rocks of the description de l’Égypte. Hess Tanguay, Lillian, Earth and Environmental Science, Long Island Univ, C.W. Post Campus, lhess@liu.edu

100-3      2:00 PM      Charles Lyell, geologic change and "causes now in operation." Breyer, John A., Dept of Geology, Texas Christian Univ, j.breyer@tcu.edu

100-4      2:15 PM      The Charles H. Sternberg family and their unknown Park University fossil collection. Hageman, Scott A., Dept of Geology, Park University, scott.hageman@park.edu and Hoffman, Brian L., Dept of Biology, Park University.

100-5      2:30 PM      The graphic innovations of geologist Henry T. De la Beche. Clary, Renee M., Geology, Univ of Louisiana at Lafayette, geo-ed@louisiana.edu and Wandersee, James H., Curriculum and Instruction, Louisiana State Univ.

100-6      2:45 PM      Is William F. Buckland the first geobiologist? Wandersee, James H., Dept of Curric & Instruction, Louisiana State Univ, jwander@lsu.edu and Clary, Renee M., Geology, Univ of Louisiana at Lafayette.

                3:00 PM      Break

100-7      3:15 PM       Murchison’s fieldwork methodology: An example from southern Norway. Diemer, John A., Geog and Earth Sciences, UNC-Charlotte, jadiemer@email.uncc.edu and Collie, Michael, Nottingham, England.

100-8      3:30 PM      ASuch a section as never was put together before": Logan, Dawson, Lyell, and mid-Nineteenth Century measurements of the Joggins section. Rygel, Michael C., Dept of Earth Sciences, Dalhousie Univ, Halifax, Canada mike_rygel@hotmail.com and Shipley, Brian C., Dept of History, Dalhousie Univ, Halifax [History of Geology STUDENT AWARD-2005] {Correction-Brian Shipley is also a graduate student at Dalhousie University, not Mike= s major advisor as stated in the last newsletter. My apologies to Brian. - Bill}

100-9      3:45 PM      William Phipps Blake and the 1857 Wagon Road Survey: A geological excursion among mules, camels, Indians and the Army. Testa, Stephen Michael, Testa Environmental Corporation, stesta@goldrush.com

100-10     4:00 PM      Henry S. Williams and James Hall - a close encounter of the real kind. Brice, William R., Geology & Planetary Science, Univ of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, wbrice@pitt.edu

100-11     4:15 PM      The 1921-22 Shaler Memorial Expedition to South Africa: R.A. Daly’s influence on Bushveld pioneers. G. A. F. Molengraaff and A. L. Hall. Elston, Wolfgang E., Earth and Planetary Sciences, Univ of New Mexico, welston@attglobal.net

100-12      4:30 PM      Why was Rudolf Richter’s Aktuopaläontologie not embraced by U.S. paleontologists? Lewis, Ronald D., Geol and Geog, Auburn Univ, lewisrd@auburn.edu

On Monday afternoon, starting immediately after the HoG General Session, the annual HoG and HESS reception will be held with its usual A munchies@ and drinks, including beer, I would imagine. Wouldn= t be a geology gathering without the latter beverage. We will make a special announcement at the reception. If everyone remembers to bring an item, we will have our usual door prize drawing for the students.

REMINDER: Please notify Bill if you have an item which you can bring for the drawing. We need enough to make it interesting for the students. Also remember to invite people to join us on Monday evening, it is always a fun time. Starting time: 5:00 PM.

HESS MEMBERS, there will be a short HESS meeting following the reception in 202 CCC. So please stay after the reception. Thanks.

T60 Sedimentary Geology and Earth History: Retrospective and Prospective: In Honor of the Career and Contributions of Robert H. Dott Jr. - POSTER PRESENTATIONS. GSA Sedimentary Geology Division; GSA History of Geology Division. Joanne Bourgeois, Univ of Washington; Marjorie A. Chan, Univ of Utah; Gary Kocurek, Univ of Texas, Austin.

Bob Dott's career has spanned important changes in sedimentary geology and Earth's history and in the philosophy of geology. Students and colleagues of Bob Dott will reflect on those changes, and on his research and educational contributions.

Paper #  Booth #
157-1     143      A commitment to public geoscience education: Robert H. Dott, Jr. Attig, John W. and Hunt, Susan Lawton, Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey, Univ of Wisconsin, jwattig@facstaff.wisc.edu

157-2      144      Evolution of evolution of the Earth. Bourgeois, Joanne, Univ of Washington, jbourgeo@u.washington.edu

157-3      145      Build-and-fill: A stratigraphic pattern induced in cyclic sequences by sea level and paleotopography. Franseen, Evan K., Kansas Geol Survey, Univ of Kansas, evanf@kgs.ukans.edu and Goldstein, Robert H., Geology, Univ of Kansas.

157-4      146      Pennsylvanian limestones and their significance in southeastern Ohio. Nadon, Gregory C., Geol Sciences, Ohio Univ, nadon@ohio.edu and Heckel, Phillip H., Dept of Geoscience, Univ of Iowa.

157-5      147      Precambrian smectite of the Neoproterozoic Doushantuo Formation China. Bristow, Thomas F. and Kennedy, Martin J., Dept of Earth Sciences, Univ of California, Riverside, tbris001@student.ucr.edu

157-6      148      Eolian pin stripes in the Navajo Sandstone: Origin, disruption, and reconstitution. Loope, David B., Univ Nebraska - Lincoln, dloope1@unl.edu

157-7      149      Natural dams and floods of legend at Mount Baker volcano - evidence from volcanic stratigraphy of the Sherman Crater eruptive period (AD 1843 to Present). Scott, Kevin M., Cascade Volcano Observatory, US Geol Survey, kscott@usgs.gov and Tucker, David S., Geology Dept, Western Washington Univ.

If you’d like to hear more about the contributions of O.E. Meinzer or John G. Ferris or learn about groundwater pollution from 1899-1945, topical session T5: "Groundwater Depletion and Overexploitation in the Denver Basin Bedrock Aquifers" is the place to be; papers on these topics will be presented at 4:45, 5:00, and 5:15 pm, respectively, in Rm 207 of the Colorado Convention Center, with Peter Barkmann and John Ezra Moore presiding.

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HELP CELEBRATE THE EARTH= S BIRTHDAY
GEO-FAKES, FRAUDS AND HOAXES

Join the History of Geology Group at Burlington House, Geological Society of London, on October 22, 2004.  Get the latest on the Beringer Fossils, the Piltdown hoax, many other geological fakes and frauds, and celebrate the Earth= s birthday, according to Bishop Ussher, as well. It should be a splendid time. For more details, contact Cherry Lewis at Cherry.Lewis@bristol.ac.uk

PETROLEUM HISTORY INSTITUTE            APRIL 6-9, 2005

The PHI will be hosting a symposium and field trips April 6-9, 2005 in Morgantown, West Virginia, relating to the history of the oil and gas industry, local, nationwide, and world-wide. The meeting is open to members of PHI and non-members alike and should have interest for both professionals and lay-persons. The last PHI meeting was in Shreveport, Louisiana in March 2003, and all who attended were treated to some fine papers and great field trips. The Morgantown meeting is shaping up to be just as exciting. The call for papers has been issued, so please submit an abstract and plan to attend, enjoy the spring in West Virginia. Contact: Larry Woodfork, P.O. Box 4458, Star City, WV 26504-4458; woodfork@earthlink.net or Bill Brice wbrice@pitt.edu

JOINT GSA/GSC MEETING            AUGUST 8-11, 2005

Dear Colleagues,

Next summer, the Geological Society of America and the Geological Association of Canada will be hosting the second Earth System Processes meeting. Chris Beaumont, Don Canfield and I have taken the reins from the Ians (Dalziel and Fairchild) as co-chairs of this meeting, a follow-up to the very successful ESP-1 meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland, 2001. Because we know that August is a very precious time of year, we want to let you know well in advance of the meeting so you could mark it on your calendars.

WHEN AND WHERE? Earth System Processes 2, Calgary, Alberta Canada, August 8-11, 2005.

As with ESP-1, the upcoming meeting focuses on interactions in the Earth system, addressing problems in Ancient Earth Systems, Modern Earth System Processes, and Earth System Futures.

For those of you who did not attend the first Earth Surface Processes meeting, you may wish to visit the following website http://www.geosociety.org/meetings/edinburgh/index.htm In particular, follow the Media Coverage link to see how well the meeting was received.

And, most importantly, we hope to see you in Calgary. There's no more beautiful place to be in the summer than the Canadian Rockies; collectively, we give it three thumbs up! Please plan to extend your stay for field trips, field work, or vacation.

Sincerely, Lee Kump; for Chris Beaumont and Don Canfield

GSA – PHILADELPHIA            OCTOBER 22-25, 2006 CALL FOR PAPERS

"Nicolaus Steno and the Scientific and Religious Revolutions," a symposium proposed for the 2006 Geological Society of America Annual Meeting in Philadelphia. A proceedings volume is proposed. For further information: Gary D. Rosenberg, Geology Department, Indiana University-Purdue University, 723 W. Michigan St., Indianapolis, IN 46202-5132; grosenbe@iupui.edu tel: (317) 274-7468 or (317) 274-7484 (Secty); fax: (317) 274-7966.

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MEETINGS PAST:

Sally Newcomb

Thirty five people from eleven countries participated in the Inhigeo field trip following the 32^nd International Geological Congress meeting in Florence. They were from: USA, 6; Russia, 3; Australia, 3; UK, 5; Lithuania, 1; Denmark, 1; Italy, 6; New Zealand, 1; Germany, 2; Japan, 5; Portugal, 1; and France, 1. Ken Bork is the newly elected Secretary-General of the organization, and Philippe Taquet is now the president. The organizers and leaders were Nicoletta Morello and Ezio Vaccari, with frequent assistance from Kathleen Histon, Claudia Principe, and Gian Battista Vai. The bus Danti, with its able driver, was our transportation, connecting point, and enabler. It turned tight corners, found places to park, delivered and collected us, and was always there when needed, from early morning until (sometimes) after midnight. This was not as simple as people from A the wide open spaces@ might think. Besides the difficulties of accessing outcrops and quarries, most Italian cities ban cars and buses from at least the central city, and even Danti couldn= t walk on water in Venice.

A short report such as this cannot begin to do justice to the beauty of northern Italy, the charm of cities in place for hundreds of years, and the uniquely Italian blend of art, history, and landscape. Our extensive walking was more than compensated for by wonderful food, as well as a generous introduction to Italian wines. We had dinner at one winery and were given a tour of another, with sampling encouraged. And oh yes, there was geology, and history of geology!

We left Pisa for Campiglia Marittima, where we had an excellent guide and interpreter at the national park. There we toured a mine that was a composite of the history of metals mining in the region, and then walked the quarry road, passing numerous Etruscan graves. That night we stayed in a hostel near an ancient town that had housed the miners. The next day took us to Siena and then Vinci via several geological sites, where we visited the museum devoted to the Leonardo from Vinci. The following day, after more rocks, we visited the Academy of Sciences of Bologna, and were given lunch there. Afterward we saw the geological museum Capellini, now a music conservatory, where two gifted students played for us. We then went to the museums of Palazzo Poggi (University of Bologna). The next day, after travel to Verona, we visited the Academy of Agriculture, Sciences and Letters of Verona. In the afternoon we went to the Museum of Natural History, with its extensive exhibits of the extremely well-preserved fossil fish of Bolca.

On Thursday Danti took us to the village of Bolca, where we first toured the museum and then took the long walk down past the new excavations, and into the quarry (more like a mine) where the fossil fish were first recovered in the 18^th century. We had a late arrival to our hotel outside of Venice, but nevertheless were given an excellent dinner. This hotel was chosen because of its proximity to both the Venice airport and to a major railroad station, as we would all be leaving from here. On Friday Danti delivered us to the vaporetto (water taxi) station where we embarked for Venice. We visited the Venetian Institute of Sciences, Letters and Arts, where Hugh Torrens gave an address. After lunch there we explored Venice for a short while before touring the Venice Museum of Natural History. After dinner on San Marco Square a vaporetto took us back to Danti and thus to our hotel.

We were given a thorough field guide for the trip with maps, geological maps, and background articles from both primary and secondary literature about the significance of the places we saw, amplified by lectures in the bus. At each stop we were given materials specific to the sites. In all, the trip was an excellent introduction to the significant history of the geological sciences in northern Italy.

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KUDOS: Ken Bork is the newly elected Secretary-General of Inhigeo. The new program director for NSF Science and Technology Studies (includes history and philosophy of science) is Ron Rainger of Texas Tech. Ron is a historian of oceanography these days (working on Scripps Inst.) but earlier on wrote a biography of Henry Fairfield Osborn and still is interested in the history of paleontology.

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NEW BOOKS:

Murchison's Wanderings in Russia, Edited by Michael Collie and John Diemer, has been published by the British Geological Survey in July of 2004. The book is an annotated edition of Murchison's autobiographical journal account of his fieldwork in Russia during the years 1840 and 1841. The annotations and maps help the reader decipher the routes Murchison took, the geologic problems he was working on, and the people he worked with and met during his travels. The book is hardbound and illustrated with woodcuts and lithographs reproduced from Murchison's major publication, The Geology of Russia (1845, John Murray). This edition has a pocket in the back where the cross-sections and geologic map from The Geology of Russia are reproduced in color and at full scale. The cost is £40. Advertising copy for the book can be viewed at the British Geological Survey bookstore website at http://www.bgs.ac.uk/bookshop/product.cfm?id=MWIR  

The "Memoirs of William Smith, LL.D.", author of the Map of the Strata of England and Wales, by his nephew and pupil, John Phillips FRS FGS has been reprinted by the Institution from the original copy presented to BRLSI by the author.

The book outlines William Smith's working life, firstly in the Bath area, and afterwards throughout the UK, and is an extraordinary story that evolved through many phases. He travelled all round Britain and gathered data towards his pioneering geological map of Britain, first drafted in 1801 as "A General Map of Strata found in England and Wales, by William Smith, surveyor", and eventually published in 1815. He lived to see the final vindication of his skills and ideas, ending in acclaim and endorsement as "the Father of English Geology". The original book has c.150 pages, and was written by his nephew and assistant, John Phillips, himself an eminent geologist. Three important additions are included in the reprinted volume, by the leading authority on William Smith, Professor Hugh Torrens of Keele University, England:
          * An introduction & general overview of the eventful life of William Smith;
          * The William Smith lecture, given to the Geological Society of London in 2000; and
          * A full triple index (People, Place, and Subject), to create a valuable reference tool.
The book is a hardback, 210 x 145mm, with 288 pages including 30 illustrations, printed on 100gsm white paper, and is bound in grey with blue and white titles. The price is £18.00 (sterling) plus postage.
If you would like to own a copy of "The Memoirs of William Smith" , please complete the ORDER FORM below [PRINT this pdf]-
Telephone: +44 (0)1 225 312084; fax: +44 (0)1 225 442460; Web site: www.brlsi.org e-mail: admin@brlsi.org

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HISTORY OF GEOLOGY AWARD FOR 2005
CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

The History of Geology Division makes this award to an individual for contributions of fundamental importance to the understanding of the history of the geological sciences. Achievements deserving of the award include, but are not limited to: publication of papers or books that contribute new and profound insights into the history of geology (based upon original research or synthesis of existing knowledge); discovery of and making available rare source materials; comprehensive bibliographic surveys; editing a thematically integrated collection of articles; organizing meetings and symposia in the history of geology; research into original sources; original interpretations of data; translations of key material; and exceptional service to the Division. The award, established by the History of Geology Division in 1981, consists of an embossed certificate and a pewter Revere bowl. The deadline for receipt of nominations by the selection committee is February 1 each year. Nominations should be sent to Bill Brice, Secretary-Treasurer, at the address given below.

Former Awardees

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2004 History of Geology Division Officers

WEB MASTER: Hugh Rance, 4310 Kissena Blvd, 11 H, Flushing, NY 11355; hughrance@rcn.com

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