Dan Merriam’s research while affiliated with University of Kansas and other places

Small in areal extent, plains-type folds in Paleozoic sediments of the Midcontinent of the United States form by as the result of draping sediments over highs in underlying Precambrian crystalline basement rocks. Fracture systems in underlying Precambrian rocks may propagate upward through overlying sedimentary rocks. Movement on the basement structures occur when there is an adjustment in the basement, which results in an adjustment of the overlying units and a draping over the tilted fault blocks. The incidence of earthquakes, which result from this adjustment, are recorded in the overlying sediment as convolute features known as seismites.

The Ogallala Formation of Miocene/Pliocene age is present over a large area of the Great Plains in the central US. The formation is composed of mostly clastic material eroded and transported eastward from the Rocky Mountains by eastward flowing rivers and streams. It contains the life-giving water that supports the population and farming activities of this vast area. However, this precious water resource is fast being depleted. The geology and geologic history, groundwater recharge, irrigation development, and water law and management of the region are outlined so as to highlight the nature and extent of the water problems facing that region and point to a more sustainable path. Further strengthening local water management and coordination with state government as well as better interstate coordination of the High Plains states will help sustain this critical water resource for generations to come.

A number of United States presidents had some experience in geological thought and investigations and keen interests in the environment. The first U.S. president, George Washington, was a land surveyor. Thomas Jefferson, the 3rd U.S. president, was a keen supporter of science and maintained an interest in paleontology, and played a key role in the development of American paleontology. Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th U.S. president, was a strong supporter of the national park service and was an influential naturalist. Herbert Hoover, the 31st U.S. president, was a Stanford University graduate with a degree in geology and mining – a true geologist/U.S. President. Hoover worked in the mining industry in the western United States, Australia, and China before moving into politics. Hoover lectured on mining at both Columbia and Stanford Universities and his lectures were published in 1909 as Principles of Mining. In 1912, Hoover, with his wife Lou Henry, translated Agricola‟s De Re Metallica from Latin into English.

Surface reflectance adjusted for atmospheric effects is a primary input for land cover change detection and for developing many higher level surface geophysical parameters. With the development of automated atmospheric correction algorithms, it is now ...

Tools of the trade help a geologist in the field to measure, describe, and record data about rocks and their position and spatial relationships. We explore some of the trademark tools of a geologist and the origin of each tool.

Frederik Pieter (Frits) Agterberg has written over 250 publications in the field of geomathematics during the past 50 years. He played a major role in the International Association of Mathematical Geology since its inception in 1968, and strongly influenced the development of geomathematics worldwide.