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From the Editor


The lands that make up the national and state parks were set aside because of their unique geologic characteristics. Yet few parks have geologists on staff. The April issue of Geotimes featured ways the National Park Service is trying to change that by using the expertise of its current geological staff for land planning decisions, and by working with the Geological Society of America to bring geoscience students and professionals into the parks as interns. This month, Geotimes proposes another way to get geologists in the parks: A Geology Roadtrip guide, giving you a collection of a few good spots where you can see great rocks this summer. We asked state geologists and other experts to suggest the geologically interesting spots in their neck of the woods. We have featured a few of the best from across the United States and Canada with a much expanded list available on www.geotimes.org that also includes the necessary details for finding these gems. If your favorite spot did not make the list, please drop us a line so that we can consider it for next summer.
 
Whether you’re on the road or at home, rising energy costs are likely to get your attention. Rolling blackouts in California and steadily rising gasoline prices have certainly commanded the attention of Congress and the Bush administration. In our second feature, Scott Tinker and Eugene Kim of the Texas Bureau of Economic Geology make a strong case for the role of geoscience research in ensuring future energy supplies. The feature includes excerpts of Tinker’s April testimony to the House Science Committee on the Department of Energy’s budget request. Energy policy is also the focus of a News Note by Laura Wright on an energy policy summit held by the American Association of Petroleum Geologists for Washington policy-makers.
 Another problem we face is a declining pool of geoscientists to do the very research Tinker and Kim advise. This month’s Comment reports on the results of a recent workshop sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to begin quantifying employment trends and human resource capital in the geosciences. Chris Maples, Mike Baranovic and Chris Keane describe what data the geoscience community needs to assess where our profession is and where it is going. Such information should be invaluable for students heading into the job market and for professors who can provide well-informed guidance to the next generation of geoscientists.
 
This month’s Geoscience Education column by Don Hoskins and Jon Price details some of the success stories from another NSF-funded project that connects undergraduate geoscience students with mentors from state geological surveys to learn the craft of geologic mapping.
Enjoy the road.

David Applegate               Kristina Bartlett
Editor                               Managing Editor