Geotimes Logo ABOUT PEOPLEJuly 1998

ABOUT PEOPLE

The Geological Society of London presented its 1998 awards to: KARL TUREKIAN, Yale University, Wollaston Medal; STEVE SPARKS, University of Bristol, Murchison Medal; SIMON CONWAY MORRIS, University of Cambridge, Lyell Medal; STEPHEN LARTER, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, William Smith Medal; ANTHONY REEDMAN, British Geological Survey, Major John Coke Medal; ANTHONY SPENCER, Statoil, Norway, Major Edward Coke Medal; DAVID SAVAGE, QuantiSci Ltd., Aberconway Medal; KENNETH TAYLOR, University of Oklahoma, Sue Tyler Friedman Medal; RICHARD FOX, RMC, Distinguished Service Award; ANNA GRAYSON, freelance writer and broadcaster, R.H. Worth Prize; DAVID ROTHERY, Open University, Wollaston Fund; JONATHAN BLUNDY, University of Bristol, Murchison Fund; ANDREW GALE, University of Greenwich, Lyell Fund; JOSEPH CARTWRIGHT, Imperial College, London, William Smith Fund; SARAH GABBOTT, University of Leicester, President's Award; and PHILIP NADIN, BG Exploration and Production, President's Award.

During its annual meeting, May 26-29, the American Geophysical Union granted the following awards: RICHARD M. GOODY, retired, William Bowie Medal; NORMAN H. SLEEP, Stanford University, Walter H. Bucher Medal; RICHARD P. VON HERZEN, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Maurice Ewing Medal; DONALD M. HUNTEN, University of Arizona, John Adam Fleming Medal; DAVID J. STEVENSON, California Institute of Technology, Harry E. Hess Medal; IGNACIO RODRIGUEZ-ITURBE, Texas A & M University, Robert E. Horton Medal; TUIJA I. PULKKINEN, Finnish Meteorological Institute, and LARS P. STIXRUDE, University of Michigan, James B. Macelwane Medal; HAROLD S. JOHNSTON, University of California-Berkeley, Roger Revelle Medal; MARGARET A. SHEA, retired, Waldo E. Smith Medal; and ROBERT W. CORELL, National Science Foundation, Edward A. Flinn III Award.

The first students to receive the SEPM (Society for Sedimentary Geology) Student Participation Grants are JEANNE E. KALVAR, a graduate student at the University of Delaware, and ILYA BUYNEVICH, a student in Boston University's Coastal Geology Program. The students also received SEPM Best Student Paper awards. The Student Participation Grants, funded by the Mobil Foundation for 1998 to 2000, provide travel funds for students to attend the SEPM annual meeting, which took place May 17-20 in Salt Lake City. The students also receive year-long SEPM memberships.

During its 135th annual meeting in April, the National Academy of Sciences elected 60 new members and 15 foreign associates from 10 countries in recognition of their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. Geoscientists include: WILLIAM L. CHAMEIDES, Georgia Institute of Technology; JOHN M. HAYES, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution; THOMAS H. JORDAN, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; WILLIAM J. SCHOPF, University of California-Los Angeles; MELVIN E. STERN, Florida State University; and H. BOYD WOODRUFF, Soil Microbiology Associates Inc.

The Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration granted several awards during its 1998 annual meeting. Award recipients included: STANLEY C. SUBOLESKI, A.T. Massey Coal Co. Inc., Coal Distinguished Service Award; ROBERT L. FRANTZ, Pennsylvania State University, Howard N. Eavenson Award; FRANK F. APLAN, Pennsylvania State University, Percy Nicholls Award; TODD S. HARRIS, Kline & Co. Inc., Robert W. Piekarz Award; DONALD W. KOHLS, Kohls Exploration Ltd., Ben F. Dickerson III Award; JOHN J. REED, consulting mining engineer, Rock Mechanics Award; JAMES A. FINCH, McGill University, Antoine M. Gaudin Award; RONALD L. WIEGEL, University of Minnesota, Robert H. Richards Award; ERIC K.S. FORSSBERG, University of Lulea, Arthur F. Taggart Award; JOHN E. DUTRIZAC, CANMET, Milton E. Wadsworth Award.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration in May honored 29 elementary, middle, and high-school students from across the country as part of the 18th annual Space Science Student Involvement Program, administered by the National Science Teachers Association. During the National Space Science Symposium, held May 2-5 in Washington, D.C., the students and their teachers were recognized for their academic achievements. Almost 100,000 students competed in mathematics, science, technology, art, and creative writing. Three students from Second Street School in Frankfort, Ky., were honored for their interdisciplinary earth-science project using satellites to study the effects of human activity on Earth's ecosystem: RYAN BURNETTE, ERIK GARRISON, and ROBBIE SEMONES.

JAMES W. SKEHAN, professor emeritus at Boston College and founder of the university's Geology and Geophysics Department, received an honorary degree during the university's commencement on May 18.

PLACES

Cornell University's Center for the Environment and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) broke ground April 29 for a new building that will contain the USGS Ithaca Subdistrict Office as well as private firms involved in technology transfer. Twenty scientists staff the Ithaca office and cover about 70,000 square miles in western and central New York State. The planned building will be part of the 200-acre Cornell Business & Technology Park, which employs 1,300 people in 79 companies. It is also part of a new agreement between Cornell's Center for the Environment and the USGS to support collaborative work in hydrology and water resources. The cooperative research will support Cornell graduate students working in conjunction with USGS scientists on USGS projects. Cornell announced in April that construction would be completed this summer.

The Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks announced this spring that it had made substantial recovery from the devastating Red River flood of April 1997, which caused millions of dollars in damage."The EERC has not only regained its preflood capabilities, but is now planning to expand its facilities with the addition of a technology commercialization center," a spokesperson from the center said.



July Geotimes | Geotimes Home Page | AGI Home Page | Education | GeoRef | Gov. Affairs