Geobulletin alpha

Update: Geology Underfoot in Western Washington 

Today I received the editor’s revisions to my manuscript, Geology Underfoot in Western Washington. James Lainsbury of Mountain Press Publishing did a fabulous job of condensing my pompous verbiage. I am now on page 22 of the revisions, accepting (or not) his edits. Only 436 pages to go! The book could be out in the

Wikipedia Articles of Geology Enhancement Project 

Last year the students in the Tectonics course I TAed were assigned the task of repairing geology and tectonics related Wikipedia articles. Students had to select a Wikipedia article with sparse or incorrect information, research the topic, and submit an improved version of the article for review. The TA then reviewed the new article version and only after the students submitted revisions was the article approved for publication on Wikipedia. Here are the issues students tackled last year:The [...]

What is an ad-hominem attack? 

I recently handled the revisions on a paper that hopefully will be in press very soon. One of the review comments was “Be very careful not to make ad hominem attacks”. I was a bit surprised to see that — I wasn’t aware that I’d made any — so I went back over the manuscript, and

Citing artwork in academic papers 

In a paper for which we’re currently handling the revisions, I and Matt cite several pieces of artwork, including Knight’s classic Brontosaurus and Burian’s snorkelling Brachiosaurus. All we have for the references are: Knight CR (1897) Restoration of Brontosaurus. Burian Z (1941) Snorkelling Brachiosaurus. But a reviewer asked us: Please edit the reference list with

Revisions to Arizona Mining Advisory Council advancing in Legislature 

SB1464, which makes amendments to duties and membership on the Arizona Mining Advisory Council, has passed in the Arizona Senate, is having its 3rd read in the House today.   The bill adds advisory members from the House and Senate, but most significantly, eliminates the function for "Reviewing mining policy in this state as established by law and as administered in all functional areas of

Summary Of India Draft National Water Policy 

How India manages its water resources is an issue of paramount importance. S. Ramesh at InfoChange.org gives an excellent summary of the National Water Policy and its merits and demerits. The draft National Water Policy has gone into two revisions, first in May 2012 and then again in July, after being tabled in January when protests were made about the policy treating water as an economic

New Falling Weight Deflectometer Calibration Procedures 

A report titled 'Falling Weight Deflectometer Calibration Center and Operational Improvements: Redevelopment of The Calibration Protocol and Equipment' has been published by the FHWA. This report is the result of a pooled fund study that has resulted in revisions to AASHTO's R32-09 calibration procedure for the FWT. There is also new calibration software, WinFWDCal that came out of this research. [Source: FHWA. Image:

ASTM Updates for March 2011 

Read on for March 2011 updates to ASTM standards that relate to geotechnical engineering, soil and rock testing, concrete and asphalt testing, and various other related disciplines.  In this batch is a new standard for geospacial data related to abandoned mines, and revisions to standard test methods for ready mix concrete (C94/C94M), a few asphalt standards and a revised standard (D6274) for testing gamma borehole

New article in Palaios 

New articles will be coming soon. I've spent the week and a half since I've been back in Montana recuperating from a moderate case of poison oak, writing major revisions for an article about Pliocene pelagornithids from California (for JVP, with N. Adam Smith), and completing revisions for an article on nonmammal vertebrates from the Purisima Formation (for PalArch's Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology).Anyway, sometime in the next week or two, the February issue of Palaios will be published, [...]

More Evidence for Long Norian and Rhaetian Stages 

This is a new paper looking at Triassic magnetostratigraphic correlations between Europe and North America.  The findings essentially support the early conclusions of Muttoni et al. (2004; 2010) arguing for long Norian and Rhaetian stages.  Correlations between the Steinbergkogel sections in Austria and the Newark Supergroup in the eastern U.S.A., suggest the following timescale

Kentrosaurus; illustration goals 

The first step in an illustration contract is to define goals and expectations. This is the only way to keep your compass functioning during the many revisions and issues that arise along the way. Well, I don’t have a client on this one, and its still the most important step. My goals are as follows: to apply

Arizona DOT Posts New Geotechnical LRFD Policy Memos 

The Arizona DOT has posted three new LRFD geotechnical policy memoranda and revised three others.  Use of LRFD or Load and Resistance Factor Design is now mandatory on all federally funded roadway projects and agencies and consultants have had plenty of issues with the transition.  ADOT has been one of the more proactive agencies at implementing the geotechnical aspects of the AASHTO LRFD Code and providing guidance to consultants in the form of these policy memos. The first three [...]

ASTM Updates October 2010 

Time again for a summary of changes to ASTM standards that may be of interest to geotechnical engineers, engineering geologists and those in geoconstruction and even lab testing or CQA. This month there is a new standard for a new type of geomembrane, revisions to standards relating to ultrasonic testing and general nondestructive testing terminology, evaluation of particle shape in aggregates, and re-approval of standards relating to non-asbestos fiber-cement based products. Click through [...]

Selling the Family Jewels 

Responding to a recent series of incidents in which a number of universities responding to financial crises by selling off (or attempting to sell off) their museum collections, the American Association of Museums has made a number of revisions to its Accreditation Program that are intending to emphasize the role, value, and use of the collections, and related museum ethics and standards. In the words of AAM, "the revised policy requires parent organizations--college/university, [...]

Two Steps Closer Toward Becoming a Misnomer 

Just a quick post since I am working on my final revisions. I logged onto my reader today to try and clear out some of the stories. It is a losing battle. I can't seem to read all the stories I would like to these days. But this Headline caught my attention:"Glacier National Park Loses Two More Glaciers"This was the most depressing quote in this brief article:Warmer temperatures have reduced

ASTM Updates January 2010 

Standards updates and revisions that may be of interest to GeoPrac readers include Bulk Density and Voids in Aggregate, several updates for Dry-Cast Segmental Retaining Wall Units, a revised standard for the California Bearing Ratio (CBR) test and several for Geosynthetic Clay Liners and Lanfill Daily Covers. Click through for the

An Ancient, "Hidden" Elephant Gets a New Name 

The restored lower jaw of Arcanotherium (formerly Numidotherium savagei). (From Delmer, 2009) Unlike the folks at this past weekend's ScienceOnline 2010 meeting, fossils don't come with nametags. The identification of preserved bits of ancient life relies upon careful comparison with what is already known, a task made all the more difficult for vertebrate paleontologists by the fragmentary nature of many of their subjects. Scraps of bone given one name could turn out to be parts of [...]

Green Valley's biggest water user opposes copper mine 

The Green Valley News & Sun reports that the owners of the area's largest water consumer, Farmer's Investment Co, a large grower, showed up at a Congressional hearing in DC to oppose the Rosemont Copper mine in the nearby Santa Rita Mountains, expressing concern over potential water usage at the proposed mine. The hearing was on revisions to the 1872 Hardrock Mining law. [right, native

ASTM Updates April 2009 

Our monthly ASTM standards update for those in the geotechnical, geo-environmental, hydrogeology and geo-construction fields. This month there are some new standards related to structural cementitious panels, revisions to standards related to slate and dimension stone, and a reapproved standard for monitoring well protection among others. Click through for more info.

JTFAP Document Will Affect Every Geotechnical Engineer and Engineering Geologist 

A document entitled "Engineering and Geology Practice Guidelines" has been prepared by the JTFAP or Joint Task Force on Areas of Practice. The JFTAP was comprised of representatives from The American Institute of Professional Geologists (AIPG), the Association of Environmental and Engineering Geologists (AEG) and the Geo-Institute (G-I) of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). A draft of the document was published in February of 2009 and members of AEG have already been providing [...]