Baylor Geology Colloquium Series Begins Semester with the Birth of a Plate Boundary
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Dr. Cathy Busby, professor of tectonics, sedimentology and volcanology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, will lecture on "Birth of a Plate Boundary" at 2:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 28, in room E231 of the Baylor Sciences Building on the Baylor University campus.
The event, which is free and open to the public, is part of the Baylor department of geology's colloquium series offered every semester. Unless otherwise noted, lectures are held on Fridays at 2:30 p.m. in room E231 of the BSB, after refreshments at 2 p.m. in E401, the clock tower of the BSB.
Busby will discuss the birth of the Sierra Nevada microplate by using geologic map data to identify the following processes and products that signal its birth: development of large volcanic centers at sites of maximum displacement on releasing transtensional stepover faults, extreme effusive eruptions along fault-controlled fissures; and abrupt derangement of ancient E-W drainage systems.
Prior to becoming a professor at UCSB, Busby received her bachelor's degree in 1977 from the University of California Berkeley and her doctoral degree in 1983 from Princeton University. Her interests include tectonic reconstructions of dominantly volcanic and sedimentary terrains, and using lab techniques such as geochronology, geochemistry, petrography and paleomagnetics.
Other speakers this semester include:
' Dr. Jeffrey McDonnell, 6th century chair in hydrology at the University of Aberdeen in Aberdeen, Scotland, will speak at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 8 in room E231 of the BSB. As the 2011 Birdsall-Dreiss lecturer, he will discuss "Where does water go when it rains?: Conceptualizing runoff processes in headwater catchments."
' Dr. Rebecca Barnes, postdoctoral fellow at Rice University, will speak on "The over-fertilization of our planet: a stable isotope approach to deciphering nitrogen and carbon fluxes from temperate watersheds" on Friday, Feb. 11.
' Dr. Ken Tobin, associate professor of geology at Texas A&M International University in Laredo, Texas, will speak on Friday, Feb. 25. He will discuss "Analysis of spatial transfer distance for adjustment of satellite precipitation products in support of stream flow simulations."
' Dr. Harry Rowe, assistant professor of earth and environmental sciences at the University of Texas Arlington, will speak on Friday, March 4. He will discuss "Paleozoic and Mesozoic Paleoceanography of the Southern Margin of Laurentia: Insights from Mudrock Geochemistry.
' Dr. Zhanfei Liu, assistant professor at the University of Texas Marine Science Institute, will discuss organic geochemistry and chemical oceanography on Friday, March 18.
' Dr. Gary Weissman, associate professor at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, will speak on hydrogeology and fluvial sedimentology on Friday, April 1.
' Dr. Andrew Quicksall, J. Lindsay Embrey trustee and assistant professor at Southern Methodist University, will discuss contaminant geochemistry and contaminant mineral interactions on Friday, April 8.
' Dr. Jason West, assistant professor at Texas A&M University, will lecture on "Ecohydrological insights across scales, from plant water sources to global isoscapes" on Friday, April 15.
For more information, visit https://www.baylor.edu/geology/index.php?id=68335.
by Katy McDowall, student newswriter, (254) 710-6805