. GE 142 Spring 2008 Presentation

GE 142 Spring 2008

GEOLOGY of NATIONAL PARKS

Presentation Topics

Only one topic can be chosen by each student in the class. There will be no duplication of term papers or presentations. Hence, topical coverage is on a first come, first serve basis. Four papers will be during each of the five (5) symposia scheduled for this term on

After you have reviewed the list of topics, have been to the library and/or electronic search engines, and have chosen a topic you want to pursue, complete the following form. I will acknowledge whether or not you are the first to have chosen the topic, and let you know whether to proceed or choose another topic.

Term-Paper Topic Selection Due On or Before: 23 February 2009 (This gives you 2.5 weeks to do some background literature research before choosing a topic)

E_mail (without @colby): Name: Date:

Symposium #1 - 6 March 2009

Choose one of the following presentation & term-paper topics where the presentation emphasis will focus on the PreCambrian Geology & Geological History of the National Park:

Brianna Lind: Waterton Glacier International Peace Park

Hanna Lucy: Rocky Mountain National Park
Al Ippolito: Shenandoah National Park

Symposium #2 - 20 March 2009

Choose one of the following presentation & term-paper topics where the presentation emphasis will focus on the Lower Paleozoic Geology & Geological History of the National Park:
Ellie Hoyt: Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Tim Becker: Acadia National Park
Gabe Lerner : Wrangell-St. Elias National Park
Nate Katsiaficas: Great Basin National Park

Symposium #3 - 6 April 2009

Choose one of the following presentation & term-paper topics where the presentation emphasis will focus on the Upper Paleozoic Geology & Geological History of the National Park:
Evan Knowlton: Mammoth Cave National Park
Sarah Flanagan: Cuyahoga National Park
Chishala Kapupu: Guadelupe Mountains National Park
Anna Franzen: Hot Springs National Park

Symposium #4 - 27 April 2009

Choose one of the following presentation & term-paper topics where the presentation emphasis will focus on the Mesozoic Geology & Geological History of the National Park:

Brian Morgan : Petrified Forest National Park
Daren McGregor: Big Bend National Park
Susie Hufstader: Grand Teton National Park

Symposium #5 - 1 May 2009

Choose one of the following presentation & term-paper topics where the presentation emphasis will focus on the Cenozoic Geology & Geological History of the National Park:
Amelia Pludow: Yosemite National Park
Carin Rising: Death Valley National Park
Ramsey Meigs: Denali National Park
Emma Beck: Badlands National Park

TOPIC SELECTION Due: 23 February 2009

Term Paper Due: Date of your Presentation

Term papers will be edited and critiqued, returned for revisions, and will be due back for a second review within one week of return. The grades for the first draft and revised draft will be averaged; the grading scheme is provided in the Term Paper Grading Rubric.

Guidelines for your Term Paper: The exact structure for your term paper will vary depending on the quantity and quality of the literature you've been able to find. You may want to start by consulting your textbook for several of these National Parks. Thereafter, you should consult the following reference:

  • Ann G. Harris & Esther Tuttle, 1990, Geology of National Parks, Dubuque, Iowa : Kendall/Hunt Pub. Co, 652 pages.

    OLIN RESERVE SCIENCE QE77 .H36 1997

    • .
  • Eugene P. Kiver and David V. Harris, 1999, Geology of U.S. Parklands : J. Wiley New York, 902 p.

    OLIN RESERVE SCIENCE QE77 .K59 1999

Each symposium is designed to emphasize the geology and geologic history of a specific interval of Deep Time. Hence, if your National Park is one designated to emphasize the Upper Paleozoic, you should spend at least 60% of the presentation and paper discussing these rocks. Older and younger rocks found in the national park also must be considered, and the cultural and recreational aspects of the area can be included. But, the oral presentation and term-paper emphasis is on the stratigraphic interval of rocks designated by the symposium heading.

You many not obtain more than 20% of your literature from the web; that means if you use 2 websites for the project, you must have 8 library-based references in addition. There are 24 books available in the Science Library discussing the Roadside Geology of individual states. These can be found in the QE83 .C74 section. You can consult these for additional information as well as publications available through the National Park Service and State Geological Surveys.

DO NOT USE Wikipedia as a reference.

Oral presentations of your report will be during the scheduled symposium as outlined above. Your presentation should be in PowerPoint (or equivalent; Corel Presentation) and no longer than 10 minutes. There will be 3-4 minutes of questions thereafter.

You should provide an outline of your talk as a handout for each classmate in the course and, of course, one for the Instructor.  This outline should provide the pertinent geological information and history of the park.

In addition, you must:

  • Upload your PowerPoint presentation to the Moodle page no later than 8:00 am on the morning of your talk; the file can be NO LARGER than 20 MB.
  • You will have to reduce the size of your images using Adobe Photoshop or similar program. Images resolution need not be any greater than 150 dpi (dots per inch).
  • Upload a copy of the electronic summary file to the Moodle site for website posting.

Colby also offers a PowerPoint tutorial ONLINE at the Technical Training Tutorial website.

Your Term Paper should be NO LESS THAN 8 and NO MORE THAN 10 pages typed double-spaced pages (12 pt font) with 1" margins. Include a complete Bibliography (this is in addition to the 8-10 pages of text) of all the references you have used.

Term Papers will be returned no earlier than one-week after receipt for revision.

GE 142 Syllabus