ARTIFACTS RECOVERED FROM A CAVE IN SOUTHEASTERN ALASKA SUPPORT THE ARGUMENT FOR THE LATE PLEISTOCENE COASTAL MIGRATION OF HUMANS TO THE NEW WORLD.

The work of E. James Dixon and colleagues on the cave was recently featured on the History Channel, NOVA, and National Geographic Magazine. The data show that humans were utilizing marine resources and transporting exotic types of stone throughout the region 9,200 years ago.

More info on the Alaskan cave artifacts

GRAD STUDENT IN ANTARCTICA WORKS WITH YOUNG STUDENTS.

INSTAAR Graduate Student H.P. Marshall communicated with Casey Middle School students through the Web from Antarctica. Marshall discussed his and others' research projects, and fielded questions from the students.

Boulder Daily Camera Interview

Email HP Marshall

ALASKA NORTH SLOPE ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE.

James Syvitski, William Manley, Mark Dyurgerov, and Scott Peckham are participating in an extensive research project entitled "Alaska North Slope Climate Impact Assessment (ANSCIA)". This project is being led by CU-Boulder's Amanda Lynch and is designed to better understand, support and enhance local decision-making processes in the face of climate variability and potential environmental disasters.

CU Press Release

ANSCIA website

SCIENTIST HONORED IN U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Tim Seastedt was officially acknowledged for his important weed control research by Representative Udall of Coloradodo. Udall said "Professor Seastedt's exciting and path-breaking research on using insects and soil chemistry to control the spread of noxious, non-native plants holds promise in addressing a vexing--and spreading--problem, especially on our western lands."

Full text from the Congressional Record

Email Tim Seastedt

UNIVERSITY CONSORTIUM FORMED FOR HYDROLOGIC SCIENCES.

Mark Williams is a co-PI for The Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science, Inc. (CUAHSI), which was formed to assist development of infrastructure for hydrologic science research. Dozens of universities around the U.S. participate as CUAHSI members.

COMPUTATIONAL AND IMAGING FACILITY (ECI) DEDICATED.

James Syvitski led the dedication of a new $1.2 million computer facility that will help researchers and students study marine geophysics, ice sheet changes and natural disaster mitigation. The dedication team included Jerry Peterson (CU), Tad Pfeffer, (INSTAAR), and executives from the U.S. Office of Naval Research and Sun Microsystems. O.N.R. and Sun have made extensive contributions to the project.

CU Press Release

ECI Description (Delta Force)

Email James Syvitski

GLACIAL SURFACE TEMPERATURES OF THE SE ATLANTIC DON'T MIMIC THOSE OF HIGH LATITUDES.

Julian Sachs (MIT, former INSTAAR), Robert Anderson (Lamont-Doherty), and Scott Lehman (INSTAAR) discovered an interval of substantial temperate ocean warming from 41 to 25 ky B.P, a pattern which differs from that of higher latitudes. The paper is significant in revealing geographic variations in climage change in response to solar forcing. Published in 14 September issue of Science.

For those w/ online access to Science:
Paper
Comment

Email Julian Sachs
Email Scott Lehman

NEW CO-DIRECTOR OF UNDERGRADUATE ACADEMY.

Mark Williams was named co-director of the CU Undergraduate Academy, which is comprised of approximately 200 undergraduate students from all majors across the campus and offers a lively intellectual community, targeted advising and a range of enrichment activities for unusually talented and committed students.

CU Press Release

Undergraduate Academy homepage

Email Mark Williams

INSTAAR CELEBRATES 50 YEARS OF RESEARCH AND EDUCATION.

INSTAAR celebrated its 50th anniversary on 14-16 September, 2001 with an icebreaker, lectures, tours, a dinner, and a trip to the Mountain Research Station. A number of alumni and friends of INSTAAR from throughout the US and from other countries were able to participate, despite the tragic events of 9/11. INSTAAR has served as an important focus for education throughout its history. Nearly 300 students recieved advanced degrees through their association with INSTAAR, and the Mountain Research Station has provided field courses for 80 years.

CU Press Release

50th Anniversary homepage

STUDENT WINS SCIENCE FAIR.

High school student Evan Burgess won the 2001 Colorado State Science Fair (Senior division) for his study of glacier moraines using a Geographic Information System (GIS). His mentor was INSTAAR research scientist William Manley. Burgess will be attending the Univ. of Colorado at Boulder and will continue working with Manley at INSTAAR.

Email Evan Burgess
Email William Manley

NEW GRANT TO STUDY NOXIOUS WEED INFESTING >3.2 MILLION ACRES IN WEST.

Tim Seastedt, Kate LeJeune and Katie Suding have received a $280,000 USDA grant to help unlock the mystery of how diffuse knapweed - a noxious weed that has infested more than 3.2 million acres in the West - has become dominant in the prairies around Boulder.

STUDENT OPEN HOUSE.

Diane McKnight and a number of other INSTAARs organized a science open house for 140 middle school students from Southern Hills. Activities included tours, lab exercises, lectures, and investigations at nearby Boulder Creek.

2001 Student Open House

Email Diane McKnight

DAN MUHS ELECTED PRESIDENT OF THE AMERICAN QUATERNARY ASSOCIATION.

Affiliate Dan Muhs was elected President of the American Quaternary Association. He assumed office at the Anchorage, Alaska AMQUA meeting in August, 2002. AMQUA was founded in 1970 to foster cooperation and communication among the broad array of disciplines engaged in studying the Quaternary period.

AMQUA website

Email Dan Muhs

ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT BOOK PUBLISHED.

Mark Jensen (USDA Forest Service) and Patrick Bourgeron edited a book that provides both theoretical and practical advice for future ecological assessments. More than 40 authors contributed to the 35 chapters of "A Guidebook for Integrated Ecological Assessments." The book is available from Springer.

Springer-Verlag New York

Email Patrick Bourgeron

VIKINGS!

Astrid Ogilvie participated in a Smithsonian traveling exhibition on Viking exploration, including the Viking Lecture Series. Ogilvie's talk takes advantage of the wealth of literature that was written in Iceland in medieval times.

CLIMATE IMPLICATIONS OF CHANGING ARCTIC SEA ICE.

Gifford Miller and Auslaug Geirsdottir (Univ. of Iceland) organized ameeting of the Arctic paleoclimate and modeling communities to review present knowledge of arctic sea ice and plan future studies. Results from the meeting, on "Sea ice in the climate system: The record of the North Atlantic" were published in EOS (20 Feb).

Sea Ice Meeting web page

Email Gifford Miller

GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS INFRASTRUCTURE FOR ARCTIC RESEARCH.

William Manley was co-chair of an NSF workshop studying the Geographic Information infrastructure needed to support Arctic research. A meeting document (Reccomendations for a Geographic Information Infrastructure to Support Arctic Research: Outcomes of the Arctic GIS Workshop) is available from the Arctic Research Consortium (ARCUS) web site.

NEW BOOK SYNTHESIZED ECOSYSTEM RESEARCH AT NIWOT RIDGE.

William Bowman and Tim Seastedt wrote a book titled "Structure and Funciton of an Alpine Ecosystem" that gives a complete overview of an alpine ecosystem, based on the long-term research conducted at the Niwot Ridge LTER in Colorado. The book is available from Oxford University Press.

FIRE & ICE.

Affiliate Daniel Grossman authored a program titled "Fire and Ice" that aired on National Public Radio and is available from the Soundprint web site. Did Iceland's volcanic eruption in 1783 cause Alaska's year of two winters? Listen for free with RealPlayer!

Radio program
Photos

Email Daniel Grossman

PALEOCLIMATIC RECORD CONSIDERED IN COLORADO'S DROUGHT PLAN.

Connie Woodhouse was cited in the recently published "Colorado Drought Mitigation and Response Plan" for her dendroclimatological work showing persistent periods of drought lasting longer than droughts in the instrumental record. This information will be used to address long-term drought preparedness and mitigation of impacts.

Colorado Drought Mitigation and Response Plan (PDF)

Email Connie Woodhouse

INTERHEMISPHERIC CLIMATE LINKAGES.

Vera Markgraf edited a book based on research from the International Past Global Changes (PAGES) Pole-Equator-Pole (PEP-1) transect, titled "Interhemispheric Climate Linkages". The book compiles results from an international group of scientists, working to compare past climate changes throughout the Americas. It presents a comprehensive analysis of interhemispheric linkages of climate, present and past, and their effects on human societies. The book is available from Academic Press.

Academic Press

Email Vera Markgraf