ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) is pleased to announce the completion of fifty new factsheets, which quantify the tangible contributions of geoscience (earth science) to the economy, environment, public health and safety in every state. As geoscientists, we study the Earth system in every corner of the country," said Maeve Boland, Director of Geoscience Policy at AGI. “But it has been difficult to compare the value and contribution of our science to individual states. [Read More]

Alexandria, Va. — The American Geosciences Institute is excited to announce discounts on all print publications and promotional items currently in stock. From now until July 31, you can get 50% off on most items, including: Glossary of Geology, Fifth edition (revised) - a must-have in any geoscientist’s library, this indispensable reference tool The Geoscience Handbook 2016: AGI Data Sheets, Fifth edition - a quick reference tool for key metrics and concepts and a guide to cornerstone papers and recent developments. [Read More]

Alexandria, Va. — The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) is excited to announce its participation in the National Science Foundation’s Geoscience Opportunities for Leadership in Diversity (GOLD) program. Five projects were funded through the GOLD solicitation, which seeks to cultivate a new generation of leaders within the geosciences research and education communities who have the passion, the knowledge, the skills, and the tools to catalyze high-impact efforts to broaden participation of traditionally underrepresented minorities in the geosciences education pipeline and workforce. [Read More]

The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) is now accepting advance orders for the Earth Science Week 2017 Toolkit. The Toolkit contains educational materials for all ages that correspond to this year’s event theme, “Earth and Human Interactions.” Materials include the traditional program poster and school-year activity calendar, as well as posters, activities, a game, and other resources from distinguished program partners. This year’s Toolkit provides students with the opportunity to learn what geoscience tells us about human interaction with the planet’s natural systems and processes. [Read More]

The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) is excited to welcome Pranoti M. Asher, Ph.D., from the American Geophysical Union (AGU) as its first Member Society Scholar-in-Residence. As the Scholar-in-Residence, Asher will continue her current work with AGU while sharing her talents with AGI staff and advancing programs that support geoscience students and the broader community. Asher is the Education and Public Outreach Manager for the American Geophysical Union (AGU), a professional society of Earth and space sciences with more than 60,000 members. [Read More]

The drones are coming! With 2.5 million drones sold in the U.S. in 2016 and annual drone sales expected to reach 7 million by 2020, the laws and rules that govern unmanned aerial systems (UAS) could one day be as important to know as your local tax code. In the July issue of EARTH, University of Kansas Professor William C. Johnson and graduate student Dakota J. Burt write an introduction to drone regulations, highlighting the ever-shifting legal landscape, which has implications for hobbyists, commercial drone pilots, and geoscientists. [Read More]

Could plate tectonics be tied to the development of life on Earth? Earth is the only planet known to sustain life. It is also the only planet with active plate tectonics. Coincidence? Most geoscientists think not. In part two of EARTH Magazine’s feature on plate tectonics, EARTH correspondent Mary Caperton Morton examines the links between two phenomena that are unique to our planet. Although other planets in our solar system possess active volcanoes, faults, and other evidence of surface deformation, Earth’s global plate tectonics is “a very rare animal,” according to Chris Hawkesworth, a geochemist at the University of Bristol in England. [Read More]

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The American Geosciences Institute was pleased to recognize three outstanding projects by pre-college students at this year’s Intel International Science & Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) on May 19, 2017, in Los Angeles, Calif. This year’s award recipients showcased a broad range of exciting geoscience topics including geothermal vents, paleontology, soil contamination, and volcanic eruptions. In support of Intel ISEF, AGI sponsors a first place award of $1,250; a second award of $1,000; and a third award of $500. [Read More]

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) has been an energy industry practice for decades, originating as a mechanism to enhance oil and gas recovery. But carbon dioxide gas is tricky to capture, and even trickier to store: Without airtight seals and careful monitoring, the gas seeps up through cracks in the subsurface and quickly reenters the atmosphere. But what if the carbon dioxide could be turned into rock? Two projects - one in Iceland, the other in eastern Washington state - are taking advantage of their common underlying geology to do just that. [Read More]

Alexandria, Va. — The American Geosciences Institute congratulates Mary Schultz on her recent selection as the 2017-2018 William L. Fisher Congressional Geoscience Fellow. Schultz will begin her Fellowship in Washington, D.C., on September 1, 2017, after receiving her Ph.D. in Geological Sciences from Arizona State University in Tempe, Ariz., on June 14, 2017. Schultz’s doctoral research focuses on understanding the past 20-million-year climatic and tectonic evolution of the Mount Everest region in the central Himalayan Mountains using a combination of fieldwork, thermochronological dating of minerals, and numerical modeling methods. [Read More]