In 2013, researchers uncovered the graves of two infants laid to rest about 11,500 years ago outside of what is now Fairbanks, Alaska. Researchers understood that these graves represented some of the earliest human migrants to North America, but were they more closely related to their Asian ancestors, or the modern-day residents of North and South America? Using mitochondrial DNA analysis of the infants, what could we learn about our own human history? [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - We’re most accustomed to flooding causing levees to fail, like they did in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. So although the El Nino-induced floods are making the most news in California right now, it’s not actually the floods that are threatening some California levees the most. Instead it’s the severe drought over the last four years that has taken its toll on thousands of kilometers of century-old earthen levees. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) is pleased to announce the 515th edition of The Directory of Geoscience Departments. The Directory of Geoscience Departments is the premier guide to geoscience organizations worldwide and a vital resource for thousands of scientists, policymakers, publishers, students, and the general public to find various geoscience programs and connect with colleagues. The 515th Edition provides listings of nearly 2,000 university departments, museums, federal agencies, geological surveys, and research institutes. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - A magnitude-7.1 earthquake struck Chile on January 2, 2011. Or so scientists thought. With increasing sensor sensitivity and advances in the quantitative analysis of earthquakes, scientists have revealed that this quake was actually a doublet. This means that instead of just one massive quake, two similarly large earthquakes struck very near to one another within seconds. The closely spaced doublet was missed by global monitoring networks during the initial aftermath of the quake and, as EARTH Magazine explores, it presents a major challenge to earthquake and tsunami warning systems. [Read More]

More than half of the total human population on Earth lives in urban areas, where geology affects us every day. Yet when we think about “geology,” most of us think of the hinterlands. That needs to change, argue the authors of a new feature in EARTH Magazine discussing what the role of urban geology is, what it can be and the potential role geoscience organizations can play in curating the geologic data revealed during construction, excavations and surveys. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - Dianna McDowell, a teacher at Kemps Landing Old Donation School in Virginia Beach, Virginia, has been named the 2016 recipient of the Edward C. Roy, Jr. Award for Excellence in K-8 Earth Science Teaching. McDowell, who earned her Master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of Virginia, started as a Naval Oceanography Officer and switched careers to a middle school Earth science teacher in order to foster natural curiosity about the world. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) congratulates Master’s candidate Elaine Young and Ph.D. candidate Andrea Stevens as the 2016 recipients of the Harriet Evelyn Wallace Scholarship. The scholarship, awarded to women pursuing graduate degrees in geoscience, is a $5,000 award for the academic year, with the opportunity to renew for an additional year of support if qualified. Elaine Young is working towards a master’s degree at the University of California Davis. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - As skiers hit the slopes this winter, EARTH Magazine explores the science of how to keep them and other winter explorers safe. Every year, hundreds of people are killed by avalanches. Understanding the science of the frozen environment is only part of this story; communicating the risk is a field as dynamic as the weather systems and terrains that foster avalanches. The story of avalanche science starts in the decades after World War II with troops trained to work in snowy mountains and the earliest extreme skiers of the 1970s and 1980s forming the foundation of the community. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - Tsunami hazard maps exist for California coastlines, but recent geological studies have indicated that some faults may be capable of unleashing more powerful quakes than previously thought. Given this new information, researchers at the University of California Riverside wondered if the current tsunami hazard maps adequately predict inundation zones, or if they need to be updated. To test their idea, they modeled an earthquake of magnitude 7.7 on the Red Mountain and Pitas Point submarine faults off the coast of Los Angeles. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) is pleased to announce the release of its upgraded Glossary of Geology app for the Android and iOS platforms. To celebrate, the apps have been discounted to $19.99 until March 31. This indispensable reference tool contains definitions of nearly 40,000 terms used in the earth and environmental science literature. The AGI Glossary of Geology has long been considered the definitive reference by geoscientists and other students and professionals needing fully-supported and detailed definitions of earth science terms. [Read More]