New Info on the Origin of Bimodal Volcanism on Oregon’s High Lava Plains

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New Info on the Origin of Bimodal Volcanism on Oregon’s High Lava Plains

April’s Friday night lecture was given by a truly distinguished Oregon geologist and highlighted recent research into an area that has long intrigued geoscientists about Oregon. Dr. Anita Grunder has led a team of researchers, including PSU’s Martin Streck, exploring the possible origin of the magma that has peppered Oregon’s High Lava Plains geologic province in the last 12 million years. This magma includes both rhyolite and basalt eruptions in a swath of territory between Steen’s Mountain region to the southeast and Newberry Volcano to the northwest. 

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Thomas Condon's Fossil Collection

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Thomas Condon's Fossil Collection

Professor Emeritus and Condon Collection Curator Dr. William Orr spoke to GSOC on May 12 about Thomas Condon’s fossils. This collection was assembled for teaching and reference and ranks with the best collections for stratigraphic continuity and taxonomic breadth. Many specialists from around the world come to the University of Oregon to study its fossils.
Photo: Thomas Condon with his pals Dr. Bill Orr (left) and GSOC President Rik Smoody (right).

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Climbing Through Cascades Geology

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Climbing Through Cascades Geology

GSOC Past President Bo Nonn delivered the 82nd Annual GSOC banquet speech on March 12 to a fascinated crowd at Ernesto’s Italian Restaurant in Beaverton. He has a unique perspective on the geology of the Cascade Mountains: he has witnessed it in person by climbing all 16 Cascade peaks more than once, and has received several certificates of achievement from the Mazamas, as well as being a climbing instructor with that organization.

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Speaker Mike Collins Provides Dramatic Visualizations of Hotspot Evolution

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Speaker Mike Collins Provides Dramatic Visualizations of Hotspot Evolution

Mike Collins, a retired administrator in manufacturing, and an avid mountaineering and geology enthusiast, presented his slide show “Flood Basalts, Hot Spots, and Spreading Centers and the Creation of the Western Landscape,” to a full house last month at the GSOC Friday night lecture. His show was based upon a manuscript he has produced explaining the evolution of the Western landscape in terms that non-technical people can understand. It is lavishly illustrated with scratchboard drawings that he has drawn, which take the reader back to scenes he describes in the book. 

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February Board Meeting Notes

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President Bo Nonn called the meeting to order at the home of Rosemary Kenney. We thank Rosemary for having graciously hosting our board meetings since 2000. Board members present constituting quorum were Rik Smoody, Dawn Juliano, Paul Edison-Lahm, Marty Muncie, Larry Purchase, Janet Rasmussen, and Sheila Alfsen. Other members present included Carol Hasenberg, Dave Olcott, Jane Walpole, Peregrine Edison-Lahm, and Doug Rasmussen. The minutes from our December meeting were approved. 

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Holiday Party Wrap-up

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Holiday Party Wrap-up

Ho, ho, ho! This party rocks! 

It was 3 weeks before Christmas and all was joyous at the 2016 GSOC Holiday Party. A good selection of entrees and salads, and a vast array of desserts were gobbled up by the participants. Then our fine musicians led a selection of Christmas standards and provided a magical atmosphere. The eating and singing were followed by a slide show of this past year’s field trips.

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Post-Election Turmoil Disrupts GSOC Lecture

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Post-Election Turmoil Disrupts GSOC Lecture

GSOC members coming to attend the November Friday night lecture were dismayed that the scheduled speaker, Harish Palani of Sunset High School, was unable to attend due to the nearby riots occurring in downtown Portland as a result of the recent national election. GSOC VP Rik Smoody quickly came up with the idea of holding a science bowl with the audience. That was followed by a discussion by GSOC President Bo Nonn about his September trip to the south Oregon coast. 

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Nominating Committee Results: Next Year's Slate of Officers

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The following slate of officers has been selected by this year’s nominating committee:

President ........................................................................... Rik Smoody
Vice President .................................................................. Sheila Alfsen
Secretary ........................................................................... Paul Edison-Lahm
Treasurer .............................................................................Dawn Juliano
Director, 3 years .............................................................. Carol Hasenberg
Director, 2 years ............................................................... Larry Purchase
Director, 1 year .................................................................. Martha Muncie

Nominations will be closed for this year’s slate of officers after the January meeting of the society.  The slate of officers will be voted on and approved at the February monthly meeting. The Nominating Committee members were Bo Nonn, Larry Purchase, and Paul Edison-Lahm.  Our thanks to the selected members and members of the Nominating Committee! 

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Don’t Forget to Re-up Your Membership!

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GSOC Dues are Due Soon

GSOC members and prospective members, please remember to renew your memberships for 2017. Your membership benefits include: 

  • Helping serve GSOC’s mission of promoting geology education in the Northwest, including PSU geology scholarships

  • Welcome to join in all GSOC functions, including field trips, Holiday Party, Annual Banquet and Picnic, and more!

  • A printed version of the GSOC newsletter if you choose

  • A great time with all your GSOC friends!
     

Renew online here. PS: If you joined the club after September 1, 2016, your dues are paid through 2017!!! 

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Dark Noon

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Dark Noon

Dr. Richard Waitt, who arrived in Washington state from the USGS office in Menlo Park, California, shortly after the eruption of Mt. St. Helens, stayed to study the volcano and built the bulk of his career at the Cascades Volcano Observatory (CVO) in Vancouver, Washington. Dr. Waitt came to promote his new book In the Path of Destruction: Eyewitness Chronicles of Mount St. Helens, Washington State University Press, 2015, to the GSOC audience and to describe the book’s origin and some of the stories it contains. He said that early in his research into the events of the volcanic eruption, he was focused more on the hard geology that people could describe. However, he became involved more in the stories that people told about their experiences and the process of determining the details of the event by analyzing the interviews of the witnesses. 

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Board Meeting Notes

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The meeting was called to order at the home of Rosemary Kenney. Board members attending were VP Rik Smoody, Director Larry Purchase, and Treasurer Dawn Juliano. Non board members were Barbara Smoody, Carol Hasenberg, Rosemary Kenney. Since quorum was not met, the members present used this meeting time to make plans for some of the upcoming GSOC events and table any discussions which required others to complete. 

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Paleontologist to the Rescue!

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Paleontologist to the Rescue!

Synopsis of Friday night lecture on July 8, 2016, with speaker Sheila Alfsen

GSOC Past President Sheila Alfsen described her experiences working as an onsite paleontologist on construction sites for Paleontology Associates, a company run by Oregon paleontologist Dr. William Orr for more than 15 years. Paleontology Associates was created to address the need for preserving important fossil finds on government property when they are threatened by construction projects. 

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