GE 142 Spring 2006

Presentation Topics

Only one topic can be chosen by each student in the class. There will be no duplication of term papers. Hence, topical coverage is on a first come, first serve basis. Five papers will be during each of the three (3) symposia scheduled for this term on 24 March (PreCambrian-Paleozoic), 21 April (Paleozoic-Mesozoic), and 5 May (Mesozoic-Cenozoic). 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: 24 February 2006 (This gives you 2 weeks to do some background literature research before choosing a topic)

E_mail (without @colby): Date:


Symposium #1 - 24 March 2006

Choose one of the following presentation & term-paper topics:
Morgan Davies:Voyageurs National Park
Rachel Daly: Waterton Glacier Internatinal Peace Park
Shenandoah National Park
Jane Leary: Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Acadia National Park
Jake Pinkston: Capital Reef National Park


Symposium #2 - 28 April 2006

Meghan Kuhn: Canyon Lands National Park
Denton King: Arches National Park
Claire Thompson: Petrified Forest National Park
Amanda Smith: Bryce Canyon National Park
Charlie Moore: Big Bend National Park
Stephanie Grocke Grand Teton National Park

Symposium #3 - 10 May 2006

Taylor Killian: Yosemite National Park
Death Valley National Park
Nate Dick: Denali National Park
Rachel Guest: Olympic National Park
Lauren Cahill: Mt. Ranier National Park
Ben Hauptman: Everglades National Park

TOPIC SELECTION Due: 24 February 2006

Term Paper Due: Date of your Presentation

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

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.

Oral presentations of your report will be during the scheduled symposium as outlined above. Your presentation should be no longer than 10 minutes, and can be made either with:

  1. Overheads/chalk board
  2. PowerPoint Presentation
  3. Web Page (HTML)

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

ITS at Colby offers many tutorials on a variety of computer topics. The following websites can be consulted if you plan to develop your presentation in HTML:

Colby also offers a PowerPoint tutorial ONLINE. This is accessible through the University of TEXAS at:

Your Term Paper should be NO LESS THAN 4 and NO MORE THAN 8 pagestyped double-spaced pages (10-12 pt font) . Include a complete Bibliography of all the references you have used (exclusive of the required 4-8 term paper requirement). Cite the appropriate references in the text body in the following manner:

For example:

Gastaldo, R.A., 2004, A View of Non-Analog Worlds: Review of Knoll, A.H., 2004, Life on a Young Planet: The First Three Billion Years of Evolution on Earth: American Journal of Botany, v. 91, p. 94-112.


For example:

DiMichele, W.A., Pfefferkorn, H.W., and Gastaldo, R.A.,  2001, Response of Late Carboniferous and Early Permian plant communities to climate change: Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, v. 29, p. 461-487.


For Example:

Levin, H.L., 1999, The Earth Through Time: Saunders College Publishing, Fort Worth, Texas, 568 p.


For example:

Gastaldo, R.A., 1999, Debates on Autochthonous and Allochthonous Origin of Coal: Empirical Science versus the Diluvialists: in Manger, W.A., ed., The Evolution-Creation Controversy II: Perspectives on Science, Religion, and Geological Education: Paleontological Society Paper, v. 5, p. 135-168.


For example:

Jablonski, D., Benton, M.J., Gastaldo, R.A., Marshall, C.R., and Sepkoski, J.J., Jr., 2000, Macroevolution: in Lane, H.R., ed., Fossils and the Future: Paleontology in the 21st Century: Senckenberg-Buch, No. 74, p. 155-166.


For example:

Pfefferkorn, H.W., Gastaldo, R.A, and DiMichele, W.A., 2000, Ecosystem Stability during the Late Paleozoic Cold Interval: in Gastaldo, R.A., and DiMichele, W.A., eds., Phanerozoic Terrestrial Ecosystems: The Paleontological Society Papers, v. 6, p. 63-78.


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

GE 142 Syllabus