PROFESSOR MERGUERIAN'S "NO PLACE LIKE" PAGE
Last Updated 19 July 2007
In order to
better serve our students and provide links to
important geoscience resources for your continued excellence in academia, Hofstra University has provided this web
space for Dr. Merguerian.
Below
you will find links for information inquiry, image galleries,
coursework solutions, syllabus, reading lists, guidebooks, sample examination questions, many other geo-interesting
items, and items for just plain old fun. Be sure to click to our Geology
Department Webpage for all kinds of great stuff, the likes of which have not
been seen - even by members of the Halley's Comet Fan Club.
In an effort to make it appear that we have been busy and
productive, over 100 publications (including papers, extended abstracts, abstracts, and
what can only be described as "miscellaneous works") have been placed on the web.
Be sure to see the Geology
Department History and History
of the Geology Graduates and Geology Club.
"Say,
Look Here Einstein, It's E=mc2! Believe it!"
LINKS
CURRENT
COURSE MATERIALS
Students (or those
simply posing as
such) can click away at any of the links below
to achieve inner peace and deeper meaning.
Note: The material on this page and subpages are protected by
copyright statutes [© 2006] and can not be used for any commercial
purpose unless you cut me in! Educators are free to use any and all
of these materials for instructional purposes with proper acknowledgement.
Upcoming
Speaking Engagements
2007 Speaking
Engagements:
New York Mineralogical Club
Wednesday, 10 October 2007 -
American Museum of Natural History
Geological
Wonders of Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Yellowstone
National Park
sits atop a cooling magma chamber that someday will erupt as a deadly
supervolcano as it has done repeatedly in the geologic past.
With ongoing seismicity, more hot spring activity than any other place on
earth, and associated exhalative heaving of the earth’s surface,
Yellowstone
is one of the truly remarkable “fire-breathing” active calderas on earth.
A veritable land of “Fire and Ice”, the glacial and volcanic history
of the Yellowstone area of
Wyoming
makes it one of the most picturesque regions on our planet.
Come hear Dr. Merguerian discuss the geology of this unique region with a
video-enriched PowerPoint presentation. So, limber
up your pitching arms and bring plenty of ripe fruit for the show.
Aerial view of the Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone
National Park
. The intense colors are produced
naturally by varieties of thermophillic cyanobacteria.
Note wooden walkway with people
for scale (NPS Image.)
Place:
American Museum Natural History, People's Center, 79th
St and Central Park West, NYC
Time:
6:00
- 7:30 PM
Hofstra
University IDEAS Institute
Science Lecture
Series
Thursday,
29 Nov 2007 - Hofstra University
Geologic
Controls on Megaconstruction in Subsurface NYC
Having spent many years specializing in investigating the
surface and subsurface geology of NYC, Dr. Merguerian's lecture will concentrate
on geologic controls on and means and methods of construction utilizing tunnel
boring machines (TBMs) in the subsurface of NYC.
His subsurface work has verified geological relationships established by
surface mapping and has provided important new insights into the relationships
between TBM penetration rates, geological structure, and rock type in the
New York City
area. His research has paved the
way for more efficient tunneling in crystalline terrains and has opened the
field for municipal mega-construction projects including water, utility, and
transportation tunnels. His
Powerpoint talk will focus on exciting new tunneling contracts in the City of
New York including the Third NYC Water Tunnel, the Second Avenue Subway, the
East Side Access project, and the #7 Line Extension.
Place: Hofstra University, Monroe Hall,
South Campus
Time:
7:00-8:30 PM
Upcoming
Geology Field Trips
Geology of Inwood and Isham
Parks, NYC
Trip Leader: Charles Merguerian
New York Mineralogical Club
Sunday, 19 August 2007
10:00 AM Sharp - NE Corner Seaman Avenue and
Isham Street
Register with NYMC (Call Anna Schumate 212
675-6979)
Dr.
Charles Merguerian of Hofstra University and Duke Geological Lab, just back from
a field investigation in the Sierra Nevada of California, has offered to lead
club members of the New York Mineralogical Club on a walking tour of Inwood
and Isham Parks in northern Manhattan in August. The focus of the walking
lecture trip will be the minerals, formations, structural geology, and
glaciology of the region. Bring water or other beverage, sunblock, and
wear comfortable shoes. A light tote bag or backpack is suggested for
carrying drinks and lunch (which will be provided free of charge for club
members - still waiting to join the NY Mineralogical Club???).
You might also want to bring cameras, notepads, cash for bail, and scuba gear
(don't ask!). RSVP
Required!!
Geology For
Teachers and Travelers:
Name That Rock II
- The Science of Rock Identification
Geology 280-H (CRN: 10238)
Workshop Leader:
Dr. Charles Merguerian (Geology
Department,
Hofstra
University)
January Session; 12 January 2008; 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM
162
Gittleson Hall (South Campus)
Students may register for 1 s.h. Hofstra University
graduate credit or get 8 hours in-service credit
Limited to 20 students
Based
on feedback from our IDEAS outdoor field trip offerings, many students have
requested a rock identification workshop to assist them in learning and teaching
the basics of classification of geological materials.
Dr. Charles Merguerian,
Chairman and Professor of Geology at
Hofstra
University
, is a well-known structural geologist and petrographer who has collected rocks
and minerals his entire life – and has the basement to prove it!
He will conduct a one-day workshop on the topic of rock identification
during the January Session in 2008. The
session will involve simple hand sample description, microscopic examination,
and classification of samples and will include a workbook.
During the morning session, students will learn about the details of
descriptive mineralogy of the major rock-forming minerals.
An introduction to the three major rock types of the rock cycle will
close out the morning session.
After a brief lunch, the afternoon lab session will concentrate on the field
occurrence, forms, textures and identification of igneous, sedimentary, and
metamorphic rocks using flow charts in the workbook.
A lecture session, specific to the greater New York City-Westchester-Long
Island region will end the day in order for students to better understand where
such rock types can be found in the field and for additional enrichment and
development of class activities. Students are encouraged to bring unknown
mineral and rock samples in for identification.
The field trip is appropriate for all teachers grades K-12 and interested
members of the general public. The course may be taken for 8 hours toward
Professional Development credit or 1 semester hours of
Hofstra
University
graduate credit. Students
taking the course for graduate credit will be asked to develop a lesson plan
that outlines a classroom exercise, laboratory, demonstration, or lecture
presentation appropriate to their particular grade level or student
constituency.
Fee: $95 (Includes
mid-morning snack but does not include the cost of graduate credit.)
Information
on Registering for this Course and other University Programs
Contact
Dr. Janice Koch or
Eloise Gmur, Hofstra Ideas Institute
26-27 April 2008 - Geology
For Teachers and Travelers:
Geology,
Mines and Mineral Deposits of Western and Central Connecticut
Geology
280-I (CRN: 23350)
Trip Leader: Dr. Charles Merguerian (Geology
Department,
Hofstra
University)
Hofstra University Graduate Course - Geology
280-I (Spring Semester 2008)
The
geology of western and central Connecticut
is the focus of this Spring semester field trip conducted by Dr. Merguerian of
Hofstra's Geology Department. Having
spent many years mapping and collecting minerals in Connecticut
to the present day, he is well-qualified to conduct a trip to examine the
geological and mining history of this picturesque region.
Come join this IDEAS weekend field trip to better understand the
geological development of the Nutmeg state.
For teachers and geology enthusiasts, rock and mineral collecting is a
focus of this trip.
The field trip/workshop is
appropriate for all teachers grades K-12 and interested members of the general
public. This course may be taken for 16 hours toward Professional
Development credit or 2 semester hours of
Hofstra
University
graduate credit. Leave Hofstra campus at 8:00 AM on Saturday 26 April;
return at approximately 6:00 PM on Sunday 27 October 2008.
Fee: $275 (includes
lodging and transportation, but does not include the cost of graduate credit.)
Information
on Registering for this Course and other University Programs
Contact
Dr. Janice Koch or
Eloise Gmur, Hofstra Ideas Institute
Pre-Announcement!!
July 2008 - Geology
For Teachers and Travelers
The Geology
and Tectonics of Central California
Geology 280-J (CRN: TBA)
Trip Leader: Charles Merguerian
Hofstra University Graduate
Course (Summer Session II)
23 July to 01 August 2008
Can be taken for graduate credit [4 s.h.]; All
Inclusive Trip Fee (Less Tuition) = TBA
View of the western foothills metamorphic belt of
the Sierra Nevada Range.
Current Events
We have been engaged in subsurface mapping projects in NYC and
in preparing
documents for web-based reading and utilization. With the understanding
that "free things are often worth what you pay for them", we offer a 100%
free 56-page field guide covering the Geology of New York City and
Vicinity. We also provide links to download additional On-The-Rocks
freebies and Publications on the geology of this area in both web-based and higher
resolution .pdf formats. Both formats can generate color or black and
white print outs. Those
of you in need of a quick brush-up on geological terms and concepts, we invite
you to read or download our Structural Geology Primer in [web]
or [.pdf] format.
Always good for a laugh, the primer has been used for years as a supplement to
On-The-Rocks field guides and in advanced courses at Hofstra University.
Be sure to download our 1994 publication on the
Glacial
Geology of New York City, over 100 pages of pure fun - out of print for
years. Also, now for download, a 1991 field trip contribution on the Geology
of Long Island's North Shore, produced for the Long Island
Geologists.
Two months of work
last Spring have resulted in a
modified version of the History
of the Geology Department at Hofstra University (1935-2004) [web] and [pdf version]
and
a companion volume on the History
of the Hofstra University Graduates and Geology Club (1939-2004) [web] and [pdf
version]. Former alumni and friends of the University are urged to
download their own copy and to contact CM at Hofstra University
with any
additions or corrections for next year's update.
Active
Links - (and more links below)
Jenkins
Says - How waii ya?
HMan's Hammiewood Movie Spots
A New Star (HMan
Vb) is Born - April 2006
On-The-Rocks Guidebooks
Over the decade from September 1988 to November 1998, Duke geologists Drs. Charles Merguerian and John E. Sanders conducted forty-two On-The-Rocks field trips within a 125-mile radius of the New York area. They coauthored twenty four illustrated guidebooks
that, through detailed road logs and locality descriptions, took the reader out,
On-the-Rocks (tm).
Each guide sports a spectacular 90# card stock
cover and includes an extensive reference list and a host digitally remastered illustrations.
Destined to become highly sought after collector's items and forever useful for oil spills, taking mushroom prints, and all phases of post-nuclear bartering, information and order blanks
are available.
We have compiled an
On-The-Rocks web-based
database of 185 field trip localities for our friends
and colleagues.
Exciting News! Recent efforts
has resulted in a major step
forward on production of the fabled "New
Jersey Roadside Geology" guide. Fieldwork is underway with coauthor
Dave Harper, digitizing and collection of images for the book has been completed.
We expect completion in early 2007.
Links
As far as the links below are concerned, just a few notes as to what you may find.
In a rare move toward organization and to give the appearance that we've effected a "major overhaul" of our
webpage, we have worked on our linkages (we used
WD-40 and needle-nosed pliers). New categories have been created and dead links
and our editorial staff (dead wood) have been reduced to ashes. The
Active Links
section is devoted to
latest our main public offerings including a link to our comprehensive On-The-Rocks Locality Database, our New York City/Appalachian Reference
Database, Classic NYC Minerals Page, a Dukelabs Image Gallery, Shrine to
Firecracker Labels, and many other venues.
The
Web Archive acts as a repository
(toxic dumpsite?) for all of our past six years of everchanging web offerings. New content and links from the Active Links eventually end up in the
Archive section. With our new server and more time, this area should
increase in dimension as we've already archived all of our old material and just need the
time to massage it into shape. Dukelabs regulars can stroll down "memory lane" while newcomers have lots to read,
download, ponder, and ultimately ignore.
The Useful Geological Links provides a rapid connection to an
evergrowing constellation of geological links for students and professionals providing direct connections to almost all government-, state-, university-, and geotechnical data- and image sources with modest
surfing and limited fees (read that as free). We also provide a direct link with the United Geological Survey's Mapping Information Program.
Need to download an index map or to look up a geographic or topographic feature?
Click on the USGS link and visit GNIS and other allied services for free help and support.
See and download super images from space at the Visual Earth website. Remember,
that "they are the government and they're there to help you".
Far as we can see, with all of the wonderful resources of the web, government
and private organizations have brought depth and quality to the information
superhighway. Enjoy the electron flow.
Web
Archive
Useful Geological Links
Note: The material on this page and subpages are protected by
copyright statutes [© 2007] and can not be used for any commercial
purpose unless you cut me in! Educators are free to use any and all
of these materials for instructional purposes with proper acknowledgement.
Dr. Charles
Merguerian
Chairman, Geology Department,
114 Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY 11549
Voice: (516)
463-5567; Fax (516) 463-5120 geocmm@hofstra.edu
© 2007
Haven't You Had Enough? Really!
