GeoSpectrum

What does the future hold for solar power? Geotimes magazine looks into more efficient ways of turning the sun’s power into electricity in its April cover story, “Desert Power: A Solar Renaissance.”

Solar power has regained popularity amid increasing fossil fuel costs and green initiatives. New technology has made this form of electricity generation even more economically appealing and efficient. Traditional solar panels convert light into energy, but new, more efficient solar thermal power plants focus the sun’s heat to produce energy directly.

Geotimes explores the plans for Desertec, a multi-national initiative that would use proposed solar thermal power plants in the deserts of Northern Africa and the Middle East to supply energy to Europe. Learn about the technological hurdles still left to cross to make this initiative a reality. As plans move forward for this major initiative, how does current legislation for both industry and tax law affect increased use of solar power in America?

Read about this and learn more about wind and other renewable energies in the April issue of Geotimes magazine, available now on newsstands and on the Web at http://www.geotimes.org.

Keep up to date with the latest happenings in earth, energy and environment news by checking out Geotimes online at http://www.geotimes.org. Published by the American Geological Institute, Geotimes is your source for news and perspectives on research, technology and policy that affect you everyday. Sign up for E-alerts, our short, weekly e-mails that alert subscribers to new content posted on the Geotimes Web site, and subscribe to the magazine at http://www.geotimes.org.

The latest edition of the Directory of Geoscience Departments (DGD) — the definitive source for information about college and university geoscience departments in the United States and in 44 countries— has just been published by the American Geological Institute (AGI).

The Directory of Geoscience Departments, 46th Edition, provides a state-sorted listing of over 2,000 geoscience departments, research departments and institutes plus listings of their faculty and staff. The leadership of the major geoscience professional and scientific societies in the United States is included in this edition of the DGD along with information on 284 international departments in 44 countries.

For the third year in a row, the directory includes a statistics section derived from the data used to compile this publication. This section gives data on geoscience student enrollments and degrees granted, faculty demographics, field camps and average annual salaries. This section has been expanded for the 46th edition to include Geoscience Currents, data snapshots produced by AGI.

In addition to the information about geoscience departments, and faculty, the DGD includes listings of U.S. state geological surveys, professional and scientific geoscience societies, and contact information. Other valuable features include highlighted departments that are also listed in AGI’s comprehensive Online Guide to Geoscience Departments; and an expanded listing of federal agencies that employ or are of interest to geoscientists.

Published in soft cover (6” x 9”), the 648 page Directory of Geoscience Departments, 46th Edition (ISBN 0-922152-80-2), is available through the AGI publications department. To learn more about this book and other AGI publications please go to http://www.agiweb.org/pubs/index.html.

The American Geological Institute is a nonprofit federation of 44 geoscientific and professional associations that represents more than 120,000 geologists, geophysicists and other earth scientists. Founded in 1948, AGI provides information services to geoscientists, serves as a voice of shared interests in the profession, plays a major role in strengthening geoscience education, and strives to increase public awareness of the vital role the geosciences play in society’s use of resources, resiliency to natural hazards, and interaction with the environment.

Coastlines are the most dynamic feature on the planet. In the March issue, Geotimes magazine looks into the risks of increased development along our coastlines and what that means for erosion, flooding and future development.

As coastal communities grow, so does the call for human-made structures to prevent local beach erosion. But what do these structures mean for the overall health of surrounding coastal areas?

Geotimes follows the erosion patterns of the southern shore of Long Island, starting with its recovery from the 1938 Long Island New England Hurricane. The noticeable change in landscape after the Category-3 hurricane caused a demand for structures that would stabilize the remaining inlets. While the structures did help the situation locally, erosion increased elsewhere, creating a need for more engineered structures.

What happens to the land when normal erosional patterns are altered? Geotimes studies the effects nor’easters that struck Long Island in the early 1990s, decades after bulkheads and jetties were put in place. Did the residents learn from past mistakes when rebuilding after the storms of the ‘90s?

Learn more about changing landscapes, including how salinity is a growing problem in many of the world’s agricultural areas, plus read about dangerous contaminants in China’s water and follow the Appalachian Trail into Canada, in the March issue of Geotimes magazine, available now on newsstands and on the Web at http://www.geotimes.org.

Keep up to date with the latest happenings in earth, energy and environment news by checking out Geotimes online at http://www.geotimes.org. Published by the American Geological Institute, Geotimes is your source for news and perspectives on research, technology and policy that affects you everyday. Sign up for E-alerts, our short, weekly e-mails that alert subscribers to new content posted on the Geotimes Web site, and subscribe to the magazine at http://www.geotimes.org.