ALEXANDRIA, VA -- Feature stories in Geotimes this month span the globe -- from the Great Silk Road of Kazakstan to Dinosaur Ridge in Colorado. The November cover story, "Inside Kazakstan," by Harry Cook, William Zempolich, Viacheslav Zhemchuzhnikov, and James Corboy, describes current field studies and geology research in the Karatau Mountains. For the past 10 years, these U.S. Geological Survey and Kazak scientists have been studying the rocks of the Karatau. Other international oil companies have joined with them to explore the geology of the area's carbonates.

The Kazak area is home to the North Caspian Basin, which has produced a billion barrels of oil in the past four years. According to the authors, the current research program studies "... specific aspects of the area's geology -- including sedimentary facies, biostratigraphy, diagenesis, sequence stratigraphy, and structure." In addition to their research, the geologists have taken time to explore the culture of Kazakstan, discovering that they "share much of the same history and many of the same values."

In this spirit, an interview with Victor P. Orlov, the Russian minister of natural resources, focuses on the management of natural resources in the Russian Federation, as Orlov describes his nation's plans for meeting its mineral production goals.

The Russian Federation's Ministry of Natural Resources was created in August 1996 and Orlov, as director of Russia's Geological Service, was the natural choice to head it. The major challenges for the ministry are "... to ensure the rational and ecologically safe use of natural resources, as well as to protect, preserve, and maintain a continuous supply of natural resources for future generations," Orlov tells Geotimes. "Our government is aware of the irrefutable fact that natural resources form the basis of the Russian economy. We are the world's largest producer of raw materials. ... Our task is to create the conditions that will allow the country to realize its tremendous natural resource and human potential. And, however much we are criticized, we are making progress."

Reaching the public is also a theme in the third feature story, "On Dinosaur Ridge." Discovered in 1877, Dinosaur Ridge was the site of the first major dinosaur finds in the western United States. Today, thanks to the volunteer organization, Friends of Dinosaur Ridge, the site -- located in the little town of Morrison, outside Denver -- has become an important resource for science and education. What was once a mostly ignored section of the Dakota Hogback is now a National Natural Landmark and a place for active learning.

Friends of Dinosaur Ridge -- who now number in the hundreds -- sponsor Elderhostel groups and children's summer camps, lead tours, and publish guide books. And the visitors number in the tens of thousands. "On Dinosaur Ridge," written by Norbert Cygan, Peter Modreski, Elizabeth Rall, and Robert Raynolds, describes this busy educational center, emphasizing the role of its volunteers, and sharing the authors' enthusiasm for a place that serves to "introduce the public to natural science and to the excitement of scientific discovery."

Special Section: Ethics

Lawyers, doctors, and even politicians understand the importance of ethics in their occupations, and participate in formal courses on professional ethics. But the subject of ethics has never been part of the geoscientist's education. In the November issue of Geotimes, the conveners of the Geological Society of America's Presidential Conference on "Ethics in the Geosciences" contribute a report, outlining ethical standards for geoscientists.

The report, submitted by David Stephenson, Richard Grauch, Tom Holzer, Jonathan Price, and Pete Rose, is published as a special section in this issue and summarizes the discussions, debates, and recommendations of the 69 conference participants. It shares with the public, for the first time, a written explanation of core values, virtues, ethical issues, ethics education, and codes of ethics, and presents specifics on how these relate to geology. This report provides the long-needed framework for continued dialogue within the geoscience community.