Switching from coal to natural gas in power plants can reduce how much sulfur dioxide, a gas that smells like a freshly struck match, is emitted into the atmosphere and ultimately how much sulfate pollution enters waterways, according to a Penn State-led research team that has developed a model to detect if the recent switch from coal to gas is affecting streams.
The geosciences lag other STEM fields when it comes to racial and ethnic representation. A two-year, $295,000 grant from the National Science Foundation aims to address this issue by encouraging more Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) students to pursue research and careers in the geosciences.
In a video series titled “Perspective: Leaders at Penn State,” Lee Kump, John Leone Dean in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences at Penn State, reflects on his love for diving as an opportunity to experience the joy of discovery — and to come back with your eyes wide open.
Finding one’s identity throughout college and beyond can be challenging for many, but through embracing her unique heritage, Esther Muñoz is making her way.
The dusty surface of the moon — immortalized in images of Apollo astronauts’ lunar footprints — formed as the result of asteroid impacts and the harsh environment of space breaking down rock over millions of years. An ancient layer of this material, covered by periodic lava flows and now buried under the lunar surface, could provide new insight into the Moon’s deep past, according to a team of scientists.
What do a tiny nation off the coast of West Africa, a plastics pollution problem in Pittsburgh, and the indigenous Iñupiat people of Alaska all have in common?
Earl “Skip” Lenker is passionate about lifelong learning. After graduating from Dartmouth College in 1956 and earning his doctorate in geosciences from Penn State in 1964, the lifelong educational journey continued.
Understanding how climate change will affect the flooding of rivers may become easier with a new framework for assessing flood risk that's been developed by an interdisciplinary team from Penn State.
Susan Brantley
Derek Elsworth
Brad Foley
Katherine Freeman
Tanya Furman
Elizabeth Hajek
Kimberly Lau
Jennifer Macalady
Michael Mann
Andrew Smye
Christelle Wauthier
Timothy White
John (Jack) Crook ’81 Crook retired as senior vice president of Diversifed Gas & Oil. He was an Earth Sciences major and is now enjoying retirement, camping and golf.
Daniel Hummer ’10 Hummer is currently a professor of geology at Southern Illinois University. He recently assisted in designing a permanent exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History in New York showing the evolution of minerals from the big bang to the present.
Kent Newsham ’78 Newsham was selected to be in the inaugural class of fellows at Occidental. His new title is Oxy Fellow, Worldwide Chief Petrophysicist. He is also on the Technical Advisory Board and the Technical Reserves Review team.
George Veni ’94 Veni is the executive director of the National Cave and Karst Research Institute and president of the International Union of Speleology (UIS), which functions as the United Nations of countries conducting cave exploration and science. He is currently engaged deeply in the biggest cave and karst project ever: the International Year of Caves and Karst. This is a global effort to reach and teach people about the many values of caves and karst that everyone benefits from, and it is being organized by the UIS.
Alumni Passings
