Geosciences

Studying geosciences at Denison

GEOSCIENTISTS INVESTIGATE THE EARTH in the broadest sense; how it formed, how it evolved and continues to evolve, how Earth systems interact to produce the environment in which we live, and how present and future changes may affect the habitability of Earth.

An understanding of the Earth is an important component of global citizenship. Many critical environmental issues face humanity, including global climate change, water shortages, loss of arable land, natural hazards such as earthquakes and flooding, and the availability of petroleum and other energy resources.

The central goal of Denison's Department of Geosciences is to educate students about the nature and history of the Earth, the processes that shape the Earth and the impacts those processes have on human populations. The department emphasizes field study and hands-on experience in all courses. Class and departmental field trips visit locations from Maine to Costa Rica, and there are numerous opportunities for individual research with faculty.

Denison students with training in the geosciences will contribute to solving these and other problems, while increasing opportunities for humans to live sustainably on the Earth.

Faculty and students on a recent departmental trip to Costa Rica that included stops at the Arenal, Poas and Irazu Volcanoes, as well as the La Selva Biological Station and the Cura National Wildlife Refuge.

The geosciences major

There are two possible paths to the bachelor's degree in Geoscience: a Bachelor of Science in anticipation of advanced study in the Geosciences, or a Bachelor of Arts for those who seek a less specialized course of study. Earning a B.A. degree does not preclude a professional career in the Geosciences, although admission to some graduate programs may require completion of additional science and mathematics courses.

A student may graduate with a B.S. degree by taking an introductory geoscience course (GEOS 110, 111, 112, 114, or a FYS 102 taught by Geoscience faculty); three foundation courses (GEOS 210 and 211, and either GEOS 200 or 280); three of five core courses (GEOS 300, 305, 310, 311, 314); two additional Geoscience courses at the 200-level or above; and a geoscience field course (GEOS 400).  Required additional science courses are CHEM 121 plus three courses from CHEM 122, BIOL 201-202, MATH 123-124, and PHYS 121-122.  Students wishing to pursue graduate study in the geosciences are strongly encouraged to take additional math and science courses beyond this minimum requirement.

Students seeking a B.A. degree must take an introductory geoscience course (see above), three foundation courses (see above), three of five core courses (see above), and two additional Geoscience courses at the 200-level or above.

Both B.S. and B.A. students are required to pass a comprehensive exam, administered early in the second semester of the senior year.

Note that most upper level geoscience courses are offered in alternate years. Therefore careful schedule planning is important, especially if one pursues a semester of off-campus study.

Students have the opportunity to enhance their classroom learning by participating in departmental field trips (at least one per semester) to areas of geological interest. Recent trips include: eastern California; the Outer Banks of North Carolina; the coast of Maine; west Texas and New Mexico; Sudbury, Ontario; Death Valley California; and Costa Rica. The cost of these trips is supplemented by funds endowed by departmental alumni.

Denison geosciences faculty are both teachers and scholars, and they welcome the opportunity to do research with their students.

Recent student/faculty research projects include:

• Implications of Silurian U-Pb ages of stratified rocks on Vinalhaven and North Haven Islands, Penobscot Bay, Maine
• Petrochemistry of a mafic replenishment layer in the Vinalhaven pluton, Vinalhaven Island, Penobscot Bay, Maine
• Field and geophysical investigation of the Toko Syncline, Georgina Basin, central Australia
• Reinterpretation of the structural evolution of the Confusion Range, Millard County, Utah: Anomalous hinterland deformation of the Sevier orogenic belt
• Glacial Lake Licking: Sedimentology and stratigraphy in the lower Licking River watershed
• Soils, hydrology and mid-Holocene settlement patterns in the central Körös Basin, eastern Hungary
• Examining heterochronic evolution in Neogene tropical American Corbulids: Using sclerochronology and isotope geochemistry
• An examination of intertidal bivalve mollusk growth from coastal Maine: Implications for paleoenvironmental analysis

Students often present their research results at professional conferences such as the Geological Society of America meetings.

Generous support is available on a competitive basis for students completing field camps, summer internships, and other field research experiences.

Employment opportunities for student within the department include working as teaching and laboratory assistants and assisting in developing and maintaining departmental collections.

The C.L. Herrick Geological Society is an active, student-run organization, which coordinates guest lectures and social events throughout the academic year. Also student-initiated and operated is The Denison Journal of Geoscience, an annual publication featuring articles on a wide range of geologic and geographic topics.

What do geosciences majors do after Denison?

Recent Denison geoscience majors have found employment in a broad range of fields, including petroleum exploration, environmental geology, geotechnical engineering, environmental law, earth science teaching and academic research in topics that span the disciplines. While many of our graduates continue their geoscience training in graduate school, others apply their geoscience background and liberal arts education to a wide variety of careers.

Who are our professors?

Professor Tod A. Frolking joined the faculty at Denison in 1984. He earned a B.A. at the University of New Hampshire and an M.S. and a Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin. His specialties are physical geography and surface processes. His current research concerns the impacts of glaciation on central Ohio's river systems, water resource issues, both local and global, and geoarchaeology projects linking soils to prehistoric land use in both central Ohio and eastern Hungary.

Associate Professor David H. Goodwin joined the faculty at Denison in 2003. He earned a B.S. at Lyndon State College, an M.S. at the University of Montana and a Ph.D. at the University of Arizona, Tucson. His specialties are paleontology and sedimentology. His research interests include developmental versus environmental constraints on bivalve mollusk shell development.

Associate Professor David C. Greene joined the faculty at Denison in 1996. He earned a B.S. at the University of California, Santa Cruz, an M.S. at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and a Ph.D. at the University of Nevada, Reno. His specialties are structural geology and tectonics. He is currently involved in research on regional tectonics in central Australia, and the Sierra Nevada of California.

Assistant Professor Johanna Kieniewicz joined Denison's faculty in 2007. She earned her B.S. at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and her Ph.D. at Washington University, St. Louis.

For more information about the department and curriculum, go to:

Geosciences Department

or contact:

Tod A. Frolking, Chair
Department of Geosciences
Olin Hall, Room 306
Denison University
Granville, Ohio 43023

Phone:  (740) 587-6217
Fax:  (740) 587-6774
E-mail: Tod A. Frolking