Archive of news from 2011
Ancient Oceans Offer Key to Extraterrestrial Secrets
Acadia Earth & Environmental Science Department professor Peir Pufahl leads a team of NASA scientists on a rock
hunting expedition to learn more about space. Reported in NovaNewsNow.com
16 August 2011
Geological Association of Canada Distinguished Service Award to Sandra Barr
Sandra Barr’s service to
the Canadian geoscience community was acknowledged on May 24th,
2011, in Ottawa when she received the Distinguished Service Award from the
Geological Association of Canada. Sandra
is a long-standing member of the GAC, which she joined in 1970 when she was
still a graduate student at the University of British Columbia. She reached the highest role in the
Association by serving as President in 2004-2005. Under her leadership GAC explored new
relationships within the Canadian geoscience community, which led to the
creation of the Canadian Federation of Earth Science. She is currently special advisor to the GAC President
and also serves as GAC's Book Editor. In
that role she has brought a number of important projects to fruition, such as
the latest edition of the highly successful Geotext “Facies Models”. The award
also acknowledged Sandra’s many other roles in geoscience, including her
service as editor (since 1986) of the journal “Atlantic Geology”. [Photo by Olga Ijewliw]
30 June 2011
Linda Lusby retires from Acadia
photo by L Graves
On 16 June, Linda Lusby was one of a dozen professors recognised at
the Annual Summer Assembly, upon the occasion of her retirement from
teaching. She has taught at Acadia since 1983, and in his remarks about
her, Rob Raeside noted she has given over 40 different courses across
three faculties, taught all the courses offered in Environmental
Science, and worn the greatest variety of shoes in doing so (according
to one of her teaching evaluations!) Linda was our first professor in
Environmental Science, upon its establishment in 1995, and was the first
chair of the Department of Earth and Environmental Science, when it
formed in 2007. Outside Acadia, she was the first Nova Scotian to chair
the Standards Council of Canada, and for a while maintained an office
overlooking Parliament in Ottawa, and an office overlooking the back
door of Elliott Hall at Acadia, as she commuted almost weekly between
Ontario and Nova Scotia.
Linda has nurtured
over 170 graduates through the Environmental Science program, has taught
over 1500 students in various ENVS courses, and regularly obtains
glowing comments about how she has opened students minds to the impact
of the environment, science and society on each other.
17 June 2011
Mercury Research at Kejimkujik National Park
Researchers are studying the loons that make the lakes at Nova Scotia’s
Kejimkujik National Park their home. It’s important research which has
implications for everybody. Heidi Petrasek of Breakfast Television sat down with Dr. Nelson O'Driscoll, who is
tracking the increasing levels of mercury being found in the park’s fish
and loons. See the whole interview at this link.
6 June 2011
2011 Graduates Celebrate
A total of 27
graduates who have graced the halls of Huggins and KCIC this past few (or
several) years graduated in May:
MSc (Geology): Pizye Nankamba, Jean-Luc Pilote, David Swanton, Robert Treat, Matthew Tucker
BSc (Honours, Environmental
Science): Emily Beveridge, Amy Buckland-Nicks, Jennie Pick, David Terry
BSc
(Honours Geology): Leah Chiste, Jon Gates, Luke Marshall
BSc (Environmental Science):
Melissa Cull, Mike Kennah, Destin Lau, Dawei Song
BSc (Geology): Kite
Akpughe, Dwight DeMerchant, Neda Dokic, Stephanie Friedrich, Nate
Hinsperger, Graeme Hovey, Osas Izebhokun, Afiqah Mohamad Radzi, Laurie
Morin, Matt Philbrick, Matt Pitts.
Congratulations
to all, and especially to Jennie Pick and Stephanie Friedrich, the
recipients of the University Medals in Environmental Science and
Geology, respectively. Jennie also received the Chipman Medal, in
recognition of her overall average, closest to that of the
Governor-General's medallist.
Pictured above a happy trio - Laurie Morin, Stephanie Friedrich and Neda Dokic.
17 May 2011
Neville Crasto defends his thesis
MSc
Applied Geomatics graduate student defended his thesis on "Hydrological
Feature Delineation and Water Level Estimation in the
Mackenzie Delta, NWT, Using Digital Terrain Analyses on Airborne
LIDAR-Derived Data" on Tuesday, 11 May. The examining committee
consisted of Don
Forbes, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, as external examiner, Peir
Pufahl as internal reader and Ian
Spooner and Chris Hopkinson (AGRG, Middleton), co-supervisors. Despite a
last minute sudden abbreviation of his 45 minute presentation into the
15 minute window allowed, Neville did a good job of outlining the
problem of identifying fluvial geomorphology in a remote region, and
handled his questioners well.
14 May 2011
Field Schools 2011
Spring field schools are now done - students in Environmental Science and Geology programs have spent two weeks exploring the province, learning and measuring their environment and the rocks under their feet, and discovering new skills like river walking and ledge sitting.
The whole class (Environmental Science + Geology schools) at the start near Fall Brook.
The Geology field course perched high above the Arisaig shoreline on a rhyolite plug. [Click on images for larger versions.]
9 May 2011
Geology graduate student awarded Kenneth R. Stiles Memorial Scholarship
MSc
student Donnelly Archibald was awarded the Kenneth R Stiles Memorial
Scholarship, made possible by the Seaman Hotchkiss Hockey Foundation and
Hockey Canada's Officiating Program of
Excellence. The award winners have demonstrated officiating
excellence while
maintaining a commitment to their post-secondary education.
The photograph shows Donnelly officiating during the Canada Winter Games
in Halifax in February, 2011. In his academic life, Donnelly's
MSc thesis project on the West Barneys River Plutonic Suite
in the Antigonish Highlands is co-supervised by Dr. Sandra Barr (Acadia)
and Dr. Brendan
Murphy (St. Francis Xavier).
9 May 2011
Campus Environmental Leadership Award to Linda Lusby
The Environmental and Sustainability Studies (ESST) Student Society has awarded Linda Lusby the Campus Environmental Leadership Award,
which honours an outstanding person (student, faculty or staff) who has
shown dedication to at least one environmental initiative on campus. A
fruit tree will be planted adjacent to the Acadia Farm in her name.
Linda
has been a dedicated member of the Acadia University staff for over 25
years, working in the Environmental Science Program. She helped make the
Environmental Science degree what it is today by steadfastly helping
and caring for Environmental Science students.
She holds potlucks for
Environmental Science students at her house every year and has always
gone above and beyond her duties to make sure that her students get the
best education that they deserve. She has participated and helped many
local sustainable groups/activities to promote the value of local
economy in the region.
Linda is retiring this year, which means that
many current and future students will miss out on her wonderful
personality and excellent classes. By naming a seedling after her, a
part of her will never leave Acadia campus and ensure that she is always
remembered.
29 April 2011
Two graduate thesis defences in two days
|
Monday and Tuesday, 19 and 20 April were D-day for Jean-Luc Pilote and
Robert Treat. Both graduate students were studying with Sandra Barr in
opposite end of New Brunswick. Jean-Luc's thesis, "Petrology,
petrogenesis, tectonic implications and economic potential of
the Landry Brook and Dickie Brook plutons, northern New Brunswick,
Canada" investigated the varied chemistry and origin of three sets of
plutonic rocks west of Bathurst, and was examined by Reg Wilson, from
the Bathurst office of the NB Dept. Natural Resources and by David
McMullin as internal reader. Robert's thesis, "A structural and
petrological study of the Partridge Island block and adjacent areas,
southern New Brunswick" was concerned with correlations, ages and
deformation of rocks in the Saint John area. It was examined by Dr. Nick
Culshaw, from Dalhousie, and Rob Raeside as internal examiner. We were
also pleased to have Robert's co-supervisor, Adrian Park, UNB,
participate in the defence. |
 Jean-Luc Pilote |
 Robert Treat |
End of term - time to celebrate
It's the end of
the winter term - that lull between classes and papers and the start of
exams. A time to celebrate a term of lessons learned, projects finished,
and courses completed. The Earth and Environmental Science Department
celebrated at the Curling Club - about 80 students and faculty gathered
to watch the year gone by, acknowledge the prize winners and scholarship
recipients through the year, and to thank the club executives and the
professors for a year well run.
Recognised as prize winners and scholarship recipients (left to right): Jennie Pick, Jon Gates, Stephanie Friedrich, Laurie Morin, Neda Đokic, Leah Chiste and Drew MacPhail.
This year we also celebrated the imminent retirement of Prof Linda
Lusby - after 28 years in several roles at Acadia, but most notably as
the person who was the face of the Environmental Science program, Linda
was acknowledged by the senior class (from left to right: Jennie Pick,
David Terry, Amy Buckland-Nicks, Melissa Cull, Alison Healey, Dewey
Dunnington, Emily Beveridge, Linda Lusby and Stu Clow).
photo from Allie Healey, 8 April 2011
Travel Grant for Donnelly Archibald to attend national conference
Donnelly
Archibald, a MSc student in Earth and Environmental Science, has received a
travel grant from the Mineralogical Association of Canada to assist with his
expenses in attending the annual meeting of the Geological and Mineralogical
Associations of Canada in Ottawa, May 24-27. Donnelly will be presenting a
poster at the conference based on his MSc thesis project "Revised bedrock
geology of the southern Antigonish Highlands, Nova Scotia, Canada".
His work is co-supervised by Sandra Barr (Acadia) and Brendan Murphy (St.
Francis Xavier). In his award letter, Donnelly was informed that
competition for the grant was very stiff this year but that his application was
rated highly by all members of the evaluation committee.
A visit to meet Sue, the TRex
The History of Life class went to Halifax to visit Sue, the most
complete Tyrannosaurus Rex fossil ever discovered, at the Nova Scotia
Museum. Here the class poses with Sue, who seems to be taking a bite out
of Patrick Englehardt’s shoulder.
25 March 2011
APICS Environmental Conference, Dalhousie University
The
APICS Environmental conference was held at Dalhousie on 11-12 March -
representing Acadia were Dr. Nelson O'Driscoll, Emily Beveridge, Jennie
Pick, Amy Buckland-Nicks and Allison Healey. Three concurrent sessions
for Biology, Fisheries and Aquaculture and Environmetal Science were
hosted this year. One of the highlights of the environmental studies
session was a plenary talk by Dr. John Smol who overviewed his
pioneering work in the development of paleolimnological techniques. Dr.
Smol demonstrated how complicated effects such as acidification in Nova
Scotia lakes can be recorded and quantified into the distant past using
diatom markers in lake sediments.
25 March 2011
Environmental Science thesis defences
Four
students in Environmental Science recently defended their theses
successfully. Shown here after the successful double-header defence in
the KC Irving Environmental Science Centre are Emily Beveridge (second
from left) and Jennie Pick (right), both supervised by Linda Lusby
(standing between the students). External examiner for Jennie's thesis
was Dr. Vimy Glass (left), a graduate of Acadia's Environmental Science
class of 1997, who now works as a research scientist for the Department
of Agriculture in Truro. Also defending in the past few days were Amy
Buckland-Nicks and David Terry. The topics of their theses can be found
on our thesis page.
21 March 2011
Sara Akin participates in Trinidad field course
Over
the study break the Petroleum Field Methods course, led by Dr. Grant
Wach from Dalhousie University, traveled to Trinidad for the 9th time.
This trip was made possible with support from Shell, Imperial Oil, Nova
Scotia Department of Energy, and the Acadia Department of Earth and
Environmental Science. Trinidad provides a pristine environment to
study petroleum systems and this course focused on clastic sedimentology
(deltaic deposits), sequence stratigraphy, and reservoir
characterization. Daily exercises combined outcrop and well log data
to facilitate discussions with peers, geologists and engineers from
Petrotrin and Ten Degrees North. The sedimentology and depositional
environments of Trinidad are similar to offshore deposits of Nova
Scotia, and this course provided valuable information for those who wish
to pursue sedimentology or petroleum exploration in the future.
 |
Some of the group experience Geology in the tropics - few outcrops,
but interesting diversions (here examining a pit viper in its habitat,
at the Asa Wright Nature Centre). photo by Derrick Midwinter |
 |
The whole class, joined by Petrotrin geologists and engineers, assembled for the group photo. Leader, Dr. Grant Wach, Dalhousie University fifth from right. |
 |
Sara (right) and other class members at the Devil's Woodyard mud volcanoes. Photo: Derrick Midwinter |
Atlantic Geoscience Conference, Fredericton
Fifteen
students and five professors from the E&ES department ventured
off to Fredericton to the annual AGS conference on 11-12 February.
Several of the graduate students participated in a workshop on laser
ablation ICP-MS analysis, run by the Quartermain Centre at UNB, where
they were introduced to the technique and in live time were able to
watch pits being ablated and analyses made. Most of the undergraduate
students stopped off at Sussex on the way to the conference and visited
the PCS potash mine, exploring the 80 m high underground caverns.
Masters students Jean-Luc Pilote and Robert Treat and PhD student
Ravinder Pannu gave talks on their projects and seven masters and
honours students presented posters. Congratulations to Jon Gates who
achieved an "honourable mention" for his poster on Petrology and
Tectonic Implications of Mafic to Intermediate Dykes in the Kellys
Mountain Area, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia and to Ravinder Pannu who
won the Sandra Barr Award for best graduate student presentation,
entitled "A Laboratory Method for the Quantification of Mercury and GHG
Volatilization from Soils."
14 February 2011