Earth Science Club of Northern Illinois - ESCONI

Amazing Video on How Liquidification Happens

Via BoingBoing:

Dinosaurs Active Day and Night

From the BBC via Nakedcapitalism:

The results suggests that small, meat-eating dinosaurs were nocturnal; large, plant-eating dinosaurs tended to forage both during the day and at night.

The Science study also challenges the notion that mammals' nocturnal nature evolved to avoid day-active dinosaurs.

Lars Schmitz and Ryosuke Motani of the University of California Davis have been looking at the eye parts of dinosaurs, and their modern-day descendants the lizards and birds, for a number of years.

Entertaining comment on NakedCapitalism from MyLessThanPrimeBeef who says:

Dinosaurs active day and night.

A more rigorous study would probably discover that only the teenage, partying dinosaurs were active day and night.

Journey into Volcano's Lava Lake

From BoingBoing:

This is not a special-effects still from an upcoming movie. Instead, it's a photo taken at Nyiragongo Volcano in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This is one of the most active volcanoes in the world, and National Geographic has the story of a team of Congolese seismologists who journeyed into Nyiragongo's crater to study the volcano's massive lava lake, and try to learn more about what's going on inside a mountain that could potentially kill thousands....

Got These Mazon Fossils? Please Bring to Paleo Meeting

Paleontology Study Group. 7:30 p.m. College of Dupage, Building K, Rm 161.

Topic: The Paleontology of Pets (Dogs, Cats, Guinea Pigs) by David Carlson, ESCONI member.

Also, will be photographing Mazon Creek specimens. Looking for the following: Didontaogaster; tummy tooth worms, Paucijaculum; arrow worms, Eurypterids, Amynilyspes; pill millipedes, Etacystis; H, Shark poop: spiral poop, Dasyleptus; silverfish insect; Fish scales, Esconicthys; fish, Rhabdoderma especially with yoke sacks; fish, Bandringa; shark, Strobeus on jellyfish; snails on blobs, Aornerpeton; legless amphibians, Amphibian teeth; single cusp teeth, Kottixerxes; euthycarcinoid, Elonichthys peltigerus, Elonichthys hypsilepus.

Jewelry Making Tips

From Jewelry Making Today:

.... In November 2010, the Benhams answered a question about whether or not it's safe to strike hardened steel tools with a steel hammer. We not only got a yes or no, we got an explanation of why this can be a hazard in similar circumstances, too. If you hammer metal, you need to know this:

"It's considered unsafe to hit a hardened steel tool with a hardened hammer face as one of the steel surfaces could shatter, sending shards of steel flying. It doesn't happen often, but Tom can personally attest that it happened to him. When he was twelve, he was once holding a cold chisel for his older brother to strike with a sledge hammer. When the hammer struck, the end of the chisel shattered and sent a piece of shrapnel into Tom's chin. This made him an immediate convert to the principle of never hitting steel on steel.

"When hitting metal on metal, one of the two pieces of metal must be softer to prevent shattering. Any time you're striking a tool with a hammer, it's a good idea to check the hardness of the steel by running a file against the struck end of the tool. If the file skates across its surface without cutting into it, then it's probably too hard to be struck with a hard-faced hammer, so use a brass or bronze hammer instead."...

 

Improved Way to Repel Ticks - Permethrin

Via Kevin Kelley's Cool Tools:

Permethrin is a man-made version of an insect repellent found in chrysanthemum plants. The molecule repels a variety of biting insects including flies, ants, chiggers, mosquitoes, ticks, etc. The company Insect Shield partners with manufacturers of work and recreational outdoor clothing to produce bug repellant gear: LL Bean, Buff, Carolina Manufacturing (bandanas), Eagle’s Nest Outfitters, ExOfficio, Outdoor Research, and REI.

Since deer populations have been exploding in many parts of the country, we have seen a corresponding explosion in the tick population. Some diseases carried by ticks can send you to bed for at least a week and may even have permanent effects (Lyme disease for example). Permethrin seems to be the best alternative for dealing with these pests and is a vastly superior alternative to DEET....

... He was finding about a dozen ticks a day after working in the fields. Rob started wearing permethrin treated socks, long pants secured at the ankle, long-sleeved shirts and a bandana; he stopped picking up ticks

Sounds like a good idea to get ahold of some of this stuff before going out to collect!

Top 10 Archaeology Finds of 2010

From Archaeology Magazine:

... This was the year we learned that looters led archaeologists to spectacular and unparalleled royal tombs in both Turkey and Guatemala. An unexpected find brought us closer to Pocahontas, and an underwater archaeological survey in the high Canadian Arctic located the ill-fated HMS Investigator, abandoned in 1853.

Archaeologists weren't just busy in the field, though. A number of breakthroughs happened in the lab, too. A new radiocarbon dating technique was perfected this year that will allow scientists to date artifacts without harming them.

Laboratory analysis of the bones of a close relative of Lucy revealed how early hominins walked. And anthropologists in Germany announced startling news about the Neanderthal genome that might send you scrambling to submit your own DNA for sequencing....

Gas v Coal from Cornell Study

From NakedCapitalism:

I’m pretty amazed that no one looked into the greenhouse gas impact of fracking until now. One of the big rationales for fracking, which is already controversial due to reports of damage to aquifers, is that it was abundant in North America and also produces comparatively little in the way of carbon emissions.

The problem, per a study soon to be published by Cornell University, is fracking results in the release of methane, one of the most potent greenhouse gases, apparently enough to undercut the claims that it is relatively “clean”.

Rocks, rocks and more rocks - all with their unique side effects.

Dinosaur Lice

Science Daily:

... The study, in Biology Letters, uses fossils and molecular data to track the evolution of lice and their hosts. It offers strong evidence, the researchers said, that the ancestors of lice that today feed on birds and mammals began to diversify before a mass extinction event killed off the dinosaurs about 65 million years ago...

The Fossil Fauna of Mazon Creek

The 1997 Mazon Creek fauna book, Richardson's Guide to The Fossil Fauna of Mazon Creek, by Charles w. Shabica and Andrew A. Hay, ed., is now available in limited quantities at the Institute of Natural Resource Sustainability for $50.00.

Limited quantities of this comprehensive reference are available while they last. The volume is out of print. The guide is a valuable asset for both professional paleontologists and amateur collectors because the well-preserved fossils from the Mazon Creek area of northeastern Illinois provide the most complete known record of late Paleozoic life. The volume is a systematic account of the area’s diverse animal fossils, especially marine and freshwater fauna. Discussed are the area’s coal mining fossil collecting, the geologic and environmental setting, and fossil distribution. Individual chapters provide detailed information about the fossil groups represented at Mazon Creek.

Huge Rare Earth Deposit Found in China

Via Peoples Daily:

... The Zhejiang Provincial First Geological Team has discovered a mammoth scandium-polymetallic deposit in northwestern Zhejiang that has proven scandium reserves of 70 tons worth about 70 billion yuan, according to an announcement made by the Zhejiang Provincial Geology and Exploration Bureau on March 29.

The rare earth deposit contains 17 types of metallic elements. Of them, scandium is mainly used in national defense, spaceflight, nuclear power, superconductor and other cutting-edge technological sectors ...

Two New Minerals Announced

Wassonite:

NASA has announced the discovery of a new mineral inside a "historically significant"* meteorite recovered from Antarctica in December 1969.

The exotic blend of sulphur and titanium was spotted in the 4.5bn-year-old Yamato 691 enstatite chondrite, which may have once formed part of an asteroid orbiting between Jupiter and Mars.

It has a "unique crystal structure that has not been previously observed in nature", according to NASA space scientist Keiko Nakamura-Messenger, who led the research.

The mineral has been dubbed "Wassonite", in honour of John T Wasson, a professor at the University of California, "known for his achievements across a broad swath of meteorite and impact research"....

Rakovinite:

Rakovanite is found as crystals up to one millemeter in maximum dimension that vary in habit from blocky to prismatic.

It is orange with an orange-yellow streak, transparent and displays brittle tenacity.

Rakovanite is one of several new decavanadate minerals that have been discovered in the West Sunday mines, according to Miami.

Events This Week, April 11- 17, 2011

Sat. 4/16	Paleontology Study Group. 7:30 p.m. College of Dupage, Building K, Rm 161. Topic: The Paleontology of Pets (Dogs, Cats, Guinea Pigs) by David Carlson, ESCONI member. Also, will be photographing Mazon Creek specimens. Looking for the following: Didontaogaster; tummy tooth worms, Paucijaculum; arrow worms, Eurypterids, Amynilyspes; pill millipedes, Etacystis; H, Shark poop: spiral poop, Dasyleptus; silverfish insect; Fish scales, Esconicthys; fish, Rhabdoderma especially with yoke sacks; fish, Bandringa; shark, Strobeus on jellyfish; snails on blobs, Aornerpeton; legless amphibians, Amphibian teeth; single cusp teeth, Kottixerxes; euthycarcinoid, Elonichthys peltigerus, Elonichthys hypsilepus.
Sun 4/17	Black Hawk Gem and Mineral Society Annual Gem, Mineral, and Fossil Show:  Featuring: Geodes: Iowa’s Rolling Stones. DATE:    April 17, 2011 PLACE:    Waterloo Center for The Arts, 225 Commercial St., Waterloo Iowa 50701 TIME:    12:00 Noon to 5:00 p.m. Sunday ADMISSION:  Free – Donations Accepted  Download Mineral flyer 2011 Orland Park Jewelry, Gem, Fossil and Mineral Show PLACE:  Orland Park Civic Center, 14750 Ravinia, Orland Park, IL TIME: 9 am to 4 pm ADMISSION:  $2 - kids 14 and under are free Contact (815) 315-3719

Jim Daly's Presentation on Mineralogy Terminology

Last night, at the Mineralogy Study Group meeting, Jim Daly gave an informative presentation, Mineralogy Terminology. Here are the handouts (.doc) and the slides(.ppt).

On the left is the slide displaying the optical property, shiller, as seen in this specimen of Aventurine. (photo by Jim Daly).

Saturday, 4/9, Mineralogy and Micromount Meeting 7:30 pm

Mineralogy and Micromount Study Group. 7:30 p.m. College of Dupage, Building K, Rm 1630 pm1. Talking about mineral structures and classifications.

Friday - General Meeting - "Tyrannosaur Research"

ESCONI General Meeting. 8:00 p.m. College of Dupage, Building K, Rm 161. Thomas Carr from the Dinosaur Discovery Museum will speak on "Tyrannosaur research and the bird evolution gallery at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum".

Des Plaines Geological Society's Show This Weekend

Via the TribLocal:

The Des Plaines Geological Society's annual show will be held on April 9-10 at the Des Plaines Park District Leisure Center at 2222 Birch St Des Plaines Il. Show hours are: Saturday 9:30-5:00 and Sunday 10:00-4:00. Admission Adults $3 Seniors $2 Students w/ID $1 Children under 12 free with adult. There will be fine gem and jewelry dealers, kid's room, live demonstrations, educational exhibits,food, door prizes, raffles and a silent auction. Lazzardo museum will have a display. Parking is free. Contact Lois Zima at 847 298-4653 for informaition or directions.

What's Going On With Volcano Under Glacier?

From Think Big:

Over on Jon Frimann's Iceland Volcano and Earthquake Blog, there has been a lot of talk about the activity under Vatnajökull (see map below), the largest glacier on Iceland and specifically near Grímsfjall/Grímsvötn. I thought I'd take a closer look at the great glacier of the island nation and specifically, the volcanic activity that occurs around and under the icecap (and then take my speculative stab at what might be going on near Grímsvötn).

Wobbly-kneed Paleontologist

From Pocono Record:

PITTSBURGH — Mary Dawson has a saying: "Old paleontologists never die. Their knees just give out."

Sitting in her cozy, cluttered office in the back corridors of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Dawson grins at what she calls her "bum knee" and notes that she is 80 years old — but otherwise this pioneering student of life's beginnings is showing no signs of hanging up her pickax.

Ten years ago, she told the Post-Gazette that the Arctic "was no longer an option for me. I'm an orthopedic surgeon's nightmare."

She appears to have proven the doctors wrong. Not only has Dawson, curator emeritus of vertebrate paleontology at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, visited Canada's High Arctic five times in the past decade — where she helped discover an entirely new species of animal — she's already planning to return there the summer after next.

News for Archaeologists

Archaeology posts news items every day on their site. One of the many new items from March 31, was an article about a found clay tablet dating from 1450 and 1350 B.C.

"This is a rare case where archaeology meets ancient texts and Greek myths," Cosmopoulos said in a statement.