Elizabeth L. Ambos

Enhancing Diversity in the Geosciences.

Abstract An innovative interdisciplinary project at California State University, Long Beach, was designed to increase the attractiveness of the geosciences (physical geography, geology, and archaeology) to underrepresented groups. The goal was to raise awareness of the geosciences by providing summer research opportunities for underrepresented high school and community college students and their faculty. A survey of a larger sample provided insight into strategies for enhancing geoscience awareness. A qualitative evaluation pointed to its success in meeting project goals. This unprecedented level of collaboration has set the groundwork for an institutional shift for inclusion of minorities in the geosciences and warrants replication.

Ethnic differences in geoscience attitudes of college students

While a gender balance remains elusive in the geosciences [de Wet et al., 2002], the underrepresentation of ethnic minorities in these fields is at least as great a concern. A number of cultural and social factors have been proposed to explain the poor ethnic minority representation in the geosciences, including limited exposure to nature, deficient academic preparation, inadequate financial resources to pursue higher education, ignorance of career opportunities in the geosciences, insufficient family support, and misconceptions of the field.

Geophysical surveys of stratigraphically complex Island California sites : new implications for household archaeology

Ground-penetrating radar and other geophysical techniques are known to produce useful data when deposits are crisply structured, as in the case of sub-surface masonry walls or large ditches. New studies of Californian coastal sites find the methods are effective in tracing the less sharp distinctions that define clay and sand house floors within these large and dense hunter-gatherer middens.

Student Participation in an Offshore Seismic-Reflection Study of the Palos Verdes Fault, California Continental Borderland

We have developed a marine seismic-reflection program that involves students in research and instruction and is being successfully used to train students in quantitative and structural concepts. Over 100 high-school to graduate-level students have participated in the program over the last five years (1993–98). The research target is the Palos Verdes fault, a major seismogenic strike-slip fault in the California Continental Borderland. Students have participated in cruise planning and data acquisition, processing, and interpretation, and they have produced semester reports, senior theses, and oral papers and posters at meetings. Seismic mapping of a 10-km part of the fault south of Los Angeles Harbor shows a small (300 m) restraining segment and a larger (1–2 km) releasing segment in the fault. Two small (4-m-high and 1-km-wide) bulges on the seafloor indicate shortening near the restraining segment. This evidence of Holocene strain provides information on the tectonic history of this important fault. The ...

Integrating Geosciences into Instruction-Based Archeological Research on the Anasazi in Southern Utah

Geology and anthropology students and faculty at California State University at Long Beach are integrating multidisciplinary approaches to the study of prehistoric Anasazi sites in southern Utah. Students enrolled in field-study courses participate in archeological data collection, analysis, and interpretation. Concurrently, they enhance their understanding of the Anasazi sites through application of advanced geophysical exploration techniques and concepts of field geology and paleoclimatology. This complementary educational and research program offers the students diverse strategies to thoroughly address cultural heritage assessment, not only within a site-specific framework, but also within a broader environmental context.