Ocmulgee National Monument

Ocmulgee National Monument is such a cool and unique place! It is a memorial to the relationship of people and national resources in the Southeast corner of North America for past centuries. There is evidence of life and human habitation for more than 17,000 years in the past! That is absolutely crazy if you ask me! I really enjoyed our visit there and my favorite part was getting able to go inside one the cave-looking things :). I also enjoyed doing cartwheels and round-offs with Dr. Rood and experiencing sheer terror as Dr. Rood pretended to push me off the cliff of one of the Indian mounds...but, I know it was all fun and games :)


Gosh, I'm going to miss this class!!!!! :(

HITCHITI!!!!!!!!

For one of our labs, we went to Hitchiti Experimental Forest. This was such a fun lab. It was nice to get outside and enjoy nature for the day. I learned a lot walking around the forest and I felt very knowledgeable about Hitchiti after leaving. Although, it was slightly difficult for us to find the forest, it was an experience that I will definitely keep in my memory. :)

Burgess Shale

The Burgess Shale is a fossil field located in the Canadian Rockies of British Columbia. In 1909, paleontologist Charles Walcott discovered the Burgess Shale. He was intrigued by this particular fossil field because of it's unusually exceptional preservation of the soft parts of its fossils. Some of the fossils commonly found in the Burgess Shale are the following: anomalocaris, wiwaxia, hallucigenia, opabinia, waptia, and marella.

Anomalocaris

Opabinia

Hallucigenia

Marella

Waptia

Wiwaxia

Hang Loose, Bra!!!!

In light of the recent tsunami that took place in Japan, it is interesting that the word "tsunami" actually comes from a Japanese word, which literally means "harbor wave". By definition, a tsunami is a series of water waves caused by the displacement of a large volume of a body of water, usually an ocean. Tsunamis can be caused by many events, such as seismic earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and other underwater explosions. In class, we learned that waves are most commonly caused by wind. Thus, in my mind, I figured "Hey, a tsunami is a large wave, so it must be caused by very heavy winds..." Let's just say that my thinking wasn't quite right.

Approximately 80% of tsunamis occur in the Pacific Ocean within what is the called the "Ring of Fire." (pictured below)

Here is a video of a tsunami...I don't imagine it being very fun to "hang loose" on such a wave, but hey, if you're dangerous enough to try, then go for it!

Soil That Can Toil

There are 12 soil orders in the world...And here they are!!!!!

A prominent soil type characteristic of Georgia is Ultisols. Ultisols are defined by the Soil Orders website as strongly leached soils with a subsurface zone of clay accumulation and less than 35% base saturation. Ultisols are found primarily in humid areas and are commonly known as red clay soils.

Here is a soil map of Georgia, indicating the variety of soils found in Georgia:

One of the ways we examine and analyze soil is by looking at soil color and this is done by use of the Munsell Soil Color Chart and we also use the soil texture dichotomous key, which can be seen below:

Take it to the EXTREME!!!!!

As discussed in class, an extremophile is an organism that lives and thrives in extreme conditions. The conditions in which extremophiles live are generally so harsh that they would be detrimental to most life on Earth. We talked about three different types of extremophiles in class: 1) thermophile; 2) acidophile; and 3) halophile. Extremophiles are truly amazing and remain to be a wonder to many biologists and microbiologists today.

I don't know about you, but I can hardly operate simple motor skills in extreme cold weather. Although, I was born in Ohio, we moved when I was 18 months old, so I am southern to the core. I was raised in Savannah, Georgia and the warm weather is what I am most acclimated to and therefore, is the weather I prefer above all. With that being said, I can't imagine living under extreme cold conditions. And I guess that's why God made me a human, and not a psychrophile. A psychrophile (it should be called "PSYCHOphile") is an extremophilic organism that not only lives in extreme conditions, but also is capable of reproduction and growth in extreme conditions. And by extreme conditions, I mean temperatures as cold as 5°F. Yikes! Here is an example of an environment in which you might find psychrophiles:

Ig-morph-mentary

There are three main types of rocks that we have been discussing in class--igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary. Igneous rocks are formed through the cooling and sedimentation of lava. Metamorphic rocks are characterized by the fact that they are the product of a transformation of an existing rock type. And a sedimentary rock is a type of rock that is formed by sedimentation of material at the Earth's surface and within bodies of water.

Examples of Igneous Rocks:

This is basalt, which is an extrusive volcanic rock that just so happens to be the most common rock found in the Earth's crust.

Granite is a type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock that are found on many kitchen countertops around the world, including mine. 

Examples of Metamorphic Rocks:

"You better watch out. You better not cry. You better not pout, I'm telling you why: Santa Claus is coming to town!" This is anthracite coal, commonly found in the stockings of bad boys and girls around the globe. It is a combustible rock normally occurring in rock strata in layers. It is considered a metamorphic rock, because of exposure to elevated temperature and pressure.

Well isn't this a "gneiss" rock. This is gneiss--a type of rock that is formed by high-grade metamorphic processes from pre-existing formations.

Examples of Sedimentary Rocks:

Ooooooooh pretty! Yeah, yeah, yeah...this rock has heard that before. This is a sedimentary rock by the name of "Obsidian". It is defined as "a naturally occurring volcanic glass." It is composed of high iron and nickel content.

This is limestone--a sedimentary rock composed of crystalized forms of calcium carbonate. Limestone can be found on many buildings, for example, Hardeman Hall--the Fine Arts building--right here on Mercer's wonderful and beautiful campus.