People

I grew up in southern NJ and later in CT; I was always interested in `natural history', in part due to many family camping and canoeing vacation trips around the US. I went to Carleton College (MN) intending to major in Biology; however I did not like the pre-med emphasis. I `discovered' geology almost by accident, and really liked it, so I decided to major in it even though I had no idea what I would do with it. Partly as a way of delaying that decision I went to grad school at UCLA, where my research involved lab experiments on the behavior of rocks at high temperatures and pressures, to discover how they could `flow' in the solid state. I came to Brown after my PhD, and started as a research professor; after some years I switched to the `regular' professor track. I have always enjoyed undergraduate teaching as well as research, and Geo 22 is an especially fun course to teach because it deals with all of the geologic phenomena that first attracted me to the field. Outside of work I still enjoy hiking and nature study, especially birding.

Karen Fischer

I'm originally from Cambridge, MA, and went to college at Yale, first majoring in music but then switching to geology and geophysics. Music, and the concepts from math and physics that I apply to understanding Earth processes in my research, are similar in their underlying order and beauty. I obtained my PhD in geophysics from MIT, and after a post-doc at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (Columbia) arrived at Brown in 1990. My research focuses on using earthquake waves to image the structure of the Earth's deep interior. I work with a great group of graduate and undergraduate students on projects that range from field experiments to computer modeling of seismic data. I really enjoy co-teaching GE 22. The topics we cover are fascinating, and the way that the lectures, labs, and field trips all provide different angles on the material is a lot of fun.

Hello Geo 220! I hail from California, Berkeley to be exact. I graduated from UC Santa Cruz, majoring in Earth Science. This is my second year as a graduate student in the Geochemistry, Mineralogy, Petrology Group of the Geology Department. Painting with a large brush, we study the compositions of igneous rocks and then try to figure out what processes formed them. My work, specifically, is centered on how different elements behave during magma generation. We're going to cover a lot of geologic territory this semester, and I look forward to learning alongside you all.

I grew up in Moose Lake, a small town in northern Minnesota. My hometown holds an exciting annual Agate Days stampede that had me digging through piles of rocks beginning at the age of 3 to look for agates, geodes, and quarters. I have spent a lot of time camping and hiking with my family, which contributed to my love for the outdoors. Needless to say, I kept my interests in rocks and the outdoors, which led me to major in geology at the University of Minnesota. I earned my Master of Science in the geological sciences from Brown last spring, and I’m working towards earning a PhD. My research is focused on figuring out the history of rainfall and drought over the past 2000 years using the different components that make up lake sediments from lakes in Indonesia. I’m really excited to be working with you, and I’m looking forward to a great semester!

Hometown: Concord, MA

I live in the Environmental Program House, and am particularly interested in hydrogeology, as well as environmental issues and science education.

I graduated from Concord Carlisle High School in Concord, MA in 2007, and I am now entering my junior year as a Geo-Biology concentrator. Although I really enjoy learning about all aspects of geology, I am especially interested in ocean-land-atmosphere interactions. This photo was taken in a cinder cone lava tube in New Mexico.

I am from Virginia and got some of my first tastes of Geology scrambling around the rocks of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Currently, I am most interested in biogeochemical cycling (and microbial mediation of those cycles), especially in aquatic systems. However, I will be working with an organic geochemical paleo-environment proxy for my thesis.


Jan Tullis	Colin Jackson
Karen Fischer	Jessica Rodysill
	Nina Carriero
	Chloe Fandel
	Katey Lesneski
	Marshall Moore

Jan Tullis

Karen Fischer