Episodes
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Back in action, the GOTR folks welcome the only one cannoli, the original paisano, Ken Lazara aka kentonics. We talk field oopsies and dive in a bit into Arizona geology and learn about a very aptly named volcano...you'll just have to listen to find out. We also discuss migmatites and how they fool geologists everywhere. Maybe we even discuss some Metallica disdain. Enjoy and Be cool, stay tuned, and keep it ON THE ROCKS.
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Episode 47
We dare you to say ‘Ice Aged Ice Sheets’ five times fast. But first, in this episode, the GotR Gang dive into all things Glaciers, brrrr. Glaciers and Glaciation, generally speaking, covers the formation, features, effects, and causes of glaciation events on Earth. Ice sheets and alpine glaciers are described, including their movement and erosional features and landforms. Glacial deposits will be examined, including a discussion of the features created by till and stratified drift. Other effects are worthy of discussion, including crustal subsidence and rebound, sea level changes,alterations to streams and stream valleys, and the formation of proglacial and pluvial lakes. However, there is not enough time in one episode to bring you all the fun facts about glaciers. Remember, if you fall down a crevasse, thegood news is you will only fall 50 meters. The bad news is that you will fall 50 meters. Between the bars of our main discussion, we present to you another Mineral Minute, then close things out with special guest Joe Guzman of Space Poets to promote his Psychedelic Panther Music Fest during this week’s That Freaking Rocks!
Until next time remember to…
Be Cool, Stay Tuned, & Keep It On The Rocks
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Episodes manquant?
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Episode 46!
Welcome to Season 5 of Geology on the Rocks! We have special guest Geoarcheologis Dr. David Rachal in this episode to discuss all things balls. Through his research, Dave uses his balls of choice, Ruppia cirrhosa (Ruppia) seeds, to better constrain megafauna footprints in southern New Mexico along the ancient shorelines of the Paleolake Otero. He draws on both geological and archaeological data to support his research. His work infers a dynamic shoreline rather than the current models, which assume a more static landscape. The study suggests that this newer model could have broader implications for understanding human-megafauna interactions. So take a seat, cozy up with your favorite drink, and listen in as Dave offers a firsthand perspective on his amazing work. As always, between the bars of our main discussion, we present to you another mineral minute and close things out with a new That Freaking Rocks.
Until next time, remember to be cool, stay tuned, and keep it on the rocks!
Find Dr. Rachal’s work here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666033421000034
Cite his work, too!! (APA 7th edition citations below)
Rachal, D. M., Mead, J. I., Dello-Russo, R., & Cuba, M. T. (2022). Deep-water delivery model of Ruppia seeds to a nearshore/terrestrial setting and its chronological implications for Late Pleistocene footprints, Tularosa Basin, New Mexico. Geoarcheology, 37(6), 923–933.
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Episode 45
A season finale! This episode closes out season 4 with a dang bang! We finally get around to answering some of the questions we have received, such as jobs and career paths in the geosciences, what our favorite geologic structures are, identifying minerals in the field, types of rocks you might encounter in various depositional settings. Carly even shares with us a story about what happens when you give her a geology fact. Between the bars of our main discussion we present another mineral minute sponsored by the hydrated phosphouranlyte mineral, Dewindtite.
Until next season, stay tuned, be cool, and keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 44!
DANG! What better start to an episode could you ask for as we begin our discussion discussing tornadoes and drunk pigs? Our main topic discusses some of the most common environmental problems we face today. What makes it difficult is the nature of the "problems" have changed: where such problems were once primarily scientific and technocratic in nature, they are now almost exclusively problems of politics. The future of the environment, at home and abroad, appears less certain than ever before even at a time when its potential to bring serious negative consequences for all humanity is more well-known than ever before. Problems that affect large groups and require collective action are recognized as some of the most perplexing political conundrums. Even outside the context of American politics, the environment presents challenges of a unique character. By their nature, environmental problems are ‘big’ problems that likewise affect ‘big’ groups of people and require ‘big’ solutions. Clean air cannot be achieved merely through the regulation of one industry in one part of the country, or through the passion of one highly motivated group or individuals. Between the bars of our main discussion, we present to you another mineral minute and before signing off we close things out with another That Freaking Rocks. Sprinkled throughout are tangents that we navigate in this environmental conscious and inclusive episode!
Until next time remember to stay tuned, be cool, and keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 43
In this episode, GOTR takes the skeletons out of their closets and goes on a deep into all things forensic geologies, the mysterious interface between geology and forensics. While there was no exact date when scientific methods were first introduced to solving murders, there is no doubt geology had an early influence. Uniformitarianism is a concept that establishes a crucial link between geologists and forensic scientists, where the use of clues are used to work out a past sequence of events to determine what happened. We go through how a crime scene might be controlled for, and clues are handled. We then cover the various types of evidence forensic geologists might find helpful while finding tangential paths to travel down. Between the bars of our main discussion, we present to you another mineral minute, and on the back half, we close things out with a case full of drugs, government coverups, and murder! So grab your favorite whiskey or drink of your choosing and enjoy!
Whatever you do, remember to be cool, stay tuned, and keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 42
This delicious episode explores the amazing world of desserts and wine! We sculpt the the auditory landscape by discussing such musings as climatic conditions that create desserts, geographic distribution of the Earth’s desserts, weathering, dunes, and surface morphologies. We do a little talk on each of our favorite deserts and wind are. We navigate how we can use desserts to explore our not so distant past and explore caves, karsts, coprolites, and wall etchings to see how the desserts we see today are not the desserts of the past. Between the bars of our main discussion we present to you another mineral minutes and instead of a that freaking rocks, we talk about dunes! Come join us and get just as lost in the tangents as we do! Some of our favorite characters make an appearance and we introduce to you a few new ones!!
Until next time be cool, stay tuned, and keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 41
It’s snowing down here in the Lone Star State, and geomorphology is the name of this episode’s game, which is fitting as there is a shift in the landscape here at Geology on the Rocks! Geomorphology, simply put, is just the study of Earth’s landforms and landform evolution. Traditionally, the subject has been studied qualitatively, which is the description of landforms, and quantitatively, which is process-based and aims to describe forces acting on Earth’s surface to produce landforms and landform change. And like every other branch of geology, many sub-disciplines within geomorphology include tectonic, fluvial, storm, aeolian, floodplain, glacial, groundwater, climate, tsunami, and many others. Geomorphologists interpret multiple forms of information from various sources to create a logical and rational argument that is appropriately supported by evidence.
But, of course, much of that is going to depend upon the experience and training of the person (or team) making the interpretations. Therefore, interpretation can be thought of as indeterminate of really not having a definite end result as many interpretations might be valid. Combinations of attributes, relationships, processes, drivers, legacy effects, and sequences of events can create these contingent circumstances that are a complex sequence of events in response to particular events. We go on to discuss what mental faculties it takes to make a less wrong interpretations, and on the back half, we apply those techniques. As always, between the bars of our main discussion, we present to you another mineral minute and close things out with a little friendly competition. Let us know who said it best!
Until next time remember to be cool, stay tuned, and keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 40
This episode is dedicated to all those who ever thought that banded iron formations were boring and basic as we here at GotR do a deep dive into these really Spiffy BIFs. We discuss such things as what are they? Where do they come from? Is there any geological significance? What do they tell us? Every time we think that we are going to just have a nice, easy topic, the more and more we read about it and reflect on our own assumptions, it turns out to be so dang complicated and could be several different things at the same time. But we do our best to be as thorough as possible while trying not to get lost in the weeds of this seemingly simple topic. Keep in mind that 1. geology and the history of Earth is a rather complex subject matter, and one should always proceed with caution when interpreting the precipitation mechanisms in BIFs. So take a seat, grab your rock hammers, and favorite whiskey with your favorite podcast duo, and come take an adventure into the wonderful world of BIFs with your favorite podcast!
Until next time remember to be cool, stay tuned, and keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 39
Hold on to your seats because if you love rocks, QAPF diagrams, or simply nerding out, this episode is for you as we take a deep dive into the magnificent world of basalts. Basalts are simply aphanitic extrusive igneous rocks formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lavas rich in magnesium and iron exposed at or near the surface of rocky planets or moons. Nearly 90% of all volcanic rocks on Earth are basalt. From tholeiitic basalts to alkali basalts to mid-ocean ridge basalts to the basalts of Hawaii & Iceland, nothing is off-limits for us. We have fun facts galore, poems, a mineral minute, lots of giggles, and tangents sprinkled throughout. We then talk about Mr. Baggin’s trip to the Hawaiian Islands on the back half, followed by James the Geologist’s trip to the recording studio. Rock Opera may or may not be at 1:17:01, but you will just have to listen for yourself to find out.
Until next time be cool, stay tuned, and keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 38
It has been a crazy year, to say the least. To start 2022 off with a bang, we present to you a brand spanking new episode that was previously recorded covering the important topic of Acid Mine Drainage. But we first go over how ore deposits are emplaced and the types of ore typically mined. On the back half, we talk primarily about AMD's environmental concerns and the formation of contaminants. So join us as we nerd out with some mineralogy and save the planet one episode at a time.
Until next time remember to be cool, stay tuned, and keep it on the rocks.
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Episode 37
After a crazy September, we are finally back back! This episode is a follow-up to the Speleology Special, and we dive a bit deeper into the fascinating world of caves. We begin our discussion with the controls of cave temperatures – latitude and altitude, among other variables. Fun fact, the temperatures at lower depths in caves can be regarded as “fossil” temperatures. An example of this is seen in the Pierre St. Martin Cave in France. This cave is measured to have a depth of 1,474 meters, and by doing a little bit of maths, temperatures near the bottom of the cave presumably reflect the average annual temperature of the region as it was nearly 40,000 years ago! Mind. Blown. We then focus on relative humidity, air currents, barometric changes, chimney & reverse-chimney effects that all lead to the blowing cave phenomenon. On the back half, we walk our way through how early cave scientists studied the breath of caves to help better understand the mysteries of the underground abyss. We then have a little discussion about the formation of caves in Texas and marvel at the epic names of the rooms get, using Natural Bridge Caverns as an example. As always, between the bars of our main discussion, we present to you another Mineral Minute, sponsored by Tyuyamunite, and we close things out with another That Freaking Rocks.
Until next time, we remind you to be cool, stay tuned, and keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 36
We’re back with another exciting season of Geology on the Rocks! To start off the new season, we present to you all things doom and destruction in this natural disaster episode. There is no doubt that natural disasters suck. However, sometimes it seems as if nature has a way to seemingly have a system of checks and balances for such destructive events. Or it may seem like pure happenstance, in that they are random and disordered. Humans have offered various sacrifices throughout history to appease the Gods they prayed to as if it were their fault. However, as the age of reason dawned, scientific evidence was substituted for divine intervention. As we see, natural disasters are complex and dynamic and are caused by not just natural forces but sometimes sociological factors, too. We see human greed and corrupt governments absorb food and medical supplies that only exacerbate natural disasters. Topics include Avalanches, Landslides, Liquefaction, Famine, Drought, Earthquakes, Politics, and Plagues. So strap in and enjoy the ride through Earth’s history of natural disasters.
Until next time be cool, stay tuned, and keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 35
To close out another wonderful season, Season 3, we here at Geology on the Rocks decided to dive deep into all things about the geology of our home state, Texas. While we planned on talking about the specifics of North Texas, it evolved into a broader historical approach. Discussed is the evolution of the Lone Star State from the Precambrian times all the way through to the Cenozoic. The Texas we know and think of today, began as thick sequences of coarse sediment dumped into an ancient sea bordering Laurasia that was eventually buried, squeezed, and heated. Collisions with subsequent mobile belts eventually led to mountains forming, producing metamorphic schists and gneisses along with generating molten magma. The plutons cooled to form the granitic Llano Province around 1.3 to 1.1 billion years ago during the Mesoproterozoic. These Precambrian rocks are seen today in the Llano Uplift in central Texas and in the Franklin Mountains in west Texas.
Throughout the Phanerozoic Eon, Texas saw a multitude of marine transgressions and regressions that led to most of Texas' history being submerged by shallow, epeiric seas. This undoubtedly led to the vast expanse of limestones and fossil assemblages we see throughout the state. We also see that during the Carboniferous Period Ouchita Mobile Belt is responsible for the distinctive S-shaped feature seen in geologic maps that spans across Texas. The Permian is responsible for a lot of the red bed formations we see up in the panhandle in the Quartermaster formation and the Dockum Group at Caprock Canyon State Park in Palo Duro Canyon. Near-shore evaporation flats produced deposits of bright red shales along with salt and gypsum deposits. As the supercontinent Pangaea began rifting apart, the Gulf of Mexico began opening allowing for sediment accommodation of the weathering of the uplifted Ouchita Mountains to the southeast. Early restriction of the gulf allowed for multiple evaporative phases that is represented by the famous Louann Salt deposits.
During the Cretaceous, sandy shorelines and mudflats record the majestic presence of dinosaurs, most famously seen in the Paluxy River in Glen Rose. You name it, Texas probably has it, geologically speaking. Between the bars of our main discussion we bring to you another Mineral Minute and close things out with Leaves, Driving Slow Motion’s latest single from their upcoming album. Sit back and enjoy the Geology of Texas in this final episode of the season! We look forward to starting anew sometime in late August.
Until next time, be cool, stay tuned, and keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 34
Well, we did it. We went full throttle and geeked out discussing all things Devonian. Have you ever found yourself saying the Devonian was SOOO boring? Nothing was going on besides something about fish and that is about it!
If this sounds like you, boy do we have an episode for you!
When was the Devonian you ask? The Geologic Period of the Devonian Period is part of the Late Paleozoic Era that follows the Silurian Period and precedes the Carboniferous Period, spanning between about 419.2 million and 358.9 million years ago. The developments of the Earth system during the Early Devonian to Middle Permian interval record the dynamic interplay of its geo-, hydro-, bio-, and atmospheric systems. Most of the Devonian Period was a time of exceptionally high sea-level stand and inferred widespread equable climates, but glaciations occurred immediately before its end in the south polar areas of Gondwana (South America, Central, and South Africa). There is even evidence for contemporaneous mountain glaciers in tropical latitudes (in the Appalachians of eastern North America).
The Early Devonian, really to the Middle Permian, 260 Ma, was an interval of major tectonic, climatic, oceanic, and biotic changes. The collision of Laurasia and Gondwana led to global-scale tectonic activity and the formation of the supercontinent Pangea, and the spread of vascular land plants resulted in a huge increase in organic carbon burial and atmospheric CO2 drawdown.
There was a Late Paleozoic Ice Age (LPIA) that commenced with short-lived glaciations at the Frasnian-Famennian boundary (FFB) and the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary (DCB) that coincided with two first-order mass extinctions, although many minor biocrises also occurred during this interval.
Most present-day continental areas and shelves were grouped in one hemisphere, creating a giant “Proto-Pacific” or Panthalassa Ocean, whose margins are poorly preserved in allochthonous terrains. Allochthonous just means sediment or rock that originated at a distance from its present position. And, following the tectonic events of the Caledonian Orogeny of Laurasia, many “Old Red Sandstone” terrestrial deposits formed.
Sit back and enjoy as we stumble our way through all the difficult words and the world of the Devonian.
Until next time remember to…
Be Cool, Stay Tuned, and Keep It On The Rocks!!
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Episode 33
This is Part 2 of 2 in our two-part series with Dr. Greta Bowling. In this episode, the biologist and geologists square off and stand up to fight for the one true meaning and definition of a mineral.
Leading off the episode is Jason from Coastlands as we pick his musical brainball and talk shop about HoneyBuckets. The latter half the episode picks up where we left on in part one, as we shift our attention to the word Mineral. We found some overlap and discuss how these differ depending on how we approach the subject. A simple definition from each field would be:
To a Geologist – any element or compound that is 1. Naturally Occurring, 2. Generally Inorganic, 3. Solid, with a 4. Crystalline Structure which has 5. A Definite Chemical Composition (with some variation) versus To a Biologist – An inorganic ion or nutrients.
As we focus in, keeping our eye on the ions, we discuss how they come to be through weathering of rock and taken up by the plants. We talk about the functions of Oxygen, Calcium, Sodium, and Iron as minerals in biological systems and the significance as elements in geology.
We close things off with a little Beach Clean Up talk and finally settle on a rough date: the Second Weekend in October!
As always, until next time, remember to….
Be Cool, Stay Tuned, and Keep It On The Rocks!!
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Episode 32
This is Part 1 of 2 in our two-part series with Dr. Greta Bowling. In this episode, we dive deep into the timeline of Human Evolution. We first talk about how Darwin’s Morphological Species Concept helped scientists answer the age-old question of do we, as humans, come from apes? In short, humans and apes share a common ancestor in the distant past. Primates first evolved 55 Mya (million years ago), but it was not until around 5.8-5.2 Mya would we see early “proto-humans,” or the Ardipithecus, show up in the fossil record. We talk through the timeline from Sahelanthropus tchadensis to Australopithicus afarensis, to the diets of Paranthropus robustus to the first hominins to migrate out of Africa, Homo ergaster, just to name a few. Fun facts are littered throughout and there is even a poem! Come join us in our adventure through geologic time.
Do you even evolution?
Remember to Be Cool, Stay Tuned (for part 2), and Keep It On the Rocks!
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Episode 31
In this week’s episode, we talk about all things caves. The study of caves, or speleology, is the science that brings to light the physical and biological aspects of their environments. Humans and their ancestors have long used caves as dwelling places, burial sites, storehouses, and even burial sites. While caves have been explored for hundreds of years, only recently have we come to realize their origin, how they evolve, and the extent to which they are impacted. Join us in our discussion as we begin our journey into the mysterious underground world of caves.
As always, we present to you the world-famous NewNews, and between the bars of our main discussion, this week’s mineral minute is brought to you by the Hydrous Iron Zirconium Phosphate mineral – Malhmoodite. We Close things out with the new and improved That Freaking Rocks with special musical guest Jason Keisling.
Until next time, let us remind you…
To be cool, Stay tuned, & Keep it on the rocks!
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Episode 30
What is better than sitting back and enjoying a great movie? Watching a comically bad movie with geology as its backdrop, that is what! In this episode, we dive deep into two such movies: The Core and Airplane vs. Volcano. While The Core was not nearly as bad as the Airplane vs. Volcano, it was full of crazy geology that just do not add up. And Airplane vs. Volcano was just….
On the back half of our main discussion, we discuss the geology of Middle-freaking-Earth. We do suggest looking at a map of Middle-Earth to help keep track of the geologic complexities we present to you - from plate tectonics to economic resources, from glacial erosion to volcanic activity, from orogenies to geomorphology, this magical discussion has a little something for everyone.
Between the bars of our main discussion, we present to you another Mineral Minute brought to you by the zirconium silicate, Jargoon. Try saying that without laughing, we dare you. Try listening to Mineral Minute without laughing, we dare you. The Naked Mole Rat becomes Geology on the Rocks’ official unofficial mascot conveniently named Jargoon, and Baggins discusses the ways of the Lying Lyrebirds during this week's NewNews. And to close things out, Greg from Secret Gardens joins us as our musical guest for That Freaking Rocks.
Lastly we discuss our plans and goals for the upcoming Beach Clean Up Day on the 3rd Saturday in September.
Until next time remember to...
Be Cool, Stay Tuned, & Keep It On The Rocks!
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Episode 29
This week we discuss space with one of our long time listeners, Kevin. We boldly brave the final frontier and try to wrap our brainballs around how big the cosmos actually is - 93,000,000,000 light years across, one light year being 6 Trillion Miles (or 9.7 Trillion Kilometers). We try to make sense of the multiverse and discuss what would happen if you actually fell into a black hole. Would you get sucked into it or would you fall? Speaking of black holes, we determine that they cannot, in fact, be wormholes. The amount that is enveloped by these monstrosities equals the amount evaporated. We stumble our way through Schrodinger's Equation, whether or not trees make a noise when if fall in the forest, and Einstein's Theory of Relativity, just to name a few. Between the bars, is another Mineral Minute, brought to you by the iron arsenite oxyhydroxysulfate Tooeleite. Sprinkle in a little NewNews at the start, Rob from Here After at the end for a That Freaking Rocks, you have the primordial ingredients for another episode of Geology on the Rocks. What are you thoughts about space? What about the bass?
Until next time remember to:
Be Cool, Stay Tuned, and Keep It On The Rocks!
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