News media lauds California's new fault map

The new fault activity map [right, showing the San Francisco Bay area] released by the California Geological Survey is getting a lot of attention, including a nice review in the New York Times.

The San Francisco Chronicle (as you might expect) covered the release as well.

New California state geologic and fault activity maps released

 The California Geological Survey yesterday released a new state geologic map and a new fault activity map in conjunction with the Survey's celebration of its 150th anniversary.

Who was that masked man?

That's California State Geologist John Parrish being interviewed as an unidentified 'scientist' in the inaugural post in AGU's new blog on communicating science, "The Plainspoken Scientist."

The figure caption reads, "Local Bay area TV reporters filming a scientist at the 2009 Fall Meeting."   [Photo credit, AGU]

Powell? He's on the River

A great little April Fool joke greeted staff today at the Colorado Geological Survey. They maintain a digital In/Out Board on the computer for Survey staff (lovingly referred to as the “Where’s Waldo Board.”  This morning someone had added a  list of great names from geology: 

Louis Agissiz is marked OUT - mapping in Rocky Mountain N.P.

Charles Darwin has the HMS Beagle in for service.

G.K. Gilbert is at the USGS.

James Hutton is out, attending a "present is key to the past" conference.

Pliny the Elder is in the Min Lab.

John Wesley Powell is rafting the Green River (sez "I finally got a permit!”)  [right, credit NPS]

Charles Lyell is arguing uniformitarianism with Cuvier.

William Smith is trenching a coal pit and outcrop;

And Afred Wegener is in the GIS lab.

Glad to see we still have some humor in light of our budget problems.