The proposed scope of work for the next 4 years is focused primarily on better defining the role and organization of a future fully developed CIDER Institute (Cooperative Institute for Deep Earth Research) (see www.deep-earth.org/ for further details).
Following on the successful CIDER summer program held at the Kavli Institute of Theoretical Physics in Santa Barbara, CA from July 13 to August 6, 2004, the institute will hold three CIDER summer programs, in 2006, 2007 and 2008 respectively. Each program will last 3 weeks and comprise overlapping "tutorial" and "research workshop" parts. The tutorial part will involve 30 graduate students and post-doc's, who will stay for the whole duration of the program, and 10 instructors, who may stay for 2 or 3 weeks. The research workshop part will also involve about 15 more senior participants. Each summer program will be organized around a specific interdisciplinary theme and will be held at or close to an academic institution. The 2006 program will be held at the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics (KITP) in Santa Barbara, CA, on the theme: "Constraints on the fluxes of mass, heat and chemicals in the mantle, with a particular focus on the upper mantle and transition zone". Location and themes for the subsequent two workshops will be determined in coordination with the CIDER Steering Committee.
) summer programs were motivated by a need to improve cross-education among researchers and students in different disciplines of earth sciences to help advance our understanding of a fundamental question that has remained unanswered since the acceptance of the theory of plate tectonics 40 years ago: why does the earth have plate tectonics and what is the driving mechanism? CIDER summer programs supported by this grant in 2006, 2008, 2010 were held at the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics in Santa Barbara (CA), and brought together earth scientists from different disciplines: seismology, geodynamics, mineral physics and geochemistry. The summer programs included 2 weeks of lectures/tutorials across those disciplines for advanced graduate students and post-docs, during which cross-disciplinary groups involving both students and senior scientists were formed to address selected timely research topics related to the main theme of the summer program. During the following week or two, these working groups worked together to review current status of knowledge on these topics and identify key open questions and projects that could be undertaken to address them. These activities resulted in the formulation of collaborative research proposals, presentations at the American Geophysical Union Meeting and other scientific meetings (15 total), organization of multi-disciplinary sessions at the American Geophysical Union Meeting. About 40 publications in peer reviewed journals either directly resulted from the summer program activities, or were inspired by them. A highlight of the 2006 summer program was the first effort to compare determinations of mantle temperature from petrology and seismology which was applied to the problem of excess temperatures in "hotspots" (volcanoes located in the middle of tectonic plates- see www.deep-earth. org/2006/workshop.shtml, group C). A highlight of the 2008 summer program (www.deep-earth.org/2008/workshop.shtml) was a multi-disciplinary discussion group focus on the interpretation of the large structures imaged by seismic tomography at the base of the earth's mantle, which inspired a subsequent publication calling attention to the likely longevity of these structures and their possible role in plate tectonics. A highlight of the 2010 summer program (www.deep-earth.org/2010/workshop.shtml) was an investigation of the interactions between the deep water cycle in the earth and the history of mantle convection, which resulted in publications. In all, the CIDER summer programs brought together 134 graduate students and post-docs, 106 participants with seniority of assistant professor or higher (of which 31 volunteered as lecturers). A community workshop was also supported by this grant in 2009 to review the accomplishments so far and develop a vision for the next five years (CIDER-II). The 2009 workshop brought together 83 participants, more than half of whom were new to CIDER. The workshop featured keynote presentations on 5 major interdisciplinary themes (including the 4 themes of the past and pending CIDER summer programs). The presentation ppt’s are available on the CIDER website. Former students were invited to make short presentations on their experience at CIDER and make recommendations for future programs. Particularly inspiring were testimonies of students who have now advanced in their careers, explaining how important the CIDER experience was for them on four counts: CIDER (1) broadened their education in earth science disciplines other than their own; (2) provided tutorial materials that helped them in developing courses, (3) provided an opportunity to network with their peers from other disciplines and institutions, allowing them to develop research collaborations as they are launching their careers, and (4) gave them a venue to interact with senior members of the community in a unique, relaxed environment, which subsequently helped in obtaining postdoctoral or faculty positions. Indeed, one of the tangible important impacts of CIDER has been that a significant number of CIDER-I students have subsequently gone on to faculty positions. More information on the CIDER summer programs held to date can be found at: www.deep-earth.org/ This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
