This CAREER award will support research and education activities designed to (1) improve understanding of Earth's transition out of the late Paleozoic ice age (LPIA) and (2) communicate the significance of Earth systems history to the general public. Research activities will integrate sedimentological, petrographic, and stable isotopic investigations of Early Permian marine carbonate deposits to improve understanding of the climatic, oceanographic, and ecological changes that accompanied Earth's transition from a deep icehouse to a prolonged greenhouse climate mode. The project will build upon ongoing collaborative work on late Paleozoic strata of eastern Australia, which has resulted in a chronostratigraphic framework tied directly to glaciation. Emphasis will be placed on developing carbon and oxygen isotope profiles that will help to establish the relative timing and character of changes in sea level, climate, and oceanography along a paleolatitudinal transect. Education activities will center around an annual, field-oriented summer course, "History on the Rocks," designed for high school teachers and 9th-10th grade students. The course will focus on climate change and catastrophes in Earth history, as illustrated by a series of world-class geological field sites in Nebraska.
The project will result in up to four graduate-level and four undergraduate senior theses. Because the project integrates field and laboratory components, students will amass a broad range of experiences and training in sedimentology, stratigraphy, and geochemistry. In addition to research, UNL students will be expected to help with logistical and educational aspects of "History on the Rocks." They will also help to develop a display and hands-on activity based on research results for an annual family day at the UN State Museum. These activities will provide the UNL students with valuable experience in teaching science and communicating research results to the public. "History on the Rocks" will directly impact up to 15 high school science teachers and 45 9th-10th grade students from across Nebraska, and indirectly affect many more. The course will be offered four times for specific audiences. Two sessions will cater to groups historically under-represented in the geosciences: females and Native Americans. Through activities that incorporate a scientific approach, participants will gain an appreciation of the scientific method, the geoscience profession, and the societal significance of geoscience research.
Earth’s climate and environments have changed throughout the planet’s history. Understanding rates, causes, and consequences of global change in the deep past provides a foundation against which we can evaluate modern climate change. In this regard, the focus of this project was the Late Paleozoic Ice Age (265-325 million years ago), the longest period of icehouse climate during the last 500 million years, and the only time the Earth has both entered and exited an ice age while vegetated. This award involved studies of ancient marine limestones that were deposited during this dynamic time interval. Marine limestones are ideal climate archives because as biochemical deposits they are particularly sensitive to changes in climate, sea level, and oceanography. Results show that climate change during the late Paleozoic ice age was driven by changes in the concentration of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, in the atmosphere. Rises and falls in carbon dioxide caused climate to warm and cool and glaciers to contract and expand. These changes impacted sea level world-wide. Large, synchronous changes in sea level are linked to changes in the extent of ice sheets. Temperature changes, on the other hand, was uneven and asynchronous across the globe, with local factors (latitude, ocean current systems, and elevation) either accelerating or delaying the effects of changing concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Comparison of stable isotopic records derived from polar, temperate, and tropical carbonates reveals attenuation in the meridional temperature gradient through the Permian as climate warmed, but also divergence in carbon isotope values that indicate regional variations in carbon cycling. In addition to the research training of six graduate and one undergraduate student, this grant supported a range of education and outreach activities designed to (1) train high school teachers preparing to teach new geology requirements in Nebraska schools, (2) provide field experiences for high school students in an effort to attract them to careers in the earth sciences, and (3) communicate the significance of climate change research and understanding Earth history to the general public. Education activities included summer field courses for high school science teachers and students. In July 2008, twelve high school science teachers from school systems across Nebraska, including two from the Santee Nation district, participated in a one-week field course, which was offered for graduate credit. A website provides access to lesson plans created by the teachers. In July 2009, nine high school girls from Omaha spent two days learning about the geologic history of Nebraska. The program was carried out in conjunction with Girls Incorporated of Omaha, a national nonprofit youth organization for girls from low-income families. The program provided new experiences for the girls, many of whom had never visited a university campus or spent time in rural Nebraska. In 2010 and 2011, weeklong field courses were offered for high school students from across Nebraska. Students stayed in dorms on the UNL campus and participated each day in field activities. They presented results projects to their parents on the final day of camp. Education activities are summarized on a website that also contains information on the geologic history of Nebraska, History on the Rocks (http://eas.unl.edu/~tfrank/History%20on%20the%20Rocks/Main%20page/Histrx_homepage.html). Frank and students developed a life-sized board game, "Earth History Survivor," which debuted at the annual Dinosaurs and Disasters event at the University of Nebraska State Museum. The event, held each February, attracts ~1500-2000 visitors. In the game, players travel through geologic time and attempt to survive mass extinctions and major climate events. The game is integrated with exhibits in the Hall of Ancient Life. Plans are in place to coordinate with education staff at the museum to develop a more permanent version that can be used with visiting school groups.
