Objectives and Relevance to Program Objectives: This recommended award would support a one-year cooperative research project in earth sciences between Professor David V. LeMone, Department of Geological Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso, and Dr.Heinz A. Kollmann, Natural History Museum, Vienna, Austria. The joint study is aimed at comparing and contrasting the fossils of gastropods (snails, etc.) found in the Middle Cretaceous platform carbonates of Europe (Greece) and North America (Trans-Pecos Region, Texas). The areas have been separated by the formation of the Atlantic Ocean as a result of sea floor spreading during early Cretaceous time, approximately 100 million years ago. The resulting analysis will record the degree of endemism (evolutionary rates) of the gastropods as well as evaluate their potential for use as index (time) and facies (environment) fossils in comparison with traditionally utilized forms (bivalves, ammonoids, et al.). The project is expected to contribute to improved means of reconstructing geological history. The University of Texas at El Paso houses the Southwest Biostratigraphic Institute, of which Professor LeMone is Director. The Institute contains many local paleontological specimens, and is well situated with reference to the regional Cretaceous sections. Dr. Kollmann is an internationally known expert in the field of this research, and his department at the Natural History Museum in Vienna has excellent collections and equipment that will be useful in this study. The project thus contributes to an important objective of NSF's cooperative science programs with Western Europe, which is to stimulate scientific progress by bringing together scientists from the U.S. and Europe who have similar research interests and who wish to engage in mutually beneficial research cooperation. Funds from this award would support necessary transportation and subsistence expenses for the U.S. principal investigator, as well as shipping costs. Return visits by Dr. Kollmann and members of his research group are expected. Merit of Proposal: The prospect of a significant contribution to scientific knowledge from this proposed research is very good. The U.S. principal investigator is a respected, productive scientist. He will be working with a foreign researcher who is widely recognized for his expertise in this field. The work plan is sound and the budget is reasonable. The Austrian Science Foundation (FWF) is providing counterpart support for the project and has approved the inclusion of this activity under the Memorandum of Understanding between the NSF and the FWF. Funding: This award will not duplicate other funding.
