The Pennsylvania State University, Ph.D., 1977
The University of Massachusetts, M.S., 1974
Franklin & Marshall College, B.A., 1971
Taught at Bowling Green since 1983
1. Role of fluids in rock deformation - Fluids play an important role in the deformation of rocks. At low temperatures, the effect is primarily mechanical through the action of pore fluid pressure. At higher temperatures, the effect is primarily chemical through diffusive mass transport and hydrolytic weakening. I am interested in how water affects the behavior of quartz rich rocks deformed at low temperatures. Through a combination of field studies, transmitted light and cathodoluminescence microscopy, fluid inclusion microthermometry, stable isotope geochemistry, and FTIR, I have characterized the nature of fluids and the fluid pathways on scales from outcrops to crystal lattices. Specific targets have included fault zones and zones of anomalous crystal plastic deformation. Geographically, these studies have been done in the Valley and Ridge province of the Appalachains, cratonic fault zones in the midcontinent, and the Silverton caldera of the southern San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado.
2. Strain and deformation mechanisms in quartz arenites in foreland thrust belts - I am interested in how quartz arenites deform on a grain scale and how this relates to larger structures. I have worked on developing methods to partition the finite strain into strains associated with individual deformation mechanisms such as pressure solution and microfracturing. Much of my work has been on the Middle Silurian Tuscarora Sandstone and its correlative, the Massanutten Sandstone in Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia.
3. Recurrent tectonics in the craton - The craton is not the structural wasteland that many believe. It contains a number of major fault and fold zones that preserve a detailed record of long-lived deformation in a “stable” region of the craton. Two excellent examples of cratonic fault zones in the eastern midcontinent are the Bowling Green fault zone in northwest Ohio and the Kentucky River fault zone in northern Kentucky. Both were active for much of the Paleozoic and had profound effect on the stratigraphic development of the surrounding regions. In addition, they served alternately at barriers and conduits for fluid flow, including the widespread Late Paleozoic brine migration.
4. Paleoseismicity in the midcontinent - Silurian and Devonian carbonates in he craton of the eastern midcontinent contain abundant evidence of liquefaction, fluid escape, and soft sediment deformation. These features occur at numerous stratigraphic levels indicating that the cause was repetitive. The occurrence of these features is spatially related to known cratonic fault zones suggesting an origin by seismic shaking.
5. Shallow Geophysics - On the side, I also am interested in the application of shallow geophysical techniques to engineering and environmental problems. My students and I have used seismic refraction, magnetics, and resistivity to investigate slope stability problems, abandoned landfills, buried valleys, and fracture zones.
You can also get a idea of my interests from my recent Masters student topics below.
Masters thesis titles completed in the last several years
The Role of Water in Grain-Scale Deformation within the Cave Fault Zone, South Central Pennsylvania - Allyson O'Kane
Using GIS to Understand Grain-scale Deforamtion in Quartz Arenite from the Central Appalachian Valley and Ridge Province - Yonggui Guo
Fluid History of the Southern Margin of the Silverton Caldera - Matthew Wilson
How Homogeneous is Strain? - Vladimir Rybakov
Quantitative Assessment of Low Temperature Deformation Mechanisms in a Folded Quartz Arenite, Valley and Ridge Province, West Virginia - Michael Harrison
Strain Analysis of the Tuscarora Sandstone Near the Juncture of the Central and Southern Appalachians - Randall Glass
Fluid History of Two Cratonic Fault Zones in the Eastern Midcontinent - David Ramsey
Formation of Boxwork Veins, Molas Lake Area, Southwestern Colorado - Andrea Chapman
Origin and Significance of Breccias and Associated Sedimentary Structures in the Bass Islands Dolomite, Ottawa Lake Quarry, Monroe County, Michigan - Matthew Duty
Analysis of Lawyer's Pointe Drive Landslide, Anderson Township, Cincinnati, Ohio - Conrad Allen
Detection of Karst Features by Geophysical Methods, Thompson Township, Seneca County, Ohio - John Vanderlaan
Three-Dimensional Modeling of Vertical Electric Sounding Data in Jointed Carbonate Rocks - Kristopher Nolan
Characterization of Suspected Bedrock Fracture Zones Using Resistivity, Gravity, and Magnetic, and Seismic Methods - Eric Swiech
Liquefaction Potential of the Minford Silt Member of the Teays Formation in Vinton County, Ohio - Barrett Summers