Geoscience Education in the Mountain State:
CATS Geology Telecourse, Spring 1999,
News--Introductory Letter (January 26, 1999)

Hello Historical Geology Telecourse Participant.(How 'bout we just say Hi!)

In this package you will find a copy of your free textbook (a $70 value!!!), a syllabus, and a few other odds and ends--some new and some which you may already have. We want to make sure everyone has copies of everything! By the way, the geologic time scale some of you already received was copied from the inside cover of your book. Another copy of it is not included in this package. Please bring all of your handouts and your text to each session.

A few words about the textbook. Dr. Bob looked through many of the newest historical geology textbooks during his recent visit to the Geological Society of America conference. The text he selected, the one you now possess, is among the best published. Being the best means that it contains a LOT of information. Please do not let this intimidate you. While you will be provided with specific reading assignments, you should see, and use, this text as a reference. It will provide each of you with whatever you take from it--whether you want a simple introduction to the dynamic earth, or details on what the continents looked like in the distant past, or how the earth's fossil record reveals changes in plant and animal life through geologic time.

In Dr. Bob's own words: "This text contains a tremendous vocabulary that could be new to most. If I stress terms or a concept on-air, that is a signal reflecting the importance of the material. If similar material is also reflected in quiz questions, pay special attention to that content! There is a very nice glossary of terms at the end of the chapters that will be of use, but the details in the appendix are for completeness only. The cartoons (figures and illustrations) are outstanding, and the VISUAL OVERVIEW pages, which review major events across geologic time (p. 251, etc.), are fabulous. It was this type of visual interpretation which has always attracted me to this author. Special note: Whenever there is a detailed discussion within periods of geologic time, remember that this book also serves as a reference for advanced students of geology. The author is, in effect, writing for the people (professors) who will adopt the text for use in their college classrooms!"

Quite often you will be asked to use the book to help you answer quiz questions about West Virginia's geologic history. This will require you to do some digging in the book or assigned handouts. You may even want to search the WEB to find information. This process may expose you to concepts which are unclear. This is why we have the open communication system during the broadcasts. If you're having a problem with a concept, chances are others are experiencing the same problem. We can only address such questions if we know of them. So, please make use of the audio line during the live broadcasts. If you don't want to call, write your question down and have your facilitator call. You can also e-mail (repine@wvgs.wvnet.edu) or call in (1-800-WV-GEOLOgy) questions before or after each broadcast. We will make sure they get addressed during the next broadcast. An e-mail list serve of all those participants for whom we have e-mail will also be used to spread the word about difficult concepts, special events, and Saturday sessions.

We are going to try to post the quizzes on the WEB site we are using for this class. The site's address is http://www.wvgs.wvnet.edu/www/geoeduc/geoeduc.htm. We also hope to allow you to answer the quizzes directly on your screen and them submit them via e-mail directly to us. We will talk more about this later.

Our next live broadcast is February 10. Quiz #1 will also be reviewed so bring it along! After finishing sedimentary environments and a few other things, Dr. Bob and Dr. Deb will begin exploring the earth of the Precambrian. If you look at the syllabus, you will see we are actually a little ahead of it! So, take some time to peruse chapters 11 and 12. Look at the illustrations and diagrams.

Hope you enjoy the class,
Dr. Bob, Dr. Deb, and Tom R.

WVGES Education Specialist, Tom Repine (repine@wvgs.wvnet.edu)

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Page last revised: July 1999

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            West Virginia Geological & Economic Survey
  Address:  Mont Chateau Research Center
            Cheat Lake exit off I-68
            P.O. Box 879
            Morgantown, WV  26507-0879
Telephone:  1-800-WV-GEOLOgy (1-800-984-3656) or 304-594-2331
      FAX:  304-594-2575
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