My research program in Economic Geology continues to focus on the nature and role of fluids in the Earth's crust.
Tim Lee completed his M.S. research studying the origins of the mineralization in the Paddington gold deposit in Western Australia. The Paddington deposit lies just north of the famous Kalgoorlie gold field and provides a fairly simple geological and structural setting that hosts several generations of veins. Gold mineralization is associated with several of the vein sets and Tim used fluid inclusion analysis to address the question of how do the vein forming fluids differ between generations and what role does structure play in localizing ore. This study was undertaken in collaboration with several researchers from the University of Western Australia–the latest example of a 10 year collaboration between UWA and UW-Madison.
I have returned to an interest in applying infrared spectroscopy to analyzing fluid inclusions and have a student doing a senior thesis using the infrared beam line at the Synchrotron Research Center in Stoughton. The proximity of this rare analytical facility provides an opportunity to undertake some unusual fundamental research.
Clark Johnson and I have been working for the past three years on developing accurate 3D renderings of the geology and topography of the United States as a whole and more detailed looks at specific well known areas like some of the National Parks. We are delivering the results of the modeling and rendering as interactive, manipuable 3D computer objects that our test groups of Geology students have found intriguing and instructive. At present Clark and I have a campus funded project to complete and distribute a CD-ROM that will provide both a significant teaching aid and cater to the 'wow look at that beautiful map' feeling that most geologists experience.
Jill Banfield and I spent a fair bit of the second half of 1999 preparing materials for an Internet only course entitled Science Behind the News which is being offered for the first time in the Spring 2000 semester. This course is based on the award winning web-site developed by the Graduate School and the News Bureau here on campus entitled The WhyFiles. This has been a lot of work but gives us the opportunity to reach out to a new segment of the population and explain the Why of some earth and environmental subjects. The course is available to UW students and interested persons from around the world.
The future health of Geology and Geophysics in the universities requires not only cutting edge research but also the willingness to innovate and keep our courses relevant both in content and delivery style. Computer-aided or augmented instruction is here to stay and some aspects of geology are particularly well suited to this delivery medium. As an example, Virtual Field Trips can be used to visit famous localities that could never be visited in person in the course of an undergraduate curriculum. Several examples of such trips can be seen by visiting my personal web site at http://www.geology.wisc.edu/~pbrown/index.html and following the links.
On a personal note, my family continues to be well. Kris is a librarian at Memorial High School, Jason has begun his freshman year at Carleton College, Peter is currently in 10th grade, and Karin is completing her middle school career. All three are serious swimmers and at times the smell of chlorine can be overwhelming!
Cameron Memorial - Philip E.Brown
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