I’m a structural geologist, and I’ve been on the faculty at Hamilton College for over 35 years. I teach courses in structural geology and tectonics, GIS, planetary geology, and an intro geo course on geology and human events in North Africa and the Middle East.

Egypt and Iceland: I currently have NSF funding to study enigmatic domes, basins, and polygonal structures in the young carbonate bedrock of the remote Western Desert of Egypt. Over the past 5 years, the research work has involved mapping using extraordinary high resolution imagery in Google Earth plus field work in Egypt. I also work in Iceland on structures that form in subglacially erupted basaltic volcanic rocks as they accumulate and collapse.

Geoscience education: I also have a passionate interest in undergraduate geoscience education. I have given dozens of workshops both in the US and overseas on course design and innovative teaching strategies, and I’ve developed widely used web resources on course design and teaching. I have been co-PI on a number of NSF grants over the past 17 years to improve undergraduate geoscience education, including the well-known decade-long NSF-funded project On the Cutting Edge.

A few c.v. things: I am a past President of the American Geological Institute, the National Association of Geoscience Teachers, and the Geology Division of the Council on Undergraduate Research. I was honored to be named New York State Professor of the Year in 1997 and to receive the 2004 Neil Miner Award from NAGT for exceptional contributions to the stimulation of interest in the Earth Sciences. In 2006, I was totally stunned to receive an honorary Doctor of Science degree from St. Lawrence University. For more information, you can download my full c.v. with the gory details.

When I'm not doing geology: I’m quite a well-known kiltmaker and author of the book The Art of Kiltmaking. Over the past few years, I’ve also become a fairly decent piper, and I play with the Mohawk Valley Frasers Pipes and Drums.