IN THE CLASSROOM
Luczaj’s local bedrock research digs up positive discoveries, ancient faults Geoscience Prof. John Luczaj is the man responsible for the first comprehensive map of Brown County’s bedrock, part of a statewide project commissioned by the State of Wisconsin and the U.S. Geologic Survey. The resultant map should be of value to citizens concerned about bacterial contamination in shallow wells; to those who mine crushed stone; and to land-use planners considering aquifer issues, groundwater recharge, and the potential for water and pollutants to travel comparatively quickly through fractured bedrock.
Luczaj (pronounced LOOCH-eye) and his team inspected outcrops and quarries, core samples from drilling, and well-construction reports. His grant also allowed for a visit by a heavy-duty, earth-shaking “vibra” truck — perhaps the first seismic testing of its kind in Wisconsin, Luczaj says.
Despite roughly 100 feet of vertical displacement, the plates are entirely stable and of direct interest only to groundwater researchers… and, indirectly, to Packers fans, as a curiosity. One of the faults, several hundred feet deep, is believed to run near the general vicinity of Lambeau Field.
The in-ground sonogram helped confirm the existence of long-suspected faults — no longer active and likely millions of years old — in the sedimentary rock that underlies much of Brown County.
For more on the bedrock mapping project and Prof. Luczaj’s work, see Inside online.
Chalk talks bring scientists together Every other Friday at 3:30 p.m., there’s a public lecture in Classroom 328 of the Environmental Sciences Building. The subject matter is often complex, and the 40 or so seats are typically filled with UW-Green Bay faculty and staff members (right), grad students, a few undergrads and others with specific interest in that day’s talk. Recent topics have ranged from hormones in drinking water and interpreting dinosaur fossils to the challenges of teaching theoretical physics. Visiting scholars and faculty from other UW-Green Bay academic areas (Human Biology and Philosophy, for example) also have presented. The schedule is posted at www.uwgb.edu/nas/seminar/. Prof. Greg Davis says a wave of new hires reminded faculty and staff of the value of such a series — “We were having all of the candidates give research presentations and the faculty really enjoyed that, and wanted to keep the presentations going” with periodic updates from current colleagues and others.
December 2012 • INSIDE 360° • UWGB
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