Geography Department News

Department of Geography College of Liberal Arts 1250 Bellflower Boulevard California State University Long Beach, CA 90840-1101 USA

as of 25 August 2005

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Geography and GSA Welcome You (back) to 2005-06!

The Geography Student Association is hitting F/05 running. They have a full program of activities brewing, and they would like to get the word out about events coming up soon. GSA will be participating in Welcome Week, hosting tables in the quad area in front of the Bookstore with the other student organizations on campus and near the Department. Welcome Week tables will be operating on Wednesday and Thursday, 7-8 September, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m..

Also, GSA will hold an Open House on those days, too. On Wednesday, it'll be from 5-7 p.m. in LA4-102 and on Thursday from 5-6 p.m. in LA4-100. Be there or be square!

Dr. Laris Appears in Print

Dr. Paul Laris has co-authored an article with Peter Klepeis of Colgate University, which is coming out in Geoforum. Its title is "Contesting sustainable development in Tierra del Fuego." The article is available through the CSULB's electronic journal subscription service. Congratulations!!

Mr. Woods Has a Publication out

Mr. Jim Woods co-authored an article with Roger D. Peng (post-doctoral fellow in biostatistics at Johns Hopkins) and Frederic Paik Schoenberg (Associate Professor of Statistics at UCLA). It is entitled "A space-time conditional intensity model for evaluating a wildfire hazard index," and it appeared in the March issue of the Journal of the American Statistical Association. Our library has electronic access, so you can get your own copy online. Congratulations on this achievement, Woody!

Drs. Lee, Rodrigue, Behl, and Wechsler Host an AMP Field and Lab Project

Drs. Chris Lee, Chrys Rodrigue, and Rick Behl (Geological Sciences) are taking a group of Alliance for Minority Participation (AMP) students from Cerritos College and CSULB into the field on Monday, 25 July. The field trip will go to Del Cerro Park in Rancho Palos Verdes, where Dr. Lee will train students in the use of GPS and relate the appearance of vegetation and slopes in a 1 meter panchromatic IKONOS image to actual points on the ground. Dr. Rodrigue will discuss the fire ecology of chaparral and coastal sage vegetation and changes in the fire régime created by such invasive plant species as fennel and thistle. Students will see (and smell) the fire scar from the recent Rancho Palos Verdes fire and learn why no homes were lost this time in an area that saw dozens of homes burn in 1973. Dr. Behl will introduce the marine stratigraphy of the area and how it poses a very severe landslide hazard, showing students the surface expressions of active slides. The three faculty will train students in the application of the mathematical concepts of scale and slope and then connect changes in slope angle with landslide and the accelerated erosion seen after a major fire. The purpose of AMP is to support and encourage minority students interested in majoring in sciences, math, and engineering. The program prepares students for enrollment in precalculus and calculus, in order to give them the greatest flexibility in pursuing any scientific or technical field that attracts their interest without having to delay their graduations to backtrack through math late in their college careers. The idea is to relate abstract mathematics to real world (and really fun) applications in the field and lab and help reduce math phobia. Once the students have collected their field data and return to campus, Dr. Wechsler will show them how to process their data in the lab using GIS and remote sensing.

Graduation Day

The Department is proud (and a little sad) to see another class of geographers graduate! Here are the geography majors who have graduated between Summer 2004 and Spring 2005, our newest alumni:

Mr. Brett Michael Katsuyama Mr. Albert Christopher Armijo Mr. Cameron John Beatty Mr. Matthew F. Blume Ms. Leslie Charlet Edwards Ms. Tiffany Noreen Edwards Mr. Jacob W. Hanson Mr. Scott Webb Holleman Mr. Stephen Su Kim Mr. José Paolo Magcalas Mr. Luis Sebastian Martínez Mr. William John Morrish

Mr. Michael D. Quon Ms. Pamela Joann Smith Ms. Loidy Ugarte Ms. Michel R. Perlin Ms. Angela Susan Bartlett Mr. Donald C. Bettencourt Ms. Emily Michelle Blackmore Mr. Frank H. Carragher Mr. Fayçal Ferhat Mr. Bryan John Freet Mr. Ryan Yu Fukazawa Mr. Jack Haswaeng

Mr. Charles Mark Hungerford Mr. Steven Nikola Jareb Mr. Stefan James Klain Ms. Heather Jean Kokesch Mr. Brian Matthew Lee Liu Mr. David S. Peck Mr. Ryan Zensho Taira Mr. Michael Takeo Tokumoto Mr. Tuan Tranh Tran Mr. Gerald Winston, II Ms. Jennilyn Marie Zabala

Dean's List Honorees

The Department is very proud to announce that eight of its undergraduate students have received the College of Liberal Arts Dean's List honor, which is reserved for those students earning a 3.75 GPA. They were fêted at the CLA Distinguished Student Reception on 21 April. Congratulations to the Spring 2005 list of Distinguished Geography Students:

• Ms. Denise Behrens
• Ms. Adrienne Bosler
• Mr. Nicholas Carlson
• Mr. Charles Hungerford
• Mr. Steven Jareb
• Ms. Deirdre Miller
• Ms. Saori Nemoto
• Ms. Joy Turlo

Graduate Dean's List!

Ms. Julienne Gard and Ms. Lisa Pitts, graduate students finishing up their theses, have just been named to the CLA Graduate Dean's List. This is quite an honor, as usually fewer than ten students throughout the College of Liberal Arts are selected each year, and having two graduate students on that list is almost unheard of for a small department like ours! CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Los Angeles Geographical Society Presentations

The Los Angeles Geographical Society is hosting its third annual special student research symposium on Friday, 6 May 2005, 8 p.m., at Los Angeles City College, Franklin Hall, Room 101. LACC is at 855 North Vermont Avenue. To get there, take the 110 to the 101 or the 710 or 605 to I- 5 and then the I-5 to the 101. Take the 101 westbound ("northbound") to Vermont and then drive north on Vermont a short distance. LACC is on the left side of the street. Directions and a map can be found at http://www.lageographic.org/lecture_s/directions.htm. The student research symposium is made up of papers and posters that students have presented at research conferences or thesis defenses in the last year, which they are invited to re-present to the LAGS. The following CSULB Geography students have been invited:

• Ms. Alma Vargas will be presenting her thesis, "Implementing Modern Geographic Technology in the Trucking Industry: A Case Study"
• Ms. Wanjiru Njuguna will be presenting her thesis, "Water Perception and Consumption Patterns Among Latinos and Whites in Whittier, CA"
• Mr. Terry Lumati will dislay the poster, "The use of digital elevation models (DEMs) in managing natural habitats in the South Coast Wilderness" (originally presented at the Southern California Conference on Undergraduate Research)
• Ms. Denise Behrens will display the poster, "The Lost Constellations of European Celestial Cartography" (originally presented at the Association of American Geographers)

Dr. Del Casino Is an Invited Speaker at the UCLA Geography Colloquium

Dr. Vincent Del Casino has been invited to make a presentation at the UCLA Tod Spieker Geography Colloquium. His talk is entitled, "Sexuality/Health/Geography" and will be presented at 3 p.m., Friday, 6 May in the "Green Room" of Bunche Hall (where the Geography Department at UCLA is housed).

Community College "Jobs in Geography" Colloquium

The "Jobs in Geography" colloquium series hosted a panel of faculty from a variety of local community college districts, who explained to graduate students interested in community college teaching how to apply for part-time and tenure-track positions, jobs prospects, and the subtleties that each district looks for. The panel was held on Wednesday, 4 May. On the panel was:

• Dr. Ray Sumner, Chair of the Social Sciences Department at Long Beach City College, Professor of Human Geography (and adjunct faculty here at CSULB)
• Dr. Robert Kreger, Professor of Geography, Cerritos College
• Ms. Irene Naesse, Professor of Geography, Orange Coast College
• Ms. Vicki Drake, Geography Instructor, Department of Earth Sciences, Santa Monica College
• Mr. Dan Walsh, Chair, Geography Program, Saddleback College

Graduate Student Presentations

The following graduate students successfully defended their thesis proposals on Friday, 29 April 2005:

• Ms. Bridget Cooney, "The Impact of Policy upon Refugee Spatialities: Resettlement Policies and the Hmong of Southeast Asia"
• Ms. Wanjiru Njuguna, "Water Perception and Consumption Patterns among Latinos and Whites in Whittier, CA"
• Ms. Lisa Wilkinson, "The Nature of Atascadero, 1913-2005"
• Ms. Jennifer Cochran, "Using GIS to Assess Non-Point Source Pollution in the Lake Barbara Watershed"

Retirements Looming

Drs. Judith Tyner and Richard Outwater are "throwing in the towel" at the end of this semester! They are retiring! Dr. Tyner is finishing up teaching GEOG 381, 482, and 484. Dr. Outwater was on administrative re-assignment for several years, serving as Special Assistant to the Provost for Academic Technology and Facilities Planning. Before that, he taught urban and human geography.

The Beach Converges on Yosemite

A large contingent represented Geography @ the Beach at the annual meeting of the California Geographical Society in Yosemite the 22nd and 23rd of April: Drs. Chrys Rodrigue, Dimitrii Sidorov, Suzanne Wechsler, Ray Sumner, and Mike McDaniel, Ms. Lisa Pitts, Ms. Zoe Schumacher and Ms. Doreen Jeffrey. Everyone gave a paper, except Ms. Jeffrey, who was the David Lantis Graduate Scholarship Award recipient. Mr. McDaniel entered his talk in the student awards competition, but Ms. Pitts didn't (absent-minded already, upon the completion of her master's degree!): Mr. McDaniels received the second place Tom McKnight Paper Award in the graduate student division. Ms. Pitt, having spent some of her formative years in Yosemite, knew about a strange local phenomenon that she shared with the CSULB (and CSU Pomona) delegations: a "moonbow." In spring only, if the sky is clear, the full moon rises at just such a point that it falls directly on the base of Yosemite Falls -- and creates a nighttime rainbow! It was spectacular: Imagine an Ansel Adams black-and-white photograph of a daytime rainbow! For some pictures of Yosemite scenery this weekend, click here.

Ms. Denise Behrens Receives Award

Ms. Denise Behrens, CSULB Geography student (and front-office staff person and daughter of Prof. Douglas Behrens) has just been inducted into Who's Who among Students in American Colleges and Universities. Congratulations!!!

Prof. Wranic Receives Teaching Award

Ms. Angela Wranic, lecturer in geography at CSULB and at Long Beach City College just received an Outstanding Teacher award from Alpha Gamma Sigma at LBCC. She was nominated by Ms. Shirley Gooding, who obviously has excellent taste in outstanding teachers!!! Congratulations!

Mr. Robert Franklin Gives "Jobs in Geography" Presentation

Mr. Robert Franklin, CSULB Geography alumnus, is Principal Planner, City of Fountain Valley. He gave a presentation on 20 April entitled, "Applied Geography: City and Regional Planning." He discussed his own educational background here (B.A. and M.A. in Geography) and the "non-linear" path he took into the planning profession, the key break being a message from Dr. Joel Splansky concerning a planning position in Huntington Beach. Mr. Franklin then described the different kinds of planning jobs in the private sector (planning consulting companies) and the public sector (local, county, regional, state, and federal). He described two key functions, advance planning (long-term) and current planning (dealing with short-term modifications to established plans). He emphasized how important it was to have a basic background in geography and local knowledge of a region's character and personality, good writing skills, ability to do public speaking, and familiarity with Windows computers, Microsoft software (notably Excel and PowerPoint), cartography and GIS, and map and air photo interpretation. Mr. Franklin discussed the structure of a general plan and its seven required elements (land use, circulation, housing, open space, conservation, noise, and safety) and then the specific plans adopted for unique subareas within a planning jurisdiction. He emphasized familiarity with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), which is the source of authority for planning decisions in accordance with it. He sketched out the nature of regional planning, too, and then discussed how geography students can prepare for careers in planning while still students here at CSULB. He emphasized doing well in school and seeking at least 6 to 12 months of internship experience (some of which may be unpaid). Very practically, he showed the audience how a typical job interview proceeds and the kinds of questions that will come up, and he noted that samples of work from internship projects is very helpful. Mr. Franklin noted that most planning jobs and internships are advertised in the California Chapter of the American Planning Association's Jobs Available (to which the Department is going to subscribe) and its online venue, http://www.calapa.org/jobs.html.

Ms. Nancy Yoho Discusses "Jobs in Geography"

Ms. Nancy Yoho, a Geography alumna (and the 2005 Distinguished Alumna of the College of Liberal Arts) and Vice-President of Thomas Bros.-Rand-McNally, spoke at the "Jobs in Geography" colloquium on Tuesday, 19 April 2005. She discussed the history of the famous city-street mapping company and its acquisition by Rand-McNally and then the combined companies' acquisition by Leonard Green & Partners of Santa Monica. She described the geography of the combined company's operations, with street guides production based in Irvine and national atlases and other products based in Skokie, Illinois. She also described the structure of hiring and promotion, from entry level cartographer/GIS technician up through project management and higher executive positions. In the technical area of map production, the company tends overwhelmingly to promote from within; marketing and sales see lateral transfers from other firms as well as internal promotions. So, for anyone interested in a geography-related career in retail map products, interning and starting out as an entry-level baccalaureate cartographer/GIS technician is the way to go (and the company offers education benefits for people wanting to earn master's degrees. Ms. Yoho also discussed the kinds of things they look for in résumés: A B.A. in geography, with several classes both in cartography and in GIS, as well as map and air photo interpretation. A remote sensing class or two would also be helpful. The GIScience Certificate would automatically ensure a student had acquired a really ideal background for Thomas Bros. Ms. Yoho's planned one hour talk turned into two hours of energetic discussion and avid examination of all the Thomas Bros. and Rand-McNalley products she brought along! Thanks to Dr. Judith Tyner for organizing this event and hosting it through her GEOG 484/584 course.

Dr. Norman Thrower Gives Talk @ the Beach

Dr. Norman Thrower, Professor Emeritus of Geography at UCLA, gave a talk, "Compass, Chart, and Course: Piri Reis in Context," in Dr. Judith Tyner's GEOG 381 (Maps and Civilization) course. It was held on 14 April.

Our Incoming Faculty Member Delivers a Paper at Geodaze

Ms. Camille Holmgren, the newest member of the Geography faculty, gave a paper entitled, "Reconstructing 31,000 years of vegetation dynamics in the northern Chihuahuan Desert: A packrat midden study from the Peloncillo Mountains" to the annual Geodaze Symposium. Geodaze is a student-run symposium at the University of Arizona showcasing research by graduate students and undergraduate students there.

Prof. Camille Holmgren Receives Award

Prof. Holmgren received the $300 Chevron-Texaco Prize for the best Geodaze paper in the palæoclimatology/climate/palæoecology area. Congratulations!!

Geography "Away Team" Expedition

Drs. Suzanne Wechsler and Christopher Lee have been invited to give a talk entitled, "Geography in Action," at Lakewood High School. This will be a campus-wide two-hour long event in the high school's auditorium.

Inadvertant Geography "Away Team" Expedition

The Department sent a large delegation to the Association of American Geographers annual conference in Denver the week of the 4th-9th of April (that's why it was mighty lonesome around here that week). Most people got back before a major blizzard hit Denver and closed down Denver International Airport. Less lucky were Drs. Christy Jocoy and Judith Tyner and Mr. Noel Ludwig, who were stranded there by the airport closure. They, therefore, were not available to teach their Monday classes on the 11th, when they are, hopefully, finally winging their way home. Talk about exciting geography!

Geography Baby Boom Continues!

Ms. Alma Vargas, graduate student, has just delivered a baby girl, Alyssa Rebecca, 5 lb., 15 oz., on Saturday, 2 April 2005 at 9:07 p.m. Yay!!! Congratulations. Thanks to Prof. James Woods for keeping us all in the loop!

Boxer Who Died in the Golden Glove Competition Was a Geographer

The first female amateur boxer to die as a result of a boxing match injury was Dr. Becky Zerlentes, who earned her Ph.D. in geography at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Her dissertation was on the environmental impacts of NAFTA on the US-Mexico borderlands. She taught geography at Front Range Community College in Fort Collins, CO, and pursued boxing as a hobby and became quite successful at it, qualifying for Golden Gloves competition and once holding the State 132 lb. title, having won 6 bouts in 10 matches. This was to have been her last match, as she felt that at age 34 it was time to hang up the gloves. How sad that geography now has its own "Million Dollar Baby," and our hearts go out to her family, friends, students, and the geography community of Colorado.

Dr. Del Casino Named as an Editor

Dr. Vincent Del Casino has just learned he's been named Book Review Editor for the journal, Social and Cultural Geography. Congratulations.

Ms. Angela Wranic to Give a Talk

Ms. Angela Wranic will give a talk entitled, "Geography in the high school classroom" to a colloquium for student-teachers in the Single-Subject Teaching Credential program at CSULB. Thank you for informing student-teachers about the nature of geography and how teachers can bring it to their students.

Dr. Jocoy the Lead Story in This Week @ the Beach

Dr. Christy Jocoy's selection as a finalist for the Association of American Geographers' J. Warren Nystrom Award was the lead story in "This Week @ the Beach." The Nystrom Award is for an AAG presentation based on an outstanding recent dissertation. The full story can be read by clicking here. Congratulations both on the Nystrom finalist selection and on the campus visibility that resulted!

Dr. Del Casino Attains the Celestial City

Dr. Vincent Del Casino has just been granted early tenure and promotion to Associate Professor in the College of Liberal Arts (Geography) and the College of Education (Liberal Studies). CONGRATULATIONS on hard work well done!!!

Four Graduate Talks

Ms. Josi Jenneskens, Mr. Greg Bishop, Ms. Colette Simonds, and Ms. Alma Vargas successfully defended their thesis proposals on Friday, 11 March 2005. More details can be read here. Congratulations!

Visitors Dropping by

Dr. Unna Lassiter dropped by to visit the Department on Tuesday the 15th of March. She is now a tenure-track faculty member at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX, and is visiting friends in Los Angeles during their spring break. Also turning up was Nicholas Mikhail, on break from his Illinois high school. What a great twin blast from the past!

Guest Speaker

Dr. Jim Till, Director of Compliance at the CSULB Office of University Research, will be an invited guest speaker in Dr. Chrys Rodrigue's GEOG 696, Seminar in Geographical Research Methods. Dr. Till will discuss the Institutional Review Board on this campus and how it handles research done by CSULB students and faculty that in any way deals with human subjects. The seminar will meet on Wednesday, 30 March, 7 p.m., in LA4-204. If you would like to attend, please let Dr. Rodrigue know by e-mailing her at rodrigue@csulb.edu.

Mr. Woods Talks about the Sumatra Tsunami at a Local School

Mr. Jim Woods gave his outstanding multi-media presentation on the Sumatra earthquake and tsunami to St. Joseph's parochial school of Long Beach in March.

Dr. Curtis Has Another Publication out

Dr. Jim Curtis has an article out in a long-awaited international anthology. His chapter is entitled, "A typology of Brazilian urban squares: Its application in the city of Manaus," and it appeared in Cities and Urbanism in Latin America, ed. Vicent Ortells Chabrera, Robert B. Kent, and Javier Soriano Martí, published by Universitat Jaume I Press in Spain. Outstanding!!

Dr. Wechsler Has an Article Forthcoming. Again.

Dr. Suzanne Wechsler has just learned that her article, "A methodology for quantifying DEM uncertainty and its effect on topographic parameters," has just been accepted by Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing. Way to GO!!!!

Dr. Rodrigue Also Has an Article Coming out!

Continuing the Departmental flurry of publications, Dr. Chrys Rodrigue has just found out that her article, "James Blaut's critique of diffusionism through a Neolithic lens: Early animal domestication in the Near East," is going to come out in Antipode. This will be a special issue in which several geographers influenced by the late Jim Blaut were invited to discuss various aspects of his work and how they played out in their own research.

Drs. Lee and Rodrigue off to Zzyzx

Drs. Chris Lee and Chrys Rodrigue trekked out to the CSU Desert Studies Center at Zzyzx (near Baker on I- 15) to talk about the Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Project and hear about a similar program at SDSU. While there, they bumped into past GDEP participants Drs. Stephen Koletty and Chuck Herzig, Prof. Don Hallinger, and Mr. Alejandro Tiburcio!

Dr. Laris Is an Invited Speaker at the UCLA Geography Colloquium

Dr. Paul Laris has been invited to make a presentation at the UCLA Tod Spieker Geography Colloquium. His talk is entitled, "Exploring the Scale Issue in Nature-Society Geography through a Study of Mosaic Fire Regimes in West Africa," and was presented on 11 February.

Late Breaking News: Dr. Jocoy Is a Finalist for the Nystrom Award!

Dr. Christy Jocoy is a finalist for the very prestigious J. Warren Nystrom Award for a paper based on a recent dissertation in geography! She has, thus, been invited to present a paper at the Association of American Geographers meeting in April, at which point from one to four people will receive cash awards. She has also been invited to submit her paper for The Professional Geographer. What fabulous news! Congratulations!!!

Mr. Woods Will Discuss the Sumatra Tsunami

Mr. James Woods will present an overview of the Sumatra earthquake and tsunami from a physical geography standpoint. He'll show some videos of the tsunami in action and an examination of some of the physical changes that have occurred as a result. The talk, entitled, "The Sumatra Tsunami: An Overview," will be held on Wednesday, 16 February, in PSY-150. Doors open at 3:45 p.m., with the 45 minute presentation to follow at 4 p.m.

Dr. Jocoy Has a Book Review out

Dr. Christy Jocoy did a review of the book Architectures of Knowledge: Firms, Capabilities, and Communities, by Ash Amin and Patrick Cohendet. It just came out in Regional Studies.

Dr. Jocoy Will Be Attending Faculty Development Institute

Dr. Christy Jocoy will be attending the Japan Studies Institute at San Diego State University from June 1st through the 24th. Her participation will be funded through a Sasakawa Fellowship. The Institute involves a month of intensive seminars, readings, films, discussion groups, and cultural activities related to Japanese history, culture, literature, government, business, language, and education. The Institute is designed for faculty who wish to incorporate inforamtion about Japan into the undergraduate courses they teach. Congratulations, and we all look forward to learning more about Japan from Dr. Jocoy!

Mr. Jeff Marotta Will Lead an LAGS Field Trip

Mr. Jeff Marotta, an undergraduate student here at CSULB, will be leading a field trip for the Los Angeles Geographical Society. The trip is called "Little Saigon Tour," and it will be held on Saturday, 12 February, starting at 9 a.m., meeting at the Vietnam War Memorial Monument (14180 All American Way, Westminster, CA). RSVP no later than Wednesday, 9 February to Jeff Marotta, as space on the van is limited.

Ms. Julienne Gard Gives a Talk at the LAGS This Friday

Ms. Julienne Gard, one of our graduate students, spoke to the Los Angeles Geographical Society entitled, "Medical Geography, Culture, and Tourism," focussing on the Native American sweat lodge health tourist phenomenon in California. The talk was well attended and discussion was quite animated. Congratulations!

Ms. Lisa Pitts Will Also Talk at the LAGS

Gregory Kee and one of our graduate students, Ms. Lisa Pitts, will also be giving a talk at the LAGS, this one on 1 April. It's entitled, "Geographers of the Future: Teaching Geography and GIS to K-12 Students." The talk will be held from 8-9 p.m., Friday, 1 April, at Franklin Hall Room 101, Los Angeles City College (855 North Vermont Avenue, just north of the 101. And, the LAGS' famous refreshments will be available after the talk. Directions can be found at http://www.lageographic.org/lecture_s/directions.htm.

Dr. Wechsler and Ms. Pitts Have an Article out

Dr. Suzanne P. Wechsler and Ms. Lisa A. Pitts published an article in the latest issue of The California Geographer. The article is "GIS in High School Integrates Geography with Technology: A Case Study." Congratulations!

The LAGS Will Showcase Student Research in May

The LAGS will hold its third annual Geography Student Research Papers and Posters Presentation on 6 May. Any geography student who has presented a paper, poster, or map to any professional society over the last year is invited to re-present it to the local audience. The last two have been quite impressive, and CSULB students were much in evidence. Let's do it again! For more information about this great event, please contact Ms. Julienne Gard, whose inspiration this showcase meeting is: jgard@csulb.edu.

Dr. Tyner Has Been Busy

Dr. Judith Tyner published "Stitching the World: Westtown School's Embroidered Globes," in Piecework Magazine (September/October 2004). She also presented a paper, "Staid in School and Worked on My Map: 19th Century Schoolgirl Maps," to the North American Cartographic Information Society conference in Portland, Maine, in October, 2004. She gave an additional presentation on the use of maps in murder mysteries, "Bloody Maps," to the California Map Society meeting at UCLA in January, 2005. Way to go!!

Dr. Del Casino Has Been Burning the Midnight Oil, too!

Dr. Vincent Del Casino is co-author of the following article: Hanna, S.P.; Del Casino, V.J., Jr.; Selden, C.; and Hite, B. 2004. "Representation as Work in `America's Most Historic City." Social and Cultural Geography. Additionally, he published a study guide, an instructor's manual, and a mapping workbook for the Prentice-Hall textbook, World Regions in Global Context, 2nd Edition by Sallie A. Marston. Outstanding!

Dr. Sidorov Receives CLA Collaborative Research Grant

The Department of Geography is proud to announce that Dr. Dmitrii Sidorov and two colleagues from two other departments (Dr. Vlatka Velcic of Comparative Literatures and Classics and Dr. Caitlin Murdock of History) have received one of only three College of Liberal Arts Collaborative Research grants. The CLA Collaborative Research program is a new initiative, designed to promote interdepartmental collaboration involving three departments. The lead faculty design research projects that involve student researchers and draw on all three disciplines and then create a cross-disciplinary year-long course for participating students. Dr. Sidorov's and his colleagues' project is entitled, ""Evolving Borderlands: Frontiers, Borders, and Boundaries in (post)-Soviet Eastern Europe." Many congratulations to Dr. Sidorov and his team for their success!

Ms. Julienne Gard Appears in the L.A. Times

Ms. Julienne Gard, a graduate student, published a short commentary in the Los Angeles Times on the passing of jazz great Artie Shaw, in which she related an amusing anecdote about a backstage visit she had with him back in 1998. She had been a swing music radio host in L.A. at the time (a side of Ms. Gard she has kept hidden from us!). He complained about how the Wiltern Theatre concert he'd just given had mussed up his nightly habit of reading in bed but then added, "But it's a good business if you have to pick one." The commentary appeared on 2 January 2005 on p. B12, and you should be able to read it for a few days yet here.

Dr. James Curtis in Hospital

Dr. James Curtis gave himself (and the rest of us) a real scare the week before finals when he had a mild heart attack. He was quite relieved to learn that only one of his coronary arteries had been partially obstructed, which meant that a balloon angioplasty and stent were able to take care of the problem. He is doing much better and is back in the classroom already. He said thanks to everyone who pitched in and helped him take care of his classes!

Southern California Loses Two Geographers

Profs. Joan Clemons and John Gaines died at the end of fall 2004. Joan Clemons had taught for many years at Valley College and had been instrumental in building ties between community college geographers and those at four-year universities, particularly UCLA. She had been married to Dr. John Carthew at Los Angeles Pierce College and, later, to Dr. Tom McKnight, at UCLA. Many of us at the Beach knew her and will sorely miss her. Dr. Gaines had taught biogeography for many years at CSUN, where he had also served as chair. Dr. Rodrigue was particularly saddened at his death, as he had first gotten her interested in biogeography.

Second Annual Geography Photography Contest

The Second Annual Geography Photography Contest was a big part of the celebration of National Geography Awareness Week. Several dozen entries were submitted in seven different categories. Winners and prizes were announced on Friday at the Geography Awareness Week luncheon in the Chartroom. The winning photographs and the names of the photographers can be viewed here. Thanks to Dr. Dmitrii Sidorov for putting together this exciting contest and getting so many people to submit so many gorgeous images. And thanks to all the contestants!!

Geography @ The Beach Delegation to SCCUR

Two Geography students will be presenting the research they did during the Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Project in summer 2004 at the prestigious Southern California Conference on Undergraduate Research:

Mr. Terry Lumati, now a Geography major, is the first and presenting author of "The Use of Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) in Managing Natural Habitats in the South Coast Wilderness." Co-authors are fellow GDEP participants Messrs. Carlos Takashima (El Camino College) and Simeon Haynes (Cabrillo High School). His faculty mentor is Dr. Suzanne P. Wechsler.

Mr. Aziz Bakkoury, graduate student in Geography and graduate assistant in GDEP, is the third author of "Producing a Vegetation/Habitat Map of the South Coast Wilderness" with Mr. Carlos Takashima (El Camino College) and Dr. Christopher Lee. Mr. Takashima's faculty mentor was Dr. Stephen R. Koletty of El Camino College, who also participated in GDEP in summer of 2004.

Alumna Written up in Press-Telegram

Ms. Sharon Johnson, one of our alumni, was spotted in the "Reader Page" of the Long Beach Press-Telegram on 8 November by Mr. James Woods. The article, entitled, "College official inspires students," describes her work as the director of the Learning Center at Marymount College in Palos Verdes, where she supervises tutoring services and serves as an assistant professor of physical geography. She has been awarded an Educator of the Year Award by the local chapters of the Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club. Way to GO!!

Dr. Rodrigue off to Brussels

Dr. Chrys Rodrigue was flown to Brussels, Belgium, in late October by the Education Commission Working Group of the World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine to give a talk and help in the rewriting of education and training standards for the new discipline of disaster medicine. The title of her talk was "Hazard vulnerability, media construction of disaster, and risk management."

Long Beach Delegation to the Association of Pacific Coast Geographers

Drs. Vincent Del Casino and Ray Sumner travelled to San Luis Obispo in September to participate in the APCG annual meeting. Dr. Del Casino gave a paper, "Rethinking regions and regionalization in the context of world regional geography," and chaired a session on "Theorizing and Teaching the Region." Dr. Sumner gave a paper she co-authored with Professor Joan Clemmons, "Tom Down Under: McKnight's relationship with the Fifth Continent," a tribute to the late Dr. Tom McKnight. She also chaired a session, "Historical Geography and Evolving Cultural Landscapes."

Dr. Sumner Takes on New Rôles in the Discipline

Dr. Ray Sumner was recently invited to join the Association of American Geographer's Committee on College Geography, her appointment beginning 1 July 2004. She is also a member of the AAG Diversity Task Force and participated in a tele-meeting as part of the 2004 Conference on Race/Ethnicity and Place, Washington, DC, Sept 16-18. Congratulations on these honors!

GDEP Concludes

Drs. Suzanne Wechsler, Chris Lee,'s and Chrys Rodrigue spent eight weeks this summer hosting projects for the Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Program here at CSULB. GDEP provides summer research assistantships for underrepresented students from five local community colleges and five LBUSD high schools, who work with CSULB faculty in Geography, Geological Sciences, and Anthropology and faculty from the partner institutions. The Geography projects this year focussed on using SPOT satellite imagery to classify the vegetation in the South Coast Wilderness and track habitats most susceptible to exotic invasive plant species. The Geography projects also included a field test of the elevation accuracy of digital elevation models and parameters derived from them, such as slope and aspect. The Geography student researchers (aka the "Geographists") were Messrs. Simeon Haynes (Cabrillo High School), Terry Lumati (Long Beach City College and starting at CSULB this fall), and Carlos Takashima (El Camino College). Their work was showcased in a GDEP symposium on 6 August. GDEP was the subject of a Long Beach Press Telegram article that day and a press release from Cerritos College. To learn more about GDEP, visit its home page: https://home.csulb.edu/~rodrigue/geography/gdep/.

Dr. Wechsler's Work Is Cited

Dr. Suzanne Wechsler's work on the issue of uncertainty in digital elevation modeling was extensively discussed in a forthcoming article by A. Wiyadati et al., "Uncertainty and effects of resolutions of digital elevation model and its derived features: Case study of Sumberjaya, Sumatera, Indonesia." Unlocally notorious!

Dr. Del Casino's Study Guide Comes out

Dr. Vincent Del Casino's instructor's manual for a popular world regional geography textbook (Marston, Knox, and Liverman. World Regions in Global Context: Peoples, Places, and Environments, 2nd ed.) is out, with an official publication date of 2005 from Prentice-Hall. Congratulations!

Dr. Chrys Rodrigue off to Two Conferences

Dr. Chrys Rodrigue went to two conferences to present papers. The first of these was the NASA/Universities Space Research Association sponsored Earth System Science Education for the 21st Century (ESSE21), held in Monterey June 28th-30th. Representing the Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Project team, she presented a poster entitled, "GDEP (Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Program): An NSF-OEDG Program Emphasizing Interdisciplinary Earth System Science Research." The second conference was the invitation-only 29th Annual Natural Hazards Research and Applications Workshop in Boulder, Colorado, from the 11th-14th of July. There she presented "Disaster by Management: Managerialism and Normal Accident Theory in the Columbia Accident and FBI Headquarters' Response to Field Office Concerns before 9/11" and hosted the "First-Timers' Orientation" to the Workshop.

Dr. Jocoy off to Workshop

Dr. Christy Jocoy has been accepted into the "Spatial Analysis and GIS for Undergraduate Course Enhancement in the Social Sciences" workshop at San Diego State University in coöperation with the University Consortium for Geographic Information Science (UCGIS) and sponsored by the Center for Spatially Integrated Social Science. It is August 2nd-6th, 2004.

Dr. Wechsler Has a New Article out

Dr. Suzanne Wechsler has just had her research on user perceptions of uncertainty in digital elevation models published in the latest issue of the Journal of the Urban and Regional Information Systems Association. Congratulations!!!

Dr. Del Casino Receives the First Glenda Laws Award

Dr. Vincent Del Casino has just been selected as the first recipient of the Glenda Laws Award for activist-scholarship in geography. The Glenda Laws Award of the Association of American Geographers was bestowed at the 2004 AAG Annual Meeting in Philadelphia. This award is administered by the Association of American Geographers and endorsed by members of the Institute of Australian Geographers, the Canadian Association of Geographers, and the Institute of British Geographers. The annual award and honorarium recognize outstanding contributions to geographic research on social issues. This award is named in memory of Glenda Laws, a geographer who brought energy and enthusiasm to her work on issues of social justice and social policy. All scholars involved in geographic research on one or more social issues will be eligible for this award, with preference given to researchers who have received their Ph.D. within the last five years. Dr. Del Casino was nominated by Drs. Chrys Rodrigue and Dennis Fisher (Department of Psychology and Director of the Center for Behavioral Research and Services) and Dr. Katherine Gibson of Australian National University and Dr. John Paul Jones III of the University of Arizona wrote letters of support. CONGRATULATIONS, Dr. Del Casino, for all your hard work, which led to this internationally prestigious honor.

Drs. Del Casino's and Fisher's Grant Profiled on My.CSULB!

Dr. Vincent Del Casino and Dr. Dennis Fisher (Psychology) won a $341,221 grant for the the CSULB Center for Behavioral Research and Services from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The grant funds a project aimed at reducing HIV risk through interventions aimed at reducing the use of club drugs at mini-raves in the Long Beach area. The project is profiled on the My.CSULB home page, http://my.csulb.edu/! You can read the full story by clicking here.

Dr. Rodrigue's Latest Article Cited

The Natural Hazards Research and Appliations Information Center at the University of Colorado, Boulder, assembled a peer-reviewed volume of twenty studies from the hazards research community on the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks, a volume that includes an article by Dr. Chrys Rodrigue. The volume was reviewed in the Hazards Center's Natural Hazards Observer, where it was stated, "Based on findings from these studies, the book includes numerous conclusions and recommendations for the improvement of public policy and disaster response." Dr. Rodrigue was pleased to see that four of these are specifically called out, and her paper's conclusion was one of these: "More media attention to the broader political, social, religious, and other aspects of September 11 and similar disasters could help Americans better understand the terrorism risk and the consequences of preventative actions the country might take." The review is available online here.

Dr. Del Casino's Latest Article

Dr. Vincent Del Casino has a new publication out, the first article out of this department for 2004. The reference is Del Casino, V.J., Jr.. 2004. (Re)placing health and health care: Mapping the competing discourses and practices of `traditional' and `modern' Thai medicine. Health and Place 10, 1: 59-73.

Dr. Sidorov Has a New Article in Print

Dr. Dmitrii Sidorov has a new publication out, this one in a premier German geography journal. The reference is Sidorof, Dimitrij. 2003. Raum für Religion? Die neue alte Rolle der Russisch Orthodoxen Kirche. Geographische Rundschau 54, 12, the title of which translates roughly as "Space for religion: The new old rôle of the Russian Orthodox Church."

Dr. Wechsler Receives an NSF Grant!

Dr. Suzanne Wechsler just found out that a grant proposal she submitted as a Co-PI to NSF last February, along with Tom Meixner and Edith Allen of UC Riverside, Michael Goulden of UC Irvine, and M.E. Fenn of the U.S. Forest Servicehas been funded! The proposal is entitled, "SGER: Post-Fire Hydrology, Biogeochemistry, and Vegetation Response," and deals with the San Dimas Experimental Forest, which was burned out in 2002. Way to go!!!

Dr. Wechsler Part of a Team Honored by URISA

Dr. Suzanne Wechsler has been serving as part of the Urban and Regional Information Systems Association (URISA) Committee on GIS Certification. The URISA Board of Directors honored the Committee with its Service Award this October. A thankless task gets ... thanked!

Internship Web Page

Dr. Suzanne Wechsler would like to remind students and faculty to visit the Geography Internship web page, which has been redesigned and is being updated very frequently. There is always a list of new jobs available to students and the current speaker coming up in the "Jobs in Geography" lecture series.

[ Jobs ] [ Talks ] [ Changes ] [ Conferences ]

 

Jobs

Tenure-Track Position in Geography at Laney College

Laney College in Oakland, CA, has a tenure-track position in geography, which begins in Fall 2005. The deadline is 14 April. The position requirements and application process are detailed at http://www.peralta.cc.ca.us/personnel/Faculty/GeoInstrLC%202005-03.htm.

Tenure-Track Position in Geography at Bakersfield College

Bakersfield College has a tenure-track position in geography, which begins on 22 August 2005. Screening begins 25 February. The position requirements and application process are detailed at http://www.bc.cc.ca.us/employee/jobs/Faculty/Geography.pdf.

Part-Time Lecturing at CSULB

The Department of Geography at CSULB may have part-time lectureships available for Fall 2005, though the ongoing State fiscal crisis may negatively impact the number of courses the Department has to offer. For more information on the positions and the application process, please click here.

[ Jobs ] [ Talks ] [ Changes ] [ Conferences ]

 

Lectures and Field Trips

Graduate Student Thesis Proposal Defenses

Four graduate students successfully defended their thesis proposals on Friday, 11 March:

• Ms. Josi Jenneskens, "Bobcat habitat characterization in the North Irvine Ranch Land Reserve"
• Mr. Greg Bishop, "Development of a groundwater monitoring reporting and analysis system"
• Ms. Colette Simonds, "Exotic plant species pattern in selected areas of Kings Canyon and Sequoia national parks"
• Ms. Alma Vargas, "Implementing modern geographic technology in the trucking industry: A case study."

Dr. Denis Cosgrove Delivers Geography Awareness Week Keynote Address

Dr. Denis Cosgrove, the Alexander von Humboldt Professor of Geography at UCLA, delivered the National Geography Awareness Week keynote address on this year's thematic subfield, cultural geography. He presented "Culture and Landscape: The Representation of Southern California" on Tuesday, 16 November, to a packed Multicultural Center. Many thanks to him for this thoughtful and reminiscent reflection on the construction of the California suburb as one of America's iconic landscapes. Many thanks also to Dr. Jim Curtis for arranging this lecture.

Dr. David Hornbeck Gives GIS Day Lecture

Dr. David Hornbeck, Professor Emeritus of Geography at CSU Northridge and a consultant in applied geography and GIS, is giving the GIS Day lecture on Wednesday, 17 November. He will present "The Imperial Valley: California's Next Urban Frontier?" at 6 p.m. in LA4-100. Thanks to Dr. Chrys Rodrigue for arranging this address.

Mr. Joel Rojas Gives Jobs in Geography Lecture

Mr. Joel Rojas, Director of Planning, Building and Code Enforcement, City of Rancho Palos Verdes, is the "Jobs in Geography" speaker for Geography Awareness Week. He will discuss "Geography and Urban Planning Careers in Southern California" on Thursday, 18 November, at 6 p.m. in LA4-100. Thanks to Dr. Paul Laris for arranging this talk.

Mr. Ludwig and Dr. Del Casino Make International Education Week Presentations

Mr. Noel Ludwig made a presentation on international water resource issues for International Education Week, which coïncided with Geography Awareness Week this year. His panel presentation was on Tuesday, 16 November in the Anatol Center in the East Library. The panel addressed "The Global Struggle Over Water Resources: Farm, Home and Environment." The Chair and Discussant was Namika Raby (Anthropology, who also teaches GEOG 319i), and the panelists were: Robert Friis (Health Science); Noel Ludwig (Geography); Ramses Toma (Family & Consumer Sciences).

Dr. Vincent Del Casino is serving on a panel entitled, "International Issues in HIV/AIDS," which is on Wednesday, 17 November in the Anatol Center in the East Library, The panel consists of Dennis Fisher (Behavioral Research & Services/ Psychology); Vinnie Del Casino, (Geography): Kevin Malotte (Health Sciences); Carol Itatani (Biological Sciences); Carole Campbell (Sociology).

Dr. Jocoy Makes the First Brown-Bag Presentation

Dr. Christine Jocoy made the first Brown Bag Talk on Friday, 12 November. The title of her talk was "Social and spatial contexts of corporate learning: A geographic perspective on regional economic development."

Ms. Julienne Gard Gives an Invited Talk in Dr. Ray Sumner's Class

Ms. Julienne Gard, graduate student in geography, gave an invited lecture, entitled "Lakewood as Levittown" to Dr. Ray Sumner's Urban Scene class. Dr. Sumner reports that the talk was very informative and generated a lot of interest

Graduate Student Thesis Proposal Defenses

Three graduate students gave presentations of their thesis proposals on Friday, 30 April, as part of their application for advancement to candidacy for the Master of Arts degree in Geography.

• Mr. Travis Brooks, "Processes that shape the distributional pattern of native perennial grasses (bunchgrass) in central Orange County, California."
• Ms. Seri McClendon, "Analysis of industrial ecology, cradle-to- cradle principles, and an alternative packaging delivery system (APDS)."
• Ms. Sarah Powers, "Vulnerability to toxic dust pollution in the Owens Valley, California."

[ Jobs ] [ Talks ] [ Changes ] [ Conferences ]

 

Changes among the Faculty

New Faculty Member!

Dr. Camille Holmgren begins teaching in Fall 2005. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Arizona, specializing in palæoclimatology and palæoecology, particularly in the arid environments of the Southwest. In these environments, micro- and macro- fossils in woodrat middens provide a great record, sometimes going back many thousands of years. She has started a project entailing collection of these middens from Joshua Tree in the ecotone between high desert and low desert. You can learn more about her interests by clicking here and here! Welcome aboard!

Departing Faculty Members

Dr. Judith Tyner decided to retire (prematurely in our opinions!), effective summer 2005. She has long been a prominent scholar in cartography and the history of cartography, authoring a well-regarded textbook in cartography and pursuing topics as diverse as the women who made maps for the WWII effort ("Millie the Mapper"), the Colonial education technique of having girls embroider maps and globes, the cartography of the moon, and, most recently, the use of maps in murder mysteries ("bloody maps"). She and Dr. Peters developed the first computer cartography and, later, GIS courses, and she worked with Dr. Gossette on the Cartography and GIS certificates the Department offers. She will be sorely missed, both professionally and personally!

Dr. David Porinchu began teaching in Fall 2003. He earned his Ph.D. from UCLA in 2002 and specializes in palæoclimatology, or the reconstruction of past climates and environments. He has mainly specialized in the interpretation of lake sediments as records of past environmental conditions, and his study area is the eastern Sierra Nevada. He is also moving into the area of dendroclimatology, which entails the analysis of cores removed from trees. He's been gone in the spring to take up a postdoctoral fellowship in Canada to work in dendroclimatology. Very unfortunately for us, he has accepted a position at Ohio State and will be leaving in August 2004. He can be reached at porinchu.1@osu.edu.

Dr. Unna Lassiter began teaching for us part-time in Fall 2000 and then was appointed visiting assistant professor as a full-time replacement for Dr. Richard Outwater while he worked as CSULB's Associate Vice President for Academic Information Technology and Facilities. She earned her Ph.D. from USC in 2000 and specializes in cultural geography and urban geography. She has done work on the social representation of nature, particularly human ties with animals, among the different ethnic groups of Southern California. More recently, her work has begun to move into political and social geography, particularly focussing on the study of migration and the formation of expatriate communities in the context of globalization. She has published a number of articles and reviews while here at CSULB, and that record has led to an offer of a tenure-track position in the Department of Political Science and Geography at Stephen F. Austin State University in Texas. Congratulations! Dr. Lassiter can be reached at lassiterui@sfasu.edu.

Graduate Advisor

Dr. Christopher Lee is the graduate advisor. His office is in LA4-205, and he can also be reached at (562) 985-2358 and clee@csulb.edu.

Undergraduate Advisor

Dr. Paul Laris is the undergraduate advisor. His office is in LA4-101E, and he can also be reached at (562) 985-1862 and plaris@csulb.edu.

Internship and Extension GIS Certificate Program Director

Dr. Suzanne Wechsler is the Director of the Internship Program and the GIS/Cartography Certificate Program run through University College Extension Services. Her office is in LA4-206E, and she can also be reached at (562) 985-2356 and wechsler@csulb.edu.

[ Jobs ] [ Talks ] [ Changes ] [ Conferences ]

 

Upcoming Conferences and Calls for Papers (by month of conference)

August 2005

Earth System Science Education for the 21st Century

ESSE21 will be meeting in Fairbanks, AK, from August 4th-7th. The call for participation is available at http://esse21.usra.edu/ESSE21/home_meetings2005.html.

Royal Geographical Society and IBG Annual Conference

The RGS/IBG meeting will be held in London. Learn more at http://www.rgs.org/AC2005/.

September 2005

Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry Society

RSPS will be holding its annual conference from September 6th- 9th at the University of Portsmouth, England. This conference is entitled, "Measuring, Mapping, and Monitoring a Hazardous World." Abstracts are due 11 March 2005, and full papers are required by 24 June. More information is available at: http://www.rspsoc.org/calendar/Calendar2005/RSPSoc2005/Details_Oct04.pdf.

October 2005

Association of Pacific Coast Geographers

The APCG will be meeting in Phoenix from October 19th - 22nd. Information is available at http://geography.asu.edu/apcg/.

North American Cartographic Information Society

NACIS will be meeting in Salt Lake City from October 12th - 15th. Information is available at http://www.nacis.org/meetings.html.

National Council on Geographic Education

NCGE will be meeting in Birmingham, AL, from October 12th - 15th. Information is available at http://www.ncge.org/activities/meetings/.

Conference of Latin Americanist Geographers

CLAG will meet in Morelia, Michoacán, from October 26th - 28th. Information is available at http://sites.maxwell.syr.edu/clag/clag.htm.

November 2005

28th Annual Applied Geography Conference

The Applied Geography conference will meet in Washington, DC, from November 2nd through 5th. More information is available at: http://www.appliedgeog.org/html/main.htm.

December 2005

American Geophysical Union

The AGU has scheduled its fall meeting for December 5th-9th. As the conference develops, the call for papers will be available from: http://www.agu.org/meetings/meetings.html.

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Have Any News Items You Want to Share?

This news page is for everyone in the Department -- students, faculty, staff, and alumni. If you would like to tell folks about your accomplishments or notify us of something you think we'd like to know about, please contact Dr. Rodrigue (rodrigue@csulb.edu) or LA4 206D and she'll get your news up here.

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