News as of 22 October 2003
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Mr. Joe Mangiameli, GIS Manager for the City of Huntington Beach, will give a talk on "GIS at the City of Huntington Beach." The talk will be held on Tuesday, 21 October, from 6-7 p.m., in LA4-100. Thanks to Dr. Suzanne Wechsler for organizing this opportunity for students to learn about how GIS is used in a municipal government office.
Ms. María Rodríguez-Majcherek will give a talk on "From Geography to Planning," based on her experiences as a CSULB alumna working as a Regional Planning Assistant in the Countywide Studies Section of the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning. The talk will be held on Monday, 27 October, from 5-6 p.m., in LA4-100. Thanks to Dr. Suzanne Wechsler for organizing this opportunity for students to learn about the planning profession.
The Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Project is a collaboration among the departments of Geography, Geological Sciences, and Anthropology, which hosted an informative panel on careers in the geospatial technologies, geology, and geoarchæology. Dr. Christopher Lee represented geography, Dr. Gregory Holk represented geology, and Dr. Daniel Larson represented archæology. Discussion afterwards drew out the many parallels in the three fields for the most effective preparation for careers in them. GIS and remote sensing were mentioned as valuable skills in all three, as were effective writing and presentation skills, and the value of internships was emphasized.
Dr. Chrys Rodrigue has a new publication out on her work on the media representation of the September 11th attacks of 2001. The paper is entitled, "Representation of the September 11th Terrorist Attacks in the Online Edition of the Los Angeles Times, and it came out in Beyond September 11th: An Account of Post-Disaster Research, ed. Jacquelyn L. Monday.
![[ Adam Wechsler, 07/22/03 ]](https://home.csulb.edu/~rodrigue/geography/jpegs/adamwechsler.jpg)
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Dr. Suzanne Wechsler and her husband, Charles Wechsler, are so
pleased to announce that ... Adam Samuel Wechsler arrived at
11:53 a.m., Sunday, 8 June, all 7 lb., 14 oz. of him. He is healthy and
adorable, and they all are doing well, arriving home on Tuesday, and adjusting
to their unfunded NSF project (No Sleep, Feeding ...). CONGRATULATIONS!!!.
Late breaking news: Dr. Wechsler was spotted with the little rascal on Thursday, 31 July. Is this kid cute, or what? |
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Dr. Christian Brannstrom served as a part-time faculty member here last
year and has since gone on to a tenure-track position at Texas A&M University
in College Station. His wife, Dr. Wendy Jepson, has also landed a
position as a research scientist there. Dr. Brannstrom just e-mailed to
report that they are settling in after driving to Texas. He reports that it
is really hot there, not that it's been balmy here of late, but they're used
to it after doing field work in Brazil! His new contact information is on the
faculty web page,
and he wants to make sure that any students who need letters of reference from
him can get hold of him. He also shared pictures of his new baby, Nicolas,
and thanked the Department for the Whole Foods gift certificate.
Is there something about geographers that makes them have really cute babies? |
![[ Nico Brannstrom baby picture ]](https://home.csulb.edu/~rodrigue/geography/jpegs/nicobrannstrom.jpg)
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Drs. Chrys Rodrigue and Chris Lee have been leading two related Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Project summer research projects, one on mapping Charmlee Park in the western Santa Monica Mountains and another preparing IKONOS satellite imagery for analysis of road networks and structures in the Santa Monicas in the event of a wildfire needing evacuation. Their teams have included three student interns: Ms. Sally Lwin (Lakewood High School), Ms. Luz Mendez (Cerritos College), and Ms. Barbara Talalemotu (El Camino College), with Ms. Dalina Thrift- Viveros (Millikan High School). Also involved were the following faculty: Dr. Tere Ramírez (Geological Sciences, CSULB), Dr. Stephen Koletty (El Camino College), Dr. Chris Carter (Long Beach City College), Ms. Elizabeth Fessler and Ms. Linda Sanders (Lakewood High School) and Mr. Myles Lovall (Lakewood High School), with Mr. Woody Williams (Millikan High School). Also part of the GDEP team were graduate students Messrs. Aziz Bakkoury and Brian Sims. Three posters related to these two projects were presented at an on-campus GDEP research symposium.
The GDEP Charmlee Project was the subject of a newspaper article in the Malibu Surfside News. You can read it by clicking here.
Dr. James Curtis has just been invited to serve in February 2004 as a distinguished visiting scholar in the Iowa State Center for Excellence in Arts and Humanities, in response to his novel, Shangó, a mystery story set in the context of Afro-Caribbean religious expression in South Florida urban landscapes. The Center's programming gathers artists, creative writers, and scholars who address in their work the question of our place in the world. Dr. Curtis has been invited to address the issue of what it means to live and work and write and create with a deep sense of place and how this affects the world around us. Another theme is exploring the rôle that the arts and humanities can play in understanding sustainability issues and what "nature" means to artists, historians, philosophers, scientists, and fiction writers. Dr. Curtis will be joining a lineup of prominent artists and scholars that includes Annie Proulx, another fiction writer; Ned Kuhn, an environmental sculptor; Lucy Lippard, artist and critic; John W. Roberts, African-American folklorist; Winona LaDuke, activist and writer; Osha Gray Davidson, non-fiction writer; and Scott Slovic, writer and critic. Congratulations!
Dr. Chrys Rodrigue attended the invitation-only 28th Annual Natural Hazards Research and Applications Workshop in Boulder, CO, from July 12th through the 16th. She presented "GDEP (Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Project): Hazards-Related Projects," representing the GDEP team in the international hazards community. She also moderated the "first-timers" orientation on behalf of the conference organizers.
Dr. Frank Gossette and graduate student, Mr. Brian Sims, were down at the ESRI International User Conference, representing CSULB and renewing our ties with GIS practitioners trained at CSULB. Mr. Sims gave a paper, "Centralizing Corporate Assets with GPS Technology at Southern California Edison." Way to go!
Dr. Unna Lassiter has been appointed the Places OnLine coördinator for Europe by the Association of American Geographers. Places OnLine is a project sponsored by the AAG to provide access to the very best sources of web-based information about various places in the world. Check this out! http://www.placesonline.org/. Thanks, Unna!
The Department is very pleased to announce the students who have earned Departmental and College honors.
Eileen Johansen Scholarship
- The Johansen Award honors the memory of Eileen Johansen, an alumna of our department who had been a returning student and the department's first GIS intern, who was killed in a boating accident. The scholarship was endowed by her family and friends in the geography and GIS communities to encourage the aspirations and honor the achievements of other students like her.
- Ms. Leeta Latham
Rodney Steiner Fellowship
- The Steiner Award honors the memory of Dr. Rodney Steiner, a faculty member and chair of our department and a scholar and editor of the Yearbook of the Association of Pacific Coast Geographers. The award recognizes excellence in academic achievement and requires that the recipient work for the department but specifically not in the LA4-207 lab!
- Ms. Nadine Gano
Burton Anderson Scholarships
- The Anderson Scholarships honor the memory of Dr. Burton Anderson, a faculty member in our department from 1958 to 1979.
- Ms. Doreen Jeffrey
- Ms. Leslie Edwards
Best Thesis
- The Department nominates the best of the theses completed in the previous academic year for recognition by the College of Liberal Arts.
- Ms. Angela Cangelosi, for her thesis, "Development and Change in Oil Company Road Maps Produced by General Drafting Company, 1925-1980"
Outstanding Graduate
- The Department also recognizes one of the graduating seniors as the Outstanding Graduate.
- Mr. John Wynhoff
Certificates of Academic Merit
- The Department calls out for special honor those undergraduate students who have maintained very high GPAs.
- Ms. Bryna Dambrowski
- Mr. Hugh Dittrich
- Ms. Nadine Gano
- Mr. Andrew Huston
- Mr. Christopher Johnson
Distinguished Students of the College of Liberal Arts
- The Department is proud that several of its students have received recognition as distinguished students for outstanding achievement throughout their academic careers by the College of Liberal Arts, to which the Department belongs.
- Ms. Bryna Dambrowski
- Ms. Leslie Edwards
- Ms, Kayla Folkins
- Ms. Doreen Jeffrey
- Ms, Leeta Latham
- Ms, Joy Turlo
- Mr. John Wynhoff
Ms. Sandra Gonzalez, Project Management Officer, Administration and Planning Bureau, Department of Public Works, City of Long Beach was part of a team which spoke in Dr. Rodrigue's Hazards class this May. She graciously agreed to lead a tour of the brand-new Long Beach Emergency Communications and Operations Center at Spring St. and Redondo Ave. for the class before the facility opens in September, and Mr. James Woods organized the Geography Department's visit. The tour was led by Ms. Gonzalez and Mr. Steve Mutch Project Manager with Simplus Management Corporation (which handled construction management for the building project) held on Thursday, June 4th, and in attendance were Ms. Doreen Jeffrey, Ms. Nadine Gano, Ms. Joy Turlo, Mr. Mark Jackman, Ms. Karen Werstivk, and Ms. Leeta Latham, as well as Mr. James Woods, Drs. Chrys Rodrigue, Judith Tyner, and Gerald Tyner and Mr. Mike Deeble. The tour of this state-of-the-art building illustrated the principles and possibilities of hazard-resistant design. You can read Mr. Woods' full report on the tour by clicking here.
The Department held its annual Spring Awards Banquet Friday, 16 May, in the Golden Sails Restaurant on PCH. Fifty-eight revelers turned out for the party, including guests Dr. Frank Fata (Associate Dean, College of Liberal Arts, sporting a Geography polo shirt), Dr. Jean Wheeler (Professor Emerita), Ms. Anne Pollock (the very first secretary of the Department!), Ms. Phyllis Steiner (widow of faculty member, Dr. Rodney Steiner, who endowed the Steiner Scholarship), Ms. Nancy Yoho (alumna of the Department, who now works at Thomas Brothers) and her husband, Mr. Steven Yoho. Students earning the Steiner Award, the two Anderson Scholarships, and the Johansen Scholarship were announced as were those receiving certificates of merit from the Department and awards from the College of Liberal Arts. Dr. Edward Karabenick's retirement was noted with speeches by Drs. Wheeler and Tyner, culminating in gifts of a gorgeous atlas and enough Chartroom "funny money" to ensure Dr. Karabenick a welcome spot at his favorite restaurant on campus for a long time to come! Dr. Rodrigue discussed the research of Drs. Del Casino and Lassiter and the impact of Dr. Lee's grant work on student lives: She had put them forward for recognition by the College of Liberal Arts. She also reviewed other faculty activities and achievements. She then turned over the floor to Dr. Del Casino, who presented a "faculty roast," particularly turning Drs. Sidorov, Laris, "Obi-Wan" Splansky, and Lee quite a golden brown!
The Palos Verdes Peninsula Conservancy has research opportunities available to help in its habitat restoration projects (damaged and degraded lands, control of non-native plants, local seed collection and propagation, and long-term monitoring studies). The Conservancy is interested in making its lands available to those studying various geoscience and bioscience topics. This might be a great opportunity for graduate students looking for possible thesis projects or faculty interested in developing a local field research site. To learn more, please contact Andrea Vono at (310) 541-7613 or avona@pvplc.org. There's a flyer on our bulletin board, too.
- Ms. Samantha Antcliffe presented "Native Plant Recovery of a Riparian Habitat within the Tijuana Estuary."
- Ms. Lisa Pitts gave a talk entitled, "GIS in High School."
- Mr. Brian Sims spoke about "Accuracy Assessment of Viewshed Predictions in a GIS with High Spatial Resolution Digital Surface Models."
- Ms. Janet Troeger presented her work on "Monitoring Phenological Variability Using MODIS Imagery in the Mojave Desert, California."
The work of Dr. Rodrigue and her collaborator, Dr. Eugenie Rovai (Chair of Geography and Planning at CSU Chico) on the Northridge earthquake is discussed in Keith Smith's Environmental Hazards: Assessing Risk and Reducing Disaster, 3rd ed. (London and New York: Routledge, 2001).
Mr. Robert Gonick (CSULB Geography B.A., Spring 2001) is now Director of Education at National Institute of Technology in Long Beach, and he would like to find some geography students to serve as tutors to help applicants pass NIT's entrance exam. You can learn more by clicking here.
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