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PHOTO BANNER: Oblique view of UConn campus near my office looking northeast over the old Wilbur Cross Library, the congregational church steeple, a drumlinoid called Horsebarn Hill, and the Paleozoic metamorphic highlands. Mugshot of me by Lucy Napathanchil of WNPR. Sunrise over Lake Plantagenet, Hubbard County, Minnesota, where my parents still live. Lake Chocorua, New Hampshire, arguably the finest kettle in the state, appreciated primarily for the way it reflects the mountains. All photos on this website are by Robert M. Thorson, unless otherwise specified.

Welcome

I'm a "Professor of Geology" with a joint appointment between the Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology and the Department of Anthropology, both within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. My teaching responsibities are in the Honors Program and the Center for Integrated Geosciences. My scholarship involves:

  • Teaching and Research, ranging from introductory courses in science literacy to graduate seminars in archaeological geology. My research involves surficial geology (a blend of geomorphology, sedimentology and stratigraphy) with an emphasis on the world's two most dominant landscape agents, ice sheets and human beings.
  • Cultural Geology refers to the to the largely unrecognized connection between geology and American culture, especially during the 19th century. This scholarly realm overlaps with American Studies and Environmental Studies, straddling the rift between the natural sciences and the humanities identified by author C.P. Snow.
  • Journalism. Scientists who are funded by the public have a professional obligation to participate in public policy. This is especially true for Earth science, a subject that has long been sadly demoted in American secondary education. Given the the messiness of politics, the tedium of meetings, and the emotional volatility of opinion writing, I prefer to fulfill my public obligation by writing.

If you're...

  • Wondering "where's the beef?" academically speaking, link to my Curriculum Vitae.
  • Needing an introduction for an upcoming presentation, link to a press-release style Biographical Sketch.
  • Feeling philosophical about the teacher-student relationship, link to "The Child is Father to the Man."
  • Searching for information about New England's historic stone walls, link to the Stone Wall Initiative.
  • Curious about "fossil icebergs," by which I mean kettle lakes and ponds, link to the homepage of my recent book Beyond Walden .
  • Eager to know what university committees I now serve on, link to Committees.

Professionally, I'm an active member of American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Geophysical Union, the Geological Society of America, The North American Lake Management Society, the Thoreau Society, and the Connecticut Academy of Arts and Science.