Author Archives: mwilson

About mwilson

Mark Wilson is an emeritus Professor of Geology at The College of Wooster. He specializes in invertebrate paleontology, carbonate sedimentology, and stratigraphy. He also is an expert on pseudoscience, especially creationism.

Death Valley Day

mwilson March 7, 2010 12:41 am

ZZYZX, CALIFORNIA–Today the Wooster Geology Mojave Desert field trip team visited the southern half of Death Valley National Park.  We left Zzyzx (love that name) early in the morning and drove straight north to the Furnace Creek Visitor Center.  After … Continue reading →

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Scarlet and Gray in Southern Nevada

mwilson March 6, 2010 11:33 am

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA–After our long flight we drove our three vans a few miles west of Las Vegas to visit the spectacular Red Rocks National Conservation Area.  Greg Wiles and I were astonished to see how much construction had taken … Continue reading →

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Wooster Geologists in the Air!

mwilson March 6, 2010 10:23 am

CLEVELAND TO LAS VEGAS–The Wooster Geology Department has started a week-long Spring Break field trip to the Mojave Desert of southern Nevada and California.  Our Desert Geology course has been so far eight weeks of preparation for this expedition, which … Continue reading →

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Wooster Geologists at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History

mwilson February 21, 2010 12:31 pm

CLEVELAND, OHIO–Yesterday the Wooster Geology Club, under the able direction of Dr. Meagen Pollock, visited the Cleveland Museum of Natural History for a behind-the-scenes geological (and, it turned out, biological) tour. The weather was fantastic for the drive north as … Continue reading →

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Paleoenvironmental analysis of the Silurian Jaani Formation on the island of Saaremaa, Estonia (Senior Independent Study Thesis by Rob McConnell)

mwilson February 18, 2010 4:35 pm

Editor’s note: Senior Independent Study (I.S.) is a year-long program at The College of Wooster in which each student completes a research project and thesis with a faculty mentor.  We particularly enjoy I.S. in the Geology Department because there are … Continue reading →

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Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction of the Late Silurian (Pridoli) Äigu Beds of Saaremaa Island, Estonia (Senior Independent Study Thesis by Palmer Shonk)

mwilson February 15, 2010 8:56 pm

Editor’s note: Senior Independent Study (I.S.) is a year-long program at The College of Wooster in which each student completes a research project and thesis with a faculty mentor.  We particularly enjoy I.S. in the Geology Department because there are … Continue reading →

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Wooster Geologists Speak on the 2010 Haiti Earthquake

mwilson February 11, 2010 10:31 pm

WOOSTER, OHIO–The Wooster Geology Department faculty spoke today to the campus about the geological framework of the cataclysmic January 2010 earthquake near Port-au-Prince, Haiti.  Greg Wiles started with an overview of plate tectonic theory and how the dynamic Earth makes … Continue reading →

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A Wooster Geologist on the 2012 Doomsday Phenomenon: Pseudoscience, Baseless Fears, and the Mysterious Planet Nibiru

mwilson January 31, 2010 8:59 pm

WOOSTER, OHIO–Last week I gave a talk about the coming End of Time scheduled for December 21, 2012.  You may have heard that the Mayan Long Count Calendar ends on the day before the 2012 winter solstice, and that all … Continue reading →

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The joy of thin-sections

mwilson December 30, 2009 8:19 pm

WOOSTER, OHIO–Bitterly cold Ohio days are perfect for geological lab work, especially with thin-sections under a warm microscope accompanied by a music-filled iPod. The next best thing to fieldwork. A thin-section is a slice of polished rock glued to a … Continue reading →

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Wooster Geologist in Ohio!

mwilson December 16, 2009 1:51 pm

CAESAR CREEK STATE PARK, OHIO–I’ve definitely extended my field season as far as possible.  (And what a season it has been.)  My last fieldwork at the end of this research leave was in Ohio, about three hours south of Wooster.  … Continue reading →

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