Category Archives: Geology

Finger pointing frustrations

Posted on April 3, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Originally posted on The Grumpy Geophysicist:
Well, the New York Times finally decided to dial in to the ongoing seismic mess in Oklahoma. And while the coverage highlights the potential conflicts of interest and ability of the oil and gas…

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In Pursuit of Dead Squishy Things

Posted on March 25, 2015 by Ron Miksha

If you spend a little time at your favourite dinosaur museum, you are sure to hear parents explain to their child that the T-rex about to swallow the kid’s head is just a bunch of dead bones. “Quit bawling, Johnny. … Continue reading →

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Rare Earths in Rare Places

Posted on March 21, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Some of our favourite toys – including cells phones and computers – function through the kind benevolence of the People’s Republic of China. OK, it’s a business deal with the Communists, it’s not benevolence. China has a near monopoly on … Continue reading →

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Yummy. Buffon’s Pi.

Posted on March 14, 2015 by Ron Miksha

As I write this, pi day is happening. On our local (Mountain Savings Time) clocks, it will soon be 3.14.15 (month-day-year) then 9:26:53. We use the American month-day-year for this event (rather than day-month-year as the rest of the world … Continue reading →

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Creationism and the Grand Conjectural Canyon

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Originally posted on Age of Rocks:
“The writing on the wall” It was a Friday afternoon like any other. Katrina pulled into the driveway promptly at 4:30 PM upon returning from her weekly exercise class and a much needed shopping run. For…

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The Painfully Seated Camel

Posted on March 7, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Camels often sit down mighty painfully. Perhaps their joints creak. Perhaps early oiling might prevent permanently hazardous aging. Or perhaps these sentences are just simple mnemonics and we are trying to remember the names of the geological periods.  Here they … Continue reading →

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The Eternal Fires of Coal

Posted on February 20, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Long after America’s rust belt buildings have eroded to grass-lands, it’s possible that a sign of her once great industrial power will linger. Coal bed fires, it seems, are nearly impossible to extinguish – and there are many underground fires … Continue reading →

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Geology President’s Day

Posted on February 16, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Americans get a day off today. It’s an occasion to remember the American presidents, especially Abraham Lincoln and George Washington, two of the February-birthday presidents. (The other two were William Harrison and Ronald Reagan.) On this day, Washington, Lincoln, and … Continue reading →

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World’s Biggest Fracking Quake?

Posted on February 8, 2015 by Ron Miksha

“Did Alberta Just Break a Fracking Earthquake World Record?” This is the headline in The Tyee, an online independent magazine focused on western Canada, and it seems the paper thinks so. The Tyee’s coverage of a big fracking earthquake in … Continue reading →

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The Geoscientists’ Blind Spot

Posted on February 7, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Originally posted on The Grumpy Geophysicist:
One advantage of looking back at the history of earth science is to recognize patterns that suggest certain biases. Consider, for instance, continental drift.  Now this is often portrayed as Wegener right, others stupid…

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