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Glacial Deposits
Volume 38
2009-2010

MORGAN PRAIRIE
August, when photographer/author Ellen Dietz toured the prairie restoration site
of Bill Morgan in 2009, is a good time to see some showy flowering plants. Prairie
grasses tend to flower in the fall, grasses like Indian grass and little bluestem. The
yellow flowers in all three images are partridge pea, which is widespread and fairly
common across Illinois. An annual, partridge pea does well in disturbed areas—
such as a restored prairie. Weeds, like foxtail millet (drooping heads) and
smartweed (pink flower), populate the nascent prairie, a common occurrence
when restoration involves cultivation. See pages 10­13 for Ellen’s article.

GLACIAL DEPOSITS
Volume 38
2009-2010
Department of Geography-Geology
Illinois State University
Campus Box 4400
Normal IL 61790-4400
Homepage: www.geo.ilstu.edu
Editor
Michael D. Sublett
Graphics
Jill Freund Thomas
Associate Editor
David H. Malone
Cover: EarthScope features networks of sophisticated and carefully positioned seismic sensing devices
that report automatically and frequently to data collection points via satellite telemetry. Illinois is in the
path of an invasion by the brown dots, which represent positions, on a 75 kilometer grid, of the USArray.
Some of the rolling array’s traveling seismometers will reside in Illinois for two years, beginning in 2011.
The dot in Illinois underneath the name of the state is the location of HDIL, the broad band seismometer
near Hopedale that Skip Nelson championed and now monitors. It is part of a 350 kilometer grid and will
remain after the traveling array finally reaches the Atlantic and moves north to Alaska. For more
information on all aspects of EarthScope, which is a program of the National Science Foundation, see
www.earthscope.org. We thank EarthScope officials for allowing us to use the map and Press Technician
David Blair at Printing Services for assistance with the cover.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Morgan Prairie
From the Editor’s Desk
Christmas Catastrophe
Inside Front Cover
iii
iv
EarthScope: Unlocking Secrets/Robert S. Nelson 1
Building an Archive/Geoffrey J. Martin 3
Geography Interns: Class of 2009 6
A Gift to Earth/Ellen Dietz 10
A Good Spring for Geography Club 14
Route 66: Down through the Years/Anthony D’Anza 15
Dos Cartógrafos en Chile/Michael D. Sublett (Editor) 20
Midyear Commencement 31
Student Awards 32
First Majors and Graduate Students 33
Conference Presentations 36
Faculty and Staff Sketches 42
Familiar Faces 55
Yesteryears/Michael D. Sublett 56
Mementos of Chile
Inside Back Cover

FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK
N
owadays it happens all too often. I receive a request from the editor of a
newsletter, or even a journal, asking that I agree to access their publication
electronically and forgo the printed pages. They tell us they are hoping to reduce
printing and mailing costs, speed up delivery to the reader, or become more in tune with
the green times in which we live. Sometimes they want to send me a periodic email with
the publication attached. Others tell me I can go to their Website and find the newsletter
or whatever they may be relegating to the electronic world. I usually agree to such
offers, but I much prefer the printed predecessor to the modern marvel on my computer
screen. My tendency is to skim the electronic whereas I like to sit and ponder the
printed version. I have saved newsletter and journal runs for decades and wonder if
their electronic successors will be there for readers and researchers to consult into the
future. All of this prefatory prose brings me to Glacial Deposits. So far we are still going
forward with the print format as our primary means of dissemination, although we do put
an electronic version on the departmental Website. I appreciate the commitment of
departmental funds to print a couple hundred or so copies of the yearbook so I do not
have to join other editors in asking readers to look for it online or in their email inboxes.
Writing this column always signifies that we are approaching the end of a something I
consider worth doing. Authors who agreed months or a year ago have fulfilled their
promise to produce an article. Photographers have come through with images we can
use. Conversations with authors have enabled me to corroborate claims and to
eliminate here and enhance there, making the final text more readable (I hope). Dialog
with photographers has helped me prepare captions that will allow the photos to stand
as much on their own as possible. We have five solid articles for Volume 38 plus
several photo segments and the usual series of departmental accomplishments
(awards, presentations, sketches). “Yesteryears” is a short piece of prose that I enjoy
researching and composing each year. This time the computer jumped out as common
theme linking volumes from one, two, and three decades ago.
Of course, I have to thank a host of helpers, such as the five authors: colleagues Skip
Nelson, Jim Carter, and John Kostelnick; geographer Geoffrey Martin; and former
students Ellen Dietz and Anthony D’Anza. Bill Morgan agreed to the use of his poem
and to our traipsing around on his micro prairie. Others, including botanist Joseph
Armstrong, assisted by answering questions as I did my fact checking. Deb Lescher
prepared the text for press, and Jill Freund Thomas handled the graphics segments.
Dave Malone made the funds available so we could avoid the aforementioned
electronic replacement of the printed word. Photos, besides my own, came from Skip
Nelson, Geoffrey Martin, Bill Morgan, Ellen Dietz, Larry Haigh, Mark McCleary, Anthony
D’Anza, Andrew Nordstrom, Mark Lofrano, Dagmar Budikova, Jim Carter, and John
Kostelnick. We hope our readers find something of interest herein, and we are on the
lookout for new material to fill the next volume. MDS
iii

CHRISTMAS CATASTROPHE
Christmas 2009 was a white one
for those staying local, but it
produced a campus tragedy. An
artificial stone façade column at
the northeast corner of Hovey Hall
separated from the I‐beam that
actually holds up the roof, and
part of it fell against the building.
Stark Excavating sent a crew out
on 25 December to remove the
leaning section of stone. While
operating an excavator, trying to
remove the fallen column, Stephen
D. White of Bloomington died
when the column slipped and
crushed him in the cab of his
machine. Here, a day later, a crew
was using another excavator to
remove the disabled rig.
On the same day that Stark
removed its damaged excavator,
other employees were strapping
the remaining seven columns in an
attempt to prevent further
separation of stone from steel on
the east side of the Hovey addition
that went up in 1967.
Later in the winter, a crew came
back to chisel the terrazzo‐like
material completely away from
one additional column and replace
the straps with metal plates, some
of which were visible that day.
Those plates and the two bare I‐
beams were still evident in the
summer of 2010.
iv

EARTHSCOPE: UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF
THE NORTH AMERICAN CONTINENT
By Robert S. Nelson
I
llinois State University is one of almost 100 schools participating in EarthScope. EarthScope
is the largest continental geology project ever funded by the National Science Foundation
(NSF), in partnership with the United States Geological Survey, and with the collaboration of
UNVACO Inc., Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (lRIS), Stanford University,
and NASA. Its goal is to explore the geologic structure and evolution of the North American
continent and understand the processes controlling earthquakes and volcanoes. EarthScope
will look into Earth and reveal the inner workings of the planet much like the Hubble Telescope
is revealing the early history of the universe.
EarthScope began in 2003 with a five-year (2003-2008) budget of about $200,000,000 from the
NSF Major Research Equipment and Facility Construction Account to construct four facilities
(the infrastructure for major research thrusts). (1) The San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth
(SAFOD) is an instrumented borehole through the San Andreas Fault, just north of Parkfield,
California. The tight seismometer and strain meter grids at Parkfield and SAFOD, make this part
of the San Andreas Fault the most instrumented fault segment on the planet. (2) The Advanced
National Seismic System consists of broad band seismometers located on a 350 kilometer grid.
I was contracted by the United States Geological Survey to locate an appropriate location for
one of these stations in 2005. Station HDIL was constructed in 2006 at Mackinaw River State
Fish and Wildlife Area about 20 miles west of the Illinois State campus. Seismic data from this
station go by satellite telemetry every 15 seconds to the United States Geological Survey
Albuquerque Seismological Laboratory. I remain the local contact for the station. (3) The Plate
Boundary Observatory consists of 875 ultrahigh resolution global positioning system stations.
Each station’s position is continuously determined and reported by satellite telemetry to
UNAVCO in Boulder, Colorado. Station HDIL is also part of the Plate Boundary Observatory.
Data since the station went on line in 2006 indicate that the station is moving south 60 o west at a
velocity of roughly 1.5 mm/y and is going down about 5.07 mm/y. The horizontal motion is
consistent with the general counterclockwise rotation of the North American Tectonic Plate.
There are two major hypotheses for the vertical motion: post-glacial isostatic adjustment or
collapse of the aquifer beneath the station as water is withdrawn in seeps and springs in the
valleys on either side of the station. (4) The USArray consists of 400 high quality broad band
seismometers deployed on a 75 kilometer grid. These were first deployed in California, Oregon,
and Washington along the coast in 2006 (the 100 th anniversary of the San Francisco
Earthquake). Each seismometer remains in place for about two years and then is moved to a
new location, just east in the grid. In this fashion the USArray is rolling across the United States.
The actual location for the USArray stations in Illinois will be determined this summer and
installed next year for the 200 th anniversary of the New Madrid Earthquakes. In 2014 the
USArray moves to Alaska for the 50 th anniversary of the 1964 Alaska Earthquake (the second
largest recorded earthquake).
In addition to the science, EarthScope has an education and outreach component. We obtained
a major Math and Science Partnership Grant from the U.S. Department of Education through
the Illinois State Board of Education to conduct Illinois EarthScope, a workshop for teachers. A
pilot two-week workshop was conducted for 18 teachers in late July and early August 2009 with
follow-up weekend sessions in November and January. In addition to hearing presentations by
Drs. Dunn, Malone, and Nelson and Mr. Shields and participating in field trips led by Drs.
2

Malone and Nelson, the teachers tried out many teaching activities that they could take back
into their classes.
Illinois EarthScope is one of only three EarthScope teacher workshops in the country. One of
other workshops is in California. The third is in Oregon but is for teachers from both Oregon and
Washington. I was an observer of one of the Saturday sessions of the Oregon-Washington
workshop. EarthScope workshops provide the teachers with the background to teach plate
tectonics, volcanoes, earthquakes, and tsunamis effectively. The EarthScope Education and
Outreach Office at Oregon State University provides abundant teaching materials, and each
teacher in one of the EarthScope workshops is included in a special email list-serve. Within two
hours of a major event (big or important) earthquake or volcanic eruption, EarthScope teachers
are provided a 10 to 12 slide PowerPoint presentation on the event that they can take right into
class. This is a teachable moment. The Illinois EarthScope teachers used the 2010 Haitian
Earthquake in their classes, and several teachers shared the presentation with other teachers in
their building.
We have selected teachers for the 2010 Illinois EarthScope Workshop. This workshop will
feature a three-day field trip to the St. François Mountains in eastern Missouri to see part of the
granite-rhyolite terrain that underlies the sedimentary rocks of Illinois and then across far
southern Illinois. Planned field trip stops include a production blast at the Anna (Illinois) Quarry
and looking at the mineralization associated with the Mississippi Embayment and the New
Madrid Seismic Zone.
Skip Nelson and Department Chair David Malone ran a field trip for the 2009
EarthScope Workshop that included a stop (here) at Castle Rock State Park,
south of Oregon, Illinois, on the right bank of the Rock River. Dr. Malone was
speaking to them about the St. Peter Sandstone and why it is so strong.
2

BUILDING AN ARCHIVE WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE
TO THE LETTERS OF GEOGRAPHERS
3
By Geoffrey J. Martin
F
rom an earlier time, the writer wished to learn how American geographical institutions
developed, what had been the mechanisms of growth, and at what point and under what
circumstance had the whole evolved into a discipline poised on the threshold of
geographical science. Unfortunately, we did not have available a history of American
geography. Your author wished to help change this state of affairs and decided to make a study
of William Morris Davis, a most remarkable physical geographer. It was Davis who, in the
1880s, conceptualized the origin of the discipline with his scheme of the cycle of erosion
embracing the stages: youth, maturity, and old age. Under his tutelage there emerged a stream
of what might be called human geographers. Davis, by the way, referred to human geography
as ontography.
So the plan constructed was to make studies of three of Davis’s finest students, Mark Jefferson,
Ellsworth Huntington, and Isaiah Bowman. Jefferson specialized in the study of anthropography
(the distribution of population); Huntington initially specialized in the effect of climate on human
behavior (physiological climatology); and Bowman specialized on the individuality of regions
(regional geography). These were the three fundamental designs for study deriving from the
Davisian urging for some of his students to develop a human geography. This author published
the resultant three books concerning the contributions of Jefferson, Huntington, and Bowman
consecutively in 1968, 1973, and 1980.
Each of these books was the product of reading publications of the particular author, and
additionally their correspondence. In days now gone by, letter writing was a very important part
of both academic and intellectual life. And usually it is in the correspondence that the life and
thought of the scholar will stand revealed. There embryonic thoughts and feelings, frequently
never to be published, may be shared with another, especially if the letter writers exchanged
correspondence throughout a lifetime. Two of the best examples of this extended
correspondence are Mark S. W. Jefferson-Isaiah Bowman, 1901-1949, and Richard E. Dodge-
Albert P. Brigham, 1892-1932; each of these exchanges produced more than two hundred
letters. And so one goes in quest of correspondence; such deposits may be found in a library, a
geographical society, a nationally known repository, or a private holding. Warning: Be sure to
correspond with the archivist in advance to learn of particular details, because in some
instances it is required that the seeker have permission from next of kin. And in other instances,
there might be a period of closure concerning the holding or part thereof, which is quite
frequently 25 or 50 years after a death.
The quest for, and examination of, these holdings in far-flung deposits is an integral part of the
undertaking. Accomplishment is hard won, and can otherwise be costly in time and money. Yet
this is where the data reside. This pursuit is both footing and foundation of our field of learning.
It is here where the untold history of our field resides. And study of the archives may have
practical applications. For example, some archivists were employed in the Enigma Project of
World War II; others who have studied archival matters in geography have functioned as
witnesses in a courtroom (e. g., Bowman in the Red River case) and yet others have parsed
disputation of boundary squabbles by exploiting archival data, e. g., Lawrence Martin. And, as
Archivist for the Association of American Geographers since 1986, I have received some 230
inquiries concerning a variety of matters relating to the past, approximately 70 percent of which

have been answered from archival sources. Of much interest are extended statements from
persons such as Mabel H. Ward (Isaiah Bowman’s secretary for 13 years). She wrote, “In the
thirteen years that I worked for [Isaiah Bowman] my accumulated notebooks filled the space of
one deep shelf in my closet. I enjoyed taking down and transcribing the occasional long letters
he wrote to professional correspondents” (statement of 4,000 words, Mabel H. Ward-G. J.
Martin, December 27, 1973). Details followed in her statement about his visitors, and about her
role first as Stefansson’s secretary, then Ogilvie’s secretary, and finally Bowman’s secretary, the
sort of detail that with the passing of the person in question becomes priceless documentation.
In the last 51 years, the author traveled to more than a dozen countries and visited 135 archival
deposits, each archive ranging in size from a few dozen to many thousands of pages. Most of
these letters were handwritten; hence copies of them were not maintained by the authors.
Typewritten letters became more popular from the teens though abundant handwritten
correspondence continued to the 1940s and 1950s. To view these letters, one needs to travel
usually to their place of destination. Since (in the period 1870-1960 on which my current
research focuses) most of these letters were sent to Great Britain, Germany, France, Sweden,
and many destinations throughout the United States, that is where one must visit to read and
assay the letters. And since a postal system was not a reality in the United States until 1847,
exchange of letters nationally and internationally was a clumsy and lengthy matter prior to that
time. With development of postal systems came letter writing and the transport and sharing of
scientific thought. A word concerning privately held collections is necessary. One cannot
anticipate circumstances. Your author located the diary of the deceased Mark Jefferson—one
page at a time—under a large coal heap in the basement of Jefferson’s house in Ypsilanti,
Michigan. Some sheets of the diary were located in his barn. Your author put these together and
otherwise edited the diary (some pages have been permanently lost) and published it with
Edwards Brothers, Ann Arbor, Michigan. Jefferson was the chief cartographer for the American
Commission to Negotiate Peace at Paris, 1918-1919. Now, a copy of this diary resides in the
National Archives, Washington, D.C.; and scholars from various disciplines exploit its content.
Other private holdings may be restricted in whole or part.
Once correspondence is acquired, a collection begins. Keep it dry, preferably out of sunlight,
and in an order suited to your mentality. Then a study site, a powerful magnifying glass, the
ability to read erratic abbreviations and difficult handwriting (and writing north-south and eastwest
on the same page!), and the ability to read French and German (especially script that
Germans today are unable to read, as script was invariably used prior to about 1900) are all
valuable assets in the quest for comprehension. Incidentally, you will not be able to find these
letters via computer, though you may be able to secure data about authors, and possibly
“Finders Guides” to some collections. However, beware of error if you are going to use the
machine. People working in the history of geographical thought sometimes copy data from the
computer; and matters including names of persons, dates, and titles of articles may be incorrect.
This collection of incorrectness may then be transferred into publications, whereby the whole
metastasizes and the mistake may become the norm. One final matter concerns the dimensions
of collecting. My holding includes roughly 51,000 sheets, by what is conservative count, all
stored in my dwelling. This collection of papers consumes a very large amount of space.
Several filing cabinets have been filled, and book cases hold many photocopy sheets in threering
binders. All holdings need to be named and numbered, and identified as to source. In my
case, some 20-22 percent is the product of my own correspondence.
Yet it must always be remembered that quantity is not the index of archival worth. Photographs
(identifications carefully added to the back of same are vital) are also a vital part of such a
collection; in this genre the history of geography is quite weak. One might write letters to the
4

contemporaries of the key figure, the society, department, or the philosophy studied. Such
persons may include fellow geographers or other disciplinarians, previous students, relatives,
etc. My richest haul of such letters came from geographers and those interested in matters
geographic born in earlier years from 1880 to 1910 and included, for example, Ruth Baugh, S.
C. Gilfillan, Owen Lattimore, John Leighly, Raye R. Platt, Carl O. Sauer, J. Russell Smith,
Vilhjalmur Stefansson, T. Griffith Taylor, E. Van Cleef and John K. Wright. From the United
Kingdom valuable correspondents included R. P. Beckinsale, W. Gordon East, and Arnold J.
Toynbee; from Australia correspondents included Marcel Aurousseau and Oskar Spate, and
there were many dozens more. And here one must make reference to Maynard Weston Dow’s
Geographers on Film, the equivalent of “talking letters”—which includes some 550 films
featuring interviews with individual geographers, the filming of panels, papers at national
meetings, and AAG presidential addresses.
One builds a collection and in so doing one cannot avoid learning multitudinous details and the
genesis of large, sweeping thought contributory to evolution of the field. Whenever possible one
copies (by machine) significant correspondence; in the late 1950s frequently machine copying
was not available, and so one copied by hand. Today photocopying is provided by assistants of
the curator, though some holdings permit the use of cameras to accomplish the same ends. In
any case one needs to have studied the given task as much as possible from secondary
sources, or else once inside a large archival holding one will not be able to select thoughtfully
sheets that the investigator desires to have copied. Finally, one needs to do something
constructive with the archival materials accumulated. In my case, the current task is to complete
the writing of a history of United States geography, circa 1870-1960.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Geoffrey Martin presented the Distinguished Geographer Lecture at Illinois
State University in the spring of 2009. A native of England, he is Professor Emeritus of
Geography at Southern Connecticut State University and lives in Woodbridge, Connecticut.
Geoffrey Martin likes to immerse himself in his work. To
some, his home might seem cluttered. To him, there is only a
modicum of disorder in his archival treasury.
5

GEOGRAPHY INTERNS: CLASS OF 2009
Mark Lofrano (left) and
Andrew Nordstrom were
our fourth and fifth
interns to serve as
environmental educators
at Wild Bear Center for
Nature Discovery, in
Nederland, Colorado.
Wild Bear, having
reached the five‐intern
plateau, received a
certificate of appreciation
in 2009 from the
Department for
longstanding cooperation
with our internship
program.
The City of Rock Island,
Illinois, takes its
facilities seriously.
Intern Alex Hutchins
(left) helped supervisor
Randy Tweet and the
rest of Public Works
keep track of signs and
such, throughout the
summer of 2009, with
GPS and GIS
technology.
6

Libby Townley (center) was
Geography’s third summer
intern at the Greater Peoria
Sanitary District. District
Engineer Tim Leach (right)
has played an advisory role in
the experiences of all three
interns. Directly supervising
Libby’s GIS work was
Shubhada Savant (left).
Matt Kline (left)
found an excellent
internship only
five minutes by
vehicle from his
parental home, a
few miles south of
Joliet, at the Forest
Preserve District
of Will County.
Helping oversee
Matt’s GIS and GPS
duties was Sam
Hildebrand.
The National Atmospheric
Deposition Program, directed by
David Gay (right), gathers
information on precipitation
chemistry and operates out of the
facilities of the Illinois State Water
Survey, in Champaign. Intern Nate
Chott (left) spent his time there
manipulating huge data sets in a GIS
environment.
7

ADDITIONAL GEOGRAPHY INTERNS
McHenry County’s
conservation district is
one of a handful of such
entities in Illinois. Nick
Kirk (left) was our fifth
intern there, so his
supervisor, Perry
Weborg (right),
received our certificate
of appreciation in 2009
on behalf of the
District.
Schaumburg’s Spring
Valley Nature Center is a
logical internship site for
Chicagoland majors who
want to live at home and
work in environmental
education. Intern Sarah
Prociuk (center) spent her
summer mornings helping
Mary Rice (right) educate
children about nature and
her afternoons under the
direction of Kelly Schultz
(left) performing site
restoration and other
outdoor duties.
Micah Williamson (right)
interned in 2001 for his
Illinois State degree at
Tri‐County Regional
Planning in Peoria. Now
he is in a position as GIS
Director for Peoria County
to bring in interns, like his
first from Illinois State,
Sarah Semple (left). Sarah
worked much of the
summer updating
property boundaries in
the GIS files of tax parcels.
8

Our main contact for
internships in the area
around Barrington,
Illinois, is the
Barrington Area
Council of
Governments (BACOG).
Joy Hoeffler (right), the
GIS specialist for
BACOG, helped us place
intern Tom Pink (next
to Joy) with Greg
Summers (left) and the
Village of Barrington.
Between Greg and Tom
posed one of the
decorated horses that
participated of a fundraising
endeavor by the
local United Way.
State Farm Insurance goes
through a lot of three‐ring
binders at its Bloomington
headquarters and other local
sites. Intern Walter Allen, part of
State Farm’s environmental
program in the summer of 2009,
had an idea about making the
binders available for giveaways
to school kids, which would also
mean keeping the binders out of
the landfill.
Midewin National Tallgrass
Prairie, part of the U.S.
Forest Service, occupies
land once dedicated to the
manufacture of ordnance
for the U.S. Army, along old
Route 66, north of
Wilmington, Illinois. Intern
Zack Hudak performed
many outdoor duties over
the summer, but one of his
favorites was operating the
skid steer to move mulch,
gravel, and soil.
9

A GIFT TO EARTH
By Ellen Dietz
A
dickcissel watches. A green heron croinks. The wind carries the sound of tires on
pavement. We stand in a fledgling prairie emerging from an old farm field, bounded by
highway and windbreaks.
In this field are the hopes of Dr. Bill Morgan, who has begun the task of restoring a fallow
agricultural field to its original cover. In the spring of 2009, with the help of several friends, a
Bison seed drill, and a borrowed tractor, he set about turning the acreage back to its prairie
roots. The land has lain fallow for several years under the auspices of the federal CRP, or
Conservation Reserve Program, sporting timothy, brome, and fescue grasses. It had cover, yes,
but not native cover.
According to the Natural Resources Conservation Service website, “The Conservation Reserve
Program reduces soil erosion, protects the Nation's ability to produce food and fiber, reduces
sedimentation in streams and lakes, improves water quality, establishes wildlife habitat, and
enhances forest and wetland resources. It encourages farmers to convert highly erodible
cropland or other environmentally sensitive acreage to vegetative cover, such as tame or native
grasses, wildlife plantings, trees, filter strips, or riparian buffers.” In keeping with this program,
Morgan has maintained the grass waterways, wind blocks, and grass cover. But it was not
enough for him.
Morgan decided the best action was to plant a prairie on the property. It went into the ground as
seeds, taken from McLean County genotypes, or plants that have adapted to local conditions,
so they are suited to the local soil and climate with the resistance, immunities, and strengths
that will enable them to assimilate quickly into new prairie. He planted a plethora of forbs and
four indomitable grasses. Gathering their strength in the soil are these:
prairie dropseed, Indian grass, Canada wild rye, and little bluestem, and a wealth of
color to come in prairie blazing star, bundle flower, silky prairie clover, compass plant,
prairie coneflower, purple coneflower, golden alexander, stiff goldenrod, partridge pea,
prairie dock, rosin weed, black-eyed susan, sweet black-eyed susan, showy tick trefoil,
rattlesnake master, false sunflower, wild quinine, bee balm, foxglove, and cup plant.
Morgan’s seeds had already taken hold in the first few months. He was counseled to expect
weeds and not much else the first year. As expected, the foxtails and other weeds dominated
the property, but Indian grass and little bluestem were already flowering by the end of the first
summer, producing seeds of their own.
What is the point Morgan sees himself as a land steward, and merely following the CRP was
not enough. Better than timothy and fescue, native grasses put their roots deeply into the soil,
fixing nitrogen and creating soil wealth. He wanted to add to the diversity of plants on the
landscape, not merely be content with a slim variety of weeds. He wanted to see more wildlife,
support a greater variety of critters, and have the satisfaction that another little corner of the
Midwest was returned to its pre-agricultural state. All said, it really boiled down to ethics.
Morgan knows that little of the original prairie remains, and he wanted to be part of returning
what he could.
10

The prairie plot, itself, is inside the bounds of the larger property, separated from the
surrounding acreage by windbreaks, a pond, and roads. Morgan calls this acreage his “gift to
Earth.” It seems, though, that he is receiving the greater gift, as various creatures stop in to visit
on their migrations north and south, or build a nest to claim this land as home. Part of his intent
was to create wildlife habitat; he does not have to wait years to see this dream come to fruition,
as it is already acting as a refuge in a seasonal sea of corn and soybeans. Part of his intent in
planting this plot was to honor Earth in conjunction with the rules of the federal Conservation
Reserve Program; his part in planting native grasses and forbs trumps merely leaving the
ground untilled. Mostly, though, he wanted to see what would happen; he is already seeing the
results, as grasses take hold and shoot their seeds two feet high toward the light and wind the
very first summer, an unexpected marvel and testament to the strength of the soil and wisdom
of using local genotypes.
Already, he has seen quail and pheasant, bees, and meadowlarks. With the pond nearby, the
property gets a wealth of migratory species, including water birds such as gadwalls; northern
shovelers; and even a bittern, a rarity among these parts. The riparian zones favor muskrat,
beaver, and deer; and the pond is stocked with several different species of fish. He installed a
purple martin house, which hosted nearly 50 martins in 2009. He also installed a bluebird house
a young friend built, which has yet to attract residents; but they have high hopes for the next
nesting season. As the prairie grows stronger through the years, it will host an even wider
variety of wildlife, which is part of Morgan’s hopes for the property.
“To mow or not to mow” was the first year’s most pressing question. On the one hand, mowing
would keep the weeds at bay, giving the tender new shoots a chance to establish themselves
more quickly. On the other hand, the prairie grasses and forbs are strong, resilient plants,
capable of making it on their own. He decided to exercise patience, letting the prairie develop in
its own time, without the aid of mowers. This means that his work for year one was completed
with the act of seeding. Now the prairie is on its own, and he has the confidence that letting it
develop in its own way is the best course of action.
Morgan’s background is not ecology, or biology, or agriculture. He is a retired Illinois State
English professor, with a deep love of the land. He derives great enjoyment from connecting
with the land, as a fisherman, a bird watcher, or a philosopher, and now as the steward of his
own little prairie. His control of the property is not really control at all; once the seeds were
properly planted, the prairie assumed control, and he is content to surrender to the wisdom of
native plants.
Maintenance of the surrounding land helps the prairie by shielding harsh winds, providing cover
for the wildlife that will fertilize and pollinate it, and controlling water to prevent the still-delicate
soil from washing away. On the surrounding property he has planted a three-tiered windbreak of
deciduous trees, conifers, and shrubs, and maintained the grass waterways. All of this helps to
protect and nurture the prairie growing within its midst.
So what is next For Morgan, it is the peace of knowing that he has given something back to the
land; the contentment of leaving something of value to his heirs; and the enjoyment of watching
the seasons nurture, stress, and strengthen the prairie. It is a labor of love. It is a tangible prayer
for the future. It is an island of tranquility for his feathered and furred neighbors. It is the comfort
of doing the right thing. Whether it lasts five years or 50, it is the right thing now and for the
foreseeable future.
11

The mind’s eye sees the prairie in years to come: gently nodding rye, heavily seeded Indian
grass, and the spreading fingers of little bluestem, shooting up among the bright yellows of
compass plants, cup plants, stiff goldenrod, and black-eyed susans, tempered by the sweeter
yellow of partridge pea, the lavenders of blazing stars and showy tick trefoil, the white globes of
bundle flower, the pinks and purples of foxglove, the branching blooms of silky prairie clover, the
prickly balls of rattlesnake master, and the reds and purples of bee balm. The prairie will hum
with life, from the insects feeding on bud, leaf, and nectar, to the mice who scratch and run in
tunnels among the grasses and the coyotes who pounce upon the less vigilant ones. It will sing
with the trills of meadowlarks and the melodies of bluebirds and song sparrows. Pheasants will
wander the perimeters and red-winged blackbirds will bow the seed heads as they stake their
territorial claims. The winds will whip the prairie to a frenzy and cool rains will quench the
ground. The seasons will change, the prairie will grow, and Morgan will have the gift to Earth he
has so wanted.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Ellen Dietz has authored numerous items for Glacial Deposits. She works as
a grant writer for Project Oz in Bloomington and holds the master’s in Geography from Illinois
State. Ellen is an avid nature observer and photographer. See the inside front cover for some of
her photography.
Morgan Prairie came into existence at the end of May 2009, as Tim Bailey
(left) used a small Case IH tractor and a Truax seed drill to plant the
grasses and flowers. Truax Manufacturing features three charging bison
as its company logo, hence the Bison nickname for its products. Bill
Morgan is between tractor and drill. They borrowed the drill from the
Normal office of the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
12

Restoration
To make a prairie it takes a clover and one bee,
One clover, and a bee,
And revery.
The revery alone will do,
If bees are few.
--Emily Dickinson
These slick little seeds, black-browngrey
on my fingers, promise rattlesnake
master, coneflowers yellow and purple,
blue aster, compass plant, tick
trefoil, bundleflower, partridge
pea—some of the dozen native
forbs we’re mixing with green kelp meal
in a 5-gallon bucket. Another holds
fluffy grasses—little bluestem, wild rye,
prairie dropseed, indian—stirred into pinkish-
brown Azomite before we pour
both tubs into the bins of the Bison
seed drill harnessed behind the brightred,
borrowed tractor. The project
today is to press these antique names,
sturdy and eloquent, back into the narrative
of this ancient, glacial soil, whose tale
for a hundred years has been spoken in corn
and beans, in brome, timothy, fescue—
alien tongues of a vast, agricultural epic,
On planting day, Bill Morgan kept a
close eye on the process. Note the
plastic sleeves around young trees in
the background, sleeves that provide
some protection against animal browse.
one acre of which, about a sentenceworth,
we’re rewriting this afternoon:
our small gift of color, lyric voice
restored to the muffled, patient earth.
--Bill Morgan
EDITOR’S NOTE: Bill Morgan was a member of the Illinois State University English Department
from August of 1969 until his retirement in June of 2000. Although he taught a variety of
courses, he especially committed to the importance of poetry. His prairie came to our attention
when he sent us a poem about it. We reprint that poem above, with the poet’s permission.
13

A GOOD SPRING FOR GEOGRAPHY CLUB
Programmatic clubs fluctuate in membership and effectiveness as students (and sponsors) come and
go. Geography Club, under the sponsorship of Professor John Kostelnick and leadership of Co‐
Presidents Kevin Gorell and Mark McCleary, had a nice thing going in the spring of 2010. On 30 March
they cleaned up the club’s adopted park and later that day successfully defended the intramural
bowling title. Then on 16‐17 April, the club was out on the Quad to participate in Relay for Life.
Club members Ryan Weaver (left) and Mike
Johnson had their rubber gloves and garbage
bag ready to clean up Underwood Park in the
southern part of Normal on a warm spring
afternoon.
Larry Haigh hoisted the symbolic trophy (an
old bowling ball glued to a rock [not visible])
after Geography Club defeated Geology Club
and retained the prize. Larry was the chief
organizer of Geography Club’s Relay for Life
participation and received a departmental
letter of commendation for his outstanding
effort.
Relay for Life is a big campus event with
groups like Geography Club soliciting
donations and then spending the night huddled
for warmth and taking turns walking the Quad
circuit between six in the evening and six the
next morning. Prior to walking they posed for
this photo. From the left, were Larry Haigh,
Justin Padaoan, Joe Wojtas, Kevin Gorell, Ryan
Weaver, Mike Clementz, Christina Woloshyn,
Mark McCleary, Allen Cooksey, and Stephen
Holt.
14

ROUTE 66: DOWN THROUGH THE YEARS
By Anthony D’Anza
M
y first recollection of United States Highway (Route) 66 goes back to my college days
at Illinois State Normal; that is what they called it back ‘62. I traveled from Bellwood (a
Chicago suburb) to school several times every year of college, about 120 miles. There
were always important reference points as we drove along to let us know how far we
had gone and how long it would take to the next point, points like the Des Plaines River and
Coal City with its earth mounds shaped like Diamondhead in Hawaii. Route 66 would take us to
Joliet and then through towns such as Dwight, Odell, Pontiac, Chenoa, Lexington, Towanda,
and finally into Normal. Dwight had the Coffee House, which was about halfway to Normal or an
hour away. Odell had a gas station and a place where tires were fixed as an old German
shorthair dog watched. Pontiac had the prison and the Log Cabin Café, famous for pancakes.
Chenoa was the crossroads of 66 and Route 24, and had signs for Meramec Caverns in
Missouri. The endless rows of corn were prominent as you reached and saw the grain towers at
Lexington. Then Towanda always had state police hovering for speeders.
Sometimes we would drive down the even older version of Route 66, to see towns like Gardner,
Braidwood, Wilmington, and Godley. Many of these towns had some old buildings with ads and
signs along the way, like the Burma Shave signs. Gardner had the Riviera roadhouse.
Wilmington had the Launching Pad, a restaurant with a big tall Gemini Giant. Braidwood had the
Polka-a-Dot Drive In and statues of Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, and Betty Boop.
Route 66 had some old parts and newer parts, as the highway system was being transformed to
the Interstate System. In the 1950s, the Interstate system was promoted and authorized by
President Eisenhower. Much of the country became a crisscross of new highways to allow
better movement of goods from coast to coast and north to south.
I have made the trip west a half dozen times on Route 66 past St. Louis. Each time there were
side trips that we took. Sometimes the destination was for a purpose; sometimes it was for
adventure. In most cases, it was for the interest of the highway and what was along the way as
we traveled west. This reflective essay is about my long-running and affectionate affair with 66.
I will begin at the original starting point, Lou Mitchell’s restaurant in Chicago. At a recent
seminar at the Oak Park Library, I learned that many people started at this point, though
Buckingham Fountain is for some the traditional starting point as it is the farthest point east.
Dining at Lou Mitchell’s is still a quaint experience, with its 1950s styles dining area, not much
room, and greasy food.
Traveling south and west down Ogden Avenue you come to the Castle Car Wash. According to
brochure, it was built by Al Capone. It was just one of the many attractions along the route.
Down the road is Castle Buick where I bought my first Buick, a great vehicle for cruising the
Route.
In Countryside was the Wishing Well Motel, where many of the big bands would stay when they
came in town to play, usually at the Willowbrook Ballroom, on Archer Avenue, in Willow Springs.
Also in that area was the Chicken Basket, famous for its cuisine of chicken, fries, coleslaw, and
a drink since the 1930s.
15

On the way to Joliet, you would see the many signs for White Fence Farm. White Fence also
was a place for chicken, fries, vegetable, and a drink; but it was a little classier than the Chicken
Basket and had seating in different rooms. Around the grounds were a farm-like decor and
some animals for kids to pet or learn about through practical experience.
There were three major museums I visited along the Mother Road. Downtown Joliet had a good
museum with videos about most attractions along old Route 66. Right down the street was the
Rialto Theatre, which has been restored. Elk City, Oklahoma, had artifacts and many souvenirs
of Route 66 along with an old car and Native American craft work such as dolls and totem poles.
This museum claimed to be the Official Route 66 Museum and one of the biggest. The one in
Clinton, Oklahoma, was very good with souvenirs, pictures, refreshments, and lodging nearby.
Every stop had its own theme centered around Route 66 and nearby attractions. Just recently
built is the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum, which is a must see, along with Shea’s Gas
Station Museum, down old Route 66 in Springfield, Illinois.
Heading towards St. Louis, you came across little towns that now are obscure due to the new
interstates. One curious place was Henry’s Ra66it Ranch in Staunton, Illinois. Many truckers
and collection enthusiasts would see this Route 66 memorabilia stop. Just down the road was
Litchfield, where we would stop at a smorgasbord restaurant on our way to ballgames or
headed down south towards southern Illinois. Someone told me that it was called the Ariston
Café. I now pick up a business card every time I stop, just to remind me of the name.
Beyond Springfield, Missouri, there is Joplin, Missouri, a quaint little town along the Route 66
trail. Then, as you drive westward, you come to the border with Kansas. A stretch of road for 13
miles in the very southeast corner of Kansas is part of Route 66. The route is labeled by signs
on the pavement, which becomes very narrow. On this short stretch is a Texaco gas station that
is now an exhibition building for the segment of 66 in Kansas. Every year they hold a 13 mile
half marathon centered on this gas station and the border. There are a number of very old and
narrow bridges on this route.
As you leave Kansas, you come to Commerce, Oklahoma, the former home of Mickey Mantle,
the deceased but still famous outfielder of the New York Yankees. It is significant to me for I
love baseball and came across this town by accident. The route travels through Oklahoma and
winds around little towns that are now run-down and tattered because of the new routing down
the Will Rodgers Turnpike. The land is dry and has scattered oil pumps along the way with
cattle grazing the rugged land. However, one spot that stands out on the Turnpike is
Claremore, the home town of Will Rogers. It has a museum and the home of the philosopher
and political humorist. I always enjoyed his wit and humor. Into Oklahoma City, you will find the
memorial of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. It is not old Route 66, but is very impressive
attraction on the way west on Interstate 40. At one time, Oklahoma City was filled with oil
derricks, and hosts the Cowboy Hall of Fame.
Heading towards Texas is a long stretch of flat land with hardly any trees and occasional rivers
crossing the route. Route 40 parallels what was once Route 66. The city of Amarillo springs up
out of nowhere. The Big Texan is a steak house in Amarillo that has signs as you come in all
over the highway. If you can eat 72 ounces of steak in one hour, it is free. They put you up on a
stage with your own table, and others are watching you eat the steak. Many have tried, but
many have failed. Amarillo also has a lot of truck traffic and a multitude of motels with
interesting rates and attractions. Just out of Amarillo is the Cadillac Ranch, a field where old
Cadillacs stick half way in the ground on an abandoned farm. Travelers stop here and use spray
paint to mark their arrival by drawing or leaving messages on the cars. The time we stopped
16

there was a TV station reporter doing some kind of a special. The wind was really strong and
kept blowing the hair of the reporter, so they had to do several takes. There is always a smell of
spray paint in the air.
We stayed in New Mexico several times, usually at Santa Rosa or Tucumcari. Here the
landscape would change into buttes and mesas. It always gave me the feeling we were in the
Old West. I could imagine settlers traveling across the terrain trying to find a place to ford the
rivers and arroyos with their wagons. Near Thoreau, New Mexico, is the Continental Divide. It is
just a stop but interesting to know that water flows east and west from this point. At one time, it
was a tourist stop, but now the trinket stores and rest stop are just run down. Clines Corners is a
rest stop we always take for gas and refreshments because of its Native American crafts.
Gallup, New Mexico, has the El Rancho Hotel and restaurant, where most of the movie stars
stayed when making western movies in Monument Valley. The walls of the El Rancho are filled
with pictures signed by movie stars that have stayed there. Just north of Gallup is the Window
Rock, the center of the Navajo Nation and Canyon De Chelly National Monument. This was the
site of some ruins of the ancient Anasazi people. There were cliff dwellings and farmland in this
protected canyon.
Route 66 travels through Arizona following the railroad tracks of the old Santa Fe. It travels
through two National Parks, the Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest. Each has the beauty
and flavor of the wonders of nature. There were many stops that would try to attract the tourists.
One stop was Meteor City, mostly a trading post with souvenirs and petrified wood; but it also
featured a mural map on a fence that they touted as the longest map of Route 66. The
population was posted as 2. However, the woman that was tending the premises had an infant
child so this may have changed. This attraction was near the Meteor Crater, which was off the
road a few miles, with a ranger station and observation deck.
When you reach Flagstaff, Arizona, you getting close to Williams, the city that serves as the
southern entrance way to the Grand Canyon, a few miles to the north. I had a unique
experience on my first visit to the Grand Canyon. I was traveling with some friends and
colleagues through the West and was especially anxious to see the Grand Canyon for the first
time. We pulled into the camping area late at night with a plan to view the canyon at sunrise.
That night, we experienced a power failure in the camp area. When we awakened, it was so
dark we could not see our hands in front of our face. I crawled on my hands and knees to my
car where I turned on the headlights so that we could get dressed. It was foggy and cool. We
made it to the observation point with flashlights, but we were disappointed because the fog was
thick enough we thought it would block our view of the canyon. As the sun peeked over the
horizon, the rays of the sun lifted the fog like a curtain rising on a stage. Then we witnessed the
vast cavern of the Grand Canyon. I was so in awe that my mouth literally dropped open, and I
forgot to use my camera to capture the moment. The colors off of the rocks and the shades of
the light shinning down the canyon was like an enlightened experience that I never had seen.
The immense canyon was bigger than I ever thought it would be. That day I spent taking
pictures at different vantage points around the rim and tried to capture its beauty. The sunset
views were spectacular. Every time I return to the canyon, I am still impressed with its grandeur.
Farther west on 66 you come to Kingman, Arizona. Over the Chocolate Mountains from there is
a town called Oatman. Once only a gasoline stop, it has now become a tourist attraction for the
wild burros that wander into town at about noon each day. These burros were abandoned by the
miners and have survived through the years. Now in Oatman, bus loads of people come in to
feed the burros and send post cards from the tiny post office found there.
17

There are many stops through California, towns like Needles, Barstow, Victorville, San
Bernardino, and finally Santa Monica Beach. They all have changed with the increase of
population and the lifestyle that is now Los Angeles. The motels and the restaurants have
changed with the tastes of the people traveling to California.
Many of the attractions along the Mother Road are gone. There are, however, some that have
been maintained or have been added to the new highway. The ones that come to mind that are
gone are mostly in the western parts. Outposts such as Two Guns and Twin Arrows were gas
stops along the way. The Tee Pee Motel is gone and was an interesting attraction. Many
restaurants are gone due to the re-routing of the highway. The Road Kill Café in Seligman,
Arizona, and Oatman were fascinating places with character. Attractions like the Cadillac Ranch
have become a place where people can participate and leave messages.
Some old bridges are not in use because of disrepair and the fact they are too narrow for traffic.
There was a series of bridges that went over the Mississippi River that are gone. In New
Mexico, near Albuquerque, there is a bridge that you can go over but only cars. There is a
similar set of bridges through Kansas and Oklahoma that are very narrow.
The Painted Desert, Petrified Forest, and Meteor Crater were worth the stop. The geology and
beauty of these landforms never ceased to arouse my imagination of the history of this area.
Arroyos, streams, canyons and washes were always an interesting view along the way. I
remember going over the Pecos River in Texas and how it was sometimes was dry and
sometimes a trickle of water. When we were young, we always heard of being “west of the
Pecos” as truly being in the West. The Rio Grande running through New Mexico at
Albuquerque was also an awesome sight. Also, we always saw some critters along the way like
armadillos, roadrunners, dead cattle, coyotes, burros, javalinas, hawks, and (of course) horses.
When I drive west to Arizona, Nevada, or California, you can be sure I will find some new place
to visit along the old and new highways. Like Bobby Troup’s song says, “Get Your Kicks on
Route 66.”
EDITOR’S NOTE: Tony D’Anza earned his bachelor’s (Geography, 1967) and master’s
(Physical Education, 1976) from Illinois State and a second master’s (Health and Safety, 1979)
from Indiana State. He taught in Melrose Park, Bellwood, and Oak Lawn prior to retirement. He
lives in Palos Hills, Illinois.
18

There is just something about sideby‐side
Arabic sixes to get the roadtrip
juices flowing for folks foreign
and domestic. Tony D’Anza provided
these images from his many trips on
the Mother Road. Yes, 66 is just a
number; but it has certain magnetism
to it.
Heading southwest from Chicago, you
can still stop in Braidwood at the
Polk‐a‐Dot Drive In, which began life
in the years after World War II as an
old school bus.
Kansas almost missed getting in on the
Route 66 phenomenon, but there are a
few miles in the Sunflower State.
Markers painted right on the pavement
confirm the fact that 66 did not go
directly from Missouri to Oklahoma.
West of Oklahoma City, Elk City
has this large and leaning sign
to lure in the traveler following
Interstate 40 or old 66.
19

DOS CARTÓGRAFOS EN CHILE
20
Edited by Michael D. Sublett
T
ake two cartographers from Illinois State heading to Chile for the biennial International
Cartographic Association Conference, ask them to log their daily adventures, obtain from
them the expanded versions of their logbook entries, do some minor editing, and put it all
together in an item suitable for family audiences in Glacial Deposits. Professor of
Geography Emeritus Jim Carter and Assistant Professor of Geography John Kostelnick were
heading southward, way southward, just before Thanksgiving 2009. Jim was leaving early to
take advantage of a preconference field trip to the southern tip of South America. Then they
planned to room together in Santiago during the conference and afterward link up with a contact
that Jim had from previous visits to Chile and travel by car northward several hundred miles
from the convention site, to learn more about the country, the countryside, and its people. What
follows are excerpts, largely in their own words, from the logbooks of two cartographers in Chile
(dos cartógrafos en Chile).
Jim Carter: Wednesday, 11 November—I have been to Chile five times and in the process
have developed some friends there. I have attended eleven International Cartographic
Conferences, chaired the Map Use Commission for two terms, and once headed the U.S.
Delegation to the International Cartographic Association. I took the preconference tour to
Patagonia. In 24 hours I went from Bloomington to Atlanta to Punta Arenas, across the channel
from Tierra del Fuego, at 53 degrees south.
Jim: Thursday, 12 November—Then I had a 3-hour bus trip to Puerto Natales for a three-night
stay. The first night in Puerto Natales I attended a Rotary Club meeting, which started at 9:30
p.m. and went until after midnight. It is an all-male club of 12 members in their own small
building.
Jim: Friday, 13 November—Our tour took a boat trip along a fjord to see glaciers and sheep
ranches accessible only by boat. I bought a great map of the Patagonia area, which I used
frequently the next two days. I walked into Puerto Natales that evening and got some good
photos of the sun setting and reflecting off distant mountains.
Jim: Saturday, 14 November—The next day I joined an internationally diverse group to take a
bus trip to the Torres del Paine National Park. In and around the park we saw hundreds of
guanacos—similar to llamas. We once had to swerve to avoid hitting two as they ran across the
road. We also visited the cave of the milodon—a large Pleistocene sloth found only in the
Patagonia area.
John Kostelnick: Saturday—My flight from Bloomington to Atlanta went well. As always, I sat
by the window, looking at the landscape as we traveled, trying to figure out which river that is, or
what urban area we might be flying over. The layover in Atlanta was five hours, enough time for
a long walk around the terminal, time to eat, and then time to work on my laptop computer. Our
flight to Santiago boarded at about 8:30 p.m. or so, with takeoff at 9:15. The flight lasted about
nine hours. As far as I could tell by making use of the map displayed in the main cabin, the flight
followed the western coast of Florida, across Cuba and Central America, then hugged the
western coast of South America before veering towards Santiago in central Chile. The night was
very clear, which made it easy to see the lights of the urban areas. As we traveled over Florida,
it was striking to see the dense population on the east coast (Miami) and very little population on

the west coast south of Tampa Bay. The contrast in the south was amazing—no lights at all in
the Everglades, but lots of lights in the Miami area. The Florida Keys were lit up nicely like a
string of Christmas tree lights in the ocean, the outline of each key defined by the lights. I
recalled once driving along the highway that connects the Florida mainland to Key West. The
same highway was nicely illuminated from the sky. Coincidently, the paper that I would present
in Santiago on sea level rise incorporated a section on estimating populations impacted by sea
level rise at various increments. I had included a map showing the impact of sea level on
populations in Florida. What better way to bring the reality of this map to life than by flying over
the area and seeing the population represented by the lights in the urban areas It then got dark
as we crossed the Caribbean, until we crossed over Cuba. When I awoke later in the night or
the early morning, lights appeared again—Lima, Peru, according to my best estimate by judging
from the map displayed in the plane. I awoke again to see the sun rise over the Andes—very
spectacular. I am quite sure that I saw Mount Aconcagua, the tallest peak in the western
hemisphere, as we made the approach into Santiago.
Jim: Sunday, 15 November—We enjoyed a three-hour bus trip back to Punta Arenas and
spent many hours in the airport. On both legs of the trip in Chile, I always sat on the east side of
the plane so I could see the mountainous Andes as we flew along the southern extent of Chile. I
saw a snow-covered smoking volcano among the many mountains. The views would please any
geographer. I got back to Santiago on Sunday evening and went to the hotel to join Dr. John
Kostelnick. We had a conflict with our room so we had to change buildings the next day.
John: Sunday—Culture shock set in. I always find this to be the most challenging part of any
international trip—as soon as you enter a new country and depart from the airplane you are
greeted by a new language, new currency, and a very different environment in general. It can be
overwhelming as you try to get your bearings and figure out the next task at hand—finding
transportation from the airport. What seemed like an endless number of taxi cab drivers met the
new arrivals just outside of the baggage claim area at the airport, all very persistently asking the
travelers if they wanted a ride into the city. I had heard stories about scams by such taxi cab
drivers in Santiago, and decided to save the money by taking a bus and then the subway to the
hotel. First, I changed some American dollars into Chilean pesos. It took a bit of practice to
figure out the new form of currency, but I quickly became familiar with the bills and coins and
realized that $1 is approximately 500 Chilean pesos.
I gathered my luggage and took a bus from the airport to the Parajito subway station stop. Next I
took the subway to the Baquedano stop, only a few blocks from the hotel. From the bus, the
landscape looked and felt a lot like coastal California (but without the coast). The palm trees,
occasional breeze, and warm sun reminded me of San Diego. The urban environment on the
bus drive looked similar to any other urban area in some senses, but was unique as well. Many
of the houses along the way were smaller and noticeably run down. Many of the homes were
painted bright colors, and had bars on the windows and doors for protection.
I found the hotel very easily and dropped off my bags, since I was there by 9:00 a.m or so and
check-in was not until later that afternoon. I was tired from the flight the night before, but
relieved to be at my final destination for the next six days or so. I spent a few hours walking part
of the city on foot. I headed down the main east-west avenue in the city, named after the
Chilean national liberator Bernardo O’Higgins. It was a warm, sunny day, in the mid-80s by early
afternoon. As I walked, I came upon a few universities, some government buildings, small shops
and bodegas, and a number of churches. The many Catholic churches displayed the Spanish
influence; and the architectural styles of the churches reminded me of Madrid, Spain. The city
as a whole had a Madrid feel to it—kind of a blend between San Diego and Madrid.
21

One cultural oddity that I quickly noticed during my stroll through the city was the large number
of stray dogs running around. The dogs were of many types and breeds, many of them good
sized. It was peculiar to see them running around on the sidewalks with no owner in sight,
sometimes alone, oftentimes in groups of two or more. I had heard that this was something to
look out for. Fortunately, despite their size, the dogs kept to themselves and did not harass the
humans. In fact, they seemed quite friendly, and seemed to go about their business just like the
humans.
I stopped off at a small deli and ordered an empañada de pino and Coke. The empañada was
good, a bread-like pocket filled with a mix of meat, onions, hard boiled eggs, raisins, and an
olive. Ordering the empañada was a minor challenge. The Chileans that I had met thus far were
patient with my virtually non-existent knowledge of Spanish. I usually try to pick up the basics of
a language before I travel as a way to show respect to the host country and as a matter of my
own convenience. However, I did not have time to learn Spanish for this trip, given the timing of
the travels during the busy part of the fall semester. My working knowledge of French and Latin
helped with reading some words on signs. But in conversation, forget it.
After checking into the hotel, I went to register at the conference, which was the reason for the
trip to Santiago. At the registration, I had good conversations with attendees from Nigeria and
Slovakia. I talked with the Slovakian about my own Slovak heritage. He enjoyed hearing about
the migration of my relatives to Chicago in the early 1900s; apparently there was a big wave of
migration of Slovaks to Chicago at this time. He knew of the town where my relatives were from.
On the way back I had an American hot dog (or complemento), which included an avocadobased
condiment. I jumped on the subway to head back to the hotel. I realized that I had the
very basics of Santiago figured out. Usually, I think it just takes a day to figure out the basic feel
of a new city.
Later that night Jim Carter made it to the hotel after traveling to Punta Arenas, Tierra del Fuego,
and Torres del Paine in far southern Chile with Judy Olson. I very much enjoyed listening to
stories of his travels down south, and was amazed that he even made it to a Rotary Club
meeting while down there.
Jim: Monday, 16 November—Monday morning we grazed the breakfast buffet that was part of
our room rate. Then we walked about 500 feet and squeezed onto the subway and 15 minutes
later we were at the Escuela Militar (Military School) where the conference was held. I
remember taking the subway in 1979 and was pleased to find it is still in very good shape and
very functional. It cost 80 cents for each ride.
We attended the opening session and tried to orient ourselves. There were six rooms for
presentations, a commercial exhibit, rooms for meetings of commissions, a hallway for poster
presentations, a long hallway devoted to displays of national map exhibits and a display of the
Barbara Petchenik Children's Maps Exhibit, and a dining room. It was difficult to get our
orientation. The conference registration included a sit-down lunch with very good food and
desert. These luncheons proved to be a good place for conversations and building relationships.
And, after a big breakfast and a quality lunch, there was no need to eat a large dinner.
We went back to the hotel to move into a new room and returned to the conference to gather
with the other members of the U.S. delegation. There must have been at least 40 persons there
from the U.S. At that time we learned that the U.S. is hoping to host the International
Cartographic Conference in 2015 in Washington, D.C.
22

That evening we had the formal opening ceremony and then mixed on the grassy field and
chatted with colleagues from the U.S. and around the world. I met many Americans there.
John: Monday—As we entered the conference venue, I quickly realized how much of a
celebrity Jim is in the international cartographic community. Several of the attendees stopped to
greet him or talk with him, some colleagues from the United States, many from other countries.
Jim introduced me to numerous cartographers as the week went along, and I was very grateful
to him for it. The day began with a plenary session by the director of the U.S. National
Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), Vice Admiral Robert Murrett. The presentation described
the role of maps and geospatial information in the U.S. military. I listened to the presentation
with great interest, and a sense of much satisfaction and pride to be an American, particularly
when the Vice Admiral mentioned the leadership that NGA provides for geospatial data utilized
for humanitarian and disaster relief situations.
During lunch, Jim and I sat with several American attendees and it provided a useful venue to
make broader professional ties. Alan MacEachren was one of these Americans at the lunch
table. I had read much of Alan’s work. Like me, he is a Kansas graduate, which provided a point
of conversation. I enjoyed talking with two Swiss graduate students about some of our shared
interests with hazards, 3-D visualization, and uncertainty in geographic data. The research that
they were doing had direct relevance to my interests in visualization of sea level rise. On the
lunch menu for the day was a type of chicken with shrimp mixed in. It was not bad, and certainly
interesting.
Paper presentations started that afternoon, and the conference provided a venue for meeting up
with old acquaintances as well as new ones. In the afternoon I talked with George McCleary, a
professor at Kansas whose teaching assistant I was for three years. It was always a pleasure
catching up with him and reliving the old days.
Monday night was the opening ceremony. It was a very entertaining event, similar to the start of
the Olympics. The ceremony lineup included formal speeches by ICA and Chilean military and
government officials. It was easy to see how proud the Chileans were to be hosting the
conference. The Chilean Army Band played as part of the festivities; they sounded excellent.
Several traditional Chilean dances followed along with more music. The ceremony was a
highlight of the trip to date. A reception followed outside in the courtyard of the Escuela Militar,
with very good food and drinks served.
Jim: Tuesday, 17 November—I arrived to hear the plenary address on web-based mapping by
a principal of ESRI, then spent time viewing the maps and atlases of the national exhibits, the
first of many times. At lunch I dined with persons from the ICA Education and Training
Commission and afterward spent considerable time talking with Sukendra Martha, head of the
cartographic association in Indonesia. Then I visited the exhibition of award winning maps by
children from around the world in the Barbara Petchenik Competition. I returned to my room in
late afternoon and went to dinner at the home of Bravo, the person who was my translator when
I first taught at La Universidad de Santiago de Chile in 1979. It was a wonderful experience to
meet and talk with his family in their home. He is now a Professor of Engineering at La
Universidad de Santiago de Chile.
John: Tuesday—I spent the day listening to various speakers in sessions, browsing the map
exhibits, and talking with presenters at the poster sessions. One highlight of the day was the
Education and Training Commission meeting, of which I am a corresponding member for the
United States, upon Jim’s recommendation. I enjoyed meeting with colleagues from other
23

countries and hearing how they teach cartography. An international conference is a great way to
provide a broader perspective on the discipline. I stopped by the poster session to see two
posters by my friend, Sebastian Diaz. He is working on an atlas of violence in Colombia as well
as some historical cartography projects for the country. Much of Tuesday afternoon and evening
I spent reviewing my presentation, which was on tap for the following day (Wednesday). Okay, I
admit that I stopped at KFC later that evening for some American fast food.
Jim: Wednesday, 18 November—Today I participated in the meetings of the Commission on
Cartography and Children, of which I am a member. There were at least 20 persons at the
meetings that lasted for half a day. The chairs of the Commission are from Bulgaria and
Hungary. There will be a conference in Bulgaria next June, at a resort on the Black Sea. In the
afternoon I had lengthy talks with representatives from ESRI and shared much with them. That
evening I visited the home of Sandra Bodini, a member of a family I have known for thirty years.
Her brother Pablo came to Illinois State for a master’s in Computer Science in the early 1990s
because I was in residence.
John: Wednesday—I stopped off at the speaker center to deliver my PowerPoint presentation
file. The student working the public computer lab at the conference was extremely helpful and
eagerly printed off the pages of my notes for the presentation. The Chileans have been
excellent hosts, very helpful. I presented after lunch in a session with a slate of speakers from
the Czech Republic, France, and China, truly fitting for an international conference. The
moderator of the sessions was from Indonesia, and the crowd decent, but not large. My
presentation seemed to be going well, although at a rapid pace since I wanted to cover a lot of
ground in the allotted time. According to my watch, the moderator cut me off with his “1 minute
left” warning about three minutes early. A bit caught off guard, I quickly rushed through the
remainder of the presentation to finish. In my opinion, the sessions are run quite poorly at the
conference. Each speaker has an allotted time block of 22 minutes. However, some moderators
insist on cutting off the presentation at 15 minutes in order to leave the remainder of the time for
questions. I came more than 5,000 miles, and was determined to use my 15 minutes as
efficiently as possible. Interestingly, I noted how moderators at the international conference are
different from those in the United States. Oftentimes, a poke, prod, or brief interruption signal to
a presenter that time is running low, rather than the friendly time cards that are commonly
displayed by the session moderators at conferences in the United States. Perhaps this is a
cultural difference in conference etiquette. An official asked Jim to moderate two sessions the
following day (Thursday). Since the sessions conflicted with a Rotary Club meeting that Jim
planned on attending, Jim recommended that I moderate the sessions. I was determined to run
the sessions that I moderated differently. Jim Carter and George McCleary both attended my
presentation, and I appreciated their support. Prior to their sessions, I had a good conversation
with the Czech presenter who worked with disasters.
Wednesday night found me taking a stroll through the main park in Santiago and through some
residential neighborhoods, just observing everyday life. I strolled through Providencia, then
headed towards the downtown. I stopped at what was becoming some favorite spots—a deli to
get an empananda de queso and a grocery store for some juice and yogurt. I successfully made
a complete order and transaction for the empañada with the girl at the counter, completely in
Spanish. I always enjoy going into grocery stores when I am in another country. I find it is a
great way to see the everyday food items that the regulars eat—bread, juice, yogurt, fruits,
cookies, cheese, etc. I bought some orange juice, yogurt, and cookies. During this time, Jim
was having dinner with some friends in Santiago. I was very impressed with how many people
he knew in Santiago—this was his second dinner invitation in as many nights. I think I know one
person in all of South America!
24

Jim: Thursday, 19 November—I took the opportunity to be a tourist in the city and walked to
Cerro San Cristobal, then hiked to the top. This is a 300 meter high mountain in the center of
the city that is adorned with large statue of religious import. There is a road to the top and a few
hiking trails. They have a changing room at the base for those who want to hike or run up the
mountain. After making it to the top and back down, I cleaned up and headed off to a Rotary
Club meeting nearby. It was in a Retired Officers Club and surprisingly was a club women
created when the other Rotary Clubs in the city would not let women join. The meeting started
at 1:30 and was still going when I left at 3:30 with a visiting Rotarian from Santiago who
manages the largest mall in the city.
I went to the conference to participate in the meeting of the Map Use and Usability Commission,
which started at 4 p.m. Following that meeting, John Kostelnick and I walked to the large mall,
about a mile east of the Escuela Militar. This mall is a reflection of the economic viability of Chile
for it is larger and more upscale than anything I have seen in recent years. While there John
had to try out a ride that propelled him up at 5Gs, to the excitement of many onlookers.
John: Thursday—The day began as usual—breakfast at the hotel with Jim. Breakfast usually
consisted of yogurt, various sweet rolls, scrambled eggs, fruit, juice, and coffee (sometimes at
least). The waiter was very good, and by now he seemed to know our preferences. By this point
in the trip, it felt like we had settled into a daily routine. Today the usual subway stop of
Baquedano was closed, and traffic was being diverted to the next stop down on the line. If I
knew more Spanish, I might have learned the reason why the stop was closed, as the subway
ticket agent very patiently tried to explain to me. The subway trip is only about 20 minutes or so
to the conference. The subways are usually very full in the morning as everyone heads to work,
to the point where people spill out of the doors when they open at the stops.
At the conference, I spent the morning moderating two sessions, on the Internet and
cartography. The other moderator was Enrique Perez de Prada from the Universidad
Technologica Metropolitana in Santiago. I enjoyed the duty as moderator; the sessions were
truly international with participants from Poland, Germany, and Japan. I spent lunch with
American colleagues, and we were joined by a cartographer from Ukraine. As always, it was fun
to learn about another place from a local. Discussion included topics such as ethnic Russians
living in Ukraine, agriculture, and other geographic topics. I attended sessions in the afternoon,
including a presentation by George McCleary on tourist maps. As I listened to him, I fondly
recalled all the times that I sat through many classes listening to his lectures; and I realized that
was the first time that I had listened to a presentation by him at a conference. The Map Use and
Users Commission, with Jim and George also in attendance, finished up the day. They
recognized Jim at the meeting as one of the original founders of the Commission.
At the end of the day, Jim and I walked to a large mall that Jim discovered the day before. It was
near the conference location, on the outskirts of the city, where many malls are commonly found
in the United States. The mall was huge and very modern, even by American standards. It was
in a newer side of Santiago that I had not seen yet—and stood in contrast to the older central
city with its historic structures. As we approached the mall, we noticed a towering bungee
jumping style amusement ride. Jim insisted that I give it a try, and even agreed to pay half the
admission cost to raise the ante. Not wanting to turn down his offer (and challenge), I accepted.
However, the ride required at least two people to operate successfully. Jim could not be
convinced to give it a go himself, but we did manage to convince one of the teenage ride
workers to go on the ride instead. We got strapped in and then were launched at 60 mph
straight into the air, sort of like how a rubber band is snapped. It was a great rush bouncing
around, turning upside down. The view of the Andes Mountains was spectacular from above,
25

and spinning upside down provided a new perspective on them. I enjoyed the experience
immensely, as did the ride worker. It was great fun sharing a laugh with one of the locals. Not
bad for $24; it was definitely a memorable experience.
Jim: Friday, 20 November—I gave my paper early in the morning, the first paper after the
plenary session. Because the plenary session ran over its time, there were only about 30 people
in to hear my paper on Map, the animated character in Dora the Explorer. This was the first of
two sessions on Cartography and Children. I participated in the second session too, lasting until
lunch. That afternoon I caught a paper by a person from the U.S. Department of State on efforts
to map world population. Then I read many of the posters and viewed again many of the maps
and atlases on display. I was frequently interrupted by conversations with many persons. I
bumped into Dr. Karel Kriz from Austria. We knew each other from other ICA conferences, but
were not close. However, he was looking for me because he was familiar with my article on the
many dimensions of map use, which I gave in Spain in 2005. He thought I might be able to help
him write his entry on customization of maps for the History of Cartography Project. We have
since been in contact, and I will work with him on this task.
Soon the conference was over for me, and I headed back to my room. There was more I wanted
to do; but I, like many others, was wearing out. As a farewell to Santiago, I joined Dr. Judy Olson
from Michigan State for a dinner of quesadillas. I wanted John to join us, but he did not show up
until after I got back to the room.
John: Friday—Friday was the last day of the conference for us as we were to leave for La
Serena the following day. Jim’s paper was scheduled for the first session. I sat in on the
presentation, which went very well. Jim received many complimentary comments from the
audience. After Jim’s presentation, I called it a conference. It had been a very productive
conference, all in all the best conference I had ever attended. Part of this was due to the fact
that the conference was international in scope, and partly because it was all cartographers and
more focused in scope.
The rest of Friday I played tourist, determined to see as much of Santiago as I could in the
remaining time that I had. I started by climbing up Cerro San Cristobal, the large hill in the
center of the city. The relative relief of the hill was about 700-750 feet or so, at least according
to Google Earth. A funicular (inclined railway) can be taken to the top, but I opted to walk to get
some exercise and to stretch my legs after sitting in the conference for the week. The walk to
the base of the hill took me across the river through Bella Vista, a college-like campus town
area with several restaurants and bars. After getting a map from the information booth, I started
my ascent along the walking trail. The trail transitioned from a paved road to a dusty trail with
switchbacks toward the top. The trail gradually snaked around the hill, with plenty of places to
stop, rest, and take in the view of the Andes Mountains to the east and the city below. After
about an hour, I reached the summit. As I made my way to the top, the view got increasingly
better, and I began to get a bigger picture of the extent of Santiago, which stretches in many
directions, and does not appear to have as defined as a CBD as many American cities. The
extent of the urban area was quite impressive from the vantage point on the hill. Also impressive
was the view of the Andes, with several snow-capped mountains apparent as the summer
season started. I tried to look toward the northeast in the direction of Mount Aconcagua, but was
unsure if the peak was visible from the location. It was a relatively cloudy day, as many days
had been with the exception of Sunday earlier in the week when I first arrived in Santiago. Smog
is a large problem in Santiago as well, and it was quite apparent from San Cristobal. It is such a
shame to have the view of the mountains obstructed in this manner.
26

At the top of the hill, a number of people had gathered. Some were tourists, including a bus tour
of Japanese. Others were there on a religious pilgrimage. At the top of the hill was a very large
statue dedicated to Mary. At the base of the statue was a chapel, an outside worship area with
seating, and a shrine where candles could be lit by pilgrims. Some engaged in prayer in these
locations. Chile is 70 percent Catholic, and visible impressions of Catholicism on the landscape
are very evident. This includes the religious toponyms (names of saints commonly used) and
the large number of churches. In addition, I was struck by how the Spanish and later Chileans
used the “highest spots” in the city and country to erect a cross or statue related to the religion.
After some time on the summit of the hill, I made the descent. I walked through more of Bella
Vista, across the river, and through part of the main city park. I observed workers, students, and
street artists/performers along the way. I headed towards the Plaza de Armas, the main square
in Santiago. I found Santiago generally to be an easy city to navigate. As I approached the
Plaza de Armas, I could feel that I was entering an area that was central to the government
(with the presence of various government buildings) and also the heart of the business district. It
seemed very similar to any American city. Several stores and advertisements were visible for
banks and electronic equipment, similar to how they are commonly found in the CBD of
American cities. After a bit of maneuvering, I made my way to the Plaza de Armas; it was
around 3:00 or so in the afternoon. The plaza looked similar to the main plaza or square in
many big cities—big open space with many people doing different things. The plaza was
surrounded with important government buildings as well as the very large Cathedral de
Santiago, originally built in 1541 with the founding of the city. The historic ties between religion
and government were very apparent. A large statue of Pedro de Valdivia, Spanish conquistador
and founder of Santiago, also was prominently located in the square. The square was nicely
landscaped with palm trees and other vegetation. I looked around and did a bit of people
watching—some tourists with cameras close at hand, others businessmen and women on a
break from work, others artists or street performers putting in a day’s work. I took some time to
stroll around the plaza. I went inside the Cathedral de Santiago. The immensity of the structure
struck me, as well as the detailed artwork, statues, stained glass windows, and wooden pews. I
looked on the outside of the cathedral and noted that it had been rebuilt a handful of times due
to earthquakes and damage from Spanish fighting with the indigenous peoples of the area.
I next headed to the Mercado Central, which is the central market in Santiago. I always like to
see the major market in an urban area to see what people are selling and buying. After a few
wrong turns (even cartographers make navigation blunders in a foreign environment), I found
the market, which was partially indoors. The main products at the market were seafood and
produce, with various vendors also selling crafts and jewelry. Several restaurants had staff
positioned on the outskirts, trying to entice customers to sit down. I bought my wife a pair of
earrings made of silver and a blue stone unique to Chile. I also picked up some dried apricots
for a snack. I walked away from Mercado Central back towards the Plaza de Armas. As I
wandered, people were getting off work and the streets were becoming crowded. I felt much
immersed in the daily Chilean life in Santiago as I walked along with them. I eventually
wandered into another market, with vendors selling scarves, sweaters, jewelry, etc.
My final stop was Cerro San Lucia, another prominent hill in Santiago, although smaller than
Cerro San Cristobal. The hill was used by the Spanish as a lookout point. The hill was
decorated nicely with fountains, park benches, etc. I made the short ascent to the summit and
took a few minutes to enjoy the view. At this point my feet were tired, and it was getting dark, so
I headed back to the hotel. After a short stop at the hotel, I went out to one final stop for the
night—TelePizza. It was a Friday night, and the pizza place was a popular spot with the younger
crowd, just as it would be in the United States.
27

Jim: Saturday, 21 November—John and I checked out and met Dr. Sonia Salas in the lobby.
She is a long-time friend who lives in La Serena with her husband, Dr. Hugo Bodini. Hugo came
to the University of Tennessee in 1979 to finish his Ph.D. in Geography and is the person who
got me involved in teaching in Chile. Sonia is a Psychology professor at the Universidad de La
Serena and was in Santiago for a field project with her students. John and I had planned to go
to La Serena to visit Hugo and Sonia anyway and jumped at the opportunity to ride up with
Sonia. La Serena is about 300 miles north of Santiago and connected by a good, divided
highway. By riding in her car, we got to visit gas stations and see how they have to pay tolls
along the road. We got to see the suburbs and the market gardens a little farther out. John
brought German geographer Walter Christaller into our conversation. This trip exposed us to
many miles of sclerophyll (hard leaf) vegetation, grading into semi-desert scrub as we drove
through mountains and along the Pacific coast. La Serena is adjacent to Coquimbo, the first
large city north of Santiago. Coquimbo is the industrial city with a large cross dominating the
city. Not to be outdone, someone from the Middle East built a large mosque in the city; and it too
helps define the skyline. La Serena is at the mouth of the Elqui River and has become more of a
tourist center. We stayed in a tourist chalet about 500 feet from the Pacific Ocean. Mid-
November is spring for them, and at 30 degrees south it was still quite cool. There were a few
tourists there but we were told the big influx will be the Argentineans in January and the
Chileans in February. We walked the beach and observed a few sun bathers, a few soccer
players, and many kids playing in the sand.
John: Saturday—We checked out of our hotel Saturday morning at 9:30 after breakfast. I was
excited to see more of Chile outside of Santiago. Jim’s friend Sonia Salas from La Serena
picked us up at the hotel and graciously drove us north to La Serena. The drive was 5½ hours
or so. We took the Pan-American Highway the entire way. The road was excellent—4-lane the
entire way, similar to an interstate in the United States. It was an interesting drive, and a very
clear day. The ocean was visible for part of the way, while other times the road stayed farther
inland. We saw lots of agriculture (market gardening) right outside of Santiago (just as Von
Thunen would predict). Various types of produce were evident, such as avocadoes, apples, and
grapes. Farmers worked in the fields and orchards along the way, some aided with donkeypowered
plows. The backdrop of the coastal mountain range made for a spectacular view.
Some of the farmers tended to produce stands along the side of the road. As we continued
northward, we passed interesting geologic formations and a copper mine/processing plant. We
stopped in Huentelauquen, which was about the halfway point along the drive, for an excellent
empañada de queso. We also purchased some papayas and sliced papayas in a jar that were
also excellent. It was great to have a native Chilean such as Sonia as our tour guide to give us
the insider perspective and to answer our many questions as we drove along. Vegetation
became sparser and the climate noticeably drier as we continued north. Market gardening
agriculture shifted to ranching. We saw a wind farm along the way to remind us of central
Illinois.
Eventually we arrived in Coquimbo, sister city of La Serena. Coquimbo is known as a large
fishing village. It is easy to see why the Spanish arrived in this part of Chile at an early date—
even before Santiago according to a placard on the lighthouse in La Serena. The natural harbor
would have been ideal for the Spanish ships. The most noticeable feature of Coquimbo was a
large cross that had been erected on the highest hill in the city, making it visible from miles
around. Interestingly, a mosque, also quite prominent in size, had been built recently on a
neighboring hill by a rich Moroccan. One could easily get the feel that the centuries-long tension
between Christianity and Islam in Spain apparently had spread to the New World in the modern
age.
28

Later that night we went to Sonia’s house for dinner (at 9:30!) with husband Hugo, and son
Andres and his wife and two kids (Sebastian and Francisca). It was a fun opportunity to see how
Chileans eat and socialize in their own home. As they exchanged stories and memories with
Jim, I realized how long their friendship went back. Dinner was excellent, and consisted of
abalone with sea urchin sauce, a type of meat with rice, Carmenere and white wine, and lemon
mousse.
Jim: Sunday, 22 November—We explored a little more before Sonia picked us up to take us to
the bus station to get tickets to return to Santiago. Along the way we stopped to get her tire
repaired. John and I enjoyed looking at the small shop the fellow had to make repairs on
Sundays when other shops are not open. Then we picked up Hugo (he is wheelchair bound)
and went to Coquimbo to visit the fish market. From there we made our way south to a popular
fish restaurant. John and I ate congria, a fish we were introduced to an hour before in the
market. And we had to eat a seafood empañada. We ate cheese empañadas on the way up to
La Serena. That night John fell asleep watching the Chicago Bears lose in Spanish on TV (in La
Serena, Chile).
John: Sunday—After breakfast I swam in the ocean for a little while. What better way to wake
up in the morning than a dip in the Pacific. The swim was cold, but bearable. No need for any
more coffee to wake up after that. Sonia and Hugo picked us up at the hotel at 11:00. We first
went to get our bus tickets for the return trip to Santiago the following day: 7400 Chilean pesos
or about $15 dollars for the bus ticket, which is quite affordable. Next we went to get Sonia’s car
tire fixed. The tire had incurred a slow leak somewhere north of Santiago. The stop at the tire
shop proved to be a glimpse into everyday Chilean life as we watched the tire guys fix the hole.
Sonia then took us to the fish market, which was quite a hustling and bustling place. Numerous
fishing boats were at the dock with the fish for sale in the market. As we walked through the
market, I could not recall ever seeing such a diversity of fish. Flounder, congria (kingfish), crabs,
clams, sea urchins, and many other types of fish and seafood were for sale. Several restaurants
were in the market as well, apparently operated by the fishermen and their families. The dock
was also a lively place for other animals—pelicans, sea gulls, and sea lions waiting to eat the
leftover fish remains tossed out as the fishermen cleaned their catch. Also for sale in the market
were various types of produce. For example, a big bag of lemons cost 500 Chilean pesos or
about $1. Many of the fishermen lived in very modest houses up the hill from the fishing docks.
We continued south of Coquimbo to Guanaueros for lunch and ate at a seafood restaurant
suggested by Sonia. Jim and I had empañadas de marisco (seafood empañadas), congria, and
Carmenere wine.
Jim: Monday, 23 November—We took a taxi to the bus station and boarded a double-deck bus
to head back to Santiago. The bus picked up additional passengers at some rather remote
places along the way. We stopped at a large rest center where the drivers take their 30-minute
breaks. There were many concessions in the rest center and many more entrepreneurial shops
across the highway. John ventured to eat at one of those, but I was more cautious. The bus
station in Santiago is large and lively. There is no train connection north from Santiago so buses
and planes are the public transport. And, there are some very nice buses in Chile. In Santiago
we caught the shuttle bus to the airport and headed home. We flew Delta, giving us two flights
total.
John: Monday—Sonia and Hugo were wonderful hosts in La Serena. After breakfast and a
final walk along the beach, we took a taxi to the bus stop in La Serena. The bus stopped once
along the way for a half hour for lunch near Los Vilos. I walked across the street to buy one
more empañada de queso from a small roadside stand, while Jim ate in the cafeteria in the
29

fueling station. Along the way I tried to see if Mount Aconcagua was visible, but I do not think it
is from that far west. We arrived in Santiago around 6:00 or so and transferred to another bus
for the short trip to the airport. We ate dinner in the airport as we waited for the plane, which
departed on schedule at 10:15 for the nine-hour flight to Atlanta (about 5,000 miles or so). The
guy sitting next to me on the plane was an American who had been in Chile on business with
his company, helping the Chileans with a water treatment plant. I sat next to the window for the
flight back. The best view came of Santiago as we made our ascent and circled the city after
take-off. Clouds prevented good views the rest of the flight.
Jim and John: Tuesday, 24 November—Our plane landed on time in Atlanta around 6:00 a.m.
After clearing customs and rechecking our baggage, we waited for an hour and a half or so in
the airport before boarding the two-hour flight from Atlanta to Bloomington. We were on the
ground in Bloomington with luggage by 10 a.m., which is not bad considering we traveled over
73 degrees of latitude and 20 degrees of longitude.
Jim Carter took this picture looking eastward from a restaurant in
downtown Santiago. Note how close the Andes Mountains appear.
The climate of Santiago is Mediterranean and similar to that of Los
Angeles, California. For additional images of their excellent
adventure, see inside the back cover.
30

MIDYEAR COMMENCEMENT
The Department of Geography‐Geology helps students celebrate
commencement at the traditional time, in early May, but also in the
middle of December, between semesters. (Top) Typical refreshments
include punch and sheet cake, which Professor Johanna Haas was
dishing out that day. (Middle) Students like Geography Education
major Josh Klausing (left) bring their relatives and often have a final
word or two with faculty, such as Jill Thomas. (Bottom) R.J. Rowley
(right) was only on staff for the academic year 2009‐2010 plus a
summer 2010 class, but he made a positive impression on students
and faculty. He was chatting with departmental veteran Bill Shields.
31

GEOGRAPHY-GEOLOGY STUDENT AWARDS
FALL 2009 THROUGH SUMMER 2010
Blackburn (Eunice) Geography Capstone Scholarship
Honors Office Research Mentorship Grant
Illinois Geographical Society Outstanding Senior
Illinois GIS Association Outstanding Student Award
Letter of Commendation
Means (George R.) Geography Scholarship
Means (Margaret) Endowment Stipend
Miglio (Louis E.) Geography-Geology Scholarship
NAGT Field Camp Scholarship
USGS Field Camp Internship Award
Michael E. Clementz
Michael P. Johnson
Jimmy Ly
Trent Ford
Simone Runyon
Phillip Ferguson
Dawn Heckmann
Larry Haigh
Lindsay Tuegel
Michael J. Aumiller
Rebecca Pease
Joe Simanis
Brittany Caldwell
Natasha Rackauskas
Laura Wheeling
Bradley King
Bradley King
Many of the Geography student award winners were present to pick up their certificates and
celebrate conclusion of the spring semester at a picnic on 2 May 2010 at Fairview Park in Normal.
Because of the way that we publish winners’ names, the names of some of those in the photo will
appear on the list in the next volume. From the left, celebrants were Mike Clementz, Michael
Aumiller, Larry Haigh, Joe Wojtas, Mark McCleary, Joe Simanis, Kevin Gorell, Phil Ferguson, Jimmy Ly,
Becky Pease, Allen Cooksey, and Justin Padaoan.
32

FIRST MAJORS AND GRADUATE STUDENTS—MAY 2010
GEOGRAPHY MAJORS
Nonteaching Geography
Nonteaching Geography (cont.)
Alipour, John (S) Schneider, Elisabeth (J)
Anderson, Benjamin (So) Simanis, Joseph (S)
Aumiller, Michael (S) Steinbrecher, Robert (J)
Barger, Christopher (S) Struckmeyer, Matthew (S)
Birkholz, Brian (S) Swanke, Alexander (S)
Bishop, Ashley (J) Taylor, Nathan (J)
Bonarek, Nicholas (S) Walker, Maxwell (S)
Brase, Ryan (S) Weimar, Matthew (J)
Broomhead, Collin (J) Wheatley, Laurie (So)
Cahill, Denise
(S)
Cameron, Adam (S) Geography Education Sequence
Clementz, Michael (S)
Cooksey, Allen (S) Anderson, Joseph (S)
Duff, Jamieson (S) Brink, Ashley (S)
Erling, Eric (J) Brouhard, Eli (S)
Ferguson, Phillip (S) Dunne, Shannon (S)
Fleming, Justin (S) Durchslag, Daniel (J)
Ford, Trenton (S) Gawron, Julie (J)
Gillespie, Steven (J) Goodwin, Nicholas (So)
Glasper, Kevin (S) Gorell, Kevin (S)
Grothendieck, Matthew (J) Griffin, Patrick (So)
Haigh, Larry (S) Hannah, Jaclyn (J)
Heckmann, Dawn (S) Imeri, Lindita (S)
Hess, Paul (S) Johnson, Ashley (J)
Hively, Aaron (S) Kepuraitis, Alec (F)
Hlava, Danielle (J) Kirchoff, Matthew (S)
Holt, Stephen (S) Lafser, Daniel (S)
Homenock, Peter (S) Lindemann, Ryan (J)
Iverson, Gary (So) Longhini, Joseph (S)
Johnson, Michael (S) Marsh, Jeffrey (S)
Jordan, Jamal (S) McAdams, Deborah (S)
Keslin, Donald (S) Mehon, Krista (S)
Kilcoyne, Patrick (J) Migliorisi, Michael (J)
Koeppen, Emily (S) Obenland, Amanda (J)
Ly, Jimmy (S) Ott, April (So)
Marach, Caitlin (J) Padaoan, Justin (S)
McCleary, Mark (S) Pett, Brian (S)
Mondloch, Karl (So) Philpott, David (J)
Nelson, Adam (J) Pimentel, Eduardo (S)
Pease, Rebecca (S) Radosevic, Matthew (S)
Reitz, Brittany (J) Richards, James (J)
Roden, Zachary (J) Robinson, Stefen (S)
Rogers, Jeremy (S) Ruzicka, Scott (F)
33

Geography Education Sequence (cont.)
Nonteaching Geology (cont.)
Schroeder, Heather (S) Kelly, David (S)
Serafin, Chad (J) Kittler, Adam (J)
Soderstrom, Michael (So) Lancaster, Matthew (So)
Sterrenberg, Maureen (J) Lanman, Arianne (J)
Vinson, Jared (S) McDonald, Kerii (So)
Weaver, Ryan (J) Meyers, Matthew (S)
Wheeling, Laura (S) Morse, Samuel (F)
Witte, Patrick (S) Munson, Erik (S)
Wojtas, Joseph (S) Parish, Austin (J)
Woloshyn, Christina (S) Pipis, Stefanie (S)
Yess, Macrae (S) Reeves, Nicholas (S)
Roth, Christopher
(S)
GEOLOGY MAJORS Runyon, Simone (S)
Satorius, Seth
(J)
Nonteaching Geology Schroeder, Kathryn (J)
Sergeant, Andrew
(S)
Barry, Paul (J) Smith, Stuart (S)
Bombick, Michael (So) Stieglitz, Troy (S)
Bouslog, Christopher (J) Swierczewski, Jaclyn (So)
Breiner, Kenneth (S) Trela, Jarek (S)
Brooker, Benjamin (S) Wood, Michael (F)
Calhoun, Justin
(S)
Clark, John (J) Earth & Space Science Education
Danha, Aphrem
(S)
Davis, Dyan (J) Armour, Joseph (S)
Dosen, Nicholas (So) Birns, Scott (So)
Duffy, Ryan (S) Bloch, Jacob (So)
Geyer, Nicholas (J) Bohlin, Mark (So)
Goetze, Jack (F) Caldwell, Brittany (S)
Granados, Elena (F) Delfeld, Paul (S)
Green, Nicholas (So) Downs, Connor (J)
Groth, Joshua (So) Fijalkiewicz, Anne (J)
Hampton, Scott (S) Happel, Audrey (S)
Hanson, Erik (S) Harman, Eric (J)
Hardwick, Andrew (J) Isbell, Emily (S)
Hartz, Matthew (S) Johnson, Britta (J)
Hatch, Charles (S) Keenan, Katie (So)
Hayden, Kelly (S) Kotte, Lynn (S)
Henrickson, Bennett (S) Kuecher, Ryan (S)
Henry, Christian (S) Liner, John (S)
Hinds, Amie (S) Lynch, Berylanne (J)
Howe, Nicholas (J) Massey, Lance (S)
Huber, Laura (F) McGrenera, James (S)
Jones, Nicholas (J) Meade, Kathleen (J)
Kane, Michael (J) Mills, Stephanie (S)
Kasula, Alex (F) Pace, David (S)
Kaufman, Matthew (J) Porn, Samantha (J)
34

Earth & Space Science Education (cont.)
HYDROGEOLOGY
GRADUATE STUDENTS
Praught, Aisha (So) Ackerman, Jessica
Puckett, Corey (J) Angel, Julie
Roome, Nicholas (J) Avalos, Eric
Schmelzel, Michael (F) Bastola, Hridaya
Tomaras, Anthony (So) Becker, Joseph
Venus, Scott (J) Clark, Derek
Weiss, Alexander (S) Demay, Rebecca
White, Steven (J) Dieck, Eric
Fox, Nicole
Jacoby, Brianne
Lanning, Adam
Lau, Jodi
Liescheidt, Randi
Love, Jonathan
Maas, Benjamin
Oware, Erasmus
Simpson, Steven
Strope, Shane
EDITOR’S NOTE: Letters following the student names indicate the class:
F (freshman), So (sophomore), J (junior), S (senior).
On 18 May 1980, Mt. St. Helens, in southwestern Washington, did what such composite
volcanoes sometimes do. It blew out its top; and it sent ash into the prevailing westerlies, at
least as far east as the roof of Schroeder Hall, where Skip Nelson and others collected fallout in
small boxes. In October 2009, while attending the Geological Society of America meeting in
Portland, Oregon, Dr. Nelson took several students and graduates to see Mt. St. Helens. From
left, in front row, were Dr. Nelson, Erin Roche, Ben Maas, David Hahn, Jerek Trela, Stefanie
Pipis, and Eric Avalos. Standing, from left, were Ben Brooker, Jonathan Love, Jodi Lau, Randi
Liescheidt, Brianne Jacoby, Nicole Fox, Kelsey Kidd, Simone Runyon, and Matt Downen. That is
the mountain in the background.
35

CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS BY
GEOGRAPHERS AND GEOLOGISTS REPRESENTING
ILLINOIS STATE UNIVERSITY
(in alpha order by last name of first departmental author)
“Geographical Tendencies of White-Tailed Deer in Illinois,” by Christopher Barger; Illinois
State University Undergraduate Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Variations in Streambed Grain Size and Organic Carbon Content among Channelized
Streams,” by Joseph P. Becker and Eric W. Peterson; Geological Society of America;
Portland, Oregon.
“The Baseball Stadium Dilemma,” by Brian Birkholz; Illinois State University Undergraduate
Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Diatom-based Reconstruction of Late Pleistocene and Holocene Environmental Conditions at
Lake Nicaragua, Central America,” by Amy M. Bloom, Jennifer E. Slate, Robert A. Dull, and
Sabine W. Bowen; Association of American Geographers; Washington, D.C.
“Rush to Progress: The San Francisco Earthquake of 1906,” by Mary E. Graczyk and Amy M.
Bloom; Illinois State University Undergraduate Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Sustainable Outreach Efforts: How CeMaST Helps Stimulate Projects While Avoiding
Faculty/Staff Burnout,” by Amy M. Bloom and William Hunter; 2010 University-Wide
Symposium on Teaching and Learning; Normal, Illinois.
“Does the 12 th Man Matter” by Nick Bonarek; Illinois Geographical Society; Rockford, Illinois.
Mr. Bonarek presented the same poster at the Illinois State University Undergraduate Research
Symposium in Normal, Illinois.
“Are Sacred Places Safe Places,” by Kenneth Breiner; Illinois State University Undergraduate
Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Using X-ray Diffraction to Quantify Abundances of Pigeonite in Ordinary Chondrites:
Applications to Asteroid Thermal Histories,” by Ben Brooker and Tasha Dunn; Illinois State
University Undergraduate Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
"Surficial Geologic Map of the Hebron 7.5 Minute Quadrangle, McHenry County, Illinois," by
Drew R. Carlock, David H. Malone, and Jason F. Thomason; Geological Society of America;
Portland, Oregon.
"Using Petrel 2007 and other Programs to Create a 3-D Geologic Model of the Quaternary
Glacial Deposits in McHenry County, IL," by Drew R. Carlock, David H. Malone, and Jason F.
Thomason; Geological Society of America; Portland, Oregon.
“Map: TV Character and Visual Representation of Space,” by James R. Carter; International
Cartographic Conference; Santiago, Chile.
36

“Acid Rain: Where are the Rest of the Data” by Robert G. Corbett; American Institute of
Professional Geologists; Grand Junction, Colorado.
“Global Sea Level and Climate Change: Main Controls on the Evolution and Extinction of Upper
Devonian (Givetian-Frasnian) North American Tropical Carbonate Platform Brachiopods,” by
James E. Day; 9 th North American Paleontological Convention; Cincinnati, Ohio.
“Middle-Upper Devonian (Late Givetian-Early Famennian) Conodont Sequence in the
Subsurface of Southeastern Iowa: Stratigraphic Condensation, Leaks, and Submarine Erosional
Reworking along the Western Margin of the Illinois Basin,” by James E. Day; North-Central
Section, Geological Society of America; Branson, Missouri.
“Subtropical Records of the Upper Devonian (Late Frasnian-Early Famennian) Sea
Level and Kellwasser Extinction Bioevents, Southern Quachita Margin-Western Laurussia
(Arizona-New Mexico, and Northern Mexico),” by James E. Day; North-Central Section,
Geological Society of America; Branson, Missouri.
“Frasnian (Upper Devonian) History of North American Cyrtospiriferoid Brachiopods,” by
James E. Day and X. Ma; 9 th North American Paleontological Convention; Cincinnati, Ohio.
“A Coordinated Mineralogical, Spectral, and Compositional Study of Ordinary Chondrites:
Implications for Asteroid Spectroscopic Classification,” by Tasha Dunn; Lunar and Planetary
Science Conference; Houston, Texas.
“Glacier Retreat in Glacier National Park, Montana: A Climate-based Review,” by Trenton W.
Ford and Dagmar Budikova; West Lakes Division, Association of American Geographers; St.
Paul, Minnesota.
“Where’s the Money At,” by Steve Gillespie; Illinois State University Undergraduate Research
Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Defining Spatial and Temporal Variations in the Hyporheic Zone of a Low Gradient,
Meandering Agricultural Stream using Conservative Tracers,” by David C. Hahn and Stephen
J. Van der Hoven; Geological Society of America; Portland, Oregon.
“Pencils Ready Everyone…,” by Larry Haigh; Illinois Geographical Society; Rockford, Illinois.
Mr. Haigh presented the same poster at the Illinois State University Undergraduate Research
Symposium in Normal, Illinois.
“With Liberty and Starbucks for All” by Stephen Holt; Illinois State University Undergraduate
Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Do Seatbelts Save Lives” by Lindita Imeri; Illinois State University Undergraduate Research
Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Sub-Saharan Africa: Does Health Care Spending Save Lives” by Emily Koeppen; Illinois
Geographical Society; Rockford, Illinois. Ms. Koeppen presented the same poster at the Illinois
State University Undergraduate Research Symposium in Normal, Illinois.
“Cartographic Considerations for Visualization of Hazards and Risks,” by John C. Kostelnick;
Association of American Geographers; Washington, D.C.
37

”Assessing the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) Infestation in Chenoa, Illinois, with GIS and Remote
Sensing,” by John C. Kostelnick, Adam Griffin, Jeremy Rogers, Gretchen Knapp, Kenneth
Breiner, and K. Rogers; Illinois GIS Association (ILGISA) Fall Conference; Naperville, Illinois.
“Cartographic Methods for Visualizing Sea Level Rise,” by John C. Kostelnick, D. McDermott,
and R. J. Rowley; International Cartographic Conference; Santiago, Chile.
“Fluctuating Asymmetry as an Indicator of Habitat Degradation across the Albertine Rift of East-
Central Africa,” by Melanie Jonas, Sabine Loew, and John C. Kostelnick; Association of
American Geographers; Washington, D.C.
“Teaching Human Geography and Cartography through a Class Atlas Project,” by John C.
Kostelnick, Kevin Gorell, Larry Haigh, and Mark McCleary; Illinois Geographical Society;
Rockford, Illinois.
“What Makes a Sports Fan” by Joe Longhini; Illinois State University Undergraduate
Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Using Natural N Isotopes to Identify Nitrate Removal Mechanisms in Constructed Wetlands
Receiving Agricultural Tile Drainage,” by Jonathan W. Love, Stephen J. Van der Hoven, and
Jerek Trela; Emiquon Science 2010: Restoration Ecology, Theory and Policy; Dickson Mounds
Museum, Illinois.
“Do Higher Personal Incomes Encourage Healthier Populations” by Jimmy Ly; Illinois State
University Undergraduate Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Investigation of Spatial and Temporal Variations in Water Quality Around Nora, IL,” by
Benjamin J. Maas, Illinois Groundwater Association; Lisle, Illinois.
“Investigation of Spatial and Temporal Variations in Water Quality Around Nora, IL,” by
Benjamin J. Maas and Eric W. Peterson, North-Central Section, Geological Society of
America; Branson, Missouri.
“Surficial Geology of the 7.5 Topographic Warren Quadrangle, Jo Daviess and Stephenson
Counties, Illinois,” by Benjamin J. Maas and Eric W. Peterson, Geological Society of America;
Portland, Oregon.
“Physical Education: Who Really Needs it Anyway” by Krista Mehon; Illinois State University
Undergraduate Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“EarthScope 2010,” by Robert S. Nelson; Illinois State Geological Survey; Champaign, Illinois.
Dr. Nelson presented the same paper at the Midwest Earthquake Seminar in Aurora, Illinois.
“Global Earthquake Patterns and Populations at Risk,” by Robert S. Nelson; Illinois State
University International Studies Seminar Series; Normal, Illinois.
“Illinois EarthScope: Integrating Math, Science, and Technology,” by Robert S. Nelson and
William J. Hunter; U.S. Department of Education, Regional Math and Science Partnership
Meeting; San Diego, California.
“Illinois EarthScope I: A Pilot Teacher Workshop," by Robert S. Nelson, David H. Malone,
Stefanie A. Pipis, and Bradley D. King; Geological Society of America; Portland, Oregon.
38

“The Impacts of Storm on Thermal Transport within the Hyporheic Zone of a Low Gradient
Third-Order Sand and Gravel Bedded Stream,” by Erasmus K. Oware and Eric W. Peterson;
North-Central Section, Geological Society of America; Branson, Missouri.
“Anomalous Bumps along a Longitudinal Profile for a Fluviokarst Stream: Implications for the
Formational Mechanisms,” by Eric W. Peterson, John Woodside, and Toby Dogwiler; 7th
International Conference on Geomorphology (ANZIAG); Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
“When Water Flows Uphill: Growth and Water Sustainability in Las Vegas,” by Rex J. Rowley;
Association of American Geographers; Washington, D.C.
"Geologic Map of the Long Creek 7.5 Minute Quadrangle, Macon and Moultrie Counties, IL,"
by Simone E. Runyon and David H. Malone; Geological Society of America; Portland, Oregon.
“Limestone Dissolution in Various pH Solutions,” by Simone E. Runyon and Eric W. Peterson;
North-Central Section, Geological Society of America; Branson, Missouri. Ms. Runyon
presented the same poster at the Illinois State University Undergraduate Research Symposium
in Normal, Illinois.
“Golden Arches at Every Exit,” by Elisabeth Schneider; Illinois State University Undergraduate
Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Do Smoker Rates Affect the Health of a State” by Joe Simanis; Illinois State University
Undergraduate Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
“Midwestern Hydrology Associated with the 2008 Warm-Season Flood,” by Shane A. Strope;
West Lakes Division, American Association of Geographers; St. Paul, Minnesota.
“Using ArcGIS to Model Weekly Areal Precipitation with Relationships to Flooding,” by Shane A.
Strope; Illinois GIS Association (ILGISA) Spring Conference; Champaign, Illinois.
“Geography Career Fair: Programmatic Issues,” by Michael D. Sublett; National Conference on
Geography Education; San Juan, Puerto Rico. Dr. Sublett presented the same paper at the
2010 University-Wide Symposium on Teaching and Learning in Normal, Illinois.
“Does Money Make you Smarter” by Alexander Swanke; Illinois State University
Undergraduate Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
"Mapping the Amplitude of Seasonal Floods on the Amazon River," by Jonathan B. Thayn;
Association of American Geographers; Washington, D.C.
“Geography Career Fair: Making it Happen,” by Jill Freund Thomas; National Conference on
Geography Education; San Juan, Puerto Rico. Ms. Thomas presented the same paper at the
2010 University-Wide Symposium on Teaching and Learning in Normal, Illinois.
“Quantifying the Effects of Groundwater on Nitrogen Cycling in Constructed Wetlands Receiving
Agricultural Tile Drainage,” by Jarek Trela, Stephen J. Van der Hoven, and Jonathan W.
Love; Geological Society of America; Portland, Oregon.
“Quantifying Groundwater Interactions with Constructed Wetlands Receiving Agricultural Tile
Drainage,” by Jarek Trela, Stephen J. Van der Hoven, and Jonathan W. Love; Emiquon
Science 2010: Restoration Ecology, Theory and Policy; Dickson Mounds Museum, Illinois.
39

“Ecohydrology: Developing Strategies to Remove Agricultural Nutrients from Surface Water,” by
Stephen J. Van der Hoven; Appalachian State University, Department of Geology Colloquium;
Boone, North Carolina.
“Time Scale of Recovery of Hyporheic Complexity and Denitrification after Stream
Channelization or Maintenance Events,” by Stephen J. Van der Hoven, Joyce A. Harris, W.L.
Perry, and A.M. Lemke; North American Benthological Society; Grand Rapids, Michigan.
“Deer in Headlights,” by Max Walker; Illinois Geographical Society; Rockford, Illinois. Mr.
Walker presented the same poster at the Illinois State University Undergraduate Research
Symposium in Normal, Illinois.
“Suicide, It’s a Terrible Thing!” by Christina Woloshyn; Illinois State University Undergraduate
Research Symposium; Normal, Illinois.
40

The Department encourages faculty to push students toward career growth and subsidizes
attendance at meetings when possible. On the previous page, we see several Geography students
who attended the Rockford meeting of the Illinois Geographical Society with Professor John
Kostelnick to present papers or support their classmates. From the left stood Max Walker, Kevin
Gorell, Nick Bonarek, Emily Koeppen, Mark McCleary, Larry Haigh, Mike Clementz, and Dr.
Kostelnick. Also on that page, in the second image, is Krista Mehon, one of more than a dozen
students who presented their research work via the poster route at the Undergraduate Research
Symposium on campus. On this page we feature three others who presented posters at the same
gathering: Joe Longhini (top), Ken Breiner (middle), and Steve Gillespie (bottom).
41

FACULTY AND STAFF SKETCHES
Amy M. Bloom, Assistant Professor of Geography. B.A. (Cum Laude), 1997, Geology,
Augustana College; M.S., 2001, Geography, University of Utah; Ph.D., 2006,
Geography, University of Utah. This year Amy taught GEO 100 (Earth Systems Science)
and GEO 207 (Natural Disasters) and served nearly 450 students! Amy’s research
continues to focus on the use of biological, chemical, and sedimentological proxies from
lake sediments to reconstruct past climatic and environmental conditions for the late
Pleistocene and Holocene at several sites in the Great Basin (United States) as well as
Lake Nicaragua (Central America). Amy continues to serve as the advisor for the Minor
in Environmental Studies and is happy to report that the minor is gaining popularity, as
evidenced by the increasing number of students in the minor. This year Amy joined the
Board of Directors for the Expanding Your Horizons (EYH) through Science and
Mathematics Conference, a conference for 5 th -10 th grade girls from throughout Illinois.
For the March EYH Conference she once again taught a hands-on workshop on
computer mapping and GIS, with Geography Education major Deborah McAdams as her
assistant. Overall, the workshop participants seemed to enjoy the Google Earth
component the most. Amy began working as the Assistant Director for Outreach for the
University’s Center for Mathematics, Science, and Technology
in August. Her duties are broad, but a few examples of
events she has organized on campus include the High School Research Symposium,
American Chemical Society (ACS) High School Chemistry Contest, and the Illinois
Summer Research Academy. She also facilitated workshops for elementary and junior
high school students and is now developing summer programs for the Sugar Grove
Nature Center. Amy was recently awarded funding for “Global Climate Change:
Threatened Species, Threatened Environments” as part of the U.S. Department of
Education (DoE)/Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) funded Illinois Mathematics
and Science Partnership (IMSP) program created to organize teacher workshops. She
serves as PI on the project, with Co-PIs Doug Whitman (Biology) and William Hunter
(CeMaST). Preparations are underway for a two-week summer workshop for high school
teachers to be held in July that will involve interactive lectures, activities, hands-on labs,
and on- and off-campus field experiences. Email: ambloom@ilstu.edu
Dagmar Budikova, Associate Professor of Geography. B.Sc. (Honors), 1988, Environmental
Science and Mathematics, University of Toronto; Ph.D., 2001, Climatology, University of
Calgary. Dr. Budikova joined the Department in fall of 2000. In fall of 2009, Dr. Budikova
taught our 200-level statistics course that is now required for all Geography majors;
during spring 2010 she taught Applied Climatology, one of our senior
undergraduate/graduate course electives. This past year has been another busy one for
Dr. Budikova with respect to research. She spent the year working on a project that
explored the various hydroclimatic and synoptic factors that caused the 2008 summer
floods across the Midwest. The first of three papers dealing with the atmospheric
aspects of the floods has now been published in the International Journal of Climatology.
Dr. Budikova’s graduate student, Shane Strope, who worked with her on the flood
project for two years, has now defended her thesis, and so will be leaving the
Department shortly. Her presence will be missed. In July 2009, Dr. Budikova began her
three-year appointment as the West Lakes Regional Councilor of the Association of
American Geographers. So far, she has attended two council meetings and is finding the
experience very rewarding. She is impressed by the variety of activities that the AAG is
42

partaking in to make the discipline of geography more visible and better understood
across the country. After repeated encouragement and nagging from her friends, and
considerable initial resistance, 2010 marks the year when Dr. Budikova discovered the
wonders and potential of Facebook. She finds the technology fantastic for keeping in
touch with friends, family, and students. Feel free to look for her on Facebook and
update her on what you have been up to! Email: dbudiko@ilstu.edu
Homepages: www.geo.ilstu.edu/Faculty_pages/Budikova and www.geomap.ilstu.edu
James R. Carter, Emeritus Professor of Geography. B.A., 1958, Geology, Indiana University;
M.S., 1966, Geography, University of Maryland, College Park; Ph.D., 1973, Geography,
University of Georgia. Year five of retirement has passed, and he is still active on
campus and in the professions. In spring of 2009 Jim was able to get ice to grow from
some rocks in his yard. He tried to replicate the process in a refrigerator in the
Department, and had considerable success. So, about three times a week, he comes in
to campus to swim and check on his ice experiments. He has a few interesting photos
and many bland photos. Jim set up a new set of web pages on ice last summer to
integrate his work over the years . Last
September Jim co-hosted the National Orienteering Day event at Comlara Park. A
number of Geography students participated in the event. This spring he created an
Orienteering map for the local Girl Scout camp and will work with the counselors to set
up an O-course at the camp. Last November he went to Chile for the International
Cartographic Conference, and took the pre-conference tour to Patagonia. At the
conference Jim renewed many friendships and was able to introduce Dr. John
Kostelnick to many persons in the International Cartographic Association. And he gave a
paper on “Map: TV Character and Visual Representation of Space.” Of course, Jim took
the opportunity to make up at two Rotary Clubs in Chile. This year he was able to finish
three entries for Volume Six of the History of Cartography series. This volume is on the
Cartography of the 20 th Century. Then he was asked to collaborate with a colleague from
Austria on another entry. Hopefully, his final draft for that effort will be acceptable. Jim
continued to be active in Illinois State Senior Professionals, and this spring was elected
to the Board for a three-year term. With this organization he spent much time at the new
Alumni Center on North Main Street. Last fall a colleague in the Health Sciences
Department convinced Jim to serve on a regional task force examining health
information exchange efforts for Illinois. This proved to be an interesting activity as they
looked around the country to see where HIE is viable and where it is floundering or
nonexistent. He became personally involved this winter when some pains from shoveling
snow led to a hospital visit and many tests. Thankfully, everything was negative, but Jim
learned much about health information from the experience. And he made regular visits
to a nursing home to see his mother-in-law throughout the year. In the process his
vocabulary of acronyms has been expanded. Email: jrcarter@ilstu.edu Homepage:
my.ilstu.edu/~jrcarter
Robert G. Corbett, Emeritus Professor of Geology. B.S., 1958; M.S., 1959; and Ph.D., 1964,
The University of Michigan. Bob remains active in both education and geology. At the
national meetings of the American Institute of Professional Geologists held in Grand
Junction, Colorado, he presented “Acid Rain: Where are the Rest of the Data” Also at
those meetings, Bob received a plaque mounted on a slab of beautiful polished
porphyritic rock as a special recognition award for “unwavering dedication, loyalty, and
commitment to AIPG, including as chairman of the Academic Education, Student
Scholarship, and Continuing Committee.” It was presented by AIPG President John
Bognar at the banquet. Bob continues as Chair of the Academic Education Committee of
43

AIPG. In that capacity he oversaw the review of 21 applicants for the $1000 AIPG
scholarships. This year, given the number and the quality of the applicants, seven
awards will be announced in the fall. He is pleased to see that one Illinois State student
will be receiving the award. Bob also is an active member on the departmental Means
Committee, reviewing candidates for the Margaret Means Stipend and George R. Means
Geography Scholarship. This year, as a result of the settlement of the Means estate,
several awards were possible. Bob continues as an active member of the Geology
Board of Professional Regulation (Illinois). He is continuing with rehabilitation exercises,
but remains frustrated by the slow progress. Email: rcorbett@ilstu.edu
James E. Day, Professor of Geology. B.S., 1979, Oregon State University; M.S., 1984,
Northern Arizona University; Ph.D., 1988, The University of Iowa. Over the past year Dr.
Day taught two sections of GEO 202 (Evolution of the Earth), a section of GEO 295
(Sedimentology-Stratigraphy I) in the fall of 2009, and a section of GEO 385
(Invertebrate Paleontology) during the spring of 2010. He serves as a Titular Member
(representing Canada) of the Subcommission on Devonian Stratigraphy of the
International Union of Geological Sciences-Commission on Stratigraphy. He was also an
author or co-author of four abstracts, presented at a variety of professional conferences
in the United States, and four journal articles. Those co-authored articles appeared one
each in Earth and Planetary Science Letters and the IUGS-ICS Subcommission on
Devonian Stratigraphy Newsletter, and two in Palaeontographica Americana. The field
trip for GEO 295 examined Ordovician-Pleistocene aged sedimentary rocks in central
and western Illinois and eastern Iowa. The spring field trip for GEO 385 was successful
(no rain or snow) and looked at the Ordovician to Devonian stratigraphy and
paleontology of Wapsipinicont and Cedar Valley Group and older Ordovician rocks in
eastern and northeastern Iowa. He hosted a variety of guests who examined Devonian
brachiopods and conodonts in his lab. These included an Indian Ph.D. candidate from
Indiana University, Dr. Poul Emsbo of the USGS-Denver, and master’s student from
Idaho State University. Dr. Day also worked with Illinois State undergraduate students
Simone Runyon (Carboniferous fish from Iowa), Justin Calhoun (Milwaukee Formation of
Wisconsin), and Amie Hinds (Devonian brachiopods). Andrew Hardwick, Erik Munson,
and Charlie Hatch assisted with contract work on Devonian conodont biostratigraphy of
Devonian cores from northern Nevada. He attended the North American Paleontological
Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio, and was an author or co-author of two invited oral
presentations at that conference. He attended the North-Central Section meeting of the
GSA in Branson, Missouri, and made two oral presentations at that meeting. Email:
jeday@ilstu.edu
Tasha L. Dunn, Assistant Professor of Geology. B.S., 2000, Tulane University; M.S., 2005,
Geology, University of Tennessee; Ph.D., 2008, Geology, University of Tennessee. After
serving as a Visiting Assistant Professor during the 2008-2009 academic year, this year
marks the end of Tasha’s first year as a full-time member of the faculty. She continues to
teach Mineralogy, Petrology, Evolution of the Earth, and Planetary Geology and will be
teaching at field camp again this summer. She is also working to develop a new regional
studies course on the Appalachian Mountains that she hopes to offer during the 2011-
2012 academic year. In addition to teaching, Tasha has had a productive year of
research. She continued her research in X-ray diffraction of ordinary chondrites this year
with the help of a student, Ben Brooker, who presented his work at the University’s
Undergraduate Research Symposium. Tasha presented current research on
spectroscopy of chondrites at the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in Houston,
Texas, and published two papers on X-ray diffraction and metamorphism of ordinary
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chondrites in Meteoritics and Planetary Science. A third paper on chondrite
spectroscopy is in press and will be published in Icarus later this year. Tasha plans to
spend most of her summer developing a new research project that will focus on
metamorphism of the enstatite chondrites, but she will continue to work on
metamorphism of ordinary chondrites and to explore new research projects with
students. Email: tldunn@ilstu.edu
Karen Dunton, Staff Clerk. Karen continues to be busy as President of the Clerical and Support
Staff Union on campus. It has been almost nine years since Karen joined the
Geography-Geology Department, and she is still glad to be working here. Karen
continues to be busy as President of the Clerical and Support Staff Union on campus.
They have been in contract negotiations since June of 2009. The uncertainty of the
Illinois budget has significantly impacted Illinois State with late payments, which has
contributed to the slow negotiations. Karen is enjoying her new apartment and second
job. The perks are the incredible views from her apartment windows, but sometimes the
work involved is significantly time consuming. Karen was not able to travel last year, but
her good friend from the United Kingdom came to visit in the fall as the leaves were
changing. Email: kkedunt@ilstu.edu
Johanna Haas, Assistant Professor of Geography. B.A., (Phi Beta Kappa, Summa Cum
Laude), 1993, English and Medieval and Renaissance Studies, West Virginia University;
J.D. (with honors in law), 2001, The Ohio State University; Ph.D., 2008, Geography, The
Ohio State University. Last summer, Johanna went on a follow-up research trip to Alaska
with two students, Dawn Heckmann and Amanda Landers. They stayed in the town of
Palmer to research the community response to coal-bed methane development. The trio
conducted a number of stakeholder interviews, completed archival research at the local
library and historical society, and trekked to a couple of potential well sites. They even
took part in a yearly softball game held by a group who fought against coal-bed methane
development a couple of years earlier. Both Dawn and Amanda were injured–the lengths
to which we go to get a good interview! Johanna’s GEO 205 class (Living in the
Environment) has launched a number of interesting projects. This year’s class
completed a two-year environmental assessment of Felmley Hall. Additionally, a number
of students were able to use the class as a launching board for their own projects.
Cristina Morales and Kelly Schneider used the class to create a proposal for a studentrun
herb garden that would provide fresh herbs to the dining services; and that garden is
currently going up on west campus. Tony Pagan, Joshua Burdick, and Jon Dove used
the class to construct and run an internet survey about the willingness of students to pay
a sustainability fee. That project resulted in a real vote of the student body, a vote that
overwhelmingly approved paying the fee. Cristina also used a short paper from 205 to
form a senior thesis in anthropology on bottled water, which Johanna oversaw. The new
GEO 313 course in Energy and Sustainability ran for the first time this spring. Fifteen
students gathered twice a week in a seminar-style class reading about and discussing a
large number of issues related to energy and energy policy. As last summer’s tomatoes
never ripened, Johanna still requests good tomato vibrations.
Email: jmhaas2@ilstu.edu
Terry L. Harshbarger, Lecturer in Geography. A.B., 1964, University of Illinois; M.S., 1970, and
Ph.D., 1974, Purdue University; and M.S., 1996, Indiana State University. Terry taught
one night section of World Geography each semester at Illinois State during the 2009-
2010 academic year; but his primary responsibilities are teaching World Geography,
Geography of Underdeveloped Areas, Economic Geography, and Aviation at Parkland
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College in Champaign, where he is a Professor of Geography. Terry has developed two
on-line geography courses, and continues his research on Champaign County schools,
especially before 1900. His study identifying and examining various aviation education
models is the latest addition to his research activities. Terry is also listed in numerous
Who’s Who publications. Email: tharshbarger@parkland.edu
Mohammad Hemmasi, Lecturer in Geography. B.A., 1960, Tehran University, Iran; M.A., 1968,
and Ph.D., 1971, Indiana University. Mohammad Hemmasi taught several geography
courses including World Regional Geography (online version), Human Geography, and
Urban Geography. He received a grant to participate in the 2010 Preparing Urban
Teachers (PUT) program. He also reviewed a dissertation manuscript for merit prize in
communication and development for the Graduate School at University of North Dakota,
where he formerly chaired the Geography Department. Email: mhemma2@ilstu.edu
David B. Johnson, Lecturer in Geography. B.S., 1963, Physics, Illinois Wesleyan University;
M.S., 1976, Meteorology, Pennsylvania State University; M.S., 1993, History, Illinois
State University; ABD, History, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. David
Johnson teaches GEO 135, World Geography, and various courses in the History
Department, specializing in 20 th century political history. He served in the U.S. Air Force
from 1963 through 1991 as a meteorologist and an intelligence officer specializing in
special operations and contingency support. He and his wife, Carol, live in Bloomington
and have four daughters, all grown and off the payroll, and one granddaughter. When
time permits, which is not often, he busies himself with an HO-gauge model railroad in
his basement. Email: dbjohn@ilstu.edu
John C. Kostelnick, Assistant Professor of Geography. B.A., (With Distinction, Phi Beta
Kappa), 1998, History, Iowa State University; M.A., 2000, Geography, University of
Nebraska-Lincoln; Ph.D., 2006, Geography, University of Kansas. The 2009-2010
academic year was a busy one for John, with travels to four conferences. In November,
John joined Dr. Carter for a trip to Santiago, Chile, to attend the International
Cartographic Conference. In April, John presented a paper on visualization of hazards at
the Association of American Geographers meeting in Washington, D.C. Attendance at
the ILGISA and Illinois Geographical Society (IGS) conferences rounded out the circuit
for the year. John continues to expand his research agenda related to visualization of
hazards. A highlight of the year was having a map of sea-level rise published in a
National Geographic special issue on hazards. Other publications over the past year
include papers co-authored with Dr. Rowley and colleagues from Haskell Indian Nations
University and the University of Kansas that appeared in Photogrammetric Engineering
and Remote Sensing and Journal of Geography. With assistance from Illinois State
undergraduate students Jeremy Rogers and Adam Griffin, John recently completed work
on a project investigating the use of color infrared photography for assessing Emerald
Ash Borer (EAB) infestation in Chenoa, Illinois. The project was funded by the Illinois
Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Agriculture. John continues to serve
as GIS editor for Earthzine, and served as editor for a special issue on capacity building
and infrastructure. In the fall, John was elected to the Board of Directors for the Illinois
GIS Association (ILGISA) and has enjoyed the networking opportunities that the Board
experience has brought. As part of his service to ILGISA, John serves as editor of GIS
Notes, the biannual ILGISA newsletter. John remains involved in the development of
GEOMAP, and enjoyed reflecting on the progress of GEOMAP’s growth when updating
the strategic plan this winter with Dr. Budikova. This academic year, John taught GEO
300, Cartography; GEO 304, GIS Applications; and GEO 140, Human Geography. In
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June of 2009, John once again joined Dr. Sublett as a reader for the Advanced
Placement Human Geography exam in Lincoln, Nebraska. John served as faculty
advisor for the Geography Club and Gamma Theta Upsilon once again this year, and
continues to enjoy the opportunity to work with the students in this capacity. As the
summer begins, he looks forward to spending time on some projects around the house.
Email: jkostelnick@ilstu.edu Homepage: my.ilstu.edu/~jckoste
Deborah L. Lescher, Secretary. Debbie completed her nineteenth year with the Department
and her thirty-fourth with the Civil Service System. Debbie and her husband, Ray,
basically completed their garages that they were decorating the last couple years. They
added two of the final touches with the addition of a flat-screen TV and a surround sound
system, which makes watching the NASCAR races even better. There is always
tweaking here and there, but otherwise it is pretty much the way they want it to look.
They have had several parties in the finished garages. For instance, in November 2009,
they hosted a bash for youngest son Dallas’s thirtieth birthday, with approximately 50-60
people that came to help him celebrate. Then in April 2010, Reese, their youngest
grandchild, Dallas’s girlfriend’s boy, had his third birthday party, with appromimately 30
people enjoying watching him having a blast on his new motorized four wheeler, riding it
all over the premises. Ray and Debbie celebrated St. Patrick’s Day by going to
Maguire’s in Bloomington, and also Cinco de Mayo, going to Carlos O’ Kelly’s,
something they have done for the past several years. They both still do the marching
band competitions for Normal West High School every fall for their oldest granddaughter,
Brittany (17), with Ray still driving the semi with all the equipment and Debbie still doing
chaperone duties along with lots of other things that come with band competitions, and
sometimes getting to ride in the semi with Ray instead of riding the buses. And this fall
(2010) will also see their second granddaughter, Kourtney (13), joining the marching
band, so now they will have double the enjoyment watching and helping both girls. All
three granddaughters still participate in soccer, Brittany with the Normal West team, and
Kourtney and Hanna (9) still with the Prairie City Leagues. And Hanna will also be doing
her second year of girls’ softball. Debbie and Ray still do their three major NASCAR
races (Daytona in February, Talladega in April, and Michigan in August) every year and
their two major dirt track late model races (the DREAM in June and the WORLD 100 in
September) in Rossburg, Ohio. They also do some of the bigger dirt track late model
races at some of the local tracks, such as Fairbury, Farmer City, Macon, and Lincoln
speedways. An example would be a series called the “UMP Summer Nationals,” which is
also referred to as the “Hell Tour” because the drivers are in 28 different cities in several
different states in 30 days, definitely an exhausting and rough tour for the drivers but fun
and exciting to watch for the fans. As Debbie always says, their lives are very busy with
no grass growing under their feet, and they would not have it any other way. Email:
dllesch@ilstu.edu
David H. Malone, Professor of Geology and Department Chairperson. B.S., 1988, Illinois State
University; M.S., 1990, and Ph.D., 1994, The University of Wisconsin. This past year
was typical in the professional and personal life of David Malone. Over the summer, he
taught the capstone Field Geology course for the eighteenth time. Last year's group was
among the largest in his experience, as 34 students from nine universities were served.
The diversity of background and culture was good. It was another cold and nasty May in
Wyoming, but the students coped well and the Thermopolis hot springs were particularly
soothing. Participation in the Illinois EarthScope Teachers’ Workshop kept him busy for
the balance of the summer. In the fall, he taught Structural Geology. In the spring he
taught Stratigraphy (perhaps for the last time) and the Big Bend spring break field trip.
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Administrative duties were central to his efforts as he finished his eighth year as
Department Chair in December. One of the highlights of his efforts in this capacity was
Geography-Geology's selection as the College Development Award for work with alumni.
He saw graduate students Erin Roche and Drew Carlock successfully defend their thesis
research, and is pleased that each is now gainfully employed by ExxonMobil and BHP,
respectively. Their research efforts were supported by the U.S. and Illinois State
Geological surveys in the amount of $45,000. Each has geologic maps published by the
Illinois State Geological Survey. New graduate students Jodi Lau, Nicole Fox, and Eric
Avalos will keep him busy over the next set of years. Undergraduate students Simone
Runyon, Chris Longton, and Brad King all completed research projects under his
direction. Longton, King, and Runyon also had their geologic maps published. In addition
to the geologic mapping, Malone published "Oxygen Isotope Evidence of Heated Pore
Fluid Interaction with Mafic Dikes at Cathedral Cliffs, Wyoming" in Mountain Geologist,
and "Dynamics of the Emplacement of the Heart Mountain Allochthon at White
Mountain: Constraints from Calcite Twin Strain, Anhysteretic Magnetic Susceptibility,
and Thermodynamic Calculations" in the Geological Society of America Bulletin. On the
personal side, Malone continues his efforts in Boy Scouts and football coaching. His 5-
6th grade football team reached the league semifinals (one game below last year). He
led several trips for the Boy Scouts, which included a week to the Porcupine Mountains
of Michigan, a 50-mile bike ride along the Great River Trail in western Illinois, a weekend
adventure to Blue Spring Cavern and Vincennes National Historic Site in Indiana, and a
spring break train ride to Flagstaff and a three-night hike to the bottom of the Grand
Canyon. A sabbatical leave awaits in the fall of 2010.
Email: dhmalon@ilstu.edu
E. Joan Miller, Adjunct/Emerita Professor of Geography. B.A. (Hons.) Class Two; M.A., in
Geography, and Graduate Certificate in Education Class One, all from Cambridge
University (Girton College and Cambridge Training College for Women), England, United
Kingdom; Ph.D., Geography, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Miller
reports that she has yet to find answers to the following questions concerning the history
of the Department. (1) Why did Douglas Clay Ridgley not return to Illinois State Normal
University in 1922 when the work he had done with high school students and
undergraduates had made Geography at ISNU known nationwide (2) Did Ridgley
initiate the chain migration from ISNU to Clark University and was George R. Means part
of it She no longer drives so she had exerted much energy, time, and money to achieve
a new lifestyle. Four years ago Faith in Action, a nationwide venture, was established in
Bloomington-Normal. Their mission is to help seniors, like Dr. Miller, continue to lead
active lives and to stay in their homes; and she has called on them for rides to
appointments, etc. She has also found a company selling tapes for her Brother word
processor, a company that also sells ribbons for typewriters!
Email: ejmille@ilstu.edu
Robert S. Nelson, Associate Professor of Geology. B.A., 1965, Augustana College; M.S., 1968,
and Ph.D., 1970, The University of Iowa. This year was particularly eventful for Dr.
Nelson. On April 29, 2009, the request for proposals on stimulus funded teacher
workshops was issued by the Illinois State Board of Education. Actual funding was
through the U.S. Department of Education. He had been in contact with the Illinois State
Board of Education math and science director discussing the potential a EarthScope
teacher workshop. The closing date was May 29, a one-month turn-around time. Using
the Illinois Association of Aggregate Producers teacher workshop participant list for the
previous three years, he conducted a needs survey (47 responses), wrote the proposal
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with Willy Hunter (Center for Math, Science and Technology) and submitted it on May
27. The last two weeks of proposal writing occurred during the evenings and weekends
at field camp. A provision of the RFP was that to be eligible for funding of a summer
2010 workshop, a workshop had to be conducted before August 15, 2009. He received
notification that his proposal was funded on June 15. Eighteen teachers were recruited
for the workshop, held July 27-August 7, with follow-up weekend sessions in November
and January. The workshop for 2010 is filled. There were twice as many applicants as
workshop seats. Illinois EarthScope is one of three teacher workshops listed by the
EarthScope National Office on their website. Dr. Nelson gave presentations on Illinois
EarthScope Workshop for Teachers at the annual Geological Society of America
Meeting in Portland, Oregon, in October and to the U.S. Department of Education, Math
and Science Partnership, meeting in San Diego, California. He also gave presentations
on EarthScope to the Illinois State Geological Survey and at the Illinois Earthquake
Seminar. He was the media contact for the big events starting with the Haitian
Earthquake in January. He and Dr. Malone were invited to the North American Cratonic
Interior in the U.S. Midcontinent Workshop in April. This workshop was to plan the
science for when the USArray is in the midcontinent, 2011-2013.
Email: rsnelso@ilstu.edu Homepage: lilt.ilstu.edu/rsnelso
Eric W. Peterson, Associate Professor of Geology. B.S., 1995, and M.A., 1997, Mathematics,
University of South Dakota, Vermillion; M.S., 1998, University of Arkansas-Fayetteville;
Ph.D., 2002, University of Missouri-Columbia. Eric W. Peterson, Associate Professor of
Geology. B.S., 1995, University of South Dakota, Vermillion; M.A. (Mathematics), 1997,
University of South Dakota, Vermillion; M.S., 1998, University of Arkansas-Fayetteville;
Ph.D., 2002, University of Missouri-Columbia. The 2009-2010 school year marked Eric’s
eighth year at Illinois State, and second year as an Associate Professor. In June of
2009, Eric headed to South Dakota to help teach the Field Geology course. This was a
change from his normal routine of teaching the summer Environmental field course. He
enjoyed to the opportunity to teach in the field and to work in the Black Hills. After
returning from South Dakota, Eric traveled to Melbourne, Australia, to present a paper at
the 7 th International Conference on Geomorphology. After the conference, Eric enjoyed
sightseeing in Melbourne and Sydney before returning to the States. In the fall semester,
he was on sabbatical. During that time, Eric worked on a number of projects, including a
collaborative project with Toby Dogwiler at Winona State University, Minnesota. The
project examined thermal transport in a streambed under varying temperature regimes
to determine if the transport mechanisms change at different temperatures. Currently,
Toby and Eric are analyzing the data and preparing manuscripts for publication. Eric
returned to the classroom in the spring semester, teaching Groundwater Geology and
Introduction to Groundwater Modeling. In addition to course work, Eric mentored nine
students, had one paper printed, and submitted two additional papers for review. Lara
Harlan, Erasmus Oware, and Ben Maas successfully defended their theses. This year
Julie Angel and Joe Becker plan to defend their theses. Eric began mentoring Brianne
Jacoby in the fall. Brianne is working on a karst project in Carter Cave State Resort
Park in Kentucky. This summer, Eric will be heading west to teach the traditional Field
Geology. On a personal note, Eric and Sarah are kept busy running Morgan (13) and
Aidan (8) around to their numerous activities.
Email: ewpeter@ilstu.edu Homepage: lilt.ilstu.edu/ewpeter
R.J. Rowley, Instructional Assistant Professor of Geography. B.S. (Honors), 2002, Geography,
Brigham Young University; M.A., 2005, Geography, University of Kansas; Ph.D.
(Honors), 2009, Geography, University of Kansas. R.J. joined the Department this year
49

as a visiting instructor of geography. His interests include cultural geography, sense of
place, cultural landscape, GIS, and the intersection of GIS and qualitative methods. In
the fall he taught Human Geography (140) and Geographic Information Systems (303).
In the spring he again taught these two courses, along with Cultural Geography (331)
centered on urban culture and environment. R.J. also taught a two-day introductory GIS
workshop in December and another in May, both of which were offered under the
GEOMAP program to members of the community at large. He helped mentor two
graduate students, one in Illinois State’s Renewable Energy program and another in the
School of Information Technology, on their research that employed GIS to understand
the impacts of wind farms on property values and socio-spatial patterns of wireless
network security, respectively. R.J. continues several research threads he began during
his graduate career. He has three manuscripts currently in review from his dissertation
about local sense of place in Las Vegas. One is a historical geographical sketch of Las
Vegas’s reaction to the coming of Boulder (Hoover) Dam (submitted to Nevada Historical
Society Quarterly); another explores urban senses of community using present-day Las
Vegas as a case (Urban Geography); and the third is an ethnographic study of religion in
Sin City (Geographical Review). He also is working on a book proposal for his
dissertation to be submitted for review this summer. Expanding on his Las Vegas work,
R.J. began exploring the water issues in the Las Vegas region, specifically focusing on
the local understanding and perception of a project to import hundreds of thousands of
acre-feet of water from the arid Great Basin 200 miles north of the southern Nevada
metropolis. He presented a piece of this work at the 2010 AAG meetings in Washington,
D.C. R.J. also continues to work with Dr. John Kostelnick and Dr. Dave McDermott
(Haskell Indian Nations University) on GIS-based mapping and representation of
potential sea-level rise. Their work was recently featured in a special issue of National
Geographic entitled “Nature’s Fury.” He is also collaborating on sea-level-rise mapping
projects with the London School for Economics LSE Cities program as well as a film
production company in England working on a documentary about climate change to be
broadcast by National Geographic. R.J. has thoroughly enjoyed his time at Illinois State.
He has developed lasting relationships with both faculty and students and will miss both
when he begins a new position as Assistant Professor of Geography at the University of
Wisconsin-Platteville in the fall of 2010.
Email: rjrowle@ilstu.edu
William E. Shields, Lecturer in Geology. B.S., 1999, and M.S., 2001, Illinois State University.
Bill is continuing his work this year to support online education at Illinois State and has
been appointed by the vice-president to lead consultant for the University’s Virtual
Campus in the 3D computer simulation program Second Life. This year Bill received The
Presidential Award in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring by President
Obama for his participation with the outreach group Project Exploration. Project
Exploration works to ensure communities traditionally overlooked by science—
particularly minority youth and girls—have access to personalized experiences with
science and scientists. This is one of only three groups in the country to receive this
distinguished honor. Email: weshiel@ilstu.edu
Michael D. Sublett, Professor of Geography. B.A. (Phi Beta Kappa), 1966, and M.A., University
of Missouri-Columbia, 1967; Ph.D., 1974, The University of Chicago. Mike arrived at
Illinois State in 1970, chaired the Department from 1978 to 1988, has coordinated the
Geography internship program since 1987, and has served as co-organizer of the
annual Geography Career Fair since its inception in 1990. He just completed his fortieth
year on the faculty at Illinois State. Within a year of his 1970 arrival on campus, the
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Department recruited him to teach the Geography of Illinois course, which was then part
of General Education and needed several sections a year to cover the demand. Today
he continues to offer Illinois every spring, though it has long since become an elective
course, a course without prerequisite that attracts students from all over campus. In the
fall of 1979, during his second year as Department Chair, he took over the Field
Geography course from Professor Paul Mattingly and teaches it to a select group of
mainly Geography majors in the fall semesters. Of the courses he regularly teaches,
next came Seminar in Geography. As the Geography faculty made mandatory in 1985
an internship for all nonteaching Geography majors, there was a need for a careeroriented
course to help prepare those students for the rigors of real-world job
competition. Mike proposed and began teaching in 1987 the Seminar course to fill that
need. Today it serves as the capstone campus course for all Geography majors every
spring semester. Finally, came the Doing Geography course in 2005, a course that justretired
Professor Jim Carter had pioneered and taught since the early 1990s. Once a fall
and spring course, Doing Geography, which all Geography majors and minors must
take, runs only in the fall, largely because the spring semester is a poor time for the
required field portion of this course that serves as a bridge between lower division and
upper division Geography courses. The number of Geography students that have
fulfilled the internship requirement since 1986 is approaching 500, and Mike continues to
coordinate internships every summer, as he did in 2009 and will in 2010. In addition to
teaching-related roles, Mike is wrapping up a research project dealing with the modern
landscape evidence of early nineteenth-century Illinois Indian treaty boundaries. Most of
the field work for the project is complete, as is the background investigation via print and
electronic sources. During 2009, Mike’s co-authored chapter, “Student Voices through
Researching and Promoting Learner Autonomy,” appeared in Engaging Student Voices
in the Study of Teaching and Learning from Stylus Publishing. His service activities
included a seventh opportunity to be among the (now) three hundred or so readers at
the annual scoring of the Advanced Placement Human Geography exam, once again in
2009 as a Lead Table Leader. He has finished the first year of a three-year term on the
Student Enforcement Review Board University Hearing Panel.
Email: mdsuble@ilstu.edu Homepage: lilt.ilstu.edu/mdsuble
Jonathan Thayn, Assistant Professor of Geography. B.S., 2000, Geographic Information
Systems, Brigham Young University; M.P.A., 2002, Public Administration, Brigham
Young University; Ph.D., 2009, Geography, University of Kansas. The 2009-2010 school
year is Dr. Thayn’s first as a professor. He taught Geography of Latin America (GEO
235.02), Remote Sensing I (GEO 305), and Biogeography (GEO 344). Dr. Thayn trained
as a remote sensing scientist with an interest in biogeography and the effects of humaninduced
and natural changes in ecosystems so he was prepared to teach those courses.
Although he has done research in Latin America, and lived in Guatemala as a
missionary for two years, Dr. Thayn did not expect to teach the Geography of Latin
America until accepting his current position at Illinois State University. To his surprise, he
has really enjoyed teaching the class. Dr. Thayn’s research interests revolve around
using satellite and aerial images to study vegetation and ecosystem function. He
recently submitted a paper to the International Journal of Remote Sensing that
discusses the use of time-series satellite images to locate archaeological sites in the
Brazilian Amazon by using vegetation vigor as a surrogate for soil type (as the
prehistoric inhabitants of Amazonia substantially improved the fertility the soils they
used). Dr. Thayn plans on submitting a second, related paper this summer that deals
with using time-series satellite data to map the seasonal floodplains of the Amazon
River. Other projects he is working on include using spatial filtering to assess the effects
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of neighborhoods on adverse birth outcomes (in collaboration with Dr. Liz Legerski at the
University of Kansas); assessing the utility of satellite imagery to monitor the phenology
or seasonal timing of corn emergence in central Illinois; and an attempt to map
archaeological sites in Beni, Bolivia, by detecting informal cocoa (chocolate) orchards
that are frequently located near habitation sites. Apparently, the prehistoric inhabitants
used the cocoa bean to brew chocolate beer. If you drive along the rural roads of
McLean County this summer, you are likely to see Dr. Thayn flying a kite carrying a
remotely controlled camera as he collects images for his corn phenology research
project. In addition to research and class preparation, Dr. Thayn plans on spending this
summer exploring central Illinois with this wife, Debbi, and their four children and doing
some repairs on their Le Roy, Illinois, home. Email: jthayn@ilstu.edu
Jill Freund Thomas, Geography Education Specialist and Lecturer in Geography. B.S., 1982,
Anthropology-Archaeology/Geography, Illinois State University; M.S., 1986, Geography/-
Cartography, University of Idaho. Jill has finally made it through her twenty-fifth year
here at Illinois State. It is funny how she thought she would only be here for two years.
Time goes by pretty fast when having fun. The programs that she advises still see the
number of majors increasing steadily, which now requires Jill to meet with students
every half-hour during registration periods each semester. Jill taught her Geography 307
teaching methods course in the fall and incorporated a visit to the Chicago Public
Schools in learning about cultural diversity. Students really enjoyed it and even attended
a pep rally and had a free school lunch courtesy of the school principal. Jill is still
collecting data for the department’s NCATE review for our certification of the Earth and
Space Science Education and the Geography Education programs. She had eight
student teachers this past year spread all over the state. Several already found jobs and
are either teaching or will be teaching this coming fall. Jill coordinated a one-week Tri-
State Institute for teachers through the Illinois Geographic Alliance. The topic was finding
Lincoln throughout his life. Jill also coordinated the fall workshop for the Alliance in
Galena this past fall. And in the summer she coordinated a two-week teacher institute
called EarthScope here at Illinois State. Jill presented a paper at the NCGE meeting in
Puerto Rico this past fall and hopes to present in Savannah, Georgia, this coming fall.
She was busy as usual outside the office, included co-hosting the big twenty-first annual
Geography Career Fair, held at the Bone Student Center. Jill also judged at the state of
Illinois Geography Bee, held at the Chicago Field Museum, and attended several other
small workshops and conferences around the state. So traveling was popular this year
for her. She stepped down as President of the Illinois Geographical Society, but is
working with a new group called IGO, which promotes geography around the state. Jill
sent her oldest son to Eastern Illinois University this fall, where he has a soccer
scholarship and is majoring in special education. The house is still loud and crazy, but at
least there are fewer shoes to trip over at the door. Email: jfthoma@ilstu.edu
Stephen J. Van der Hoven, Associate Professor of Geology. B.S., 1985, Southampton
College; M.S., 1994, University of Arizona; Ph.D., 2000, University of Utah. During 2009-
2010, Steve taught his usual complement of five classes and focused on research
collaborations with colleagues at The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and Lawrence
Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). With respect to teaching, Steve served as the
director and instructor for the Environmental Geology Field Camp. The summer field
camp is a joint effort with Northern Illinois University, and is a required part of the Illinois
State Hydrogeology graduate curriculum and the NIU undergraduate Environmental
Geology major. In the fall, Steve taught Aqueous Geochemistry as well as teaching the
Research Methods seminar class for new graduate students. In the spring, Steve taught
52

Contaminant Transport and a seminar in Isotope Geochemistry, both graduate level
courses. Steve’s research continued on two tracks (nutrient cycling and noble gas
geochemistry), and resulted in the submission of three manuscripts. The nutrient cycling
part of his research is in collaboration with colleagues Bill Perry in the School of
Biological Sciences at Illinois State and Maria Lemke at TNC. Undergraduate student
Jarek Trela and graduate student Jonathan Love are an integral part of the research
team, and presented their research at conferences in 2009 and 2010. The research
focuses on the use of constructed wetlands to remove nutrients (nitrogen and
phosphorus) from agricultural tile drainage. Steve is also interested in the use of
constructed wetlands to remove nutrients from municipal waste water effluent. This
research involves graduate student Jessie Ackerman and uses the Bloomington-Normal
Water Reclamation District’s constructed wetlands as a field site. Steve’s noble gas
research continues in collaboration with colleagues at LLNL, where Steve has Visiting
Scientist status. This collaboration resulted in the submission of a manuscript to
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. Graduate student Eric Dieck joined in on this
research when he arrived in the fall, and Steve is working to secure Eric a summer
internship in 2010 at LLNL.
Email:sjvande2@ilstu.edu Homepage: www.geo.ilstu.edu/Faculty_pages/vanderhoven/
Henry J. Zintambila, Assistant Professor of Geography. B.S., 1968, Spicer Memorial College,
India; M.A., 1970, University of Poona, India; Ph.D., 1982, University of Hawaii at
Manoa. During the past school year Henry taught large sections of Earth’s Dynamic
Weather. He also taught two courses on Africa: Geography of Emerging Areas, which is
a General Education course and Geography of Africa for our majors. Henry’s physical
problems take him to Mayo Clinic on a regular basis for medical checkups. He has been
at Mayo four times this year. His son, Chiko, will be a junior at University High School
next school year. Chiko continues practicing piano and plays for his church services.
Email: hjzinta@ilstu.edu
Bill Shields, Geology Technician, helps keep Felmley shipshape by sending old research samples
of earth materials to the University’s groundskeepers for disposal. Sometimes the keepers of the
grounds find rocks, fossils, etc., that are good enough to display on their bookshelves.
53

Despite somber economic news, the University
authorized searching for and making contract offers to
two tenure‐track faculty during the year just
completed. They both accepted and are to begin their
Illinois State careers in August 2010.
Lisa Tranel joins the faculty in
Geology, coming to us from
Virginia Tech University. Her
recent research has a western
flavor; and her interview
presentation, “Evaluation of
Erosional Processes
Controlling Topographic
Evolution in the Teton Range,
Wyoming,” emphasized that
connection. Lisa grew up in
East Dubuque, Illinois.
Geographer Matthew Himley,
since his December 2009
interview here, has completed
his dissertation at Syracuse
University. That dissertation
research was the subject of his
on‐campus lecture, “Frontiers of
Capital: Mining, Mobilization,
and Resource Governance in
Andean Peru.” He has been
teaching temporarily at the
University of Vermont, and once
lived in the Chicago area.
54

FAMILIAR FACES
People make good subjects, so we like to include likenesses of as many different characters in our extended
departmental family as possible. (Top) GIS Day is a good day for a cake; and November of 2009 brought
cake fans together once again, this time in the Government Center in Bloomington. From the left, in the
front row, were Sarah Semple, Dawn Heckmann, Dagmar Budikova, and Melissa Dougherty‐O’Hara. Behind
them, from the left, were Josh Thompson, Cassidy Killian, and Leah Sweeney. Melissa, Josh, Cassidy, and
Leah are all graduates of the Geography program. Sarah graduated in December, and Dawn will graduate in
August 2010. (Middle) Floodplain specialist David Schein (center) of the Federal Emergency Management
Agency spent a day on campus in February and took time to meet with undergraduate student Dawn
Heckmann (left) and graduate student Shane Strope. (Bottom) Phil Ferguson was the Illinois Geographical
Society Outstanding Senior from Illinois State for 2009‐2010. Phil (left) invited his mother, Rene Ferguson,
to join him for the 30 April banquet and award ceremony in Rockford. Phil’s sister, Julia Ferguson, was an
outstanding Geology student at Illinois State a few years ago.
55

YESTERYEARS
By Michael D. Sublett
Glacial Deposits 30 Years Ago, Volume 8, 1979-1980
Computers really were available for cartographic projects three decades ago; but the maps then
emerged from “the Department’s computer mapping library maintained at Julian Hall,” according
to an article that Professor Donald E. Luman wrote for Volume 8, entitled “A Sample of
Computer Cartography Output.” Words, seldom seen now, like CALFORM, SYMVU, SYMAP,
and SYMAPVU appeared in his five-page piece. These were the programs that Don, fellow
geographer George Aspbury, and their students used on the mainframe computer in Julian.
Accompanying his page of text were several maps, including a perspective drawing of Illinois
showing farmland values by county, an “isarithmic slope map…of 3300 points depicting the area
encompassed by Timberline Subdivision at Goodfield,” “a planimetric line-printed map, as well
as the two-point perspective line plotted map” of nationwide precipitation on 9 November 1977,
and a “low-order trend surface” map of Washington state showing family income. Don soon left
the Department to teach at Northern Illinois University and now works for the Illinois State
Geological Survey, on the campus of the University of Illinois.
Glacial Deposits 20 Years Ago, Volume 18, 1989-1990
Computers made the news in the late 1980s as a novel way for registering our students. Donna
L. Mau, Student Editor for Volume 18, interviewed Professor Eric Johnson, the Geography
Advisor, for her article, “Easing Up on Registration.” Dr. Johnson told her that “the new system
makes looking through a stack of student files [file folders] unthinkable.” Every record that he
needed to advise majors was available “by the touch of a few keys.” If a graduating senior
wanted to know whether “his or her senior hours are completed,” all Eric had to do was give the
computer a “matter of seconds” to find the answer. Making life for students even easier was the
computer feature that allowed “a student to change majors to Geography or Geology without all
the running around back and forth between department offices and Hovey Hall.” Donna
graduated and worked several years at Walgreens headquarters. Eric Johnson retired in the
late 1990s and has since passed.
Glacial Deposits 10 Years Ago, Volume 28, 1999-2000
Computers were playing a huge role in the preparation and publication of Glacial Deposits by
the time Volume 28 appeared. In my annual editorial, I suggested that the cover that year was
“worth a few lines” because for the first time, after 27 issues, we had “the chance to publish
items in full color,” which we did on the inside and outside of the front and back covers. Key to a
color process that the Department could afford were the Director of Printing Services, David
Nelson, “and their new Heidelberg Quickmaster DI (digital imaging) color press,” which retailed
“for just under $500,000.” Jill Freund Thomas, in charge of rendering our graphics (then and
now), was “able to go all out with color efforts on type, logos, photographs, and maps.” I noted
that we were just then beginning to use digital photographs (one of incoming faculty member
Dagmar Budikova and another of President Vic Boschini). The other photos in that volume were
film prints that Jill had to scan and prepare for the printing press. Dave Nelson retired in 2010,
but the Heidelberg continues to march.
56

MEMENTOS OF CHILE
In addition to their logbooks for recording daily highlights and impressions of
Chile, Professors Jim Carter and John Kostelnick had their cameras at the ready.
John gets credit for the top and middle images. Jim took the last one and also the
shot of Santiago on page 30, the final page of the article about their trip.
Santiago is fond of hills and
heroes. Cerro San Cristobal,
with its communications
towers and statue of the Virgin
Mary (at the crest), forms a
backdrop for the equestrian
statue of Chilean General
Manuel Baquedano, hero of the
War of the Pacific (with Peru
and Bolivia).
It would be hard to miss the giant
Cross of the Third Millennium in
Coquimbo, which is a few hours by
highway north of Santiago. The cross,
at 300 feet, is just a bit taller that
Watterson Towers on the Illinois
State campus and commemorates the
onset of the third thousand years of
Christianity.
Some young professors are risk
takers. John Kostelnick fulfilled that
role by allowing companion Jim
Carter (safely behind camera) to talk
him into riding a giant bungee
device into the Chilean troposphere.
This image occurred just prior to
launch. To John’s left is an employee
of the amusement firm who got a
free ride, because no other paying
customers appeared on the scene.