Geology and paleontology subject of talk this evening
Laboratory geologist Giday WoldeGabriel will discuss the intriguing fossil findings from an African rift valley that he and partners at the University of California, Berkeley have been studying during a Frontiers in Science talk tonight.
WoldeGabriel works in Environmental Geology and Spatial Analysis (EES-9). His talk will focus on what it was about Africa that led to the proliferation of life in the midst of catastrophic volcanic eruptions and other environmental hazards. The answer, he posits, lies in the continent’s geographic position compared with the others during the later part of Earth’s history.
Woldegabriel speaks at 7 p.m. at the Museum of Natural History and Science in Albuquerque. The complete schedule of his talks is below.
Africa was pinned down for tens of millions of years while the rest of the continents were globetrotting. Thus it experienced less dramatic climatic and environmental fluctuations, even though it was subjected to periodic complex internal forces that caused the outpouring of more than a million cubic kilometers of lava in the northeastern regions. Despite the inhospitable environment, this region contains the longest and most continuous human fossil record known today. And thanks to the exposed rock and the rapid rates of erosion, record numbers of fossils have been revealed to the science team’s exploring eyes.
WoldeGabriel’s talk, sponsored by the Laboratory Fellows, will explore how geological and climatic forces influenced the dawn of humankind over the last 6 million years.
Admission is free, and all the talks begin at 7 p.m. See the Frontiers in Science lecture series Web page for more information.
The talks are offered in four different Northern New Mexico venues:
Today
New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science
1801 Mountain Road NW, Albuquerque
Friday, (April 4)
James A. Little Theater, New Mexico School for the Deaf
1060 Cerrillos Road, Santa Fe
April 8
Taos Convention Center, Los Angelitos Room
Civic Plaza Drive
April 9
Duane W. Smith Auditorium
Los Alamos High School, Los Alamos
For more information, contact the Community Programs Office (CPO) at 5-4400 or (888) 841-8256 toll free.
