Miller

Kirk Bryan Award goes to a team of INSTAARs, colleagues

Anonymous — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 21:34:00 +0000

Kirk Bryan Award goes to a team of INSTAARs, colleagues Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 10/19/2023 - 15:34

Shelly Sommer

A team of researchers that included several INSTAAR scientists received the prestigious Kirk Bryan Award from the Quaternary Geology & Geomorphology Division of the Geological Society of America (GSA). The prestigious award honors the authors of a recent paper that advances the science of geomorphology.

Led by former INSTAAR PhD student Simon Pendleton, now an Assistant Professor of Practice at Plymouth State University, the team of researchers included INSTAARs Gifford Miller, Scott Lehman, Sarah Crump, and Robert S. Anderson and colleagues Nathaniel Lifton from Purdue University and John Southon from the University of California, Irvine.

Their paper in Nature Communications, “Rapidly receding Arctic Canada glaciers revealing landscapes continuously ice-covered for more than 40,000 years,” was published in 2019. The study looked at the ages of ancient plants preserved by now-receding ice caps in Arctic Canada. It found that the summer warmth of the past century now exceeds any century in within the past 115,000 years. In an acceptance speech at the GSA annual meeting, Pendleton described a long and collaborative process that led to the paper’s publication, involving, “the chance collection of preserved plants nearly 60 years ago, some not insignificant improvements in radiocarbon dating, the invention of an entirely new surface dating technique (cosmogenic exposure dating), and the perseverance of individuals in the pursuit of understanding these landscapes and the climate secrets they hold.” The researchers spent hours walking ice margins on Baffin Island and processed hundreds of preserved plants in labs to date the plants and place them in a context stretching for thousands of years. He added, “In many ways, this paper encapsulates the theme of the Kirk Bryan award: the innovations made by others over past decades enabled our team to continue to advance the field and our understanding of these glacier-climate systems.”

“It was only recently that I fully appreciated the irony of this particular project,” said Pendleton. “The irony that the warming of the climate—the very thing we are attempting to quantify and characterize—is revealing to us, through ice recession, the data we need to do it. These newly exposed materials are ephemeral, and once they are gone, the record is lost forever.”

The award comes with a monetary prize, which the authors will donate to the Sarah Crump Graduate Fellowship. Sarah Crump was an author on the paper who contributed significantly to the field and lab portions of the study. She passed away in 2022 after a battle with cancer, leaving a legacy of outstanding paleoclimate science paired with a strong commitment to inclusion and community building.

Previous Kirk Bryan Award winners from the �鶹ӰԺ include John Andrews in 1973 and Peter Birkeland in 1988.

Simon Pendleton and Giff Miller collect ancient plant remains melted out of the edge of an ice cap on Baffin Island. Photo by Matt Kennedy, Earth Vision Trust.

Giff Miller holds a clump of ancient moss, recently melted out of the edge of an ice cap on Baffin Island. Photo by Matthew Kennedy, Earth Vision Trust.

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How 1,200-year-old eggs from a 9-foot tall, 1,500-pound bird led to a scientific breakthrough (USA Today)

Anonymous — Sat, 11 Mar 2023 07:00:00 +0000

How 1,200-year-old eggs from a 9-foot tall, 1,500-pound bird led to a scientific breakthrough (USA Today) Anonymous (not verified) Sat, 03/11/2023 - 00:00

Saleen Martin , USA Today

Towering over nine feet tall and weighing over 1,500 pounds, the now-extinct aepyornis lived more than 1,200 years ago and was Madagascar’s largest land animal. Scientists at the �鶹ӰԺ and Curtin University in Australia recently discovered a new lineage of the birds using eggshell remnants, as well as isotope geochemistry and protein extraction. The findings were published in Nature Communications.

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Giant eggshells reveal the secrets of Madagascar's elephant birds (NPR)

Anonymous — Wed, 08 Mar 2023 18:44:26 +0000

Giant eggshells reveal the secrets of Madagascar's elephant birds (NPR) Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 03/08/2023 - 11:44

Before they were driven to extinction, giant elephant birds roamed Madagascar, weighing up to 2,000 pounds and towering 10 feet tall. A new analysis of DNA in their eggshells gives new information about the birds and identifies a previously unknown lineage. The story is a 2-minute listen on National Public Radio.

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Ancient eggshells unlock discovery of extinct elephant bird lineage (CU �鶹ӰԺ Today)

Anonymous — Wed, 01 Mar 2023 18:29:40 +0000

Ancient eggshells unlock discovery of extinct elephant bird lineage (CU �鶹ӰԺ Today) Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 03/01/2023 - 11:29

Kelsey Simpkins , CU

More than 1,200 years ago, elephant birds roamed the island of Madagascar. While these ostrich-like giants are now extinct, new research from CU �鶹ӰԺ and Curtin University in Australia reveals that their eggshell remnants hold valuable clues about their time on Earth. Published today in Nature Communications, the study describes the discovery of a previously unknown, separate lineage of elephant bird that roamed the wet, forested landscapes on the northeastern side of Madagascar—a discovery made without access to any skeletal remains.

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How we cracked the mystery of Australia’s prehistoric giant eggs (The Conversation)

Anonymous — Wed, 25 Jan 2023 23:30:01 +0000

How we cracked the mystery of Australia’s prehistoric giant eggs (The Conversation) Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 01/25/2023 - 16:30

Gifford Miller and collaborators Matthew James Collins and Beatrice Demarchi tell the story of the ancient eggshell fragments found in eroding Australian sand dunes, the controversy around their origins, and how new techniques and AI helped solve the mystery. A summary chapter in the evolving story of Genyornis and the probable causes of its extinction.

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Egg-eating humans helped drive Australia’s ‘thunder bird’ to extinction (Science)

Anonymous — Fri, 27 May 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Egg-eating humans helped drive Australia’s ‘thunder bird’ to extinction (Science) Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 05/27/2022 - 00:00

The giant bird Genyornis newtoni disappeared from Australia 45,000 years ago, and researchers have long puzzled over whether human hunters or climate change was the culprit. Now, a new analysis of ancient eggshells—the leftovers of a prehistoric feast—suggests humans were responsible. Study led by Giff Miller. Illustration by Nobu Tamura.

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Bits of an extinct bird’s eggshells may be clue to why megafauna vanished (Washington Post)

Anonymous — Thu, 26 May 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Bits of an extinct bird’s eggshells may be clue to why megafauna vanished (Washington Post) Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 05/26/2022 - 00:00

A new study led by Giff Miller suggests that the 500-pound <em>Genyornis newtoni<em> laid the eggs marked by cooking fires in Australia, and not a smaller bird. The study could shed light on an even bigger scientific mystery, of why megafauna went extinct shortly after the advent of humans on the continent.

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New class of CU Distinguished Professors: Leaders in research, education, service (CU Connections)

Anonymous — Thu, 11 Nov 2021 07:00:00 +0000

New class of CU Distinguished Professors: Leaders in research, education, service (CU Connections) Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 11/11/2021 - 00:00

University’s highest faculty honor awarded to 11 professors for 2021, including INSTAARs Diane McKnight and Giff Miller.

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Six CU �鶹ӰԺ faculty members become distinguished professors (CU �鶹ӰԺ Today)

Anonymous — Fri, 05 Nov 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Six CU �鶹ӰԺ faculty members become distinguished professors (CU �鶹ӰԺ Today) Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 11/05/2021 - 00:00

Diane McKnight and Giff Miller are among those added to the roster of distinguished professors, the highest honor bestowed by the CU System. The award recognizes faculty who demonstrate exemplary performance in research or creative work; a record of excellence in promoting learning and student attainment of knowledge and skills; and outstanding service to the profession, the university and its affiliates.

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Ancient plant DNA and pollen found under Baffin Island lake show a greener Arctic (ArcticToday)

Anonymous — Thu, 08 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Ancient plant DNA and pollen found under Baffin Island lake show a greener Arctic (ArcticToday) Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 04/08/2021 - 00:00

The snowy landscape of the Arctic was greener more than 100,000 years ago and could get there again as the climate warms and plants migrate further north, new research suggests. Plant DNA taken from soil 10 meters below a lake near Clyde River shows dwarf birch shrubs used to grow up to the northernmost point of Baffin Island, according to research led by Sarah Crump, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The samples, more than 100,000 years old, were found in soil and were more intact than samples from permafrost, suggesting they may have remained unfrozen.

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