For the week: January 8 - 14, 2007


In preparation for the big game:
Ohio State Buckeyes Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio_State_Buckeyes

Florida Gators Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida_Gators


Colloquium: There will not be a Department colloquium this Thursday. http://www.met.psu.edu/dept/events/MeteoColloq.html

Congratulations to Rhonda Spychalski who won the "Future Star" Award at the EMS Staff Appreciation luncheon on Wed., Dec. 20! The award honors a staff member who has been with the College fewer than two years, who demonstrates initiative and commitment to their unit, and has made a significant impact within their short employment.

Due to the holidays, Birthday Monday will be held on Monday, January 22 this month. Stop by the main office to grab some goodies in honor of those in the Department with January birthdays.

New Travel Reimbursement forms and policy: Please note the new travel reimbursement policy (linked below), which goes into effect this month (January 2007). Anyone requesting reimbursement should use the new form.
[Travel Reimbursement Form]
[New Travel Policy]

Have you heard about Turnitin? Turnitin.com is a Web-based plagiarism detection and prevention system owned by Turnitin.com, Inc. to which Penn State has a subscription. Turnitin.com can be used as a means to teach students how to work with sources and to raise awareness of paraphrasing and quoting skills in order to avoid plagiarism. A full announcement about Turnitin can be found by visiting: http://www.met.psu.edu/dept/courses/turnitin.pdf.

All Penn State Meteorology faculty, staff, students, and alumni are invited to an Alumni Reception to be held at the Annual AMS Meeting in San Antonio, TX on Tuesday, January 16 from 6-8:30 p.m. in Salon J of the Marriott Rivercenter Hotel. Please help us to spread the word to fellow Penn Staters!

Announcing the Dissertation Medal in Applied Climatology for 2007 to be awarded by the American Association of State Climatologists. Any recent Ph.D. graduate who has a galley-proof manuscript or a published journal article derived from dissertation work accomplished while a student in North America or one of the U.S. Territories is eligible to apply. [More information including how to apply.]

Water Bottles are on sale in the Weather Station. They are fantastic and make great gifts and great PSU Meteorology souvenirs. They are $8 each. Just look for one of the PSUBAMS officers to purchase one.

Chi Epsilon Pi is selling unique Penn State Meteorology items to raise funds for activities they plan to hold in the future and spread Penn State Meteo spirit! The two items for sale are Penn State Meteorology window clings and magnets. The price is $3 per magnet and $2 per window cling. However, for those interested in purchasing several of each, we will offer a discount of 4 magnets for $10 and 3 window clings for $5. You may purchase these items from Rhonda Spychalski in the main office on the 5th floor of Walker, Zack Byko in 410 Walker, Victor Yannuzzi in 412 Walker, or Jared Lee in 405 Walker. Any questions, contact Zack at zmb102@psu.edu. [View images of magnets and window clings.]

Weekly forecast discussions will return on Tuesday, January 23, 2007! These discussions will take place each Tuesday afternoon at 2:45 in the Weather Station Classroom during the spring semester. They will be informal, last about 30 minutes, and will be lead by a Penn State, AccuWeather, or National Weather Service forecaster. Everyone with an interest in weather forecasting is invited! Feel free to drop in on the discussions whenever possible, whether it is on a weekly basis or just once or twice all semester. It is our hope that the experts giving the discussions can teach us a little more about weather forecasting and the audience engage and question the forecast discussion leader. We are still in need of more forecast discussion leaders for the spring semester, so if you have an interest in leading a forecast discussion or know someone you think would be interested, please contact Zack at zmb102@psu.edu.

Colloquium Cooking Challenge Continues into Spring 2007: Due to the overwhelming number of great treats submitted to the "Colloquium Cooking Challenge" this semester and several people expressing they would like an opportunity to bake something for the contest, I have decided to extend the challenge until Spring Break. Each Thursday afternoon with a colloquium in the spring semester through Thursday, March 8, somebody will have a chance to win two free tickets to the Meteorology Department's Spring Banquet on Wednesday, March 28 at 7:00 p.m. (reception at 6:30 p.m.) at the Atherton Hotel. I have already placed a sign-up sheet outside my office (410 Walker)....anyone with an interest in baking something feel free and sign up when you get a chance. For those who have already entered a dessert and those who will in the future, the winner will be announced on or around March 9. If you have any questions, or would like to sign up via email, please contact Zack Byko (zmb102@psu.edu)

Colloquium: There will not be a Department colloquium this Thursday. http://www.met.psu.edu/dept/events/MeteoColloq.html

Earth and Mineral Sciences Film Series: For a preview of films to be aired throughout the spring 2007 semester, please visit: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/emsl/videoseries.html

Conference Room Calendar Change: The 529 and 511 Walker conference room calendars are now "view only" due to a scheduling issue. If you'd like to reserve one of these rooms, the staff in the main office will be glad to make the reservation for you.

IN THE NEWS:

A story titled "Pollution Knows No Borders" and focusing on the research of Anne Thompson and her research team, is featured in the December 11, 2006 issue of Penn State Live [View Story]. The article is a synopsis of the talk Prof. Thompson presented at the AGU Meeting in December and focuses on ozonesonde launches and air quality sampling done in Mexico City, Houston, TX and Richland, WA last spring and summer.

Alumnus Dan W. Pulsipher, D.O. ('88 B.S.) was recently featured in an article in Medical Economics titled "Dream Practice: Working in Paradise." [View article]

The September 2006 issue of Geotimes features an article by Samuel C. Schon and Arthur A. Small titled "Climate Change and the Potential of Coal Gasification." [View article]

Alumni Joel Gratz ('03 B.S.) and Erik Noble ('02 B.S.) have authored an article titled "Lightning Safety and Large Stadiums," which appears in the September 2006 issue of the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. [View article]

Craig Bohren addresses the controversial topic of global warming in the August 7 issue of the USA Today in an article titled "How to get to the bottom of the global warming debate." [View article]

On August 14, Millersville University PR Newswire published an article titled "Millersville University Professor Works to Make Sailing Safer," which features alumnus Todd Sikora ('90, '92, '96) and research collaboration with George Young. [View story]

An August 9, 2006 article in Penn State Live titled, "To the Point, Penn State professor on effects of Alaska oil field shutdown," features Andrew Kleit. [View story].

A May 2006 PNL web publication in the Atmospheric Science & Global Change Division titled "Sharing Space for the Sake of Science," discusses collaborations with Anne Thompson's and Bill Brune's research teams. The article also includes quotes from PNNL scientist and Penn State alumnus, Jim Mather ('86, '90, '94). [View article].

Alumnus Henry Margusity ('90 BS), senior meteorologist for AccuWeather, and Prof. Michael Mann are interviewed for an article titled "A hurricane here could spell trouble" that appeared in the Hazelton Standard Speaker on July 16, 2006. [View Article]

Geoff Cornish was interviewed for a story appearing in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.com on July 9, 2006 titled "Where's the Most Perfect Climate" [View Story]

A 2002 Penn State Meteorology alumnus, Manajit Sengupta, was featured in an article in the Wall Street Journal on June 27, 2006. The article, titled "Under a Cloud" is about the daunting backlog of visa applicants and the logistics and time involved in getting a long-term visa. [View Article].

Fred Gadomski is featured in a Penn State Live article on June 21, 2006 about the summer forecast. [View Article]

Research done by Michael Mann, Raymond Bradley, and Malcom Hughes was in the spotlight in most national newspapers last week. For instance, visit, "Study: Earth 'likely' hottest in 2,000 years" from CNN.com.

On May 29, The Toronto Star published an article titled "Weather matters to Wall Street," which discusses the increasing opportunities for meteorologists in financial markets. Andy Kleit was interviewed for the story. [Full Story]

A story titled "Climate change responsible for increased hurricanes," featuring Michael Mann, was published in the May 31, 2006 issue of Penn State Live. [Full Story]

Archived News:  The weekly news is archived.  See the link at the bottom of the page to access the archives.

Colloquium: There will not be a Department colloquium this Thursday. http://www.met.psu.edu/dept/events/MeteoColloq.html
..............................................................................

Congratulations to Rhonda Spychalski who won the "Future Star" Award at the EMS Staff Appreciation luncheon on Wed., Dec. 20! The award honors a staff member who has been with the College fewer than two years, who demonstrates initiative and commitment to their unit, and has made a significant impact within their short employment.
..............................................................................

Due to the holidays, Birthday Monday will be held on Monday, January 22 this month. Stop by the main office to grab some goodies in honor of those in the Department with January birthdays.
..............................................................................

All Penn State Meteorology faculty, staff, students, and alumni are invited to an Alumni Reception to be held at the Annual AMS Meeting in San Antonio, TX on Tuesday, January 16 from 6-8:30 p.m. in Salon J of the Marriott Rivercenter Hotel. Please help us to spread the word to fellow Penn Staters!
..............................................................................

New Travel Reimbursement forms and policy: Please note the new travel reimbursement policy (linked below), which goes into effect this month (January 2007). Anyone requesting reimbursement should use the new form.
[Travel Reimbursement Form]
[New Travel Policy]
.............................................................................

The Twenty-second Annual Graduate Exhibition will be held from March 23-25, 2007. An online entry from and complete guidelines for participants can be found on the Graduate School homepage (www.gradsch.psu.edu/exhibition). Entry forms will be accepted online beginning January 15, 2007 and continuing until 5:00 p.m. February 23, 2007. An informal meeting for potential exhibitors will be held on Wed., January 17, 2007 from 5-7 p.m. in 112 Kern Building.
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Luna Marie Rodriguez Manzanet and Armand Silva are both protégés in the SOARS program. You may view their abstracts as published in the 2006 version of "Earth, Wind, Sea, and Sky" Protégé Abstracts. [Luna Marie Rodriguez Abstract] [Armand Silva Abstract]
..............................................................................

Colloquium Cooking Challenge Continues into Spring 2007: Due to the overwhelming number of great treats submitted to the "Colloquium Cooking Challenge" this semester and several people expressing they would like an opportunity to bake something for the contest, I have decided to extend the challenge until Spring Break. Each Thursday afternoon with a colloquium in the spring semester through Thursday, March 8, somebody will have a chance to win two free tickets to the Meteorology Department's Spring Banquet on Wednesday, March 28 at 7:00 p.m. (reception at 6:30 p.m.) at the Atherton Hotel. I have already placed a sign-up sheet outside my office (410 Walker)....anyone with an interest in baking something feel free and sign up when you get a chance. For those who have already entered a dessert and those who will in the future, the winner will be announced on or around March 9. If you have any questions, or would like to sign up via email, please contact Zack Byko (zmb102@psu.edu)
..............................................................................

Spring 2007 GIS Training Workshops: The Graduate School, in cooperation with Penn State Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Council, is offering the workshops listed below in GIS training. These workshops are geared toward faculty, staff, graduate and undergraduate students interested in incorporating GIS into their research projects.

Workshops begin in January. For more information, please visit http://www.gis.psu.edu
..............................................................................

Nominations are being accepted for the Wilson Award for Outstanding Teaching in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. You are invited and encouraged to nominate an EMS faculty member for the 2007 Matthew J. and Anne C. Wilson Outstanding Teaching Award. Nominations are due no later than February 15, 2007. Please visit: http://www.met.psu.edu/dept/news/EMSWilsonTeachingAward.pdf for a list of faculty members who have received the Wilson Award for Outstanding Teaching and are ineligible to receive it again.
..............................................................................

Water Bottles are on sale in the Weather Station. They are fantastic and make great gifts and great PSU Meteorology souvenirs. They are $8 each. Just look for one of the PSUBAMS officers to purchase one.
..............................................................................

January 2007 Candidacy Exam: The next PhD Candidacy Exam will be given on January 10-11, 2007.
..............................................................................

32nd Annual Northeastern Storm Conference Call for Papers. Deadline for submission of abstracts is January 12, 2007. The conference, sponsored by the Lyndon State College chapter of the AMS and the National Weather Association will be held March 9-11, 2007 at the Springfield Marriott in Springfield, MA. [More Info]
..............................................................................

Weekly forecast discussions will return on Tuesday, January 23, 2007! These discussions will take place each Tuesday afternoon at 2:45 in the Weather Station Classroom during the spring semester. They will be informal, last about 30 minutes, and will be lead by a Penn State, AccuWeather, or National Weather Service forecaster. Everyone with an interest in weather forecasting is invited! Feel free to drop in on the discussions whenever possible, whether it is on a weekly basis or just once or twice all semester. It is our hope that the experts giving the discussions can teach us a little more about weather forecasting and the audience engage and question the forecast discussion leader. We are still in need of more forecast discussion leaders for the spring semester, so if you have an interest in leading a forecast discussion or know someone you think would be interested, please contact Zack at zmb102@psu.edu.
..............................................................................

Deadlines and Important Dates:

Jan 15 Monday—student registration deadline

Jan 16 Tuesday—classes begin

Jan 29 Monday—last date for a spring graduate to activate the intent to graduate on eLion
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SPRING 2007 COURSES

METEO 465/565: Middle Atmospheric Meteorology/Physics of the Upper Atmosphere (A. Thompson) [More]

MKTG 597A: Simply Bayesian (J. Liechy) [More]

CE 563: Systems Optimization using Evolutionary Algorithms (P. Reed) More

MATH/CSE 597C: Numerical Methods for Hyperbolic Conservation Laws (W. Shen)

Stat 515: Stochastic Processes and Monte Carlo (Murali Haran) More

Colloquium: There will not be a Department colloquium this Thursday. http://www.met.psu.edu/dept/events/MeteoColloq.html

Congratulations to Rhonda Spychalski who won the "Future Star" Award at the EMS Staff Appreciation luncheon on Wed., Dec. 20! The award honors a staff member who has been with the College fewer than two years, who demonstrates initiative and commitment to their unit, and has made a significant impact within their short employment.

All Penn State Meteorology faculty, staff, students, and alumni are invited to an Alumni Reception to be held at the Annual AMS Meeting in San Antonio, TX on Tuesday, January 16 from 6-8:30 p.m. in Salon J of the Marriott Rivercenter Hotel. Please help us to spread the word to fellow Penn Staters!

Due to the holidays, Birthday Monday will be held on Monday, January 22 this month. Stop by the main office to grab some goodies in honor of those in the Department with January birthdays.

Be part of something brilliant--significant opportunities in atmospheric research and science (SOARS) is four-year paid summer internship program for undergraduate science, math, engineering, and social science students interested in understanding the atmosphere and using that understanding to improve life on Earth. Application deadline is February 1. To learn more about SOARS visit: http://www.ucar.edu/soars or talk to a SOARS protégé right in our department! Luna Marie Rodriguez Manzanet and Armand Silva are both protégés in the SOARS program. You may view their abstracts as published in the 2006 version of "Earth, Wind, Sea, and Sky" Protégés. [Luna Marie Rodriguez Abstract] [Armand Silva Abstract]

Nominations are being accepted for the Wilson Award for Outstanding Teaching in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. You are invited and encouraged to nominate an EMS faculty member for the 2007 Matthew J. and Anne C. Wilson Outstanding Teaching Award. Nominations are due no later than February 15, 2007. Please visit: http://www.met.psu.edu/dept/news/EMSWilsonTeachingAward.pdf for a list of faculty members who have received the Wilson Award for Outstanding Teaching and are ineligible to receive it again.

Each spring semester, EMS recognizes exceptional student achievement through several awards. This year's awards include the 2007 Ellen Steidle Achievement Awards, the 2007 Dean Steidle Scholar Award, the 2007 William Grundy Haven Student Paper Competition, and the 2007 GEMS Diamond Award (new!). Please visit http://www.met.psu.edu/dept/news/EMS_Student_Awards_2007.pdf for more information on each award. Nominations deadlines are February 15, 2007.

Two students who participated in the summer 2006 Student Volunteer Program at the NWS in Baltimore/Washington presented their research through posters at the NWA conference in Ohio in October. Audra Henneke was awarded the "Best Poster by an Undergraduate Student" and Katie LaBelle, a senior, presented two aviation climatology posters at the meeting. [Read about Audra and Katie's accomplishments in the Fall 2006 edition of the Sterling Reporter, a newsletter of NOAA's National Weather Service in the Baltimore/Washington Forecast Office.]

Summer Student Opportunity Listing on the AMS web site. Companies and radio/tv stations are advertising summer employment and internship opportunities available in the atmospheric and related sciences. To view the listings, please visit www.ametsoc.org and click on the link for Student Resources.

Colloquium Cooking Challenge Continues into Spring 2007: Due to the overwhelming number of great treats submitted to the "Colloquium Cooking Challenge" this semester and several people expressing they would like an opportunity to bake something for the contest, I have decided to extend the challenge until Spring Break. Each Thursday afternoon with a colloquium in the spring semester through Thursday, March 8, somebody will have a chance to win two free tickets to the Meteorology Department's Spring Banquet on Wednesday, March 28 at 7:00 p.m. (reception at 6:30 p.m.) at the Atherton Hotel. I have already placed a sign-up sheet outside my office (410 Walker)....anyone with an interest in baking something feel free and sign up when you get a chance. For those who have already entered a dessert and those who will in the future, the winner will be announced on or around March 9. If you have any questions, or would like to sign up via email, please contact Zack Byko (zmb102@psu.edu)

Spring 2007 GIS Training Workshops: The Graduate School, in cooperation with Penn State Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Council, is offering the workshops listed below in GIS training. These workshops are geared toward faculty, staff, graduate and undergraduate students interested in incorporating GIS into their research projects.

Workshops begin in January. For more information, please visit http://www.gis.psu.edu

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is pleased to announce the RISE (Research Internships in Science and Engineering) Program will take place in the summer of 2007. Undergrads spend the summer working on a research project with a German Ph.D. student, who serves as a personal and professional mentor. Students receive a scholarship to cover living expenses, and the Ph.D. student will help find housing. Participants get exposed to advanced research and learn about Germany from the inside, make new friends and establish professional contacts, and spend weekends exploring the heart of Europe. Online registration and internship database open on Thursday, December 7. Online registration opened on November 1. The internship database will be activated on Friday, December 1. Find out about eligibility and the application process, and read reports from past participants, at http://www.daad.de/rise/en/index.html

32nd Annual Northeastern Storm Conference Call for Papers. Deadline for submission of abstracts is January 12, 2007. The conference, sponsored by the Lyndon State College chapter of the AMS and the National Weather Association will be held March 9-11, 2007 at the Springfield Marriott in Springfield, MA. [More Info]

Important Deadlines/Dates:

Tues Jan. 2 - Mon Jan 29: Intent to Graduate - Activation Period
Mon Jan. 15: Leave of Absence - Deadline
Mon Jan. 15: Student Registration - Deadline
Mon Jan. 15: Martin Luther King Day - No Classes
Tues Jan. 16: Classes Begin
Tues Jan. 16: Thurs Jan 25: Drop/Add Period

There is still time to apply for Spring 2007 Co-op positions with Walter Reed Army Institute of Research and the Naval Surface Warfare Center. Interested Meteorology students should register with the College of Science Co-Op Program by visiting: http://www.science.psu.edu/coop. A permanent link to the College of Science Cooperative program has been added to the Department's "Employment" page and "Undergraduate" page.

--Click on "Students"
--Click on "online registration"
--Follow the written instructions to register.
--Bookmark the database log-in page

--Complete your profile and upload your resume and over sheet (be sure to use the provided template)

--Call 814-865-5000 to schedule an appointment.

Water Bottles are on sale in the Weather Station. They are fantastic and make great gifts and great PSU Meteorology souvenirs. They are $8 each. Just look for one of the PSUBAMS officers to purchase one.

IUG Open to All Students: The Graduate Council has recently approved the proposal to make the IUG program open to all students (as opposed to just Schreyer's Honors students). The new policy will go into effect in the Spring 2007. For those who aren't familiar with the IUG program, it is an integrated B.S./M.S. (IUG) program that is designed to allow academically superior students to obtain both the B.S. and the M.S. degree in Meteorology in five years of study. [More info]

Chi Epsilon Pi Tutoring Services: For every undergraduate meteorology class, Math 140 and Math 141/141G, a tutor has been selected who has extensive background in the topic. The idea is that this is a person you can contact if you feel you need more assistance with a course than the instructor and TA can provide. Most importantly, this service is completely free of charge! If you are struggling with a class this spring, please use Chi Epsilon Pi's tutoring services. The best way to contact tutors is via email, even though an impromptu visit to a tutor's office may be fruitful on some occasions. The tutoring list can be viewed at http://www.met.psu.edu/dept/courses/tutoringlist.html

Weekly forecast discussions will return on Tuesday, January 23, 2007! These discussions will take place each Tuesday afternoon at 2:45 in the Weather Station Classroom during the spring semester. They will be informal, last about 30 minutes, and will be lead by a Penn State, AccuWeather, or National Weather Service forecaster. Everyone with an interest in weather forecasting is invited! Feel free to drop in on the discussions whenever possible, whether it is on a weekly basis or just once or twice all semester. It is our hope that the experts giving the discussions can teach us a little more about weather forecasting and the audience engage and question the forecast discussion leader. We are still in need of more forecast discussion leaders for the spring semester, so if you have an interest in leading a forecast discussion or know someone you think would be interested, please contact Zack at zmb102@psu.edu.

2007 Student Career Experience Program positions at the Meteorological Development Lab located in Silver Spring, MD. Please visit the following website for details about this COOP opportunity: http://www.nws.noaa.gov/mdl/coop/coop.htm

Plan Ahead for Meteo 414! I thought I would give you some advanced notice concerning our plans for Meteo 414, Mesoscale Meteorology. By Spring '07 we are planning to schedule the course in a newly renovated room on the first floor of Walker that will have a maximum capacity of 36 students. This spring we were able to accommodate 40 students in the course, but we will not be able to do so in the future. If you were planning to take the course in Spring '07, but could take it in Fall '06, then please do so as there are currently spaces available. We wish to make the course available to each of you who wants to take it, but to ensure that you are able to register for the course, we ask that you plan ahead and take it at the earliest possible time in which there are openings in the class. Sincerely, Professor Shirer

Become a student member of the AMS: http://www.ametsoc.org/memb/

SPRING 2007 COURSES

METEO 465/565: Middle Atmospheric Meteorology/Physics of the Upper Atmosphere (A. Thompson) [More]

 


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