In this episode, we dive into the changing landscape of education, exploring our own experiences with nervousness, student engagement, and the evolving challenges faced by both teachers and students today. We discuss the balance between content mastery and life skills, the phenomenon of grade inflation, and the impressive qualities that make studen…

In this episode, we dive deep into the contentious and fascinating world of scientific credit in geoscience. Through engaging stories and discussions, we examine how key discoveries, like continental drift and seafloor spreading, were developed and often led to debates over who deserved recognition. We also explore the roles of lesser-known scienti…

Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. You can also learn the basics of geology at the college level in our FREE CampGeo content series - get learning now! Like, Subscribe, and leave us a Rating! —————————————————— Instagram: @plan…

Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. You can also learn the basics of geology at the college level in our FREE CampGeo content series - get learning now! Like, Subscribe, and leave us a Rating! —————————————————— Instagram: @plan…

In this episode of "Planet Geo," we delve into whether geological events such as earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, and extreme weather are becoming more common or severe. Through a lively and humorous discussion, including a guest appearance from Joyce!, we explore the statistical analysis of earthquakes over the past 35 years, concluding that la…

In this episode, we delve into the fascinating concept of hypsometry and its applications in understanding Earth's topography. We start with a light-hearted email from a listener, but quickly transition into discussing the principles of hypsometric curves. We break down how these curves provide insights into the distribution and stability of Earth'…

In this episode we engage in a lively conversation with Dr. Rachel Phillips, popularly known as GeoGirl on YouTube. Rachel shares her journey from resisting geology despite her geologist parents, to embracing it due to a chemistry class in college. She discusses her PhD research on ancient ocean chemistry and reveals her recent focus on geoscience …

In this episode, we delve into the fascinating world of geological sampling. We start with a humorous discussion on episode titles and then transition into the complexities of geological sampling, including personal anecdotes about our own experiences and lessons learned. We discuss the importance of sample size, statistical models, and challenges …

In this episode of Planet Geo, we delve into the geology of the Michigan Basin, focusing on its formation, sedimentary layers, and economic significance. We discuss the concept of a self-fulfilling prophecy in basin formation, explaining how deposition and subsidence work together to create and deepen basins over time. We also highlight the unique …

In this episode, we delve into the fascinating topic of garnet eyes, discussing how these unique geological features form and what they reveal about the history of metamorphic rocks. We explore different types of reaction rims and depletion halos, breaking down the complex processes that create these striking features. We also share personal storie…

In this episode of PlanetGeo, we delve into the fascinating world of eskers, exploring their formation, significance, and economic importance. We explain how eskers, sinuous ridges formed by pressurized meltwater channels at the base of glaciers, provide crucial geological insights and serve as valuable tools in mineral exploration, such as in diam…

Dr. Jesse Reimink and Chris Bolhuis share their firsthand experiences and insights from recent fieldwork. The episode delves into their fascinating observations and discussions about various geological features, including lava inflation structures, such as tumuli and inflation pits, the stunning landscapes shaped by fjords in Iceland, and the depos…

Dr. Jesse Reimink and Chris Bolhuis delve into the fascinating geological phenomenon of columnar jointing, sharing insights from Chris's recent trip to Iceland. They discuss the formation, size variations, and unique patterns of these striking hexagonal columns found in basaltic lava flows, addressing questions such as why they form, why some flows…

In this episode, Chris Bolhuis and Dr. Jesse Reimink delve into the intricacies of the Jack Hills zircons from Western Australia, discussing their formation, significance, and the ongoing scientific debates surrounding them. They explore topics like plate tectonics, the age of zircons, and the methodologies used to study these ancient grains, and c…

In this episode of Planet Geo, Dr. Jesse Reimink and Chris Bolhuis delve into the fascinating and sometimes perilous world of landslides, focusing on a recent landslide known as the Big Fill landslide that occurred in the Teton Pass. They discuss the various triggers and mechanisms behind landslides, including the impact of water, earthquakes, and …

In this podcast episode, Dr. Jesse Reimink and Chris Bolhuis delve into part two of their discussion on Earth's oldest rocks, specifically the Acasta Gneiss. They explore the origin, complex history, and significance of these ancient rocks, including insights from Dr. Reimink's PhD research which suggests an Icelandic rather than subduction zone se…

Dive into the fascinating world of Mammoth Cave with Dr. Jesse Reimink and Chris Bolhuis in this episode of Planet Geo. From understanding the types of passageways formed by ancient underground rivers to exploring the intricate and beautiful cave decorations like stalactites, stalagmites, and flowstone, this episode provides a comprehensive and eng…

In this episode, Chris Bolhuis and Dr. Jesse Reimink dive into the complexities of Zircon grains from the Jack Hills conglomerate in Western Australia—some of the Earth's oldest fragments. They discuss the environmental conditions necessary for their formation and survival, the role of magma differentiation in creating intermediate to felsic rocks,…

In this episode of Planet Geo, Chris Bolhuis and Dr. Jesse Reimink dive deep into the geology of the Grand Teton National Park. They cover the park's ancient rock formations, from the Archean gneiss to the granites formed around 2.5 billion years ago. The discussion also explores significant geological events like the Severe and Laramide orogenies,…

Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. You can also learn the basics of geology at the college level in our FREE CampGeo content series - get learning now! Like, Subscribe, and leave us a Rating! —————————————————— Instagram: @plan…

This episode is Part 2 of our Mammoth Cave series - where we discuss the geological setup that enabled creation of the longest cave system in the world. The geology of the region, including the Green River, set the stage for the formation of Mammoth Cave, the largest cave system that has been mapped. Stay tuned for our third installment on Mammoth …

Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. You can also learn the basics of geology at the college level in our FREE CampGeo content series - get learning now! Like, Subscribe, and leave us a Rating! —————————————————— Instagram: @plan…

This is the first episode in a series of 3 on the world's longest cave system - Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. In this episode, Chris and Jesse talk a little about Mammoth and some of its impressive statistics. The focus however, is more about the necessary ingredients for cave development in general. We talk about the 4 general ingredients: suitable ro…

In this episode, Jesse and Chris talk about the geology of Iceland - although we keep it at a high level. We're going to come back to this - Iceland - later after Chris returns from his trip. Then, we'll get into some of detail that makes Iceland so unique. Here, we discuss how Iceland might be a prototype for the formation of continents and also t…

Hardpan! Where did this idea for an episode come from? Chris has been doing a ton of yard work lately and it’s not uncommon come across a layer when digging a hole that is next to impossible to penetrate. He has to bust out my pick axe to get through it. It's Called Hardpan. Really dense layer that often occurs below the topsoil. Problems: Roots ca…

Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. You can also learn the basics of geology at the college level in our FREE CampGeo content series - get learning now! Like, Subscribe, and leave us a Rating! —————————————————— Instagram: @plan…

Today we really go into the weeds. Jesse and a colleague just published a paper in the journal Nature that proposes a new model for how continents became stable. Stable continents have all the granite at the surface, which contains all the heat producing elements like U and Th and K - elements that decay away. Today, we discuss that paper in detail…

Today, Chris and Jesse get into a discussion about Earth’s oldest material. Earth is 4.568 Billion years old. First of all, that’s amazing the geochronologists have refined this down to 3 decimal places. How do we know this? The oldest grains ever found are 4.38 billion years old. If that’s the case, then how do we know the Earth is significantly o…

In this episode, we tackle a listener question regarding planning a geology trip for students. Both Chris and Jesse have quite a bit of experience in planning and executing field excursions for students. We believe that seeing geology in the field is one of the most powerful learning opportunities for students of all levels. In our discussion, we t…

Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. You can also learn the basics of geology at the college level in our FREE CampGeo content series - get learning now! Like, Subscribe, and leave us a Rating! —————————————————— Instagram: @plan…

Join us as we have the honor of interviewing Dr. John Douglas. Jesse and Chris have been following his research on how the Grand Canyon was actually formed for some time. We have recently finished our audio-visual book on the Grand Canyon (Link above) and we have a chapter dedicated to the actual cutting of the Canyon. The answer to this question h…

The idea for this episode came from the comment section of a social media post. It has it's roots in one of the biggest misconceptions in Geology and also Geochronology. The comment was about radio-carbon dating and how it's been "proven" to be unreliable. In this episode, Jesse and Chris have a discussion about the "toolbox" for geochronoligists a…

In charge of the Nations Rock Collection. That's a pretty sweet job description. Join us as we have the honor of interviewing Dr. Mike Ackerson. In this episode, we certainly get into some detail about igneous petrology. Mike and Jesse are good friends and have spent some time discussing things that introductory geology classes take for granted. Fo…

Today, Jesse and Chris discuss the geology of Nickel - The Devil’s Metal. Surprisingly, Earth’s core has a high percentage of Nickel - 10 to 20% of the core is nickel. We allow ourselves the luxury of getting into the details on nickel and why the core has so much. Of all the metals we’ve discussed on the podcast, the geology of nickel is the most …

Today, we have the another great interview - Dr. Anji Shah. She works for the USGS and has done a lot of work on heavy-mineral sands and critical elements. In this discussion, we talk about the paleo-environment that could concentrate critical minerals in heavy sands. Dr. Shah also tells us how "airborn geophysics" is important in looking for miner…

Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. You can also learn the basics of geology at the college level in our FREE CampGeo content series - get learning now! Like, Subscribe, and leave us a Rating! —————————————————— Instagram: @plan…

In this episode, Jesse and Chris discuss the geology of asbestos. Really, we cover all things related - history, past uses (some of which are mind boggling), health issues, and of course the mineralogy. If you want the datail, this episode is for you. Jesse goes off the deep end a little as he nerds out on some geochemistry. We hope you enjoy. Down…

Dr. Adam Simon joins PlanetGeo to discuss many topics. One of the most interesting topics of discussion is the copper dilemma facing the world. If we want to transition to green energy like Electric Vehicles, we will face a shortage of copper. Dr. Simon describes Copper as the artery of a green transition. However, he's done the math and it doesn't…

Today, Chris and Jesse once again revisit the topic of Bowen's Reaction Series. We've never approached the topic in such a before. The heart of our discussion centers around 1- What is Bowen's Reaction Series? and 2- How do we approach this highly idealized concept in an introductory class. How rocks really crystallize in a geologic setting is far …

Today is our latest episode in our series on climate. Jesse and Chris discuss the meaning of "Hard Water". Chris and Jesse both have hard water at our houses and we talk about how that happens. We wrap up this episode by talking about how the topic of hard water fits into our series and climate. We hope you enjoy! Download the CampGeo app now at th…

Join us as we interview Dr. Steph Mrozek. Steph is an economic geologist with interests in interests in skarn and porphyry deposits and geochemistry applied to mineral exploration. In our interview, the discussion turns to degrees in geoscience and educational pursuits. We’ve received a number of questions from listeners about what degree to pursue…

Join Chris and Jesse as we tackle questions about the Grand Canyon. A 4th grade class, Bronx Little School, reached out in a letter with a list of fantastic questions. We knew right away we wanted to make an episode about this. These questions, and our responses, provide a great introduction to the geology of The Grand Canyon. Below are the questio…

Today, we re-visit one our earliest episodes that we recorded when this whole thing began. We've decided to do a small series on Earth's climate and feel that this is the best kickoff point for that topic. We begin by discussing the forgotten history of climate science. This is important because we have known the physics of greenhouse gases for ove…

We are on a break, but you can join us now on a virtual Summer Science Institute trip! Follow the virtual Mr. Bolhuis as we go on a geo-tour of many of the premier National Parks in the US. Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. Yo…

We are happy to announce the release of our new Geology of the Grand Canyon book on the CampGeo mobile app - Download now to start listening! We are on a break, but you can join us now on a virtual Summer Science Institute trip! Follow the virtual Mr. Bolhuis as we go on a geo-tour of many of the premier National Parks in the US. Download the CampG…

We are on a break, but you can join us now on a virtual Summer Science Institute trip! Follow the virtual Mr. Bolhuis as we go on a geo-tour of many of the premier National Parks in the US. Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. Yo…

We are on a break, but you can join us now on a virtual Summer Science Institute trip! Follow the virtual Mr. Bolhuis as we go on a geo-tour of many of the premier National Parks in the US. Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. Yo…

We are on a break, but you can join us now on a virtual Summer Science Institute trip! Follow the virtual Mr. Bolhuis as we go on a geo-tour of many of the premier National Parks in the US. We are also excited to announce that we have just released a new audiobook on our CampGeo mobile app on Earth's Climate. It's a five-part series with all the im…

We are on a break, but you can join us now on a virtual Summer Science Institute trip! Follow the virtual Mr. Bolhuis as we go on a geo-tour of many of the premier National Parks in the US. Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. Yo…

We are on a break, but you can join us now on a virtual Summer Science Institute trip! Follow the virtual Mr. Bolhuis as we go on a geo-tour of many of the premier National Parks in the US. Download the CampGeo app now at this link. On the app you can get tons of free content, exclusive images, and access to our Geology of National Parks series. Yo…