The first is to communicate a geographical appreciation of the Earth's physical environment and the place of humanity within it. My second goal in teaching is to provide students with the geographical skills necessary for the management of the physical environment. My research focuses on the earth's surface landscapes which have been shaped by internal tectonic, solar-driven climatic, biological, and human processes. The topics of my published research include the origin of vernal pool basins in the Sacramento Valley, the paleolake history of Butte Valley in northeastern California, prehistoric channel changes of the Walker River in Nevada, and the paleolake history of the Carson Desert in Nevada. The central theme of all my research is understanding the earth's environmental changes and their effects on human societies.
Nature is a wonderfully creative force, and at the same time a senselessly destructive force.
We face her absolutely perplexed. Albert Schweitzer, Civilization and Ethics . Instructor , Truckee Meadows Community College, Reno, Fall-1982. Salt Lake City. Late Quaternary Paleolakes of Butte Valley, Siskiyou County, California.