houck2040/artisci huggingface dataset:
the idea just came to me while walking my dog thats how texas a&m university student hayden smith 19 thought of the innovative idea thats now taking him all the way to the super bowl as a winner of pepsicos 2019 game-changers competition a double-major in economics in the college of liberal arts and environmental geoscience in the college of geosciences smith used his knowledge of business and the environment to develop a plastic-reduction concept to pitch to pepsico now named one of five winners of the competition smith is excited not only to enjoy an all-expenses-paid 4-day trip to super bowl weekend in atlanta but also to see his award-winning idea possibly become a reality it intermixes a lot of what ive learned in environmental geosciences sustainability and the reductions of plastic and the economics of cost savings by reducing inputs he said those concepts are centered around digital technology which acts as a connecting point with you and the brand because in-effect of buying this brand you are now participating in a global sustainability initiative its a big system how it comes together smith is a serial ideator because you never know the power of ideas he said the plastic-reduction idea came to him about six months ago one day when he was walking his dog about a month later he heard about the pepsico competition made the video pitch for his idea and entered it i didnt tell a soul about it until i heard back in december he said now smith is headed to atlanta for super bowl 53 and his sustainability-minded idea could potentially be implemented by pepsico (he could not disclose the specifics of the idea; pepsico owns the intellectual property of every submission to the competition) he and the other four pepsico game-changers competition winners will participate in promotional filming watch the half-time show rehearsal be in a nasdaq stock exchange bell closing take a market tour attend the super bowl take photos with the vince lombardi trophy meet nfl players and more thinking like an entrepreneur since age eight smith has a passion for both sustainable policy development and sustainability-focused businesses and his entrepreneurial instincts have driven him for a long time i remember the day i made my first dollar when i was about 8 years old it kind of just lit me on fire he said since then ive always had little side jobs and am always coming up with new ideas from 2017 to 2018 smith and two friends a texas a&m geosciences graduate student and a university of houston graduate student formed a startup company to develop a holistic student services software application their team completed ycombinators startup school a program of one of the major startup accelerators in silicon valley and they also participated in texas a&m mays business schools mcferrin center for entrepreneurship startup aggieland business incubator program
the most influential thing for entrepreneurship for me has been to get around people who have a similar mindset and to keep a close-knit group with those people he said i highly recommend the incubator program here and the many events of startup aggieland; those are amazing places to meet like-minded people building a startup was an invaluable experience for him starting an official texas llc and working with other people who were hungry to develop a useful software for others really opened my eyes in a lot of ways and now i would like to own my own business one day he said i think entrepreneurship is a huge part of solving so many of the problems society faces aggie professors helped instill a passion for sustainable solutions smiths affection for aggieland has also been with him for most of his life he said i grew up in allen texas and id been coming to college station since i was in diapers smith said both of my grandfathers are professors emeritus in the texas a&m system dr norman guinasso research professor emeritus of oceanography at texas a&m and dr donald e harper jr professor emeritus of marine biology at texas a&m galveston theyve both been the most amazing mentors i was just drawn to texas a&m i was admitted and its been a dream ever since at texas a&m professors in both of his majors have helped him understand the most critical problems facing earth today and how sustainable solutions could be developed my favorite economics class has been with dr adel varghese instructional associate professor of economics who teaches development economics smith said thats been most influential for me because you can really see the change that can occur by shaping policy; and likewise you can see the negative impacts of not thinking through policy holistically smith also credits the teaching of dr vatche tchakerian professor of geography for opening my eyes to not just the problems we face but looking at the grand solutions of actually moving in a better direction for our planet and people and geography professor dr wendy jepsons resources class also gave me a much more well-rounded view of policy he said texas a&m has made a huge impact on his life the deep intrinsic sense of community is what ill miss the most he said it really is a family-type experience after graduating in december 2019 he would like to attend law school and focus on a jd in environmental law and also pursue a joint masters degree in development or resource economics and hopes to eventually work in public service or policy-making i want to make an impact in any way that i can whether its through changing the marketing and production of companies or advocating sustainable policy im all about it by leslie lee '09 media contacts: leslie lee texas a&m college of geosciences 979-845-0910 leslielee@tamuedu robyn blackmon texas a&m college of geosciences 979-845-6324 robynblackmon@tamuedu
geology & geophysics department holiday party january 2019the department of geology and geophysics celebrated the holidays and the beginning of 2019 at the annual department holiday party jan 30 2019 faculty staff graduate students and guests attended the party which included honoring dr peter knappett on his tenure view more photos at: txag/dpsibey photos by mariana figueroa 19
faculty staff graduate students and guests attended the party which included honoring dr peter knappett on his tenure view more photos at: txag/dpsibey photos by mariana figueroa 19
faculty staff graduate students and guests attended the party which included honoring dr peter knappett on his tenure view more photos at: txag/dpsibey
undergraduates invited to apply for 2019 research experience undergraduate (reu) program for ocean researchthe application deadline for the 2019 research experiences for undergraduates (reu) program is feb 19 jan 24 2019group photo of 2018 reu students aboard r/v pleican (photo from reu blog)this summer the department of oceanography at texas a&m university and the geochemical and environmental research group (gerg) and will again host the observing the ocean the research experiences for undergraduates (reu) program which is funded by the national science foundation (nsf)[subject to approval of the federal budget] ten reu students will participate in a 10-week summer program focusing on innovative ocean observing technologies to address issues facing the coastal oceans such as hypoxia harmful algal blooms ocean acidification and pollution students will have the opportunity to work with faculty and staff mentors in laboratories and on seagoing projects to acquire the analytical skills for multidisciplinary oceanographic research more than 20 faculty and researchers from gerg and the oceanography department serve as reu mentors in interdisciplinary research fields such as paleoceanography marine biology and ocean modeling the application deadline for the 2019 reu is feb 19 undergraduate students who are us citizens us nationals or us permanent residents can apply for the program graduating seniors are not eligible for the program i highly encourage undergraduate students who are interested in pursuing research and advanced degrees in oceanography said dr lisa campbell oceanography professor and reu program director for more information including application eligibility and procedure list of reu mentors and potential student research project topics visit the official website visit the reus blog for more photos of past reu projects and participants by bumsoo kim
group photo of 2018 reu students aboard r/v pleican (photo from reu blog)
this summer the department of oceanography at texas a&m university and the geochemical and environmental research group (gerg) and will again host the observing the ocean the research experiences for undergraduates (reu) program which is funded by the national science foundation (nsf)[subject to approval of the federal budget] ten reu students will participate in a 10-week summer program focusing on innovative ocean observing technologies to address issues facing the coastal oceans such as hypoxia harmful algal blooms ocean acidification and pollution students will have the opportunity to work with faculty and staff mentors in laboratories and on seagoing projects to acquire the analytical skills for multidisciplinary oceanographic research more than 20 faculty and researchers from gerg and the oceanography department serve as reu mentors in interdisciplinary research fields such as paleoceanography marine biology and ocean modeling the application deadline for the 2019 reu is feb 19 undergraduate students who are us citizens us nationals or us permanent residents can apply for the program graduating seniors are not eligible for the program i highly encourage undergraduate students who are interested in pursuing research and advanced degrees in oceanography said dr lisa campbell oceanography professor and reu program director for more information including application eligibility and procedure list of reu mentors and potential student research project topics visit the official website visit the reus blog for more photos of past reu projects and participants by bumsoo kim
texas a&m university president dr michael k young and texas a&m provost and executive vice president dr carol a fierke have announced that dr debbie thomas has been appointed as the dean of the texas a&m college of geosciences her appointment has been confirmed by the texas a&m university system and became effective jan 14 2019 debbie has been an outstanding leader at the department college and university level fierke said her scholarship is recognized globally in areas of particular strength and importance for the future advancement of geosciences at texas a&m university thomas received her masters degree in marine sciences and her doctoral degree in geological sciences from the university of north carolina her undergraduate degree is in geological sciences from brown university she joined texas a&m university in 2004 as an assistant professor and currently holds the rank of professor in the department of oceanography it has been an honor to serve texas a&m university as faculty member department head and interim dean of geosciences thomas said i am humbled to have earned the honor of serving as the dean of geosciences an international leader in research thomas specializes in the field of paleoceanography and was instrumental in establishing the r ken williams 45 radiogenic isotope geosciences laboratory she studies the chemical composition of marine sediments to reconstruct past climate with a particular interest in the climate dynamics of globally warm periods of time in earths history her work relies on sea floor samples collected through the international ocean discovery program (iodp) she has led international research teams through the iodp and successfully proposed iodp expedition 378 which will recover cores from portions of the south pacific not yet explored through scientific ocean drilling dr thomas was named co-chief of the expedition now scheduled to sail in early 2020 texas a&m university and the college of geosciences serve as the operator of the joides resolution drill ship in service of iodp and this award represents the single largest continuous grant to texas a&m university from national science foundation totaling more than $2 billion in competitive grant awards since 1983 thomas honors include being named a montague center for teaching excellence scholar and receiving the college-level distinguished achievement award for teaching from the texas a&m association of former students she was the keynote speaker for the shell science seminar at the national science teachers associations national conference and delivered the keynote address at a texas a&m university freshman convocation she has also been named a distinguished lecturer for the consortium for ocean leadership thomas has served as interim dean of the college of geosciences since 2016 and was previously head of the department of oceanography (2013 – 2016) please join us in congratulating dr debbie thomas on her appointment as dean of the college of geosciences
texas sea grant welcomes new extension agentjointly appointed with texas sea grant and texas a&m agrilife extension nikki fitzgerald is chambers and jefferson counties new coastal and marine resources extension agentjun 19 2018photo from nikki fitgeraldphoto by chris mouchynnikki fitzgerald joined texas sea grant in may 2019 as the programs chambers and jefferson counties coastal and marine resources extension agent jointly with texas a&m agrilife extension with texas sea grant fitzgerald plans to start a recycling program in jefferson and chambers counties she also will educate youth in conjunction with the jefferson county camp seaport and collaborate in the jason project at lamar university an effort to get elementary and middle school students interested in and excited about science additionally fitzgerald plans to enhance recreational fishing and eco-tourism opportunities through educating landowners in pond management fitzgerald explains i look forward to working with camp seaport in port arthur teaching kids about different jobs in the maritime industry and pushing for more women in the industry fitzgerald brings an expertise in natural resource restoration to texas sea grant for many years she worked with students to restore shoreline through transplanting marsh cordgrass in estuaries with galveston bay foundations get hip to habitat program she also educated youth in oyster reef restoration and the ecosystem benefits oysters bring to bay systems fitzgerald also led many adopt-a-beach clean-ups i really would love to keep working with students and teaching them how to protect their shorelines fitzgerald states and i look forward to working with our local shrimpers and fishermen in 2007 fitzgerald graduated from texas a&m university with a bachelor of science in animal science and then obtained her masters from lamar university in education administration she has an extensive background in youth science education teaching biology aquatic science and environmental science during her 12-year teaching career fitzgerald was awarded teacher of the year and soil conservation science teacher of the year when it comes to education fitzgerald says the best way to learn is to live through life experiences and keep evolving she plans to bring this hands-on approach to her work in chambers and jefferson counties
nikki fitzgerald joined texas sea grant in may 2019 as the programs chambers and jefferson counties coastal and marine resources extension agent jointly with texas a&m agrilife extension with texas sea grant fitzgerald plans to start a recycling program in jefferson and chambers counties she also will educate youth in conjunction with the jefferson county camp seaport and collaborate in the jason project at lamar university an effort to get elementary and middle school students interested in and excited about science additionally fitzgerald plans to enhance recreational fishing and eco-tourism opportunities through educating landowners in pond management fitzgerald explains i look forward to working with camp seaport in port arthur teaching kids about different jobs in the maritime industry and pushing for more women in the industry fitzgerald brings an expertise in natural resource restoration to texas sea grant for many years she worked with students to restore shoreline through transplanting marsh cordgrass in estuaries with galveston bay foundations get hip to habitat program she also educated youth in oyster reef restoration and the ecosystem benefits oysters bring to bay systems fitzgerald also led many adopt-a-beach clean-ups i really would love to keep working with students and teaching them how to protect their shorelines fitzgerald states and i look forward to working with our local shrimpers and fishermen in 2007 fitzgerald graduated from texas a&m university with a bachelor of science in animal science and then obtained her masters from lamar university in education administration she has an extensive background in youth science education teaching biology aquatic science and environmental science during her 12-year teaching career fitzgerald was awarded teacher of the year and soil conservation science teacher of the year when it comes to education fitzgerald says the best way to learn is to live through life experiences and keep evolving she plans to bring this hands-on approach to her work in chambers and jefferson counties
texas sea grant welcomes new planning research associatematt malecha will work with the community resilience collaborative and evaluate how plan documents and policies work together to help improve resilience jun 5 2018matt malecha (photo by chris mouchyn)matthew malecha (standing) answers a question asked by community stakeholders during a plan integration for resilience scorecard workshop session (photo by siyu yu)matthew malecha a texas a&m university phd student in urban and regional sciences joined texas sea grant as the programs research associate for resiliency planning malecha worked for several years as a graduate research assistant at the institute for sustainable communities a collaborative member with texas sea grant in the community resilience collaborative there malechas research focused on how plans and polices affect community resilience to natural hazards and how communities can effectively adapt to growing risks and changing conditions at texas a&m universitys institute for sustainable communities malecha helped develop the plan integration for resilience scorecard (pirs) method and pirs guidebook the pirs tool is used to evaluate how plan documents and policies work together with respect to land use and flood vulnerability malecha brings his expertise with pirs to implement and build a pirs training program at texas sea grant this effort will assist texas sea grants focus on building resilience in texas coastal communities through improved plan integration i'm excited to be part of the texas sea grant team and to contribute to the important work of strengthening community resilience to natural hazards by connecting science and practice i look forward to working with my new colleagues to implement the plan integration for resilience scorecard (pirs) in vulnerable texas communities malecha says malecha has an extensive background in planning before moving to texas malecha worked as a senior policy planner for the minnesota department of transportation he received a masters degree in urban and regional planning from the university of minnesota and a bachelor of arts degree in geography and history from macalester college in st paul minnesota
matt malecha (photo by chris mouchyn)matthew malecha (standing) answers a question asked by community stakeholders during a plan integration for resilience scorecard workshop session (photo by siyu yu)
matthew malecha a texas a&m university phd student in urban and regional sciences joined texas sea grant as the programs research associate for resiliency planning malecha worked for several years as a graduate research assistant at the institute for sustainable communities a collaborative member with texas sea grant in the community resilience collaborative there malechas research focused on how plans and polices affect community resilience to natural hazards and how communities can effectively adapt to growing risks and changing conditions at texas a&m universitys institute for sustainable communities malecha helped develop the plan integration for resilience scorecard (pirs) method and pirs guidebook the pirs tool is used to evaluate how plan documents and policies work together with respect to land use and flood vulnerability malecha brings his expertise with pirs to implement and build a pirs training program at texas sea grant this effort will assist texas sea grants focus on building resilience in texas coastal communities through improved plan integration i'm excited to be part of the texas sea grant team and to contribute to the important work of strengthening community resilience to natural hazards by connecting science and practice i look forward to working with my new colleagues to implement the plan integration for resilience scorecard (pirs) in vulnerable texas communities malecha says malecha has an extensive background in planning before moving to texas malecha worked as a senior policy planner for the minnesota department of transportation he received a masters degree in urban and regional planning from the university of minnesota and a bachelor of arts degree in geography and history from macalester college in st paul minnesota
college of geosciences new years resolutionsdean dr debbie thomas discusses two of the colleges ambitions for 2021dec 18 2020aggieland in the snow in dec 2017 and geosciences dean dr debbie thomasas a former division i athlete my new years resolutions always focused on training harder and smarter to achieve my potential on the court and in the classroom as dean i resolve to work harder and smarter to make the texas a&m university college of geosciences a household name because we improve individual lives while at the same time improving the quality of life for billions of lives so for 2021 i resolve to increase the number of students who seek and receive a degree from the texas a&m university college of geosciences by improving access to higher education through awareness and financial support in summer 2021 we plan to offer our geox camp for high schoolers both in-person and remotely vastly enhancing the numbers of students who will be inspired to attend the texas a&m university college of geosciences to ensure that the best and brightest students are able to attend the texas a&m college of geosciences we seek to create 21 new scholarships in 2021 just like athletes academic leaders require support to achieve their new years resolutions please help us become the household name and consider contributing to endowments in support of geox and our 21 in 21 goal! if you'd like to support these critical initiatives contact geosciences senior director of development david bacot thank you and gig em!dean dr debbie thomas
aggieland in the snow in dec 2017 and geosciences dean dr debbie thomas