Nikola Banishki is currently a junior majoring in biochemistry and comparative literature. This is Banishki's first trip to Antarctica and he will be working under the guidance of Assistant Professor of Biology Mike McCormick. Last summer he performed computational chemistry research on Clathrate Hydrates with Assistant Professor of Chemistry Camille Jones. He is very excited to travel by sea to Antarctica and sees that as an opportunity of a lifetime.
At Hamilton, Banishki is a member of the Men's Varsity Crew team and holds several jobs. He is a reference assistant, resident advisor, and hosts a music show on the college radio station. After graduation, he hopes to continue to medical school or attend graduate school for pharmacology. Contact Nikola Banishki at nbanishk@hamilton.edu
Taylor Burt
Department of Geosciences, Hamilton College
Taylor Burt
Taylor Burt is currently a sophomore geosciences major. Aside from geology, Burt also has a strong interest in studio art (specifically sculpture) and music. He is extremely excited and honored to venture down to Antarctica as this will be his first extensive research experience. Burt has a passion for the outdoors, so the extreme climate of Antarctica will be that much more phenomenal. Though not definite, he hopes to go abroad next spring to Tasmania and work with the Institute of Antarctic and Southern Ocean Studies at Australia's University of Tasmania. Contact Taylor Burt at tburt@hamilton.edu
Sarah Crookshanks Department of Geography, Queen's University
Sarah Crookshanks
Sarah Crookshanks is a first year M.Sc. student studying global change from an Antarctic perspective through the analysis of the marine sedimentary record. She graduated in the spring of 2005 from Queen's University with a B.Sc. in environmental science (Earth Systems Science). Her undergraduate research project involved an examination of the sedimentary record in Lillooet Lake, British Columbia in response to the extreme flood in the fall of 2003 and the implications for paleoenvironmental assessment. This will be Sarah's first trip to Antarctica and she is very excited to be taking part in the program. Contact Sarah Crookshanks at sarahcrookshanks@gmail.com
Billy Cyr Department of Geosciences, Hamilton College
Billy Cyr
Billy Cyr is currently a senior majoring in geology and minoring in environmental studies. Cyr's specific interests lie in the fields of volcanology and glacial geology. He is currently working on his senior thesis concerning subsurface seafloor sediment deposition and bathimetry of Flandres Bay, Antarctica. He is approaching the upcoming expedition to Antarctica as a unique opportunity to perform geologic research while enjoying one of the harshest climates on Earth. After Hamilton he plans to study glacial geology at the University of Otago, New Zealand. Contact Billy Cyr at wcyr@hamilton.edu
Cathleen Dale Department of Biology, Montclair State University
Cathleen Dale
Cathleen Dale is a senior double majoring in biology with a concentration in environmental science and biology secondary education, and minoring in geoscience and chemistry. She is interested in marine geology and ecology, and hopes to incorporate this experience in her future lessons. At MSU, Cathleen is a resident assistant, laboratory teaching assistant in the biology department, and president of NJ water watch. She is also devoted to science education and environmental awareness. This will be Dale's first trip to Antarctica and she is very excited to take part in the program. Cathleen would like to thank Dr. Stephanie Brachfeld for providing her with the opportunity to participate in such incredible research. Contact Cathleen Dale at cathleen.dale@gmail.com
Sarah LeighAnn Garner Southern Illinois University
Sarag Garner
Sarah Garner is majoring in geology at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. This is her first trip to Antarctica. She is working under the direction of Dr. Scott Ishman. She would like to thank Dr. Ishman for this wonderful opportunity.
Andrew Mention Department of Geosciences, Hamilton College
Andrew Mention
Andrew Mention, a junior geosciences and art major at Hamilton College, hails from Bowdoinham, Maine. This will be Mention's first trip to the Antarctic. He will be spending the upcoming summer working at Hamilton with Professor of Geosciences Eugene Domack. His extra-curricular interests include travel, skiing, kayaking, rafting and hiking. At Hamilton, Mention is an officer with the outing club, a member of the alpine skiing team, and a tour guide. After Hamilton, he plans to teach Earth Sciences or geology at the high school level before potentially pursuing a graduate degree in geology.
Kimberly Roe Department of Geosciences, Hamilton College
Kimberly Roe
Kimberly Roe '08, a native of Maryville, Tenn., is studying chemistry and pursuing a true liberal arts education. Last summer, Roe remained at Hamilton College to perform research on the fluorescence of rare earth metals with Professor of Chemistry Karen Brewer. The work entailed experimenting with attaching rare earth ions to flouresence-enhancing calixarene molecules.
Although she spends much of her time in the newly built Science Center, Roe also enjoys making ceramic art and rock climbing. She is a leader for the Adirondack Adventure program and leads an introductory chemistry study workshop. Her varied interests for future careers include forensic investigation, medicine or geochemical research.
She has never traveled outside the U.S. Needless to say, she is eager for the whole experience -- flying above the Patagonia icecaps, stopping in Chile and sailing south. She is ready to explore the depths of geological research with Professor of Geosciences Eugene Domack and his team in such an extraordinary environment -- not to mention capture a good deal of awesome photographs. Contact Kim Roe at kroe@hamilton.edu
Molly Rosig Department of Earth and Environmental Studies, Montclair State University
Molly Rosig
Molly Rosig holds a B.S. in geoscience from Montclair State University in New Jersey, where she is currently a first year graduate student. Rosig worked for a short time at the Liberty Science Center in New Jersey and is currently working as a graduate assistant for the Department of Earth and Environmental Studies, she has developed a fondness for sharing her love of geology with everyone she comes in contact with. This is her first trip to Antarctica and would like to thank Dr. Stefanie Brachfeld for giving her the opportunity to take part in this extraordinary research expedition. Contact Molly Rosig at mollipop311@aol.com
Anna Rubin Department of Geology, Colgate University
Anna Rubin
Anna Rubin graduated from Colgate in 2002 with a degree in geology. She traveled to Antarctica in 2001 and is very excited to be returning to the Peninsula area this spring. Her interests include phytoplankton and paloeclimatology. After graduating from Colgate Anna spent two years teaching outdoor education and marine science at the Catalina Island Marine Institute in California, and is currently an Island Institute Fellow living and working on a small island in Maine. Rubin hopes to attend graduate school next year and pursue a master's degree in Maine Science. Contact Molly Rubin at arubin57@yahoo.com
Nicole West
Department of Geology, Colgate University
Nicole West
Nicole West is currently in her final semester at Colgate University and will graduate in May of 2006 with a B.S. in geology. West split this past summer between doing research on ice cores at the U.S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory in Hanover, NH and working at Colgate under the direction of Associate Professor of Geology Amy Leventer on diatomaceous sediment samples from the February 2005 expedition to Antarctica. The portion of this semester not spent in Antarctica will be devoted to investigating phytoplankton samples from the same cruise. Nicole is from a small town in Vermont and as such she is truly excited about this amazing opportunity to travel to Antarctica and do research.
(L to R) Heather Schrum, Veronica Willmott and Ashley Hatfield collect samples from the Smith McIntyre grab.
News
Collapse of Antarctic Ice Shelf Unprecedented
The Antarctic Peninsula is undergoing greater warming than almost anywhere on Earth, a condition perhaps associated with human-induced greenhouse effects. According to the cover article published by Geosciences Professor Eugene Domack in the August 4, 2005 issue of the journal Nature, the spectacular collapse of Antarctica's Larsen B Ice Shelf, is unprecedented during the past 10,000 years. More ...
Ecosystem Beneath a Collapsed Antarctic Ice Shelf Discovered
The chance discovery of a vast ecosystem beneath the collapsed Larsen Ice Shelf will allow scientists to explore the uncharted life below Antarctica's floating ice shelves and further probe the origins of life in extreme environments. Researchers on the 2005 expedition discovered the sunless habitat after reviewing a recent underwater video study examining a deep glacial trough in the northwestern Weddell Sea following the sudden Larsen B shelf collapse in 2002. More...
Alumni Review Article
Geosciences at Hamilton
Published Articles
Antarctic Peninsula Climate Variability Workshops
International Polar Year
NSF Polar Programs
U.S. Antarctic Program
National Snow and Ice Data Center
Scott Polar Research Institute
