NSF REU Site Investigation: Paleoenvironmental characterization of a dinosaur site in the Morrison Formation of the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming

June 5 - August 11, 2006

This project combines field and laboratory work to study a Wyoming dinosaur site. Through funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF-REU), ten full time undergraduate research appointments are available to study a variety of aspects of the site's fossils and geology, with the goal of using the clues preserved at the site to understand the environments that were formerly present there. The potential student projects page has examples of individual research activities.

The Alumni Page features information on previous participants and their research results.

Click here for photos of plants and ostracods currently under study.

Support: A taxable stipend of $3000 will support students as they conduct full time research (minimum of 40 hours/week) for a period of 10 weeks during the summer. 100% of housing costs are provided both while camping in the field and while living on the Hope College campus. Meals will be provided for the field portion of the project. Access to college recreational facilities is provided while on campus.

Eligibility: Applicants should have completed two courses in geology, or have a strong science background relevant to one of the research projects. To be eligible, an applicant must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident and continue to be enrolled in an undergraduate degree program in the Fall of 2006. Women and members of minority groups are particularly encouraged to apply. Some preference will be given to students who have just completed their 1st or 2nd year of college work. Selection criteria include a reasonable academic record, interest in geology or paleontology, career plans, independence, creativity, and the potential to benefit from a research experience. If you would like to learn more about geology by being involved in an intensive field and laboratory research program, we encourage you to apply.

Schedule and logistics: Participants will tent camp during field research and while traveling to and from the field site. The camp site has showers and running water, but the field site has neither. Students will stay in campus housing while at Hope College.

About the faculty: Students will be supervised in their laboratory and field work by Hope College faculty members Drs. Brian Bodenbender, Edward Hansen, and Graham Peaslee, and by Dr. Timothy Demko of the University of Minnesota Duluth. We will receive additional field assistance from Dr. Mark Uhen of the Cranbrook Institute of Science and Dr. Glenn Storrs of the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History. Depending on the project, students may have the opportunity to conduct research at these collaborating institutions.

About Hope College: Hope College is an undergraduate liberal arts college located in Holland, Michigan, 5 miles from the shores of Lake Michigan. Hope College has a strong tradition of undergraduate research, and currently hosts 6 different REU programs with well over 100 research students working on campus each summer. To learn more about the sciences at Hope College, click here. You can learn more about Holland, Michigan here.

Applications must include the following materials:

• Completed online application form (see link below)
• A one-page statement of research interests
• A copy of the current transcript of your college record (mailed to the address below)
• One letter of recommendation from a college faculty member (mailed to the address below)

The application deadline of February 17, 2006 has passed, so applications are no longer being accepted for the initial applicant pool. Applications received henceforth will be held on a waiting list in the unlikely event that circumstances prevent a participant from attending. Late applicants will only be contacted if the program has a last-minute opening to fill.

Detailed instructions and the online application form can be found at:

REU Application Form

Send transcript and letter of recommendation to:

REU Applications
Hope College GES Department
PO Box 9000
Holland, MI 49422-9000
bodenbender@hope.edu

The deadline for application materials was Friday, February 17, 2006

For additional information or to be placed on a contact list for the Summer 2007 program (pending funding), send an e-mail to Dr. Brian Bodenbender (bodenbender@hope.edu). You may also call 1-800-968-7850 and ask for Dr. Bodenbender in the GES Department.