Recent and Upcoming Meetings

 

European Ostracodologists Meeting VI (EOM VI), Frankfurt, 5-7 September 2007.  Website: www.senckenberg.de/eom

 

Finn Viehberg

COME 2006

The successful COME-2006 (1st Canadian Ostracodologists Meeting) was held at the Centre d’Etudes Nordiques, Universite Laval in Quebec, Quebec City from November 16-18.  It featured one day of talks, as well as an open workshop on taxonomy, useful software, books, and methods.  Social events included a dinner on Thursday in Old Quebec City.  The presentations of current, past, and future research projects clearly showed once again the great potential of ostracodes in the environmental and earth sciences.

 

A total of three projects focused on the ostracode fauna in nonmarine (sub) Arctic waters.  The development of these calibration sets is of high interest and importance, as they will finally reveal modern analogs for paleoecological studies in North America.  So far, some fossil assemblages remain with analogs, and the interpretations therefore remain uncertain (Joan Bunbury, Ontario; Brandon Curry Illinois; Martin Sirois, Finn Viehberg, Quebec).

 

In addition, the announcement by L.D. Delorme (Ontario) to transfer his collection of over 6000 sites (including the environmental data) to the Canadian Museum of nature in Ottawa (where it is now accessible) was greeted by all participants of the meeting.

 

Because of the robust “bauplan” of Ostracoda, it is always a great pleasure at ostracode meetings to cover research topics form the Neogene to the Paleozoic.  However, in the future, this may not always be the case, because the number of colleagues involved in projects studying older record decreases steadily, while major questions remain open (Stratigraphy and taxonomy of Amphissites from the Permo-Carboniferous; Larry Knox, Tennessee), it was decided that the next meeting will be held at the University of Ottawa in early 2008, featuring a visit to the Canadian Museum of Nature, including the Delorme Ostracode collection.

 

Last, but not lest, all participants agree that regular North America meetings (Canada, Mexico, and USA) would contribute to further improve and strengthen the interactions within the thinly spread community of ostracodologists.

 

Finally, we acknowledge the funds provided by the CEN to organize the meeting.

 

Finn Viehberg (Organizer)

Reinhard Pienitz (patron)

Participants:

  • Joan Bunbury, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario
  • Brandon Curry., Illinois State Geological Survey, Champaign, Illinois
  • Denis L, Delorme, Burlington, Ontario
  • Larry Knox, Tennessee Technological University, Cookeville, Tennessee
  • Martin Sirois, Universite Laval, Québec, Québec

 

Don Van Nieuwenhuise

NAMS (North American Micropaleontology Section, SEPM) is sponsoring a symposium entitled: Geologic Problem Solving with Microfossils II.  Spring break (March) 2009

Venue:  Rice University or the University of Houston

Purpose:  A showcase of problem-solving with microfossils to stimulate the “cross fertilization” of ideas that result when a diverse group of scientists gather in a common venue.  Specifically, the symposium seeks high-quality oral and poster presentations in which microfossils are integrated with allied geoscience data and substantially contribute to solving geologic problems.  Presentations that demonstrate new techniques or novel applications are encouraged.  There are no restrictions on geologic age (including modern) or geographic area.

Early list of topics for oral presentations and posters:

  • Micropaleontological contributions to tectonics and eustasy
  • Recognition of sea level change—past and future
  • Biostratigraphic applications to sequence stratigraphy
  • Climate change and modeling
  • Chronostratigraphic correlation with microfossils
  • Reservoir characterization and biosteering
  • Tools and techniques
  • Modern environmental analogs and paleoenvironmental analysis
  • Applied micropaleontology from a Geologist’s perspective