LehighNow Volume 03, Issue 07

              LEHIGHNOW
November 27,2002
Volume 3, Issue 7
Carson to speak at
January commencement
IN BRIEF
HONORS/AWARDS
Pamukcu
is keynote
speaker
Sibel Pamukcu, associate
professor of civil and
environmental engineering,
was recently invited to
give a keynote address at
the 9th Turkish National
Symposium of Soil
Mechanics and Foundation
Engineering in Istanbul.
Pamukcu's address was
titled "Geoenvironmental
Engineering: Cooperative
Research and New
Horizons."
Since the devastating
1999 earthquake in
Turkey, most research
into soil mechanics in the
country has aimed to
improve foundations for
earthquake mitigation.
Recently, confronted with
increasing industrial and
mining-related pollution of
subsurface and groundwater, Turkish researchers
and the government have
sought economic solutions
for such local problems as
soils contaminated with
petroleum and groundwater contaminated with
arsenic and other heavy
metals.
In her address,
Pamukcu discussed
emerging methods and
technologies which use
advanced sensors to
assess the fate of contaminants in the subsurface
and which effectively
reduce or remove them
using hybrid methods.
Bobb Carson, the Herbert
and Ann Siegel dean of the
College of Arts and
Sciences and professor of
earth and environmental
sciences, will deliver the
commencement address on
Jan. 12.
"Bobb was selected
because of his tireless
commitment to his
department, his college
and the university," says
Lehigh President Gregory
Farrington. "I continue to
be amazed by his accomplishments. Bobb has been
able to serve as dean while
at the same time cruising
the Pacific and Atlantic
Oceans in a sub, drilling
for sedimentary cores. He
is a dedicated, respected,
and recognized academic
and scientist."
Lehigh's January
commencement is scheduled for 2 p.m. Jan. 12 in
Stabler Arena, where
undergraduate and
graduate students from
Lehigh's four colleges will
receive their diplomas.
Carson is pleased to get
this opportunity to
address the men and
women who will be
matriculating from Lehigh,
but admits that he doesn't
expect everyone to
remember his speech.
"We need to keep
perspective on the event
and the message to be
passed. Everyone remembers their graduation, but
no one remembers the
commencement speech. I
will attempt more than
oratorical anonymity,"
Carson jokes.
Carson joined the
department of geological
sciences in 1971. He was
promoted to full professor in
1982 and served as associate
dean of the College of Arts
and Sciences from 1983-85.
He won the Stabler Award
for Excellence in Teaching in
1992 and the Hillman
Award in 1997.
He holds a master's degree
and Ph.D. in geological
oceanography from the
University of Washington,
Seattle, and also earned a
bachelor's degree in geology
from Carleton College. His
research interests include
sediment modification and
fluid transport at subducting continental margins;
measurement of fluid flux
across sediment-water
interface in lacustrine, salt
marsh, estuarine, and
accretionary prism sediments; and deposition of
methane-derived authigenic
carbonates.
This broad research
program has taken Carson
and his students on
numerous field study trips,
including visits to Oregon,
Washington, Vancouver
Island and Barbados.
Carson will retire as dean
and professor in June 2003.
University
expands
smoking
policy
In another step in ensuring a
safe and healthy living and
learning environment at
Lehigh, university officials
recently decided to expand
its current policy that bans
smoking in non-residential
buildings to now include all
residential buildings.
In announcing these new
measures, Lehigh University
joins a long list of colleges
and universities across the
country doing the same,
including Duke, the University of North Carolina, Penn
State, Bucknell and Notre
Dame.
The policy, which will
become effective May 20,
2003, states that no person
shall smoke or burn tobacco
products, incense, and other
materials inside any residence
hall, sorority, fraternity, or
suite or apartment complex
on campus.
Smoking will be permitted
on residential grounds,
provided that it occurs 15
feet from any building
entrance and away from
windows of residential
buildings. This smoking
policy applies to student
rooms, hallways, lounges,
bathrooms, or any other
public area of all residential
facilities.
"It is important to note that
in a smoke-free residence
system, every member of the
campus community retains
his and her right to smoke,"
said Lehigh Provost Ron
Yoshida, who noted that
some of the university's
newer residence facilities are
already smoke-free. "The
only change is that it cannot
take place inside of buildings
that house other people."
Yoshida noted that national
research indicates that
smoking is the third leading
cause of residence hall and
fraternity and sorority
housing fires across the
nation, and the leading cause
of fatal fires. Such fatalities
tend to occur when a person
falls asleep or passes out
while smoking. In these
incidents, the smoker is
frequently a victim because
of his or her proximity to the
Please see Smoking, Page 3