About The Dynamic Geology of Portland
A geologic history of the Rose City and surrounding area.
A casual science lecture featuring Scott Burns, PhD,
Professor Emeritus of Geology and former Associate Dean of the College of
Liberal Arts and Sciences at Portland State University
About the lecture
Back by popular demand! In addition to being one of
the most beautiful cities in America, Portland, Oregon has one of the most
interesting geological histories! Come hear Dr. Burns talk about Portland's
evolution through time, its volcanoes, rocks, landslides, earthquakes, radon,
past floods, and other things that make it so unique. Learn about the two big
floods that formed and eroded the area - first, the basalt flows that formed
the majority of the bedrock followed by the Missoula Floods that reshaped the
area. Come and enjoy!
Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun
venues across the region.
About the Speaker
Dr. Scott Burns is an Emeritus Professor of
Geology and Past-Chair of the Dept. of
Geology at Portland State University where he has taught for over 20
years. Dr. Burns specializes in environmental and engineering geology,
geomorphology, soils, and Quaternary geology. In Oregon, he has projects
involving landslides and land use, environmental cleanup of service stations,
slope stability, earthquake hazard mapping, Missoula Floods, paleosols,
loess soil stratigraphy, radon generation from soils, the distribution of
heavy metals and trace elements in Oregon soils and alpine soil
development. He has authored over 90 publications and has had over 25
research grants. His first book, Environmental,
Groundwater and Engineering Geology: Applications from Oregon, came
out January of 1998. His second book, Cataclysms
on the Columbia, the Great Missoula Floods came out in October of
2009 and is co-authored by Marjorie Burns, a friend and professor at PSU.
