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Q [[image]] EarthQuest Winter 1988 A University Profile Rice University's Earth Systems Institute by Tamara Shapiro Ledley The Earth Systems Institute (ESI) at Rice University in Houston, Texas, is devoted to fostering interdepartmental research in the study of the earth and its environment as an interactive system. The institute was formed in response to the need felt by a number of scientists representing many disciplines to broaden and thus enhance their individual research efforts in this important area of study. The departments represented by ESI include biology, geology and geophysics, chemistry, environmental science and engineering, and space physics and astronomy. The environment at Rice is ideal for fostering interdepartmental research. The small size of the university, about 3,500 students and 400 faculty members in closely spaced buildings, facilitates communications among departments and makes the coordination of research activities relatively easy. ESI Seminar Series and Research Forum One of the first activities of ESI was the organization of a series of seminars whose purpose was twofold. First, they provided a way for each ESI member scientist to become familiar with earth systems science research being conducted in other departments at Rice and at other institutions. Second, they promoted the idea of interdisciplinary research to address global change in the geosphere-biosphere to the Rice scientific community. This seminar series was organized in a unique way. Rather than meeting as a separate group, seminars were integrated into the ongoing seminar series of the departments represented by the members of ESI. This strategy assured that other faculty members and students who were not yet aware of the institute would be exposed to research focused on global environmental issues and possibly become part of related research efforts. We anticipate, as a natural outgrowth of these seminars, the development of [[image]] interdepartmental research activity. Initial joint research activities involve projects that are already funded; almost everyone from the group showing an interest in ESI has an active research program. In order to foster new initiatives that are focused on understanding the earth system, Rice will organize a regular research forum. Members of ESI will meet every one to two weeks to discuss relevant journal articles and ongoing research activities. ESI Educational Activities The success of ESI will depend not only on the strength of its research programs but also on its ability to interest, educate, and incorporate graduate and undergraduate students into its programs. This is being accomplished in part by the seminar series. In addition, ESI is participating in the development of a Coherent Minor Program for undergraduate students at Rice. This program involves the development of a coherent set of five courses in a specific subject area. The members of ESI have designed a Coherent Minor Program in Earth Systems Science that spans the departments of geology and geophysics, biology, and space physics and astronomy. The plans are to co-teach these courses across departmental lines in order to enrich their interdisciplinary content. Rice University has always supported interaction among the various departments. One way this has been accomplished has been through the requirement that one member of a Ph.D. thesis committee be from outside the student's department. The interdepartmental communication that this has fostered will be enhanced by incorporating graduate students into the interdisciplinary research programs now being designed. University Support Rice University has a history of promoting interdepartmental activities. When the Earth Systems Institute was officially recognized on 8 January 1987, it joined five other such institutes at Rice. The university is now in the planning stages of an enhancement program that will add approximately 100 new faculty positions in the next decade. These new faculty members will be added to existing departments but will be chosen as they relate to groups of faculty and students in certain target areas of research, scholarship, and professional achievements. As one such group, ESI will be able to expand by adding new first-rate scientists to its programs. ESI was established because of a need felt by the individual scientists at Rice to develop interdisciplinary lines of communication in order to enhance their own research in earth systems science. Its success will depend on the ability of its members to develop strong interdisciplinary research and educational programs. Given the support of the administration, the individual departments, and the enthusiasm of its members, the likelihood of success is high. Further information can be obtained by writing to Alexander J. Dessler, Department of Space Physics and Astronomy, Rice University, P.O. Box 1892, Houston, TX 77251, USA. Q Dr. Ledley is assistant rsearch scientist in the Department of Space Physics and Astronomy, Rice University, Houston, Texas. 10
