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As part of an NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates Site, we have led a geologic field research program at the Aasivissuit–Nipisat Inuit Hunting Ground between Ice and Sea, which was established as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2018. The UNESCO site coincides with the NE-striking Ikertôq shear zone, a major component of the Paleoproterozoic Nagssugtoquidian orogeny. It also coincides with a >50 km system of pseudotachylytes – frictional melts that formed during deep earthquakes and a subject of our geologic investigations. In 2022, a team of nine students engaged in field research while immersed in the deep cultural history of the UNESCO site. The nearly 420,000 ha site preserves a 4200-year record of indigenous through colonial land use including the ruins of turf winter homes dating from the 15th to 20th centuries, the remains of summer hunting camps, burial cairns, stone hearths, and artifacts. On the western part of the UNESCO site, the focus of most of our research since 2013, the early Saqqaq culture (ca. 2200-700 BCE) inhabited a low-lying archipelago and coastal flats where the Ikertooq and Amerloq fjords empty into the Davis Strait; these sites were subsequently inhabited by newcomers to the region (Jensen et al., 2017). Most geologic and other scientific research is focused on the eastern part of the UNESCO site on or near the Greenland Ice Sheet. Here, a pilot outreach project integrates geology, climate change, and the multi-millennial history of inland hunting. The project focuses on a popular tourist destination; the 30 km road to the ice sheet east of Kangerlussuaq through the Akuliarusiarsuup Kuua glacial valley. Our work on the western coastal section of the site similarly integrates science and public outreach by providing a better understanding of bedrock geology and how ~1.8 Ga geologic structures may relate to patterns of human habitation. Our presentation will show how we continue to foster and integrate student scientific research with modern and ancient Arctic cultural awareness. 

High-resolution mapping of an extensive pseudotachylyte system in the Ikertôq shear zone of southwestern Greenland shows that the occurrence and style of interconnected pseudotachylyte-bearing faults are influenced by the lithology of the host rocks. The Ikertôq shear zone is a frontal structure of the Paleoproterozoic Nagssugtoquidian Orogen of which includes a 50 kilometer long pseudotachylyte system. Pseudotachylytes are vein-like rock melts that formed as a result of friction in shear zones, and are considered a proxy for paleo-earthquakes. These structures give insight into seismic behavior in the mid-upper crust. As part of an NSF REU, field observations were collected and laboratory analysis will be performed using electron microprobe, optical petrology, and scanning electron microscope (SEM) instrumentation. Our mapping of the lithologic units and boundaries along a transect of Sarfannguit Island identified lithologies varying from mafic intrusions, gabbroic pods, tonalite, felsic and intermediate gneisses, and metasedimentary rocks. Field observations such as rock unit descriptions, lithologic logs and maps show that the degree of foliation in a gniess has significant influence on the development of pseudotachylyte and fault geometry. Areas with well-foliated gneiss are characterized by a complex geometry of throughgoing pseudotachylyte-bearing faults, damage zones, imbricate wedges, and relay faults. In areas with less-foliated, thicker-banded gneiss, pseudotachylytes are less abundant and exhibit a less complex Riedel geometry. Our ongoing work will focus on gaining a better understanding of the petrology and tectonic setting of the transect. 

In-person undergraduate research experiences (UREs) promote students’ integration into careers in life science research. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic prompted institutions hosting summer URE programs to offer them remotely, raising questions about whether undergraduates who participate in remote research can experience scientific integration and whether they might perceive doing research less favorably (i.e., not beneficial or too costly). To address these questions, we examined indicators of scientific integration and perceptions of the benefits and costs of doing research among students who participated in remote life science URE programs in Summer 2020. We found that students experienced gains in scientific self-efficacy pre- to post-URE, similar to results reported for in-person UREs. We also found that students experienced gains in scientific identity, graduate and career intentions, and perceptions of the benefits of doing research only if they started their remote UREs at lower levels on these variables. Collectively, students did not change in their perceptions of the costs of doing research despite the challenges of working remotely. Yet students who started with low cost perceptions increased in these perceptions. These findings indicate that remote UREs can support students’ self-efficacy development, but may otherwise be limited in their potential to promote scientific integration. 

The COVID-19 pandemic shut down undergraduate research programs across the United States. A group of 23 colleges, universities, and research institutes hosted remote undergraduate research programs in the life sciences during Summer 2020. Given the unprecedented offering of remote programs, we carried out a study to describe and evaluate them. Using structured templates, we documented how programs were designed and implemented, including who participated. Through focus groups and surveys, we identified programmatic strengths and shortcomings as well as recommendations for improvements from students’ perspectives. Strengths included the quality of mentorship, opportunities for learning and professional development, and a feeling of connection with a larger community. Weaknesses included limited cohort building, challenges with insufficient structure, and issues with technology. Although all programs had one or more activities related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice, these topics were largely absent from student reports even though programs coincided with a peak in national consciousness about racial inequities and structural racism. Our results provide evidence for designing remote Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs) that are experienced favorably by students. Our results also indicate that remote REUs are sufficiently positive to further investigate their affordances and constraints, including the potential to scale up offerings, with minimal concern about disenfranchising students.