Swarms of happy children and interspersed adults explored prehistory through Mississippi State University’s Dunn-Seiler Museum exhibits and activities Wednesday as part of Fossil Extravaganza, an event hosted in the MSU Department of Geosciences since 2010.
Featuring touchable fossils, themed arts and crafts activities, tours and an opportunity to name the museum’s cast triceratops skull, the extravaganza marks one of many open house events included in an outreach campaign celebrating the department’s centennial year.
Dunn-Seiler Director Renee Clary said the event celebrates the department’s geologic focus, providing museum visitors with an important context for their lives.
“We find remains in Mississippi, but these animals are no longer here,” Clary said. “When you look at patterns in our geologic past — for example, we find a lot of mosasaur remains right here in Starkville — it indicates the sea level was once here in Mississippi. It shows changes, it shows patterns and gives a context to where we are as a society.”
Often during the event, Clary greeted children who approached displays with an enthusiastic explanation of given fossils origins and significance.
Standing next to an exhibit she created, second-grader Margo Hoffman, daughter of the museum Collections Director Amy Moe-Hoffman, was among those to talk with Clary.
Hoffman sewed and stuffed an American lion figure for a statewide K-12 fossil art contest the museum sponsored. Her submission, among the other grade-level winners, was unveiled at the event.
Hoffman said she loves the creative challenge of the contest and enjoyed learning about the lion.
“Each year, my mom comes to different classes and talks to them about it, and then [we] get to chose one of the things that she talks about,” Hoffman said.
Bill Cooke, head of the Department of Geosciences, said centennial events like Fossil Extravaganza are an opportunity to demonstrate the importance of geosciences and celebrate the department’s four main areas of focus: geology, geography, geospatial sciences and meteorology.
Cooke said since it was established as a geology and geography department in 1916, the department has grown to be a leader in these focus areas.
“In terms of geospatial sciences, which is our newest program, we were just designated as a center of academic excellence by the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency,” Cooke said. “And one of our former graduates, a fellow by the name of Glenn Gibson, is actually the head of geosciences at the Air Force Academy [in Colorado Springs, Colorado].”
Cooke said the department’s impact on the world today is vast and varied. For instance, he said roughly 35 percent of the of broadcast meteorologists in the top 12 largest markets are affiliated with MSU, and alumni geologists in the petroleum industry help maintain the nation’s fuel supply. The department is actively studying the implications of fracking, coal and oil recovery from spent wells, he added, as well as contributes to the global understanding of climate change.
Upcoming Department of Geosciences centennial activities include tailgate and open house events on Oct. 29 and Nov. 4.
Cooke said the tailgates are open to everyone.
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