Ph.D.
Geoscience, anticipated December
2008, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Dissertation:
Integrated sequence & chemostratigraphy of the Middle Cambrian
succession in eastern Nevada and western Utah
Advisor: Dr. Ganqing Jiang
M.S.
Geoscience, August 2002 University
of Nevada, Las Vegas
Thesis: Analysis of cyclic shallow-water
carbonates: Cambrian Highland Peak Formation, Eastern Nevada Advisor: Dr. Margaret N. "Peg" Rees
ExxonMobil
Sequence Stratigraphy Short Course for Graduate Students, GSA
Annual
Meeting, Reno, NV 2000
Course taught the principles, concepts, and methods of sequence stratigraphy.
B.S. Geology, May 1999Salem State College,
Salem, MA
Undergraduate Research Project: Detailed
analysis of carbonate sediments from the Lee Stocking Island Region of
the Bahama Platform Project Advisor: Dr. James L. Cullen
Work Experience
University
of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV - 9/2004 to present
Teaching Assistant/Project Facilitator for Dr. Kimberly Johnson
- Fall 2006 & Spring 2007 Teaching
Teachers Through Field Experiences: A Study on the Earth-System
Approach for Earth Science Curriculum Development
Research Assistant for Dr. Ganqing Jiang - Spring 2006
Research
Assistant for Dr. Jean Cline - Fall 2004 through Fall 2005
Sampling of volcanic rock for bomb-pulse
Chlorine-36 in the Yucca Mountain underground tunnel. Preparation for
sampling, training, and QA. Writing and editing implementing procedures
for the microprobe
and thin section preparation. SEM and Microprobe analyses of fracture
surfaces for Cl distribution.
Geosciences
Management Institute Inc., Boulder City, NV – 8/2002 to 6/2004
Research projects included geology and
hydrogeology of Yucca Mountain and the Amargosa Desert in Nevada;
information relating to potential pore water salts within the nuclear
waste repository at Yucca Mountain including, but not limited to,
mineralogical description, chemistry, environmental setting and origin;
analysis of infiltration/imbibation
of rock samples from Yucca Mountain; and analysis of glass distribution
and mineralogical content at Yucca Mountain.
University
of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN – 1/2003
Department of Geology field camp
co-instructor.Muddy Mountains in southern
Nevada, Death Valley National Park and the Resting Springs Range.
University
of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV - 9/1999 to 8/2002
Research Assistant for Dr. Brenda Buck -
Spring and Summer 2002
SEM/EDS preparation and analysis of desert
soil salts, collecting and logging of sediment cores from Lake Mead,
soil
profiling, computer graphics, and article preparation and editing of
scholarly publications and presentations.
Teaching Assistant for General Physics II in
the Physics Department - Fall 2001
Teaching
Assistant for Stratigraphy and Sedimentation - Spring 2000 & 2001
Head
Teaching Assistant for Introductory Geology - Fall 2000
Research Assistant for Dr. Margaret N. Rees –
Summer 2000
Project: Geologic guide to Red Rock Canyon.
Teaching
Assistant for Introductory Geology - Fall 1999
Publications
Journal
Articles Howley, R.A., Rees, M.N., and Jiang, G., 2006,
Significance of Middle Cambrian mixed carbonate-siliciclastic units for
global correlation: southern Nevada, U.S.A.: Palaeoworld, v. 15, p.
360-366. pdf
Cizdziel,
J.V., Wei, Y., Stetzenbach, K.J., Hodge, V.F., Cline, J., Howley, R., and Phillips, F.M.,
2008,
Recent measurements of 36Cl in Yucca Mountain rock, soil and seepage:
Journal
of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, v. 275, n. 1, p. 133-144.
Abstracts Howley, Robyn A.,
and Jiang, Ganqing, 2007, Sequence stratigraphy of the Middle Cambrian
succession in eastern Nevada and western Utah: evidence for the
initiation
and termination of the House Range Embayment: Geological Society of
America
Abstracts with Programs, v. 39, n. 6. Howley, Robyn A., Johnson,
Kimberly A., and Campbell, Brett D., 2007, Teaching Teachers through
Field Experiences: A study on the Earth-system approach for Earth
Science curriculum development: Geological Society of America Abstracts
with Programs, v. 39, n. 6. Howley, Robyn A.,
Jiang, Ganqing, and Rees, Margaret N., 2005, Significance of
Middle Cambrian mixed carbonate-siliciclastic units for global
stratigraphic
correlation: southern Nevada, U.S.A.: Acta Micropalaeontologica Sinica,
v. 22 supplement, p. 63-64. The 4th
International
Symposium on the Cambrian System, Nanjing, China, August 18-24, 2005. Hanson,
Andrew D., Druschke, Peter A., Howley,
Robyn A., Suurmeyer, Nathan R., Benneman, Bud, Erwin, Martin B.,
and McLaurin, Brett T., 2005, Deformation of the Miocene-Pliocene Muddy
Creek Formation, southern Nevada: Lake Mead fault system, salt
tectonics,
or both?: Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, v. 37.
Snelson, Catherine M., McEwan, Darlene J., Hirsch, Aaron C., and Howley, Robyn A., 2005 Mapping
fissures in Pahrump, Nevada using Geophysical methods: Geological
Society of America Abstracts with Programs, v. 37. Hirsch,
A.C., McEwan, D.J., Howley, R.A., Mehling, J.B.,
Snelson, C.M., and Drohan, P., 2004, A geophysical study of fissures in
Pahrump, Nevada: Eos Trans. AGU,
v.
85, Fall Meeting Supplement, Abstract H21E-1080.
Buck, B. J., Lawton, T. F., Merkler, D., Howley, R. A., Khresat, S.,
Rawajfih,
Z., Waidmann, B., and Hanson, A., 2003, Snowballs in
the Devil’s Anus and other adventures in the
world of pedogenic sulfates, GSA Program with Abstracts, v 34, p. 257. Shettel,
D. and Howley, R., 2003, Hydrogeochemistry of
groundwater in the northern Amargosa Valley and Fortymile Wash, Nye
County, Nevada: Annual Devil’s Hole Workshop, Death Valley National
Park. Steinberg,
S., Rudin, M.J., Buck, B.J., Hanson, A.D., Hodge, V.F., Twichell, D.C.,
and Howley, R., 2003, Investigation of organic matter
in Lake Mead sediments using chemo-pyrolysis GCMS: 13th Annual West
Coast
Conference on Contaminated Soils, Sediments, and Water. Zybala,
J., Buck, B.J., Howley, R.A., Twichell, D.C., Hickson,
T.A., Hanson, A.D., Rudin, M.J., and Steinberg, S., 2003, Sediment
Coring in Lake Mead Reservoir, NV and AZ: Implications for Deep Marine
Sandstone Distributions, American Association of Petroleum Geologists
Abstracts with Programs, p. 48. Buck,
B. J., Van Hoesen, J. G., Khresat, S., Rawajfih, Z., Merkler, D.,
Schiefelbein, I., Howley, R., and Lawton, T., 2002,
Genesis and morphology of pedogenic gypsum and other sulfate minerals,
USA and Jordan: Soil
Science Society of America Annual Meeting. Howley, Robyn A., Shapiro,
Russell S. and Rees, Margaret N., 2002, Carbonate depositional history
refined by gamma radiation analysis - Middle to lower Upper Cambrian
Highland Peak Formation, eastern Nevada: Geological Society of America
Abstracts with Programs, v. 34. Howley, Robyn A.
and Rees, M. N., 2001, Sea level signatures and regional correlations
elucidated by carbonate cycle architecture: Middle Cambrian Highland
Peak
Formation, eastern Nevada: Geological Society of America Abstracts with
Programs, v. 33, p. 77. Bailley,
T. L., Gilbert, J. J., Howley, R. A., Rees, M. N.,
Schiefelbein, I. M., Taylor, W. J. and Van Hoesen, J. G., 2001,
Geologic guide to Red Rock Canyon: Integrating research and education:
Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science Abstracts with Programs, v. 36, p. 52. Howley, R. A.,
Rees, M. N. and Jacobson, E. A., 2001, Re-assessing reliability of
meter-scale cyclic carbonates as recorders of orbital events: Middle
Cambrian Highland Peak Formation, southern Nevada: Geological Society
of America Abstracts with Programs, v. 33, A68 and American Association
of Petroleum Geologists Bulletin, v. 85, p. 1125. Howley, Robyn A.,
2000, Cyclic carbonate sedimentation in the Middle to early Late
Cambrian, Highland Peak Formation, southern Nevada: Implications for
interpreting
eustasy: American Association of Petroleum Geologists Bulletin, v. 84,
p.
1865. Howley, Robyn A. and
Rouleau, Danielle, 1999, Facies analysis of carbonate sediments from
the Lee Stocking Island Region of the Bahama Bank:
Salem State College Undergraduate Research Symposium.
Geosciences Management Institute Inc., Company Reports
Howley, R.A. and
Shettel, D.L., 2004, Tachyhydrite and other soluble salts: Relevance to
the proposed nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada: Report
to the State of Nevada, Agency for Nuclear Projects, Nuclear Waste
Project Office, Carson City, NV, 42p.pdf Howley, R.A. and
Shettel, D.L., 2003, Yucca Mountain underground sampling report: Report
to the State of Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects, Nuclear Waste
Project Office, Carson City, NV, 388p.
Awards/Scholarships/Grants
PhD
at UNLV
UNLV GPSA 1st Place
Talk (2008 Science & Engineering Platform)
UNLV President's Graduate Fellowship (2007/08 academic year)
UNLV GPSA 2nd Place Talk (2007 Science & Engineering Platform)
UNLV Graduate &
Professional Student Association graduate grant (Fall 2006 & Spring
2007)
SEPM-RMS Donald L.
Smith Award - Honorable Mention (2006 & 2007)
National
Association of Geoscience Teachers, Far West Section Graduate
Scholarship (2006)
Geological Soceity
of America Research Grant (2006)
American
Association of Petroleum Geologists R.E. McAdams Memorial Grant (2006)
Institute for
Cambrian Studies (2006 & 2007)
Nevada Petroleum
Society Graduate Scholarship (2005, 2006 & 2007)
UNLV Graduate
College GREAT Assistantship (Summer 2006)
UNLV Geoscience
Scholarship (Geological Society of Nevada Fund) (Summer 2006)
Graduate
Assistantship at UNLV (8/2004 to present)
MS at UNLV
UNLV Alumni
Association Outstanding Thesis Award (05/2003)
UNLV College of
Sciences Outstanding Masters Thesis Award (5/2003)
Graduate
Assistantship at UNLV (8/1999 – 5/2002)
UNLV Geoscience
scholarship (Spring 2000, Summer 2001)
UNLV Graduate
College GREAT Assistantship (Summer 2001)
Best Graduate
Student Poster at Geological Society of America Cordilleran Section
Meeting (2001)
Geological Society
of America travel grant (2001)
Geological Society
of America research grant (Spring 2000)
American
Association of Petroleum Geologists research grant (Spring 2000)
Undergraduate
Outstanding student
in field work-Salem State College (Summer 1998)
High School
Outstanding senior
in business-Natick High School (1994)
Professional Societies
The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi
Geological Society of Nevada Member GSN Board of
Directors - 2005 - 2006 Southern Nevada Chapter President - 2005 - 2006
Vice President - 2004 - 2005 Webmaster - 2003 - 2005; 2007-08 Newsletter Editor - 2003 through 2005
Geological
Society of America
American Association of Petroleum Geologists UNLV Student Chapter Vice President - 2005 - 2006 Society for Sedimentary Geology (SEPM) Nevada Petroleum Society
