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Student Careers Internship Program
Formerly known as the UNAVCO student internship program (USIP)
Positions are Now Open!
See the bottom of the page for details on our 2023 positions and links to each application
2022 USIP Interns (L to R: Ian Sulley, Zachary Courter, Kayla Byrd, Kenneth Larrieu, Cole Speed)
USIP interns on fieldtrip to Rocky Mountain National Park to explore local geology and glacial geomorphology. Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, June 2017). (Photo/UNAVCO).
USIP interns (L to R Levi Exner, Courtenay Duzet, Becca Bussard, Nat Quinn, Lucia Bellino) (Photo/Scott Johnson, UNAVCO 2021)
2018 USIP interns Samantha Eckes and Jon Bridgeman learn to fly a UAS with UNAVCO field engineers Keith Williams and Dylan Schmeelk. August 1, 2018. Boulder, Colorado. (Photo/Dylan Schmeelk, UNAVCO 2018)
Ellen Knappe enjoying a rare sunny day on Akutan Island after finishing replacing an antenna and hut door on GPS site AV14. (Photo/Heidi Willoughby, UNAVCO 2016)
The EarthScope Student Careers Internship Program, formerly known as USIP, offers unique real-world work experience for undergraduate and graduate students relative to the interns' academic and career goals. Each intern is an integral member of the team and plays an important role by contributing their knowledge, skills, and abilities to specific projects.
Project managers teach interns what it is like to work in a non-profit organization that facilitates geoscience research and education. In doing so, we anticipate that we are able to share expertise, leverage best practices and forge lasting relationships.
Student Career internships are full-time (32 to 40 hrs/wk) for 11 weeks and typically offer remote options (depending on position duties). The 2023 program will begin on May 22, 2023
If you have questions regarding the application process, please visit or contact education@EarthScope.org.
Internship assignments vary each year based on business needs. Managers identify a specific scope of work, designate a role, and create a statement of work for the intern. The intern will be assigned real-world work, with an impact on our organization and the community we serve. The manager will be the intern's supervisor and mentor.
The intern will receive a company orientation and then collaborate with their manager to develop a work and learning plan that aligns with the statement of work. Before beginning work, interns will receive appropriate training, including compliance and safety training. Interns will meet with their managers weekly at the beginning of their assignment and have informal performance feedback throughout their assignment.
In addition to a weekly stipend, EarthScope provides many formal and informal learning opportunities; these include team meetings and various company meetings. Interns will be invited to participate in these events as well as other EarthScope business and social events.
Student Career Internship Program Alumni
Get to know our past Student Career Internship participants and their projects.
Lucia Bellino
School: Rutgers University
UNAVCO Supervisor: Scott Johnson
ECE Communications Intern
About Lucia (she/her/hers)
Lucia Bellino is an incoming PhD student at the Jackson School of Geosciences, where she plans to study mineralogical surface processes on Mars to better understand the early climate of the planet. Lucia graduated from Rutgers University – New Brunswick in May 2021, with a bachelor of science in Geology and a minor in Business and Technical Writing. She is excited to continue learning about geodesy and explore graphic design and video production this summer as a science communications intern!
Recorded presentation
Rebecca Bussard
School: University of Oregon
UNAVCO Supervisor: Chris Crosby
Data Technician Intern – WInSAR
About Rebecca (she/her/hers)
Becca Bussard is a PhD candidate of Earth Sciences at the University of Oregon. She previously graduated from Penn State in 2019 with a BS in Physics and Honors in Earth Science. Last year her USIP internship involved organizing and updating the SAR resources for UNAVCO as well as helping run educational SAR courses. Returning to USIP again this year, she worked on updating and expanding the utility of the InSAR Product Archive and producing several pages of web content that focused on the applications of InSAR.
Kayla Byrd
School: University of Michigan
UNAVCO Supervisor: Sarah Doelger
Field Engineer Intern
About Kayla (she/her/hers)
Kayla Byrd recently graduated from the University of Michigan with a major in Materials Science and Engineering and a minor in graphic design. She is a lover of science and art, which lends into her passion for nature and the outdoors, and an interest in the state of our environment and the world we live in. This summer she will be working as a field engineer to maintain, upgrade, and repair some of the GNSS stations UNAVCO and other scientists use to observe geodetic data.
Zach Courter
School: University of Colorado Denver
About Zach (he/him/his)
Zach is currently a senior student pursuing a Biology major and Communications minor at the University of Colorado at Denver. His interest in science communication stems from a combination of my academic interests in the sciences, as well as more personal interests in creation of entertaining and informative content. He hopes to be able to both improve and utilize his skills in science communication during this internship!
Kenneth Larrieu
School: University of California, Davis
Data Science Intern- OpenTopography
About Kenneth (he/him/his)
Kenneth's project was titled "Digital Elevation Model (DEM) Visualization Tools in OpenTopography".
Cole Speed
School: University of Texas at Austin
Data Science Intern – OpenTopography
About Cole (he/him/his)
Cole Speed is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin and a Graduate Research Assistant in the Quantitative Clastics Laboratory at the Bureau of Economic Geology. He uses a variety of remote sensing methods and field data to study linkages between planetary surface processes and their expression in the modern and ancient sedimentary record. This summer, Cole is working with the OpenTopography team to develop Python workflows for programmatically accessing, processing, visualizing, and analyzing lidar point cloud data and derivative products, with the goal of enhancing ease of access and utilization of these datasets for a variety of use cases and end-users.
Ian Sulley
School: Union College
UNAVCO Supervisor: Doug Ertz
About Ian (he/him/his)
Ian is an undergraduate student at Union College majoring in computer engineering and minoring in embedded machine learning. This summer Ian is working with the UNAVCO web services team to lift current infrastructure into the cloud. Ian is responsible for transitioning the image database used by field engineers to a new, cloud-based platform. This will require developing a new API layer and migrating the existing database to the cloud. Ian is also involved in designing and deploying new AWS infrastructure to improve UNAVCO's revamped image service. Upgrades will focus on improving service usability and performance while maintaining the existing functionality that enables researchers to access the data they need. When not building ETL data pipelines, Ian enjoys spending time in nature and organizing mutual-aid networks within his local community.
About Lucia Bellino (she/her/hers)
Lucia Bellino is a recent graduate of Rutgers University – New Brunswick, having majored in Earth and Planetary Sciences and minored in Technical Writing. Throughout her undergraduate career, Lucia conducted oxygen and carbon stable isotope analyses on surface-dwelling microfossils to reconstruct the sea surface temperatures of the North Atlantic Ocean during the Miocene. For her senior thesis, she investigated the presence of hydrothermal mineral alteration, including serpentinization, in the Eridania basin on Mars, which has implications for astrobiology and magnetization. This summer, Lucia worked alongside Scott Johnson to migrate the UNAVCO website to a new WordPress platform and created additional science communication and outreach materials.
About Rebecca Bussard (she/her/hers)
Becca Bussard is a PhD candidate of Earth Sciences at the University of Oregon. She previously graduated from Penn State in 2019 with a BS in Physics and Honors in Earth Science. Her USIP internship involved organizing and updating the SAR resources for UNAVCO as well as helping run educational SAR courses. She also created multiple online tutorials for processing SAR data that are now housed with UNAVCO.
Courtenay Duzet
School: University of Montana
About Courtenay Duzet (she/her/hers)
Courtenay Duzet is in an M.S program at University of Montana for Geophysics and Seismology. She grew up in a small town in North Idaho before obtaining her B.S in Environmental Sciences at Oregon State University. She hopes to pursue her Ph.D in Volcanology at the University of Alaska after graduation. Her USIP internship consists of working with the Education and Community Engagement department to help update UNAVCO's website and support Geodesy research related outreach efforts.
Levi Exner
School: Colorado State University
Software Developer Intern
About Levi Exner (he/him/his)
Levi Exner is a Junior at Colorado State University, studying Computer Science. He grew up in Colorado, and moved back after 4 years in the US Army. Levi is helping update the State-of-Heath system and migrating it to new hardware. He spends his free time with his cat, biking, and enjoying Colorado breweries.
Catherine (Cassie) Hanagan
UNAVCO Supervisor: Christine Puskas
Data Technician Intern
About Cassie Hanagan (she/her/hers)
Cassie Hanagan graduated in 2019 with a BS in Geosciences from her hometown university, Penn State, and is currently a PhD candidate in Geophysics at the University of Arizona. Her unfailing interest in the world around her aptly explains her choice of study and drives her recent research efforts in the global field of Active Tectonics. For the USIP internship program, Cassie is developing user-friendly interactive Notebooks for some of UNAVCO's legacy geodetic observation tools.
Jordan Mazur
School: Skidmore College
UNAVCO Supervisor: Tim Dittman
About Jordan Mazur (she/her/hers)
Jordan Mazur recently returned to her hometown of Santa Fe, NM after completing her Bachelor's degrees in Mathematics and Computer Science at Skidmore College. As an avid rock climber, hiker, and general outdoor enthusiast, she hopes to use her academic skillset to understand, protect, and preserve the Earth. After gaining some work experience, Jordan plans to pursue a graduate degree related to scientific computing and/or mathematical modelling. During her USIP internship, Jordan is evaluating and making improvements to an open-source software package critical to UNAVCO's GNSS data archive cloud lift.
Nathaniel Quinn
School: Pratt Institute
Data Technician Intern – OpenTopography
About Nathaniel Quinn (he/him/his)
Nat Quinn has an undergraduate degree in Environmental Science and Studio Art from The Colorado College, and a masters degree in Data Visualization and Analysis from Pratt Institute. This summer during his time with OpenTopography, he worked on a new user tool to generate contour lines from Lidar data, and two open source notebooks; one creating 3D modeling meshes from point clouds, and the other projecting satellite imagery onto a 3D model to create 1-meter resolution landscape renderings.
UNAVCO Supervisor: Dave Mencin
Project: Student Assistant in Geodetic Data Services
Cassie Hanagan graduated in 2019 with BS in Geosciences from her hometown university, Penn State, and currently pursues a PhD in Geophysics from the University of Arizona. Her unfailing interest in the world around her aptly explains her choice of study and drives her recent research efforts in the global field of Active Tectonics. As a USIP intern, Cassie has been creating user-friendly Jupyter notebooks that walk through understanding, accessing, downloading, and processing borehole strainmeter data.
Sara Mirzaee
School: University of Miami
UNAVCO Supervisor: Scott Baker
About Sara Mirzaee (she/her/hers)
Sara is a Ph.D. candidate in Geoscience studying at the University of Miami. She is originally from Iran and came to the US in 2017. She completed her bachelor as a Geomatics engineer and studied Remote Sensing as her master in Iran. She found her interest in learning about Earth via radar remote sensing. In her master's, Sara worked on polarimetric radar images to study phenology in agriculture and after graduation, she started working on monitoring landslides using InSAR and GPS over Alborz range. That experience made her more enthusiastic to continue InSAR applications and lead her to study volcanoes. As an intern in the 2020 USIP program, she has been part of the GeoSCIFramework project, working on the development of processing workflows and populating SAR data.
Lisa Knowles
About Lisa Knowles
Lisa Knowles is currently working on a PhD in Geosciences from the University of Arizona and earned a Bachelor of Sciences in Environmental Science from University of Maryland – Baltimore in 2015. During a 2014 Southern California Earthquake Center Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SCEC SURE) internship, she developed a strong familiarity with GPS and related technical methods. As USIP intern, Lisa contributed to the GeoSCIFramework project, creating user-friendly Jupyter notebooks for searching, accessing, and extracting geodetic data.
Rachel Terry
School: University of California at Riverside
About Rachel Terry
Rachel Terry received her M.Sc in Geological Sciences from the University of California at Riverside (UCR) in March 2019. The focus of Rachel's research at UCR was to better understand the relationship between geothermal power production and surface deformation at The Geysers geothermal field in northern California. To do this, she used GPS data, well data, and forward/inverse dislocation models to relate water injection and steam extraction to surface deformation. During her time at UCR, she also led multiple GPS campaigns in California, including around The Geyser's geothermal field and in the Mojave Desert prior to the M6.4 and M7.1 Ridgecrest earthquakes in July 2019. Prior to attending graduate school, Rachel received her B.Sc in Environmental Science: Geology from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. As a USIP intern, Rachel has been a part of the GeoSCIFramework project, creating user-friendly Jupyter notebooks for searching, accessing, and extracting geodetic data. She is excited to continue working with UNAVCO as a Software Engineer in August.
Tadesse Alemu
School: Oklahoma State University
UNAVCO Supervisor: Beth Pratt-Sitaula
Project: Student Assistant in Geodetic Tools for Societal Issues (GETSI)
About Tadesse Alemu
Tadesse Alemu is a PhD candidate in Geology at Oklahoma State University, where he does research related to basin analysis by integrating field-based studies with remote sensing data, and lab work. The main objective of Tadesse's dissertation is to document the salient geologic and geophysical features of what is possibly the only completely exhumed IntraCONtinental Sag (ICONS) basin that is located in the western flank of the Afar Depression, in the East African Rift System. His work has important implications for understanding crustal dynamics, and resources distribution within basins referred to as cratonic or intracontinental. Tadesse received his B.S. and M.S. in Geology from Addis Ababa University–Ethiopia, where he also served as a lecturer for about 2 years. This summer, as an intern on the GETSI project, Tadesse interacted with authors from six colleges and universities supporting them with GPS data requests, ArcGIS needs, copyright issues, preparing figures, short lectures, manuals, and getting himself familiar with field GPS data collection and processing.
Kawan Amelung
UNAVCO Supervisors: David Phillips & Scott Baker
About Kawan Amelung
Kawan Amelung is a mechanical engineering student at the University of Miami and a participant of the 2018 USIP program. He believes the extensive potential of remote sensing, specifically InSAR, is becoming more apparent. Although there are a variety of obstacles associated with the processing and use of SAR data, the storage and delivery of time-series InSAR is key among them. Kawan's USIP project revolved around the on-going upgrade of UNAVCO's SAR data collections to be time-series InSAR compatible. Solving the storage and distribution demands of time-series InSAR data will enable greater utilization of this incredibly useful tool.
Jon Bridgeman
School: Post-graduate of Tulane University
UNAVCO Supervisor: Jim Normandeau
Project: Student Geologistics Technician
About Jon Bridgeman
Jon is a geologist who specializes in coastal and deltaic systems. He graduated from Tulane University in May of 2018 with a MS in Earth and Environmental Science. During his time in the program, he wrote a thesis on exploring the mechanisms of coastal subsidence in the Mississippi River Delta and determining subsidence rates throughout the Holocene using a field-based approach. As a USIP intern, he was supervised by Jim Normandeau and worked on several geodetic survey projects. Jon surveyed with terrestrial LiDAR systems, built a semi-autonomous RC plane, and created a workflow to help new users operate drones and acquire data for Structure-from-Motion. He gained a robust skill set and was able to make drone technology more accessible to the broader scientific community. In addition to this work, he helped organize the warehouse and build campaign GPS kits for long term deployment monitoring volcanic and fault activity.Kawan Amelung is a mechanical engineering student at the University of Miami and a participant of the 2018 USIP program. He believes the extensive potential of remote sensing, specifically InSAR, is becoming more apparent. Although there are a variety of obstacles associated with the processing and use of SAR data, the storage and delivery of time-series InSAR is key among them. Kawan's USIP project revolved around the on-going upgrade of UNAVCO's SAR data collections to be time-series InSAR compatible. Solving the storage and distribution demands of time-series InSAR data will enable greater utilization of this incredibly useful tool.
Samantha Eckes
School: Post-graduate of Auburn University
About Samantha Eckes
Samantha is a geologist originally from the Hudson Valley in New York. Samantha's interest in geology and remote sensing started with a fascination in photography. After receiving a degree in photography, she completed her bachelors at SUNY Geneseo and followed by her masters at Auburn University. Her general interests include planetary geology, fluvial systems, geophysics and learning new methods for collecting data in the field. This summer, Samantha helped create a workflow for the 3DR drones and worked on building a RC plane. She also created and completed projects using the 3D printer and helped maintain the warehouse and campaign materials for GPS/GNSS units. She appreciated everything the USIP internship program taught her and is excited to move to Portland, OR in August.
Nate Ewan
School: University of Colorado, Boulder
About Nate Ewan
Nate Ewan is a software developer and undergraduate at the University of Colorado Boulder, studying Computer Science. During his time at UNAVCO, he worked on adding additional functionality to the State-of-Health (SOH) system, which outputs to the Network Monitoring Map on the UNAVCO website. He developed a program to update the health of stations that have fallen out of the automated process 'dataflow'. This map is used by field engineers and the public alike, and will help users of the Network Monitoring map to have a more comprehensive view of the status of our stations.
Diana Krupnik
School: University of Houston
About Diana Krupnik
Diana Krupnik is a PhD candidate in Geology, studying at University of Houston. Her path to geoscience was non-linear; she started out studying Biology and became interested in Geology while working as a field assistant in Sapelo Island, Georgia. After that, she completed her bachelor's in Geology and started a PhD, where she found her passion in teaching while working as a TA for various upper level geoscience courses. Her summer project at UNAVCO involved working on the Geodesy Tools for Societal Issues (GETSI) project. The role of this internship is to provide support to authors – educators at various universities across the country – with data collection, organization, formatting, and preparation of instructions for using the data. The focus areas of Diana's project were flood hazards, water resources, and volcanic hazards. The goal of the GETSI project is to make geodetic data and methods accessible and available to undergraduate curricula across the country, and to help authors who are strapped for time by providing the data and assisting with other tasks such as drafting figures, helping with presentations, etc.
Sean Malloy
School: Post graduate of Virginia Tech
UNAVCO Supervisor: David Phillips & Christine Puskas
About Sean Malloy
Sean is a geophysicist with a diverse background and a love for adventure. Having spent a large portion of his time in school as a journalism major, he ultimately graduated with a Physics degree from Virginia Tech in 2018. During his last year and a half in Blacksburg, he was able to combine his love of the outdoors, writing and physics as an undergraduate researcher in Dr. D. Sarah Stamps' Geodesy and Tectonophysics Laboratory. As a UNAVCO intern, Sean was supervised by Christine Puskas and David Phillips. Sean's work at UNAVCO involved the discovery and processing of dozens of GNSS/GPS velocity solutions from published sources to create a standard metadata/dataset format for UNAVCO Principle Investigators to use. He then used SQLite to create a database to hold these processed datasets to be integrated into the UNAVCO webservices at a later time. For his next step, Sean is taking a year off before starting graduate studies in geophysics with the ultimate goal of becoming a research professor. In his free time, he loves to spend time on his bike(s), tinkering with everything and making people laugh.
Justine Overacker
School: University of Nevada, Reno
About Justine Overacker
Justine Overacker grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area before moving to Nevada to earn her BS in Geophysics from the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) in May 2012 with academic minors in Geology, Hydrogeology, and Mathematics. After graduation, she was recruited by the exploration industry and accepted a Field Geophysicist position onboard a seismic vessel. There, she spent up to 300 days a year floating around the ocean in such exotic locations as East Africa, West Africa, Nova Scotia, and the Gulf of Mexico, and training in exciting places like Abu Dhabi, Norway, and Houston. Justine came back home to Reno after the oil and gas downturn in 2015, and transitioned into the role of electromagnetic geophysical technician before returning to UNR in Fall 2016 to pursue her PhD in Geophysics. At UNAVCO, Justine's project focused on time series steps, where she tested various offset estimation strategies, and built a comprehensive step table using PBO and Nevada Geodetic Laboratory data. In her off time, Justine enjoys traveling, watching movies, riding her motorcycle, playing with her rescue pups, and the regular comforts of home and family.
Erik Dutilly
UNAVCO Supervisor: Donna Charlevoix
Project: Student Assistant in Evaluation
About Erik Dutilly
Erik Dutilly was born in Wisconsin to a father who came from a dairy farming family and mother who emigrated from Puerto Rico. He studied physical geography and Spanish at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. After moving to Boulder, CO, he got a master's degree in education. Since then, he has specialized in program evaluation work in education and science education. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Education at the University of Colorado-Boulder in the School of Education.
Christopher Edmunds
School: University of Alabama
UNAVCO Supervisor: Beth Bartel
Project: Student Assistant in Science Video Production
About Christopher Edmunds
Christopher Edmunds is a photojournalist from Birmingham, Alabama, and a USIP intern at UNAVCO for summer 2017. Christopher put his skills in publishing for media organizations to good use by shooting professional photos to document the RESESS and GLP internship programs. He also utilized his graphic design experience by created an engaging infographic explaining the basic of Geodesy that will be used in the UNAVCO calendar, and can be repurposed for educational materials. The bulk of Christopher's summer internship focused on producing videos for the UNAVCO YouTube channel. These videos used a variety of audio/visual techniques and involved interviews, green screens, animations, and hours of careful editing. By summer's end, Christopher was responsible for adding hundreds of photos, a versatile infographic, and several professional-grade videos to the UNAVCO education and outreach effort.
Ellie Ellis
School: Pitzer College
About Ellie Ellis
Ellie Ellis will receive her undergraduate degree in Geology and Environmental Analysis from Pitzer College in May of 2018. As one of two USIP video production interns, she produced numerous educational videos that highlight the work of diverse geoscience professionals and students. She also used her illustration skills to create animations for a video titled "Nine Impacts of Geodesy," which is targeted towards a broad audience. Ellie is passionate about increasing accessibility in the earth and environmental sciences, and hopes to pursue a career in education.
Ellen Knappe
UNAVCO Supervisor: Ken Austin
Project: Student Assistant in Alaska Field Operations
About Ellen Knappe
Ellen Knappe is normally a PhD candidate at University of Montana working towards her degree in active tectonics. She was very excited to return for another summer to work with the Alaska team. Ellen spent the summer flying around in the helicopter, working in the rain, swatting bugs, eating way too many gummy bears, staying very caffeinated and annoying the Alaska engineers with her horrible singing. She appreciated the opportunity to spend another great summer working and exploring Alaska with the AK team. During her internship, Ellen helped maintain and improve the Alaska PBO network. She worked with the Alaska engineers to troubleshoot issues, repair and configure equipment, enhance network communication systems and increase the robustness of power systems at stations across the state. She also learned how to quality check GPS data, monitor the network for issues and fabricate equipment for deployment. Ellen enjoyed furthering her skills as a geodesist and learning new skills and techniques from the AK team.
Rama Vamshi Krishna Dhulipala
School: University of North Carolina, Charlotte
Project: Student Assistant in Nagios Software
About Rama Vamshi Krishna Dhulipala
I am Rama Vamshi Krishna Dhulipala, a graduate student at University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Apart from pursuing my Masters in the computer Science Department, I was also a Teaching Assistant for the course 'Software Development Projects', when I was in my second semester of graduation. I would like to introduce myself as a person who loves to code and thoroughly enjoys programming. I enjoy the process of building solutions through the development of software applications (both web and mobile). This summer, I have been working as a Nagios Code Writer Intern under the guidance of my supervisor, Jim Normandeau.
Ian Lauer
Project: Student Assistant in Field Education
About Ian Lauer
Ian has been working with UNAVCO since summer 2016 on a NSF grant to improve undergraduate education in geoscience technologies. Under the guidance of advisors, Beth Pratt-Situala and Ben Crosby, he wrote field education guides and curriculum for GETSI: High Precision Positioning module. This module is a field based curriculum designed to teach practical skills in conducting GPS surveys for geoscience based problems, with a focus on societally important issues such as natural hazards and resources. Additionally, Ian's research is funded through and directly supports the curriculum by providing an example dataset of a societally relevant problem solved with GPS surveys. Ian enjoys long hikes down landslides and climbing the nearest or most prominent outcrop in the vicinity (and will argue this is the only way to properly view and assess the local geology). He gained an appreciation for nature by growing up outdoors as a child through family adventures on the rivers and in the mountains. This appreciation grew into a broad love for the natural sciences, which was solidified by graduating with a B.S. Geology in 2016. Ian hopes to always continue learning, and is currently pursuing a M.S. Geology focused on geomorphology and natural hazards. He hopes to never grow up, and looks forward to a life with his wife Brandi, daughter Sofia, and exploring the world with them.
Gavin Medley
School: Post-graduate of the University of Colorado, Boulder
UNAVCO Supervisors: Fran Boler & Doug Ertz
Project: Student Assistant in Software Engineering
About Gavin Medley
Gavin is a data scientist and programmer with a background in applied mathematics and statistics. He graduated from the University of Colorado in December 2016 with a BS/MS in Applied Mathematics. During his time in the program, he wrote a thesis on experimental lidar altimeter data and worked with his advisor to develop algorithms used by NASA. He will be starting at UNAVCO in August as a software engineer working in data management and distribution. From June 12 through June 30 I was supervised by Fran Boler where I worked on creating XML mapping files to map our database schemas to the GeodesyML schema being advanced by Geoscience Australia. The goal was to utilize Geoserver to output our site log metadata in XML according to the GeodesyML schema definition. From July 3 through August 4, I was supervised by Doug Ertz where I developed software in python to reduce data transmission costs associated with downloading hourly log files from GPS receivers.
Giordan Thompson
About Giordan Thompson
I am currently attending the University of Colorado at Boulder, pursuing a degree in Mechanical Engineering. I spent the summer operating the CNC machine and 3D printer coming up with innovations for the PolarRx5 campaign systems. During the Internship, I remained stationed in the warehouse testing and reiterating these systems. My participation in the UNAVCO Student Internship Program (USIP) has allowed me to find my niche in the geoscience field. UNAVCO has showed me diverse backgrounds make for a powerful workforce.
Cody Bomberger
Project: Student Assistant in Evaluation of GNSS receivers and real-time PPP-AR positions for Earthquake and Tsunami Early Warning
About Cody Bomberger
Cody Bomberger is from north-central Pennsylvania and completed his bachelor's degree in Geosciences at the Pennsylvania State University. Cody is now wrapping up his master's in the Department of Geosciences at the University of Montana. His work at Montana focuses on using observed surface deformation to determine the relative contribution from the crust and lithosphere using spatial scaling relationships. At UNAVCO, Cody worked on real time GPS processing with applications to Early Earthquake Warning systems.
Project: Student Assistant in Alaska Summer Field Operations
Ellen Knappe is a Ph.D. candidate at University of Montana, working towards her degree in active tectonics. She spent the summer helping the Alaska team service the PBO network across the state; troubleshooting issues with stations, enhancing network communication systems and replacing faulty equipment. During her internship, Ellen visited remote locations across Alaska to service stations, learned new techniques and skills from all the Alaska engineers and likely annoyed them with her horrible singing.
Meredith Kraner
About Meredith Kraner
Meredith Kraner, a New York native, is currently a graduate student at the Nevada Geodetic Laboratory located within the University of Nevada, Reno looking at time-dependent strain in GNSS data. She became interested in geology, earthquakes, and crustal deformation while pursuing her undergraduate degree at Stony Brook University. This summer, Meredith worked on evaluating real time GPS processing systems to understand the most efficient and accurate methods to use for future Earthquake Early Warning systems. In her spare time, she enjoys outdoor-oriented activities such as hiking, biking, and skiing.
School: Idaho State University
Project: Student Assistant in Developing GETSI Field Education Modules
Ian Lauer is pursuing an M.S. Geology degree at Idaho State University. He is interested in the use of GPS/GNSS, LiDAR, and other geodetic tools in studying landscape morphology and applications to quantify and predict natural hazards such as earthquakes and landslides. He is working with UNAVCO to improve undergraduate curriculum and training in RTK and Static GNSS surveys by writing several field education modules distributed through SERC and GETSI.
Sarah Moore
School: Pennsylvania State University
UNAVCO Supervisor: Shelley Olds
Project: Student Assistant in Producing an Infographic on Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) for a Broad Audience
About Sarah Moore
Sarah Moore completed her B.S. degree in geology at the University of Utah and is currently pursuing an M.S. in geoscience at Penn State University. Her love of natural hazards as a child drew her to study volcano deformation on Kilauea volcano in Hawaii for both her undergraduate and graduate research. Sarah's background with InSAR led her to UNAVCO where she spent the summer developing a suite of InSAR data products to create outreach materials for the Education and Community Engagement program. She generated a suite of many high quality interferograms add to the WInSAR product archive. She also used the examples to design an infographic describing how InSAR works and to showcase the many applications of InSAR in the geosciences.
James (Bobby) Nash
School: University of North Texas
Project: Student Assistant in GeoOutreach Video and Media
About Bobby Nash
Bobby Nash is currently completing his undergraduate degree at the University of North Texas where he studies documentary production and biology. His participation in the UNAVCO Student Internship Program (USIP) allowed him to practice science communication in a field well outside the scope of his own academic experience, an invaluable exercise in translating complex concepts into easily digestible material. Over the course of the summer, Bobby worked on several video projects. He produced a short video for UNAVCO's Geoscience Career Spotlight series featuring UNAVCO polar field engineer Annie Zaino, with the goal of reaching geoscience undergrads with the stories of professional role models representing both diversity and non-academic career paths in the geosciences. He also created a video highlighting the capabilities and applications of the terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) equipment and data services offered by UNAVCO, intended to reach scientists considering utilizing the TLS for their own research.
Daniel Zietlow
About Daniel Zietlow
Daniel Zietlow is working at the interface of science and society, creatively communicating a range of scientific topics via photography, film, and writing to a broad audience. He developed a love of science, art, travel, and the outdoors, and pursed these diverse interests as an undergraduate majoring in physics and art history at Rollins College. After graduating, Daniel entered a doctoral program in geophysics at the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he specialized in seismology. His work took him across the globe, from his backyard in the Rocky Mountains to the South Island of New Zealand to the Himalaya of Nepal. During his time at CU, Daniel pursued science communication through film and photography, and after completing his Ph.D. was drawn to UNAVCO as an environment in which to hone these skills. While here, Daniel worked on a number of film endeavors. One project focused on the web services offered by UNAVCO for community access to GPS, SAR, and borehole data. He also produced videos featuring scientist Alejandro Soto and science communicator Laura Snider as a part of UNAVCO's Geoscience Career Spotlight series, aimed towards informing intro-level undergraduates of possible non-academic geoscience careers.
Andrew Bayles
School: Utah State University
About Andrew Bayles
Andrew Bayles recently received his B.S. degree in Geoscience with a minor in Art from Utah State University in Logan, Utah. He spent the summer with UNAVCO working on a video series that spotlights different careers in geoscience. He gained valuable experiences while working on this project and meeting/interviewing local geoscientists. UNAVCO offers many opportunities for interns to work on unique projects, learn, and grow in a fun, supportive environment. Andy is very grateful to take part of it. He also loved spending the summer in beautiful Boulder with his wife and one-year-old daughter.
Sarah Kittross
UNAVCO Supervisor: Linda Rowan
About Sarah Kittross
Sarah grew up in the beautiful Green Mountains of Vermont, the perfect environment to develop her love for the outdoors and capturing it through photography and film. She studies both of those interests as a senior geology major and film studies minor at Union College in upstate New York. She is currently completing a senior thesis project on the geochronology of very old volcanic deposits on the Caribbean island of Dominica. Sarah was drawn to UNAVCO where she could leverage her dual interests by creating dynamic videos about UNAVCO and geodesy for the public and the community. She is also exploring the history of the facility and hoping to make it more accessible to people on the UNAVCO website.
Carson MacPherson-Krutsky
UNAVCO Supervisor: Aisha Morris
Project: Student Assistant in Geo-Workforce Development
About Carson MacPherson-Krutsky
Carson is pursuing a master's degree at the University of Montana with a focus on natural hazards and science communication. Her background in geology and passion for connecting with others led her to UNAVCO where she spent the summer with the Education and Community Engagement group creating a video highlighting geoscience career paths and expanding interest in geodesy.
Austin Madson
School: University of California, Los Angeles
Project: Student Assistant in Geodetic Data for Undergraduate Education
About Austin Madson
Austin is currently wrapping up his master's work at the University of California – Los Angeles in the Department of Geography. He will continue research while working on the PhD in the same department. His current research is focused on crustal loading and lithospheric flexure utilizing remotely sensed datasets, with more broad interests in varying types of hydrologic remote sensing, RADAR remote sensing technologies (PolSAR and DInSAR), real world applications in the use of Remote Sensing (RS) and GIS, integration of RS and GIS technologies and coupled human/environ systems. During the past two summers at UNAVCO, Austin focused on processing varying types of datasets (GPS, LiDAR, DInSAR, GRACE, SWE, and groundwater) in order to create products that will be implemented into undergraduate learning modules for the Geodesy Tools for Societal Issues (GETSI) project. The goal for the project is to develop teaching materials for engaging undergraduate students in addressing societally important Earth science questions through the use of geodetic data.
Katherine Shervais
About Katherine Shervais
Kate just completed her master's degree in Geoscience at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado. Prior to attending Colorado State, she received her bachelor's degree in Earth and Environmental Science at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. Her research is focused on investigating fault geometry evolution by studying evidence of ancient earthquakes using Structure from Motion, terrestrial laser scanning, and RTK GPS. At UNAVCO this summer, Kate is compiling and creating curriculum materials for a terrestrial laser scanning field education module. Over the course of the multi-day module, students will learn to operate a TLS instrument, analyze the deposition history of a stratigraphic section, conduct hillslope diffusion analysis of a fault scarp, and quantify the change in a geomorphic (fluvial or landslide, for example) system over time.
Name Project School Attended Year
Kathleen Alexander Student Assistant in Geodetic Curricular Materials for K-12 Teachers The College of New Jersey 2014
Matthew Lancaster Data Technician Portland State University 2014
Austin Madson Student Assistant in Geodetic Data for Undergraduate Education University of California, Los Angeles 2014
Matthew Peters Student Data Technician Colorado School of Mines 2014
Holly Taylor Student Assistant in Communications and Outreach Cornell University 2014
Shawn Carr Student Assistant in TLS and GPS Education University of Northern Colorado 2013
Thomas Dickson-Hunt Student Assistant in Software Development Colorado State University 2013
Mark Greathouse Student Assistant in Engineering Colorado School of Mines 2013
Bethany Johnson Student Assistant in Accounting Brigham Young University 2013
Anneka Kumli Student Assistant in Human Resources Stanford University 2013
France-Julianna Maria Leiva Student Assistant in Engineering UC Berkeley 2013
Holly Taylor Student Assistant in InSAR Education Cornell University 2013
Michael Fend Student Assistant in Engineering University of Colorado, Boulder 2012
David Page Student Assistant in System Administration University of Colorado, Boulder 2012
Alex Mayorga Student Assistant in Data Management University of Colorado, Denver 2011
Flora Quinby Student Volunteer in Data Management 2011
Cassandra Shenefelt Student Assistant in Student Services Colorado School of Mines 2011
Elvin Mujcin Student Assistant in Data Management University of Colorado, Boulder 2009
Kimberly Cabbagestalk Student Assistant in Data Management University of Colorado, Boulder 2008
Travis Kelsay Student Assistant University of Colorado, Boulder 2008
Carol Webber Student Field Assistant Central Washington University 2008
Lauren Wenner Student Assistant University of Colorado, Boulder 2008
Austin Baldwin Student Field Engineer University of Texas, Austin 2007
David Finn Student Field Assistant, Northern California University of Montana 2007
Sarah Gasparich Student Field Engineer Whitman College 2007
Justin Gunn Student Field Assistant Occidental College 2007
Ally Marzulla Student Field Assistant Nederland High School 2007
Omar Perez Student Field Assistant University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez 2007
Thomas Pray Student Field Assistant, Northern California Princeton University 2007
Emily Seider Student Field Assistant Whitman College 2007
Phillip Stoker Student Field Assistant Universtiy of Redlands, CA 2007
Rich Beaudoin Student Assistant in Data Management University of Colorado, Boulder 2006
Grant Farmer Student Assistant in Digital Campaign Document Management Georgia Institute of Technology 2006
Liberty Hamilton Student Assistant in Data Management Scripps College 2006
Tim Dittman Student Field Assistant Princeton University 2005
Beth Duschatko Student Field Assistant Northern Arizona University 2005
Richard Pagel Student Field Assistant University of Texas at Austin 2005
Laura Smith Student Field Assistant Princeton University
Sarah Venator Student Field Assistant Central Washington University 2005
Andrew Wahr Student Assistant in Data Services Purdue University 2004
Carolyn Cavanaugh Student Assistant in Data Management University of Colorado, Boulder 2003
Trevor Stone Student Assistant in Map Tool Software Development University of Colorado, Boulder 2003
Carolyn Cavanaugh Student Assistant in Data Management Boulder High School & University of Colorado, Boulder 2002
Liberty Hamilton Student Assistant in Data Management Boulder High School & Scripps College 2002
Carolyn Cavanaugh Student Assistant in Data Management Boulder High School 2001
Liberty Hamilton Student Assistant in Data Management Boulder High School 2001
Positions for 2023
Data Science Intern
Eligible individuals must be enrolled as a student at the time of application.
The internship is 11 weeks starting May 22, 2023.
Interns must participate for the full 11-week period.
A weekly stipend of $800 is provided for 11 weeks
Work can be completed in Boulder, Colorado or at a remote location
Position Description The intern will develop workflows related to processing, analysis, and/or visualization of the geodetic data types collected and managed by EarthScope. These include GNSS, strain, tilt, Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), and 3D imaging data such as lidar and photogrammetry. The intern will construct the workflow, author documentation, and deploy the workflows as Notebooks that will be transportable and scalable, allowing them to be deployed in environments from laptops, to local clusters and the cloud. The project will rely on resources such as GitLab, Jupyter Notebooks and Observable Notebooks.
Essential Job Functions
Construct the workflow (processing, analysis, and/or visualization), author documentation, and deploy the workflows as a Observable and/or Jupyter Notebook(s).
Working Relationships
Reports to Project Manager II/III or Software Engineer III.
Interacts and collaborates with peers and colleagues across the organization.
Responds and reports to stakeholders on project status and results.
Interacts with community members relative to supported project.
Interacts effectively with various EarthScope Consortium staff to ensure the completion of assigned responsibilities. May provide guidance on technical matters to others. Does not have supervisory responsibility.
EarthScope Core Competencies
Accountability and Responsibility
Skilled Problem Solver
Physical Work Demands
Able to sit and/or stand to work at a computer
Able to move about a typical home office
Able to travel to Boulder Colorado for orientation week and participate indoor and outdoor activities
Able to lift and move up to 25 pounds occasionally
Mental Work Demands
Regular and on-time attendance
Note: To perform this position successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential responsibility satisfactorily. The requirements listed above are representative of knowledge, skill, and/or ability required and are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities or qualifications associated with this position.
Required Education Graduate or undergraduate level student in Earth sciences or related STEM field Interest in working at the intersection of science and education
Required Skills Experience with at least one geodetic method (GNSS, InSAR, lidar, photogrammetry, gravity, sea level altimetry, etc.)
Data entry or related experience
Preferred Skills
Knowledge of multiple geodetic methods
Familiarity with some or most of the technologies and software packages listed below:
Data search and access:
Database querying and statistical computing languages: Python, SQL
OGC Web Services: WFS, WMS, WCS
Data formats and pre-processing:
HDF5, RINEX, LAS/LAZ, GeoPackage
Extracting, cleansing, and verifying the integrity of data
Geodetic data processing and analysis:
GNSS: GipsyX, GAMIT/GLOBK/TRACK
SAR: ISCE, GMTSAR
Lidar & Photogrammetry: PDAL, GDAL, LAStools
Data visualization:
Jupyter Notebooks
Observable Notebooks
Javascript/HTML, D3, OpenLayers, matplotlib, GMT
Our internship programs utilize a third-party company for applications called Submittable. Note that you will be asked to create a Submittable account upon entering the application. This is required to complete the application and allows you to save your progress while working on the application. Please complete all required (*) fields. Note that demographic information is optional and not shared with any identifying information (including to the review panel).
Incomplete applications will not be considered. To complete an application, you must submit the following materials and answer all questions in on submittable HERE
We require a PDF that contains the following four documents:
Cover letter or statement of interest that clearly articulates professional or academic goals, Resume or CV, Names and contact information for three references, and Unofficial transcript
We are unable to provide sponsorship for work authorization within the United States.
EarthScope is an equal opportunity/equal access/affirmative action employer. Our long-term success depends on the development of a forward-looking, diversified workforce. EarthScope values diverse perspectives and backgrounds in all positions within the organization and is fully committed to achieving a diverse workforce and complies with all Federal and State laws, and regulations regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. EarthScope encourages applications from candidates who are members of historically underrepresented groups. This includes candidates from different socioeconomic backgrounds, candidates with disabilities, candidates with unique life experiences, etc. Women, Veterans, Individuals with Disabilities and members of the BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities are encouraged to apply. All qualified and complete applications will be considered. Individuals with a disability needing an accommodation as part of the employment selection process should contact humanresources@earthscope.org or 303.381.7515
The application deadline is March 1 at 11:59 p.m. Mountain Time.
OpenTopography Data Science Intern
Position Description The intern will work with the OpenTopography team to develop workflows and services related to processing, analysis, and/or visualization of topographic data managed by OpenTopography (https://opentopography.org/). These include lidar, photogrammetry, and radar data in point cloud and raster formats. The intern will construct the workflow, author documentation, and deploy the workflows as notebooks that will be transportable and scalable, allowing them to be deployed in environments from laptops, to local clusters and the cloud. The project will rely on resources such as GitLab, Jupyter Notebooks, and open source geospatial software. Additional potential tasks, as a function of the intern's skills and interests, could include development of training resources such as written and/or video tutorials, and education and outreach materials.
Working Relationships Internal
Reports to Project Manager III.
Interacts effectively with various EarthScope Consortium & OpenTopography staff to ensure the completion of assigned responsibilities. May provide guidance on technical matters to others. Does not have supervisory responsibility.
Required Education
Graduate or undergraduate level student in Earth sciences or related STEM field
Interest in working at the intersection of science and education
Experience with at least one geodetic method (GNSS, InSAR, lidar, photogrammetry, gravity, sea level altimetry, etc.)
LAS/LAZ, EPT, GeoTIFF/Cloud Optimized GeoTIFF (COG), IMG, GDAL VRT
Data processing and analysis:
PDAL & GDAL
LAStools, ArcGIS, Global Mapper, CloudCompare
Incomplete applications will not be considered. To complete an application, you must submit the following materials and answer all questions in our online application hosted on submittable HERE
Please Submit a PDF that contains the following four documents: Cover letter or statement of interest that clearly articulates professional or academic goals, Resume or CV, Names and contact information for three references, and Unofficial transcript
Internship is 11-weeks starting May 22, 2023.
Position Description The Co-Op Field Engineer position will assist both the Operations team as well as the Data Services team at EarthScope in support of the operation and maintenance of the NSF-fund Network of the Americas (NOTA), a 1200-station network of geophysical instrumentation, mainly in the Western US. This position will provide the student an opportunity to become familiar with geophysical instrumentation, learn about earth processes, work outdoors, and assist with fieldwork to support NOTA operations across the Western US in places like Yellowstone National Park, Mojave Desert, Mt St. Helens, Mt. Shasta, and Mt. Lassen. As the student gains experience, there may be opportunities for fieldwork in Alaska and the Caribbean. This position will initially be based in Boulder, CO. Housing accommodations or a stipend will be provided.
• Assist engineers with NOTA station maintenance: planning, preparation, and fieldwork
• Test hardware components (GNSS, meteorological, tiltmeter, stainmeter, etc.) for instrumentation found within the NOTA network
• Interface with warehouse personnel to work through and solve various engineering issues
• Write maintenance reports
• Create and/or update process documentation
• Act as an ambassador for EarthScope with project stakeholders
• Use existing network monitoring tools to assist with monitoring and improving the performance of the NOTA
Internal · Reports to EarthScope Program Manager and other Field Engineering staff
· Interacts and collaborates with peers and colleagues across the organization.
· Responds and reports to stakeholders on project status and results.
· Interacts with community members relative to supported project.
Interacts effectively with various EarthScope staff to ensure the completion of assigned responsibilities. May provide guidance on technical matters to others. Does not have supervisory responsibility.
Able to move about a typical office and outdoor work/research environment on a daily basis
University level student in Earth sciences or relevant STEM field
Interest in working at the intersection of science and communication
· Basic computer skills, including use of MS Office applications
· Excellent written and verbal communication skills
· Ability to both work independently and as a member of a team
· Knowledgeable in the safe use of power tools
· Knowledgeable in some programming language (e.g. MATLAB, python, GMT)
· Some wilderness first aid experience
· A passion for working outdoors
· Willingness for extensive travel throughout the Western US
Our internship programs utilize a third-party company for applications called Submittable. Note that you will be asked to create a Submittable account upon entering the application. This is required to complete the application and allows you to save your progress while working on the application. Please complete all required (*) fields. Note that demographic information is optional and not shared with any identifying information (including the review panel).
Incomplete applications will not be considered. To complete an application, you must submit the following materials and answer all questions in our online application hosted on Submittable
Please Submit a PDF that contains the following four documents: HERE
Cover letter or statement of interest that clearly articulates professional or academic goals,
Resume or CV,
Names and contact information for three references, and
Unofficial transcript
We are unable to provide sponsorship for work authorization within the United States. EarthScope is an equal opportunity/equal access/affirmative action employer. Our long-term success depends on the development of a forward-looking, diversified workforce. EarthScope values diverse perspectives and backgrounds in all positions within the organization and is fully committed to achieving a diverse workforce and complies with all Federal and State laws, and regulations regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. EarthScope encourages applications from candidates who are members of historically underrepresented groups. This includes candidates from different socioeconomic backgrounds, candidates with disabilities, candidates with unique life experiences, etc. Women, Veterans, Individuals with Disabilities and members of the BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities are encouraged to apply. All qualified and complete applications will be considered. Individuals with a disability needing an accommodation as part of the employment selection process should contact humanresources@earthscope.org or 303.381.7515
Science Communication Intern
The Communications Intern will assist with science writing, website and social media content, and potential visual or video projects.
The internship is 11-weeks starting May 22, 2023.
Intern will be responsible for assisting in creating content for science communication and to highlight EarthScope's science-support activities. Tasks may include contributing to organizational news stories and science summaries, interviewing other interns, creating and posting content on social media, updating and creating webpages, and graphic design or video production. Specific projects will be selected based on skillset, interest, and growth goals. The successful applicant will have basic technical skills working in an online environment, will be highly organized, and will have exceptional attention to detail.
Create and edit web content using WordPress.
Develop compelling and engaging social media posts.
Produce imagery and writing for communications purposes.
Reports to the Science Communications Associate, coordinating via Slack and daily Zoom meetings. Interacts and collaborates with peers and colleagues across the organization.
May interact with community members to inquire about research or coordinate outreach efforts.
Ability to communicate effectively and clearly
Ability to work independently and pay attention to detail
Ability to manage time, especially when there may be competing priorities
Experience working in WordPress or other content management system
Experience with multiple social media platforms
Experience with graphics software (e.g. Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop)
Ability to translate complex scientific concepts to non-scientific audiences
Incomplete applications will not be considered.
To complete an application, you must submit the following materials and answer all questions in our online application hosted on submittable
Please Submit a PDF that contains the following four documents:
We are unable to provide sponsorship for work authorization within the United States. EarthScope is an equal opportunity/equal access/affirmative action, employer. Our long-term success depends on the development of a forward-looking, diversified workforce. EarthScope values diverse perspectives and backgrounds in all positions within the organization and is fully committed to achieving a diverse workforce and complies with all Federal and State laws, and regulations regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. EarthScope encourages applications from candidates who are members of historically underrepresented groups. This includes candidates from different socioeconomic backgrounds, candidates with disabilities, candidates with unique life experiences, etc. Women, Veterans, Individuals with Disabilities and members of the BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities are encouraged to apply. All qualified and complete applications will be considered. Individuals with a disability needing an accommodation as part of the employment selection process should contact humanresources@earthscope.org or 303.381.7515
Education and Student Resources Intern
Intern will be responsible for data processing, data presentation, technical support documentation, and educational resources development. Potential methods include GPS/GNSS, structure from motion, and lidar applied to societal challenges such as natural hazards, water resources, and climate change. The successful applicant will have basic technical skills working in an online environment, will be highly organized, and will have exceptional attention to detail.
Process or reconfigure geodetic data for incorporation into learning activities (ex. GPS/GNSS, structure for motion, lidar, and others)
Develop and refine teaching materials to support teaching with geodetic data and methods
Manipulate data and images in software such as GIS (e.g. ArcGIS), Adobe Photoshop, and Adobe Illustrator
Refine or develop technical support documentation for using geodetic instruments in the field
Reports to the Project Manager coordinating via Slack and periodic Zoom meetings. Interacts and collaborates with peers and colleagues across the organization.
May interact with community members to inquire about research, data, and needed resources.
Experience using data to address scientific questions
Interest in working with geodesy methods and data for educational purposes
Ability to work independently and pay attention to details
Experience with GIS software (e.g., ArcGIS)
Experience making figures in a graphics software (e.g., Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop)
Experience developing education, outreach, or community engagement materials
Incomplete applications will not be considered. To complete an application, you must submit the following materials and answer all questions in our online application procedure. Via our online portal HERE


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Mechstermination Force (Switch eShop) Review
by Paul RobertsApril 4, 2019
The future is destined to be filled with destructive world dominating robots, and in Mechstermination Force it's time to fight back. Hörberg Productions, maker of Gunman Clive is back and filling Switch screens with giant destroyer Mechs. Time to climb all over some giant robots and see what makes them tick.
Mechstermination Force is a platforming boss rush game in the same vein as Contra, with a mix of Shadow of the Colossus (as proclaimed by the creator). Instead of running and gunning through waves of enemies, you're only dealing with the bosses called MegaMechs. Most of these are screen-filling Mechs that mean business. The only goal is to destroy them and wrestle control of the world away from these mysterious mechs.
Mechstermination Force is all boss battles. When you're not in your home base, you are fighting bosses in contained areas. The home base mostly serves as a store for upgrades and some dialogue, building up a little bit of extra lore around the MegaMechs. The bosses themselves can be over in 4-5 minutes, although chances are high you'll have spent much more time tackling each Mech. As a game focused around boss battles, every stage is a constant challenge from the start.
Throughout Mechstermination Force, the difficulty is high for different reasons. At the start it's because you have less health and weaponry. As the game progresses, it becomes utilising the upgrades you earn or purchase as the Mechs take more steps to destroy. Something all these giant Mechs have in common besides a disregard for your well-being are weak points, represented as glowing red cores. While everything else is damaged by gunfire, red cores can only be damaged by hitting them with a baseball bat you happen to carry with you. Most bosses have several vulnerable points. It's important to destroy the armour and turrets on the Mechs to get to these cores. While the same method is necessary to take down these giants, every Mech is quite different. In fact, it's great that they've managed to make each fight feel different and unique enough that no boss feels tired.
Now given that Mechstermination Force is inspired by games like Contra, how does the Run and Gun platforming hold up? In a nutshell, pretty well. Even better is that the game runs at a smooth 60fps, and a lot is happening throughout each battle. It captures the different types of weapon fire, and there is plenty of freedom with aiming. Playing this makes me feel nostalgic for Contra, so it must be doing something right.
Throughout the game you'll be collecting coins as you destroy Mech parts, spending them on weapons and health upgrades. While you could torture yourself and persevere with the starter health and standard bullets, but to give yourself a fighting chance you'll need to upgrade. I was able to get through three quarters of the game with a few weapon upgrades and some health. If you really want to stock up, especially against the later Mechs, you'll need to go back and replay some older battles. Some of the higher level weapons are pretty pricey, so it can be a fair bit of grinding. Going back to the previous Mechs isn't a bad thing, you know the patterns and you can use all the weapons you have to make it easier. They're still not a cakewalk to go back to if you really want to get the maximum score and cash out of the encounters.
In the course of the game you'll also be given upgrades that make the fights more fun, including Magnet Gloves and Boost Boots. Magnet gloves make climbing around the Mechs a lot more fun, and adds verticality into some of the bigger Mechs. The Boost Boots give you a double jump, which makes traversal much better. Although I wish these were introduced much earlier in the game, or that you could use these upgrades in earlier battles when they weren't available yet.
When it's so important to hold onto as much health as possible, the game doesn't make it easy. If it's getting hit by an attack that's of course to be expected, but it's when it's not always clear it's less fun. When you hit a core you can be flung across the screen, but in the all the action you might not actually see where you're flung to until you're getting hit by something. You'll learn the patterns, that's what a lot of the game is about, but these moments throw the whole thing into chaos and it can feel unfair when you lose health getting caught up in it.
If you're feeling a bit lonely in the fight to save the world, there is also co op mode to drop in another soldier. It still runs great and is just as fun with a friend joining in. If there's any Mechs giving you a particularly tough time, having an extra player can help share the load and bring down those bosses faster.
While the game runs smoothly, the visuals look fine and is fun to play, there's a few aspects to Mechstermination Force that take the shine off. The lack of customisable buttons was one of the first things I noticed about the game, as soon as the tutorial told me what buttons did what. It's going to be different for everyone, but it didn't feel the most intuitive and even a simple change like moving the aim of fire to the right stick would've made a world of difference. Another dent in the Mechstermination Force armour was that coins and health flying off the Mechs when you damage them would often fly out of reach, or they'd vanish before you can reach them. When some of the weapons cost so much, it's frustrating to see so much money missed and it's completely out of your control. Being a game focused around big tough boss battles, I never expected the game to go easy on me. But then the deeper I got, the more it would've been great to be able to play with a mode that was slightly less punishing. Not that I would suggest it's too tough to play, it's genuinely fun to play and the more people that can play the better.
While there was some very tense moments, and a few too many Try Again screens with too much swearing from myself, Mechstermination Force is fun. Boss battle games like this aren't usually my kind of game, but with the Contra style run and gun style gameplay and inventive battles I was won over. If you like a challenge there's plenty here to knock you around as you learn more each time. There's easily a few hours in saving the world and for a good price too. It's not without its flaws, but it doesn't matter so much when it's as fun as it is along the way.
- Great Mech fights
- Runs smoothly
- Is plenty of fun
- Unmappable controls
- Uncontrollable damage
- Hard to collect cash
While there were some very tense moments, and a few too many Try Again screens with too much swearing from myself, Mechstermination Force is fun. Boss battle games like this aren't usually my kind of game, but with the Contra style run and gun style gameplay and inventive battles I was won over. If you like a challenge there's plenty here to knock you around as you learn more each time. There's easily a few hours in saving the world and for a good price too. It's not without its flaws, but it doesn't matter so much when it's as fun as it is along the way.
Mechstermination Force, Reviews
Paul Roberts
Lego enthusiast, Picross Master and appreciator of games.
Mechstermination ForceReviewsSwitch
Newly announced titles for Switch

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


One from the crypts! A mysterious trick-or-treater has definitely left a trick for Starch and Jim: a crusty old short about improvised Halloween costumes!
Posted by ArikDrake on December 19, 2016 in Isle of Rangoon, Rangoon Riffs and tagged cartoon, cartoons, Halloween, halloween special, isle of rangoon, short, the isle of rangoon.


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V.F. Summit
VF Store
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The X-Rated Emperor
As the flamboyant founder of Penthouse, Bob Guccione pushed the boundaries of the sexual revolution and (less famously) published some of the finest magazine journalism of the 1970s. He also happened to be, for a few years, the boss of V.F. contributing editor Patricia Bosworth, who, in 1974, accepted his offer to become the executive editor of Viva, the fledgling magazine Guccione had dreamed up as a kind of Penthouse for women. When Bosworth reconnected with Guccione for her February 2005 article, "The X-Rated Emperor," however, she found him far removed from his heyday. By then *Penthouse'*s circulation was less than a tenth of what it had been at its height, and in any event Guccione, once one of the richest men in the world, had lost the company in a bankruptcy sale. Of his five children, all of whom had worked for their dad during the years Bosworth was at the company, Guccione was estranged from three. He was still living in perhaps the grandest home in New York—an Upper East Side mansion he built from two adjacent town houses—but he was in imminent danger of losing the place to creditors.
Nearly five years later, Guccione hasn't recaptured his former glory, but he is utterly content with his new life. He has long since moved out of the mansion—it was purchased in 2007 by the hedge-fund mogul Philip Falcone and his wife, Lisa Maria, for $49 million—and into a more modest house in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, just across the Hudson River from upper Manhattan. He shares the property with his fourth wife, April Warren (she was his girlfriend at the time of Bosworth's article, and they married in December 2007), their five Rhodesian Ridgebacks, and a live-in housekeeper. Most important for Guccione, he has patched things up with all of his children. "He's surrounded by his kids, and he likes nothing better than to have dinner with his family," says Bob Guccione Jr., who had not spoken to his father for 18 years when Bob senior reached out to him around Christmas 2005. "It was an effortless reconciliation," the younger Guccione says.
According to his son, Guccione spends much of his time painting (he started Penthouse as a way to subsidize his art career) and working on his memoir. But he hasn't entirely lost the combativeness that characterized him in the 70s—he's still embroiled in a lawsuit with Marc Bell, the private-equity investor who bought Penthouse in 2004 and who Guccione claims reneged on an agreement to keep him on as a $500,000-a-year consultant (a charge Bell denies). "My father has always been a very tough guy," says Guccione Jr. "He's been to the top, he's been to the bottom. He's a resilient man with a real sense of perspective, and in many ways he's exactly where a 79-year-old grandfather wants to be and should be."
Read "The X-Rated Emperor," by Patricia Bosworth.
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Biological imaging of live cells is an important part of microscopy and developing techniques such as two-photon excitation fluorescence to achieve high spatial resolution, 3-Dimensional imaging, and the reduction of photobleaching is crucial. Ultrafast laser technology has played a key part in advancing this technique with the unique properties of ultrashort femtosecond pulses. A nonlinear Fourier-transform spectroscopy technique was used to obtain spectroscopic information to further the investigation. This is a reliable technique in this experiment, as the broadband spectroscopic information is not significantly influenced by temporal fluctuations in the detected signal.
Our venteon ultra was used as the Ti:Sapphire mode-locked laser, operating at 80MHz for the ultra-broadband light source. The venteon ultra is a robust source for ultrashort pulses <5fs on a compact footprint; its monoblock design has an average power of >240mW and a pulse energy of >3nJ with a spectral bandwidth of >380nm @ -10dBc.
Hiroshi Hashimoto, Keisuke Isobe, Akira Suda, Fumihiko Kannari, Hiroyuki Kawano, Hideaki Mizuno, Atsushi Miyawaki, and Katsumi Midorikawa, "Measurement of two-photon excitation spectra of fluorescent proteins with nonlinear Fourier-transform spectroscopy," Appl. Opt. 49, 3323-3329 (2010).


I usually film at Sydney Region, but I won't shy away from destination weddings. I believe it's one of the best privileges doing this job.
Stephanie and Tyronne Andrew's wedding was held at Albury, about 5 hours and 30 minutes away from Sydney. Rey Tuazon (photographer) hired me to film this wedding event. It's a beautiful wedding at the country.
Since it's complicated to fly directly to Albury, Rey and I went directly to Melbourne. Then drove 4 hours going to Albury. Steph is lovely. She's accommodating and ensured that I got my shots. Tyronne is likewise. With very limited time, I managed to capture all moments needed for the below highlight film. Please watch the highlight film for Rey Tuazon Photography.
I won't think twice going back to Albury for another destination filming. Thank you Rey Tuazon Photography for this opportunity.


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Temescal Valley (Temescal, Spanish for "sweat lodge") is a census-designated place in Riverside County, California. Temescal Valley sits at an elevation of . The 2010 United States census reported Temescal Valley's population was 22,535.

History

Rancho Temescal
Temescal Valley takes its name from the Rancho Temescal established by Leandro Serrano.  Serrano received the written permission of the priest of the Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, or of the military commander of San Diego, to occupy the five square league Rancho Temescal on land belonging to Mission of San Luis Rey.  He took possession in about 1818 or 1819 under a grant given by Governor José María de Echeandía to Leandro Serrano.  The Serrano Boulder (California Historical Landmark (#185), marks the site of the first house erected by Leandro Serrano about May 1824.   The grant extended along the Temescal Valley south of present day Corona and encompassed El Cerrito and Lee Lake.  The Serrano family held the land until they lost the court case validating their title to the land in 1866.  Meanwhile squatters settled on the land in anticipation of this result in 1855.

Temescal

Temescal Station and Settlement
In 1857, the Temescal Station of the Butterfield Overland Mail stage line was established five miles north of the Temescal Hot Springs, ten miles north of Rancho La Laguna station and twenty miles south of the Chino Rancho station.  The Temescal Overland station was "at the foot of the Temescal hills, a splendid place to camp, wood and water plenty, and protected from the winds."  Around this location the settlement of Temescal grew over the next few decades.  By 1860, Greenwade's Place in Temescal Canyon, 3 miles north of the stage station, was a polling place for southwestern San Bernardino County. It was a Post Office from February 12 until November 12, 1861 when the American Civil War shut down the Butterfield stage operations.

In 1866, the Temescal School District was organized, the fifth in San Bernardino County.  Its school house was built under a huge sycamore tree and served until 1889, when a new building took its place in the early 1900s. During the 1870s, orchards and bee hives began to replace cattle and sheep ranching. The bees were first brought into the valley in the early seventies and became an important source of income in the valley. From October 29, 1874, Temescal again had its own post office.

Temescal Tin Mine
In 1856, Abel Stearns was convinced that the rancho's property contained tin ores and bought an interest in Rancho Temescal from Serrano's widow for 200 cattle.  He was forced by his losses in the drought of 1863-64 to sell off his interest in the Temescal Rancho in 1864, for $100,000.  The tin mine, located east of Temescal, was developed after the 1866 ruling and produced tin by 1869.  However the land title remained in dispute and no more development to the mines happened until an 1888 Supreme Court ruling settled the title.

After the Supreme Court ruling, experts from England examined the tin district, and made favorable reports which encouraged the California Mining and Smelting Company to be incorporated in London, on July 24, 1890, also another corporation, the San Jacinto Estate, Limited, was formed, by prominent financiers of London, including some of the men interested in the Welsh tin mines.  The Rancho San Jacinto Sobrante, on which the mine was now located, was purchased, and the Temescal tin mine was at last opened up operating for the next two years. Temescal grew large with the influx of the miners, enough to have its own post office. Up to July 1892, 136 tons of tin were produced; the first shipment reached New York on March 30, 1892.  This was the first and last shipment; the Temescal tin mines were soon closed down in 1892, the valuable equipment and machinery were later sold and no effort has since been made to work the mine.

South Riverside, Corona and the decline of Temescal
In May 1886, the South Riverside Land and Water Company was incorporated, its members including ex-Governor of Iowa Samuel Merrill, R. B. Taylor, George L. Joy,  A. S. Garretson, and Adolph Rimpau; as a citrus growers' organization, it purchased the lands of Rancho La Sierra of Bernardo Yorba, and the Rancho Temescal grant and the colony of South Riverside was laid out.  They also secured the water rights to Temescal Creek, its tributaries and Lee Lake.  Dams and pipelines were built to carry the water to the colony.  In 1889, the Temescal Water Company was incorporated, to supply water for the new colony.  This company purchased all the water-bearing lands in the valley and began drilling artesian wells.  The first wells flowed, at a depth of 300 feet. However, pumping plants soon had to be installed. In time, all the water of both Temescal and Coldwater Creeks was diverted into pipe lines. Cienagas and springs were drained, and, gradually, the valley became dry and desolate.  Farms and orchards in the central part of the Temescal Valley were abandoned, and the old adobes along the stage route crumbled and disappeared. By November 30, 1901 the Temescal post office was closed and postal operations moved to the Corona post office.

Geography and climate
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 19.3 square miles (50.1 km2), 99.82% of it land and 0.18% of it water.

Demographics
The 2010 United States Census reported that Temescal Valley had a population of 22,535. The population density was . The racial makeup of Temescal Valley was 14,785 (65.6%) White, 1,507 (6.7%) African American, 131 (0.6%) Native American, 2,157 (9.6%) Asian, 74 (0.3%) Pacific Islander, 2,565 (11.4%) from other races, and 1,316 (5.8%) from two or more races.  Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6,753 persons (30.0%).

The census reported that 22,530 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 5 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 7,142 households, of which 3,230 (45.2%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 4,981 (69.7%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 580 (8.1%) had a female householder with no husband present, 321 (4.5%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 284 (4.0%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships and 43 (0.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 971 households (13.6%) were made up of individuals, and 370 (5.2%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.15. There were 5,882 families (82.4% of all households); the average family size was 3.47.

6,474 people (28.7%) were under the age of 18, 1,691 people (7.5%) aged 18 to 24, 6,453 people (28.6%) aged 25 to 44, 5,652 people (25.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 2,265 people (10.1%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.2 years. For every 100 females there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.3 males.

There were 7,617 housing units at an average density of , of which 6,236 (87.3%) were owner-occupied, and 906 (12.7%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.3%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.2%. 19,282 people (85.6% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 3,248 people (14.4%) lived in rental housing units.

References

Further reading

Census-designated places in Riverside County, California
Elsinore Trough

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See how Italy compares to another country using any of the measures in the Index.
Read more about Italy Economy. See more from the 2022 Index.
$2.5 trillion
Italy's economic freedom score is 65.4, making its economy the 57th freest in the 2022 Index. Italy is ranked 33rd among 45 countries in the Europe region, and its overall score is below the regional average but above the world average.
The Italian economy slowed from 2017 through 2019, contracted in 2020, and resumed growth in 2021. A five-year trend of generally improving economic freedom has continued. Led by notable jumps in scores for rule of law (property rights, judicial effectiveness, and government integrity), Italy has posted an overall 2.9-point gain in economic freedom since 2017 and has climbed into the top half of the "Moderately Free" category. Monetary freedom, trade freedom, and investment freedom are strong, but the economy remains heavily burdened by government spending.
IMPACT OF COVID-19: As of December 1, 2021, 133,931 deaths had been attributed to the pandemic in Italy, and the government's response to the crisis ranked 16th among the countries included in this Index in terms of its stringency. The economy contracted by 8.9 percent in 2020.
Read more about Italy Economy.
Italy is a charter member of NATO and the European Union. Former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte's coalition collapsed in January 2021 over disagreements about how to spend EU coronavirus recovery funds, of which Italy is a chief beneficiary. Former EU banker Mario Draghi became prime minister in February and heads a unity government. Italy remains on the front lines of Europe's migration crisis, and Lega Nord, which favors strict controls on immigration, remains the nation's most politically popular party. Italy's diversified economy is bifurcated between the highly developed industrial North, dominated by private companies, and a less-developed, highly subsidized agricultural South where unemployment is higher. Tourism accounts for 13 percent of GDP, and the sector's current struggles are an economic albatross.
Real property rights are protected, and the recording system for mortgages is reliable. The legal system enforces property and contractual rights, but it is cumbersome and notoriously slow and can be vulnerable to political interference. A bloated and self-interested bureaucracy slows efforts to enforce anticorruption laws. Corruption and organized crime continue to be significant impediments to investment and economic growth.
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The Baptist Union > The Baptist Times > Opinions / Reflections > Revisiting Thomas - how can we know?
How can we know?
Gethin Abraham-Williams ponders a question that still troubles our restless spirits, and finds a clue in a disciple too often overlooked
Christianity struggles incessantly, inconclusively, as it must, not only to keep up with its insights into God, but to earth its interpretation and expression of those insights in terms of a particular understanding of the certainty of the unfathomable nature of God.
It struggles with its willingness to acknowledge the importance of 'incertainty' in its interpretation of its beliefs, because, if God not only exists but is at least as Christians believe God to be, then our minds and our hearts can never risk being closed to the unfathomable, and the interpretation must always be provisional.
A forensic computer consultant once described to me how he and his wife had 'occasionally discussed and explored the various phenomena observable in the universe, and also the dimensions of it, and some related issues, only to arrive at a point, 'where there is a question to which the only correct answer, currently, is "No-one knows".'
An avowed agnostic, he went on to admit: 'The gospels very cleverly and knowledgeably deal with people like me in the shape of St Thomas.'
In the Christian tradition Thomas, therefore, emerges as the carrier of the questions that trouble and that still haunt the genuine enquirer. There is no other character within the New Testament writings who is shown to be grappling with 'incertainty' to the same extent, and grappling with it as an insider, as an apostle in the making, not as a marginal or disillusioned follower.
At the last supper it was Thomas who put his hand up to interrupt the flow of the rabbi's sophisticated farewell discourses, five chapters long, with a show-stopper of a question: 'How can we know?'
The certainties that had kept him together had begun to unravel. He had 'lost it'. There at the last supper, as Jesus broke bread the words and the actions collided, leading Thomas to feel exposed, dysfunctional, vulnerable.
Earlier Simon Peter had asked, 'Where are you going?' But Thomas's enquiry is much more incisive, much more personal. The emphasis in Thomas's question is on the How? How can we know?
The question in one form or another still perplexes and troubles those who are earnest in their endeavour to nurture their spirituality, but unwilling, or, perhaps truer, unable, as creatures of a post-modern world, to handle the elusiveness of the intangible. 'We've no idea where you're going, so how can we know how to get there?'
In the so-called Gospel of Thomas, discovered in Upper Egypt in 1945, I think it's possible to see, not so much how Thomas got his answer, but how he found the question ultimately irrelevant.
New Testament translator, John Henson, has produced an eminently readable version of the Gospel of Thomas in his Good as New: a Radical Re-telling of the Scriptures (o-books, 2004). It's the one I used to show why I think the Gospel of Thomas matters.
'We are caught in a difficult moment in history,' says the Australian academic, David Tacey, 'stuck between a secular system we have outgrown and a religious system we cannot fully embrace.' It is a perceptive analysis of a critical moment in the evolution of our relationship with all that we mean by God.
Faith is too subtle to be packaged into simplistic definitions and precise formularies. The importance of Thomas, therefore, not least as he emerges from his collection of the Sayings of Jesus in his Gospel, as well as in the scattered references to him in the Fourth Gospel, is that he epitomises how 'incertainty' is the process whereby faith is explored and refined.
'Incertainty' is not the sign of opprobrium conventional orthodoxy might wish to brand it, but a mark of exquisite spiritual sensitivity that resists facile attempts to confine and conform, in favour of being fully aware of the present moment whilst also remaining open to the challenge Jesus once put to the disciples:
'When you learn something which sheds new light on things, you can either act on it or ignore it. Which will you do?'
Gethin has served Baptist churches in Coventry, Sutton Coldfield and Sutton, Surrey, before becoming General Secretary of Churches Together in Wales: Cytûn. His latest book, Why the Gospel of Thomas Matters: The Spirituality of Incertainties (2015, Christian-Alternative) is available as an e-book and in paperback.
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