Hobart and William Smith Colleges

Jacob Kotcher 20 and Lauryn Jennings search for microplastic particles in samples of sea water and beach sand using a bright blue light that makes plastic particles fluoresce neon orange and green. Students are documenting the distribution of microplastics in seawater and sediments at different locations.

Kelly Klimczyk 20 and Sam Gadjo 23 measure the profile of the beach at Sandy Point. Students study the relationship between the shape of the beach, the size of sediment grains and wave energy.

Samuel Gadjo 23 observes an octopus.

Professor of Geoscience Nan Crystal Arens explains the formation of coastal dunes to Roland Lipscomb 22.

Professor of Geology at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C. Diana Boyer introduces students to a rock outcrop where they will reconstruct the history of the sea level fall as the Earth moved into the last glacial interval.

Students gather at the Dixon Hill Lighthouse on San Salvador, one of the oldest lighthouses in operation in The Bahamas. Constructed in 1887 by Lloyds of London, the lighthouse was built to decrease shipping losses on the treacherous Bahamian reefs.

Janne Knieke 22 combs the beach for shells as part of a project in which students examine how diversity and composition of the shelly fauna varies around San Salvador Island. Students collect, sort and identify shells from a number of beaches and compare the number, abundance and identity of species present.

Lauryn Jennings, Jacob Kotcher 20, Mikayla Gullace 22 and Roland Lipscomb 22 gather data on active ripples at Monument Beach. Measuring ripples allows students to understand the process in which wind and currents create ripple structures in sandy sediment.

In this special edition of This Week in Photos, we share photos from the island of San Salvador, where students are studying the Geology of the Bahamas alongside peers from Winthrop University. Above, students hear from Professor of Geology Nan Crystal Arens about the islands indigenous people and geologic formation.

Andrew Moriarty 23 extracts microplastics from sea water and beach sand. Microplastics are small pieces of plastic debris less than 5 mm in size.

Andrew Moriarty 23, Garrett Walters 22 and Jackson Baney 21 gather in front of 125,000-year-old sand dunes that have turned to rock. Students study modern sediments at Sandy Point to understand how these ancient dunes formed.

Kelly Klimczyk 20, Professor of Geoscience Nan Crystal Arens, Audrey Hunt 20 and Sam Gadjo 23 identify collected shells to document variations in diversity and abundance on the island. The program is co-led by Arens and Professor of Geology at Winthrop University Diana Boyer.

At the First Year Seminar Symposium, Joe Tate '23 explains the overall sustainability of various asphalts to President Joyce P. Jacobsen. The event is a celebration of multidisciplinary study coordinated by the Center for Teaching and Learning.

At the First Year Seminar Symposium, students test pigments developed by their peers in New Chemistry Meets Old Art.

Associate Professor of Art and Architecture Liliana Leopardi listens as Zyanya Rizzo '23 presents a collage of newspapers, magazines, letters and photos to recreate her memory of Eaton Canyon Waterfall in Pasadena, Calif.

To wrap up their semester of study on Russian food and culture, students in Eat Like a Slav present a four-course meal to HWS community members at Fribolin Farm.