Hobart and William Smith Colleges

HWS Professor of Geoscience Neil Laird works with Kristine Chen of the University at Oklahoma and Adrianna Kremer of SUNY Brockport.

HWS Associate Professor of Geoscience Tara Curtin describes multiple aspects of a sample taken from the bottom of Seneca Lake.

Amelia Smith '21 and Rylee Wernoch '21 examine water samples in the lab of the Finger Lakes Institute on Tuesday. This summer, Smith is studying how invasive species can affect water quality while Wernoch is researching how nutrient and nitrogen levels contribute to algal blooms.

Onboard the William Scandling research vessel, HWS Professor of Geoscience Neil Laird discusses observations taken on Seneca Lake.

The HWS Finger Lakes serves as a hub for several student research projects this summer. Here, a bicycle from the Colleges' yellow bike program awaits its owner outside of the Institute on South Main Street.

Jobed Hilaire '21 digitally plots data points collected from a water sample from Canoga Creek. Hilaire is researching the effect of streams on local algal blooms.

Lauren Mercer '19 records mercury levels from zooplankton harvested from Canoga Creek in Cayuga, N.Y.

Kely Amejecor '19 uses a fluoroprobe to analyze and study phytoplankton composition during lab work in the Finger Lakes Institute.

HWS Associate Professor of Geoscience Tara Curtin talks with Emma Patterson of Earlham College and HWS Emma Loubsky-Lonergan '20. Curtin will be working with Patterson and Loubsky-Lonergan during the nine-week REU program.

Students and mentors hike the Gorge Trail at Taughannock Falls State Park.

HWS Associate Professor of Geoscience Nick Metz and HWS Associate Professor of Geoscience Tara Curtin share a laugh as REU mentors and students take a break along the hike.

In this special edition of This Week In Photos, we're showcasing students and faculty taking a deep dive into environmental issues in the Finger Lakes Region through two of several research programs being conducted on campus this summer. In the photo above, the William Scandling research vessel approaches a Finger Lakes Institute research buoy on Seneca Lake.

Hosted by the HWS Geoscience Department, a team of students and faculty members participate in the Northeast Partnership for Atmospheric & Related Sciences (NEPARS) Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program funded by the National Science Foundation. On Monday, participants traveled to Taughannock Falls State Park in Trumansburg, N.Y. The REU is a collaboration between HWS and Plymouth State University with students participating from colleges and universities from across the U.S.

With a focus on atmospheric and related sciences, students learn about Taughannock Falls through a program directed and developed by HWS Professor of Geoscience Neil Laird and Plymouth State University Assistant Professor of Meteorology Jason Cordeira. Here, students and mentors view a waterfall in the gorge of the state park.

HWS Associate Professor of Geoscience Tara Curtin shows samples of zebra and quagga mussels taken from the bottom of Seneca Lake.

HWS Professor of Geoscience Neil Laird explains how the weather balloon collects data as it travels upward through the atmosphere to REU students aboard the William Scandling Research vessel.