JAMES ZIMBELMAN: NOT JUST FLOWING AND BLOWING

Jim Zimbelman has enjoyed considerable success in volcanism and aeolian research, and I think fondly of the time we’ve spent in the lab and field together. His service to our profession was recognized by GSA’s Planetary Science Division’s Ronald Greeley Award for Distinguished Service in 2013, and rightly so; Jim has served in various GSA, AGU, NASA, and National Air and Space Museum capacities. Other talks in this session will cover his “Flowing” and “Blowing” research in more detail.

However, another “-owing” is the focus of this report: “Showing.” James Smithson’s bequest stipulated it was for “the increase and diffusion of knowledge.” By “diffusion," he meant “showing” new knowledge to both the appropriate professional community and to the public, in context.

Jim has had a long interest in showing knowledge, from moonlighting at a local college while a post-Doc, to mentoring senior students, to public outreach when in the field. Jim is also an enthusiastic participant in Museum programming; he was even one of the original founders of what eventually became NASM’s biggest annual public event, Halloween’s “Air and Scare!”

Jim is presently in the middle of what may be his biggest contribution to public engagement yet. He is serving as Lead Curator of the team that is overseeing the design and construction of the new “Exploring the Planets” gallery, the only one of its group to have a dedicated space for learning. Space-related art and programmable information screens engage interest. The alcove has space for presentations, and an interactive that allows guests to design a planetary mission, learning first-hand about the tyrannies of engineering trade-offs. There is even the “Floorrery,” a graphic depiction of Inner Planet orbits, with time steps on each, ideal for a hands-on demonstration of planetary motion. None of this would have come about with Jim Zimbelman’s dedication to public outreach, and the benefits of that gallery design will outlive us both!