Editorial – The Texas Tribune Yearend 2023
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Henry Wise, P.G., C.P.G., President
and
Michael D. Campbell, VP, P.G., P.H., C.P.G., Eastern Texas
Delbert reported in earlier 2022 that the Internet can feel packed with scams sometimes, especially for anyone who’s had their credit card or other information stolen. But most scams fall into a small variety of types that are easy to identify and avoid once you know about them.
There are only so many ways to reinvent the wheel—scammers will usually fall into a set number of categories. Twingate assembled a list of common online scams that internet users should be wary of, drawing on research from government organizations, payment processors, and tech companies.
One of the major categories of scamming is called social engineering. An old-fashioned method that still works surprisingly well, social engineering is any fraud where a human being communicates with you to obtain information in person, online, or over the phone. Scammers will use manipulative, deceptive, or psychological tactics to get someone to reveal confidential information.
As our lives increasingly have shifted online, scammers have followed, posing as everything from fake online boyfriends to made-up charities. So the next time you get a voicemail claiming to be from Microsoft, an email that says your antivirus service is out of date, or a pop-up ad from “newy0rktimes.com,” take a few seconds and think about whether it’s a genuine message before doing anything. Continue reading to learn about the most common online scams today.
More than 200 students and a few professionals from around Texas assembled near Boerne, Texas for the Texas Hydro~Geo Workshop. It is focused on the collection, processing, analysis, and evaluation of hydrologic (surface water), geologic, and hydrogeologic (groundwater) field data. It serves as an excellent introduction for aspiring geology, hydrology, hydrogeologic, and environmental science students, as well as a refresher for seasoned professionals with potential recruiting objectivies.
The Workshop was created to bring students and professionals together in a field setting for a hands-on learning experience. This is a special opportunity to work with senior researchers and professionals from across the state and nation. Participants have the opportunity to explore many different techniques for collecting data from soil, rock, and water media. This includes drilling rigs, surface and borehole geophysics, stream gauging, water quality instruments, and much more. For those who will be taking week long or longer field courses associated with your degree program, some of the Hydro~Geo Workshop modules provided students with an advantage ranging from advanced knowledge on field safety, field-book data collection, rock and sediment identification, how to camp, etc.
Participants selected from the various modules depending upon availability. Please note that participation may be limited in some modules for safety reasons, in order to maintain a high participant/coordinator ratio, or for resource protection. The Workshop also includes the opportunity for senior professionals to present Lightning Talks to the attendees.
Members of the Texas AIPG Board of Directors made presentations focused on what AIPG does for students and professionals in Texas and around the U.S., and they provided some hints as to what it’s like to be a Professional Geologist (a P.G., and a C.P.G.). Pick-up the handouts at the booth (more) and other momentos that will be available. Here some photos from the activities on the second day (here). Many students signed up to apply for student memberships of the AIPG, which are Free !
Two seasoned professionals, Dr. Roger Lee, P.G. and Mr. Bruce Handley, P.G., discussed the students’ future in the geosciences at the AIPG-TX booth. Also, Bailey Hodakievic was also present to discuss such matters with the attendees as well (more). She was recently appointed by Henry Wise, P.G., C.P.G., (President of the AIPG-TX) to serve on the AIPG-TX Board and as President of the Texas Statewide Student Virtual Chapter of the AIPG Texas Section.
The Workshop took place at and around Cave Without a Name facility near Boerne, Texas. Most activities were conducted at the campsite and pavilion.
The Wise Report
Henry M. Wise, P.G.
October 1, 2023
The Ecological Screening Benchmark Tables for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality have been updated and posted to the TCEQ’s Ecological Risk Assessments webpage (here). The Ecological Screening Benchmarks are numeric values for surface water, sediment, and soil that can be used to screen non-bioaccumulative chemicals of concern from further evaluation under Tier 2 Screening-Level Ecological Risk Assessments.
Please contact the Remediation Division Technical Program Support (TPS) Team at techsup@tceq.texas.gov if you have any questions.
Henry M. Wise, P.G.
The Wise Report
10/1/2023
The Wise Report
Henry M. Wise, P.G., C.P.G.
September 23, 2023
The Texas Board of Professional Geoscientists (TBPG) adopts the following amendments:
Henry M. Wise, P.G., C.P.G.
The Wise Report
9/23/2023
September 12, 2023
Please note the new time!
(10:00 am pacific, 11:00 am mountain, 12:00 pm central, 1:00 pm eastern)
Western Sicily is underlain by African basement upon which is piled a series of thrust sheets (the south-verging Maghrebian Orogenic Belt) containing rocks as young as early Pleistocene. Uplift and large earthquakes continue to the present. Sediment loads of rivers are high, resulting in extensive alluvial plains: these were historically highly malarial, but are now drained and being dewatered by intensive irrigation.
Iron Age settlements were often on the summits of high mountains, as were Arab settlements. At other periods, settlements have clustered in or near the fertile but unhealthy plains.
Presenter: John Berry
REGISTER HERE (MORE)
Yes, it’s true that Republic Services is looking for a Field Technician for their Environmental Services Division in their Baytown, Texas office. Requires two years of experience performing environmental site investigations or a degree in Physical Science or Natural science and one year of experience performing environmental site investigations. Must have experience in soil and groundwater sampling.
Office Location: Houston, Texas
Contact Henry M. Wise, P.G., C.P.G.
Republic Services,
6503 Thompson Road, Baytown, Texas
hwise@republicservices.com
Henry Wise, President of the AIPG Texas Section, announced at a recent AIPG-TX Board meeting that Bailey Hodakievic has been appointed and will be joining the Board as the new Student Councilor-at-Large for the AIPG Texas Chapter. She is a senior at the University of Houston pursing a bachelor degree in geology, and is expected to graduate in July of 2024. She is driven by a strong interest in blending geology with engineering. By melding these disciplines together she hopes to develop solutions that can address environmental challenges we currently face and will continue to do so in the future. Ms. Hodakievic will also serve on the AIPG-TX Board and serve as President of the Texas Statewide Vitual Student Chapter.
Currently, Ms. Hodakievic is an intern with APTIM Environmental and Infrastructure as a part of the Site Assessment and Remediation Division. She has also conducted research analyzing polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs) in groundwater samples from the Edwards Aquifer, San Antonio, and surface-water samples Guadalupe Rivers under the supervision of a Ph.D. student.
In addition to her interest in developing sustainable infrastructure to account for flooding, drought, and contamination of vital resources, Ms. Hodakievic is also interested in aerospace and currently works as a project investigator and biofilm team lead for a group of graduate and undergraduate students awarded NASA grant funded under the LSPACE program. Through the group’s work in astrobiology and nanofibers research, they aim to reduce biofilm contamination on International Space Station systems.
