Exploring the Evolving Universe

About IIRMES

 

The founding members of IIRMES share an interdisciplinary perspective on conducting research on societies, environments and materials. In principle, we believe that many of the significant developments in contemporary scientific research cross not only intra-disciplinary lines but also the chasm that has traditionally separated studies in the social and natural sciences. The recent convergence of these once disparate schools of thought results from the realization that an explanatory framework, built within evolutionary theory, can be used to study and explain the processes that produce not only natural environments but also sculpture human civilizations and modern society.

 

Evolutionary theory therefore provides a common theoretical focus that embraces and integrates all scientists who study historical and temporally changing phenomena from the solid earth to organisms, landscapes, and societies. Furthermore, scientists using an evolutionary approach to study historical phenomena, irrespective of whether they are from the biological, geochemical or social fields, bring common research perspectives and a set of techniques and instrumentation to bear in their research. At CSULB many of the same laboratory instruments and techniques are used across a variety of basic, applied and historical science disciplines. These techniques include elemental microanalytical fingerprinting, luminescence dating, stable isotope analysis and geophysical analysis. Geologists use electron microscopy and microanalysis to study the tectonic history of different parts of the earth’s crust. Biologists use scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to study the topographical microstructure of organisms and cells and inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS) to study the spatial distribution and temporal fluctuations of metals to better understand the evolution of the homeostatic mechanisms involved in controlling the flux of essential and toxic elements through living systems. Archaeologists use luminescence detectors to date sediments and artifacts and ICP-MS to identify the provenance of exchanged artifacts.

 

Recognizing their need for common instrumentation, faculty members within the College of Natural Science and Mathematics (CNSM) and College of Liberal Arts (CLA) have collaborated over the past 5 years on proposals to acquire and implement cutting-edge analytical instrumentation. This collaboration has resulted in the acquisition of over 3 million dollars in research instrumentation that is available for student and faculty use at CSULB. We welcome and actively encourage the shared use of the instruments to foster collaborative ventures in teaching and scholarly activity that are commensurate with the declared interests, mission and goals of IIRMES. New instrument acquisitions include a PE6100 DRC ICP-MS with an attached laser-ablation system, an environmental scanning electron microscope, an isotope ratio mass spectrometer and, most recently, a time of flight ICP-MS. These instruments have been funded by the National Science Foundation who, through its support, clearly recognizes the benefits and value of our interdisciplinary approach to research.

 

CSULB undergraduate student conducting a high-resolution magnetometry survey at Anakena, Easter Island.