Erik Haroldson
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erikharold.bsky.social
Erik Haroldson
@erikharold.bsky.social
Economic Geologist, Isotope Geochemist, Fluid Inclusionist, Asst Prof, CSU Sacramento, he/him
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
It’s going to be time to dust off @mineralcup.bsky.social soon, start soliciting nominations and prep the backend for voting.

It seems like such a silly and small thing to do while fear is so heavy.

But joy is resistance.
May 17, 2025 at 2:26 PM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
This is absolutely brutal. A +50% proposed cut to NASA Earth Sciences would decimate essential programs and tools needed to understand and monitor Earths ice, climate, hazards, oceans, forests and more. Crushing. arstechnica.com/space/2025/0...
Trump White House budget proposal eviscerates science funding at NASA
“This would decimate American leadership in space.”…
arstechnica.com
April 11, 2025 at 2:11 PM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
New mines? In *this* economy?
I wrote about how Trump’s tariffs killed any hope of the American mining boom he promised for @heatmap.news

Higher costs + lower metals prices always = stalled mining projects

There is no reality where these protectionist actions help US mining, no matter what the admin claims
Trump’s Tariffs Just Killed the Last Hope of a U.S. Mining Boom
Mining companies have asked for federal support — but this isn’t what most of them had in mind.
heatmap.news
April 7, 2025 at 8:32 PM
This 👇
Rock Identification xkcd.com/3068
March 26, 2025 at 11:24 PM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
Bowen’s Reaction Series explains how magmas differentiate
March 23, 2025 at 6:37 PM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
Spent the day at White Pocket, an area in northern Arizona with some of the most spectacular examples (1) of soft-sediment deformation in the Navajo Sandstone and (2) of the polygonal weathering that affects the resulting homogenous rock. These photos were taken with a drone (which is OK to use)
March 23, 2025 at 5:05 AM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
Oil came from dinosaurs.

Somehow this is still a thing.
a cartoon dinosaur in a suit and tie
Alt: a cartoon dinosaur in a suit and tie
media.tenor.com
March 23, 2025 at 1:22 AM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
The mantle is orange/red.
March 23, 2025 at 12:39 AM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
Rare earth elements are rare
March 22, 2025 at 11:49 PM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
Fault "lines". Faults are planes or more likely complicated 3D surfaces.
March 22, 2025 at 11:43 PM
Name a common misconception about the Earth.
I'll start: The mantle is molten.
⚒️🧪
an illustration of the inside of the earth shows the inner core .
Alt: an illustration of the inside of the earth shows the inner core and other layers .
media.tenor.com
March 22, 2025 at 10:27 PM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
Arm-waving in front of a proper kernstone in Sierran granite adjacent to Crater Mountain in Owens Valley. ⚒️
March 16, 2025 at 8:03 PM
⚒️
Today some Sac State geology students and I went to a local K-8 school STEM event to teach about gold panning and the history of gold mining in the region.
March 9, 2025 at 12:29 AM
Today some Sac State geology students and I went to a local K-8 school STEM event to teach about gold panning and the history of gold mining in the region.
March 9, 2025 at 12:06 AM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
I’ve come to learn many people don’t know this!
Right wing homeschoolers out here are saying "I'll just use my weather app, theres really no need for NOAA anymore" It's all I can do not to scream "WHERE THE F- DO YOU THINK THE WEATHER APP GETS THE INFO??!!"
February 22, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Ugh... A lot of sad/alarming posts today from friends and colleagues at NSF, USGS, USFS etc.
February 18, 2025 at 10:05 PM
My favorite (/s) is when a search finds a page with all the metadata, but not the actual data.
Archive Request xkcd.com/3052
February 18, 2025 at 2:41 AM
February 13, 2025 at 6:38 PM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
On changes to #NIH indirect rates, there is a law in place that prohibits NIH from making such changes without the approval of Congress. See Division D, Title II Section 224 of The Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024 (Public Law No: 118-47) grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
NOT-OD-24-110: Notice of Legislative Mandates in Effect for FY 2024
NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts: Notice of Legislative Mandates in Effect for FY 2024 NOT-OD-24-110. NIH
grants.nih.gov
February 8, 2025 at 12:56 AM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
Although NOAA's page on atmospheric CO2 levels has vanished, you can still get this vital information from Ralph Keeling's team at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego keelingcurve.ucsd.edu

Please follow bsky.app/profile/keel... for updates and share

Don't let science be hidden
February 5, 2025 at 10:27 AM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
🚨BREAKING. From a program officer at the National Science Foundation, a list of keywords that can cause a grant to be pulled. I will be sharing screenshots of these keywords along with a decision tree. Please share widely. This is a crisis for academic freedom & science.
February 4, 2025 at 1:26 AM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
In case you need a timeline cleanse, here are two GORGEOUSLY zoned feldspars for your mineralogical pleasure!!
February 4, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
NEW: We obtained the directions NSF program officers are following to review all grants for compliance with the Trump EOs and the turmoil it has created in an agency mandated to broaden STEM participation. Our story: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Exclusive: how NSF is scouring research grants for violations of Trump’s orders
The US National Science Foundation has unfrozen grant funding, but it continues to scrutinize research projects, sowing turmoil.
www.nature.com
February 3, 2025 at 11:05 PM
Reposted by Erik Haroldson
Took a few days after the NIH, but here we are. So much science and the lives and careers of students and postdocs depends on timely funding (and just timely communication). These delays will have an adverse impact.
I’m an NSF panel reviewer that was scheduled to meet today. Just got notice that all NSF panels were canceled today. I reviewed some innovative proposals in support of students. Devastating if these scholars don’t get to do this work. For the love of science & students I hope this is just a delay.💔
January 27, 2025 at 4:42 PM