Something about Maine

I found this on a website and thought that it was kind of cool:

Geoscientists set to discuss climate change, water resources and more

Geological Society of America hosts regional meeting jointly the Maine Water Conference in Portland, Maine, March 22–24

More than 900 geoscientists will gather soon for the 44th Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Section of the Geological Society of America, held this year in conjunction with the Maine Water Conference. Hosting organizations include the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of New England, the Maine Geological Survey, the Department of Geosciences at the University of Southern Maine, the Department of Geology at Bates College, The University of Maine, and the Geological Society of Maine. The meeting will take place at the Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland, Maine.

An overarching theme for the meeting is climate change, and the keynote presentation, Climate Change: Realities, Surprises and Opportunities, by Paul Mayewski, Director of the Climate Change Institute at the University of Maine, reflects that theme. The keynote address, which is open to the public free of charge, will take place on Sunday, 22 March, at 5:30 p.m. in the New Hampshire-Vermont rooms, Holiday Inn by the Bay. A symposium and several themed sessions will also focus on this topic.

Technical sessions will highlight cutting-edge scientific research and feature presentations on such topics as

• The vulnerability of salt-marsh ecosystems to sea-level rise;
• Better understanding the role of arc collisions in orogenesis and developing research around the relationship between surface-lithosphere dynamics in collisions;
• Road salt, arsenic, and other environmental contaminants in hydrologic systems; and
• Geoarchaeology as a tool for better understanding of human societies, culture, and environment.

Maine Groundwater: Sustainable Aquifer Use through Monitoring and Regulation will be the topic of a morning-long session on Sunday, March 22. With Maine's water resources often in the news, presentations by state and private geologists will shed light on how groundwater is monitored and regulated. View the session details at http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2009NE/finalprogram/session_23370.htm

Six themed sessions will run jointly with the Maine Water Conference and will cover diverse issues ranging from water quality and the demand for groundwater resources to watershed habitat restoration and managing aquatic ecosystems.

More than 480 presentations will be made by academic and industry scientists, undergraduates and graduate students.

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To view the technical program, visit http://www.geosociety.org/sectdiv/northe/09mtg/techprog.htm.

Junior National Young Leaders Conference

I GOT INVITED TO JOIN A LEADERS CONFERENCE IN WASHINGTON, D.C.! Yes!!!!!

The letter is addressed to my parents. My favorite paragraph is:

"In addition to meeting the significant academic requirements.... We expect to enroll an outstanding group of young achievers from a variety of backgrounds across the country. We look forward to having your daughter join these high-achieving students as one of our nation's future leaders."

I'm so so so so so so so so happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am not exaggerating by the number of exclamation marks here!!!

My mom says I'm going to D.C.!!!!!!!

100 things to do before I die (or more like 1,000,000)

So maybe I can't put 1,000,000 things on this blog, or even 100. But I can put some. Not exactly my Top Ten (some are way too embarrassing to admit) but the ones that I think are most interesting.

1) Taste every kind of cheese on the planet. This isn't as easy as it sounds because there's cow cheese, goat cheese, and enough types of cheddar cheese to be called its own kind.

2) Go to the Galapagos Islands. I'm not kidding. That place, is ,like, amazing, and I know that from watching TV so it's gotta be at least ten times better in real life. Imagine the wildlife! I hate heat but as long as I pack shorts and tank tops, plus lots of sunscreen, I'll be all right.

3) Become a marine biologist. I'm not exactly sure if this one is 6th or 7th on my real, actual list, but it's way up there. I love fish and I want to eventually move to Maine and study fish up there. My brother's best friend's mom goes up there in the summer and then comes back to ASU for the rest of the year.

4) See a wolf in the wild. Zoos don't count. What's the fun of seeing an animal that's behind bars? I want to see one for real, in the wild. Wolves don't usually attack humans unless threatened.

5) Write a book. Okay, maybe I don't aim my goals high enough in some people's minds, but I've tried to write a book at least fifty times (no exaggeration) and I've never succeed. It's really hard but I'm not gonna give up cause it's not my thing (unless it's something like trying to keep my dog from eating cat turds. It kinda gets old).

6) Have an actual, intelligent conversation with a boy that I actually like. You wouldn't believe how hard that one is. It's hard enough talking to a boy that I like, let along talking intelligently with them. This is at the top of my list of "Things that I Desperately Want but Will Most Likely Never Get".

7) Write out my list of things to do before I die. Okay, I know what numbers 1-22 are because I've memorized them, but the others just kinda swirl around in my head. Even if I only get to 22, I'll be happy.

8) Discover or invent something really, really important. I want to do something that will at least be good enough to get me a book with a dumb title like "Kayla Windelspecht- A Very Interesting Person" that someone will read for a book report because all the good books are checked out from the library. Interesting Note: I actually saw a book titled "Benjamin Franklin: A Very Interesting Person" and I almost died laughing that someone would give a book about a very interesting person such a dull name.

9) Go on American Idol. I can't sing and I admit it, but I want to be the person that comes in all future-singer-looking and then laughs at herself halfway through the song.

10) Finish reading "Twilight". That book never seems to end and there's a whole long series after it!

Hope you enjoyed my list!
-Kayla