174
important corollary of the Principle of Uniformitarianism is, “the past is the key to
the future.” To state this another way, if something has happened in the past, there is
a high probability, given enough time, that it will happen again in the future. Thus,
if the climate was colder and sea level was substantially lower in the recent past or
if the climate was warmer and sea level was higher, then these phenomena may
occur again in the future at similar rates and magnitudes.
From the Past to Present and Future
North Carolina’s Coastal System
I was hired in 1967 by East Carolina University (ECU) by Dr. Charlie Brown, a
geologist from Virginia Tech, who had convinced the newly named East Carolina
University that they needed a Geology Department with a focus on coastal-marine
systems. ECU’s Chancellor, Dr. Leo Jenkins, handed me a key and explained that he
wanted me to develop and implement an interdisciplinary Coastal Studies Field
Program on the northern North Carolina Outer Banks (Fig. 11.3). It was to be
located in the old African-American school in “Little California” located in Manteo,
Roanoke Island. After my initial question, “Where is Little California?”, I asked, “Is
there a plan to go with the key?”, and “Is there a budget to carry out the plan?”
These questions were answered by a simple, “No”, followed by the statement, “that
is why we hired you—now go do it”.
The resulting experimental program was officially referred to as the Manteo
Program on Roanoke Island, but for us it was “ECU by the Sea”. I managed to find
the school in “Little California”, located within the African-American section of
Manteo, vacated as a result of school integration. In 1968, a geology and a biology
colleague and I gathered a small number of senior majors from the ECU Geology
and Biology departments and took them away from the demands of traditional education. The students found themselves in a 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, total
immersion learning experience. It was our opportunity to give them, as well as
ourselves, a first-hand experience designed for maximum personal contact with the
processes, equipment, and techniques for evaluating the highly energetic and
dynamic character of the NC coastal system.
Research activities emphasized an interdisciplinary, systems approach to the
identification and solution of natural and human resource problems. The program
presented the students with their first opportunity to define and investigate a research
topic that had significant relevance and application to local environmental and landuse problems. This unique experimental education program focused on the “perfect
conflict” at the intersection between dynamic natural processes of a complex coastal
system and human population growth and economic activities. By the mid-1970s
such programs were evolving all over the country with development of experimental multidisciplinary and environmentally-oriented departments.
S. R. Riggs
important corollary of the Principle of Uniformitarianism is, “the past is the key to
the future.” To state this another way, if something has happened in the past, there is
a high probability, given enough time, that it will happen again in the future. Thus,
if the climate was colder and sea level was substantially lower in the recent past or
if the climate was warmer and sea level was higher, then these phenomena may
occur again in the future at similar rates and magnitudes.
From the Past to Present and Future
North Carolina’s Coastal System
I was hired in 1967 by East Carolina University (ECU) by Dr. Charlie Brown, a
geologist from Virginia Tech, who had convinced the newly named East Carolina
University that they needed a Geology Department with a focus on coastal-marine
systems. ECU’s Chancellor, Dr. Leo Jenkins, handed me a key and explained that he
wanted me to develop and implement an interdisciplinary Coastal Studies Field
Program on the northern North Carolina Outer Banks (Fig. 11.3). It was to be
located in the old African-American school in “Little California” located in Manteo,
Roanoke Island. After my initial question, “Where is Little California?”, I asked, “Is
there a plan to go with the key?”, and “Is there a budget to carry out the plan?”
These questions were answered by a simple, “No”, followed by the statement, “that
is why we hired you—now go do it”.
The resulting experimental program was officially referred to as the Manteo
Program on Roanoke Island, but for us it was “ECU by the Sea”. I managed to find
the school in “Little California”, located within the African-American section of
Manteo, vacated as a result of school integration. In 1968, a geology and a biology
colleague and I gathered a small number of senior majors from the ECU Geology
and Biology departments and took them away from the demands of traditional education. The students found themselves in a 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, total
immersion learning experience. It was our opportunity to give them, as well as
ourselves, a first-hand experience designed for maximum personal contact with the
processes, equipment, and techniques for evaluating the highly energetic and
dynamic character of the NC coastal system.
Research activities emphasized an interdisciplinary, systems approach to the
identification and solution of natural and human resource problems. The program
presented the students with their first opportunity to define and investigate a research
topic that had significant relevance and application to local environmental and landuse problems. This unique experimental education program focused on the “perfect
conflict” at the intersection between dynamic natural processes of a complex coastal
system and human population growth and economic activities. By the mid-1970s
such programs were evolving all over the country with development of experimental multidisciplinary and environmentally-oriented departments.
S. R. Riggs