Ethan Conrad

This summer, I completed a research visit to GeoForschungsZentrum in Potsdam under Prof. Claudio Faccenna. The visit was an enlivening experience where I made significant progress on my research goals, learned from other scientists, made connections with friends and colleagues, gained life experience, traveled to other countries, and learned about German and Berliner culture. I am sincerely grateful for the support of Dr. Michael Aven for funding and the DAAD-Stiftung for awarding the scholarship that enabled me to travel, live and work in Berlin.

Research project

The project was motivated by the need to constrain the relationship between climatic and tectonic forces in shaping mountains at oblique plate margins. Oblique plate boundaries comprise 80% of global tectonic boundaries and are associated with hazards, including earthquakes and landslides. They also provide zones of concentrated deformation and clastic sedimentation and are associated with high-temperature plate margins. These ingredients are helpful in many industrial or resource exploratory applications. The project I conducted at GFZ aimed to investigate landscape evolution in transpressional systems through an integrated approach that synthesized erosion-tectonic sandbox modeling results with natural data. For this project, I posed three main research questions:

1) How does the balance between climate and tectonics affect strain partitioning in transpressional systems?

2) How do topography and the rate of rock uplift and exhumation respond to tectonic and climatic drivers in tropical systems?

3) What are the links between stream network and fault network evolution?

I addressed these questions with a three-prong approach of erosion-sandbox modeling (image above), analyzing and synthesizing field data, and applying results to understand natural systems. With a dataset of experimentally derived elevation models and photographs, I worked at GFZ to process and analyze the data and write a manuscript detailing the study, including the analysis, synthesis, and comparison components completed during my stay.

Working environment

Working in the Lithospheric Dynamics section (4.1) at GeoForschungsZentrum (GFZ) provided the atmosphere and collaboration opportunities necessary to achieve the project's primary goals. Throughout the visit, I had the chance to conduct three sectional research presentations, gaining feedback from scientists and other Ph.D. students throughout the section. Overall, I was very impressed by the high-level graduate students at GFZ and their steadfast motivation and curiosity.

Privat

left: At the Volkspark Friedrichshain; right: By the Schiller Monument

I was also happy to see that the graduate students and professors were from diverse backgrounds, often underrepresented in science. To attest to that, from a section composed of twelve researchers and seven graduate students, over half were from other countries, including Chile, Iran, Switzerland, Russia, and Italy. From this outstanding pool of diverse scientific minds and backgrounds, I found the ability to freely discuss science an excellent way to generate and refine ideas. These presentations and other interactions helped me think more deeply about the project and formulate ideas that became integral to the study. Working with the project supervisor, Claudio Faccenna , a renowned structural geologist and geodynamicist, was also a fruitful opportunity in terms of mentoring and scientific progress. He guided the project and provided essential criticism/feedback on the manuscript I prepared detailing the work.

Research products

The final product of this study is a rich experimental dataset paired with a long-format journal article to be submitted to the American Geophysical Union journal, Tectonics. This paper details each research component and frames it within the current modeling/tectonics literature. We intend to submit this paper by the end of the year. During my stay, I also worked on and submitted an additional manuscript on fault friction and the impact of melting, which was greatly improved by discussions with seismologists at GFZ. Furthermore, while in Germany, I completed a remote mentoring program with a student from an underrepresented background in the US. The mentoring advice from researchers at GFZ, including Prof. Faccenna, was extremely valuable.

Future endeavors

The project conducted at GFZ is a significant part of my Ph.D. dissertation work. The manuscript prepared will be the second chapter of my dissertation. The work comparing the models with natural systems and additional analyses not published with that manuscript will support the fieldwork component of my dissertation. The paper submitted on fault friction will comprise the first chapter. Following my Ph.D., I want to pursue a postdoctoral position at GFZ, working on analog modeling and helping to complete the set-up of a new integrated rain-tectonics experimental apparatus at the GFZ analog lab. Ultimately, I would like to pursue a career in academia, from which my experience at GFZ has shaped me into a more qualified candidate.

Final remarks

As a person from the United States, I found my routine in Germany to be very fulfilling and healthy. I enjoyed commuting to work by bicycle and public transport and having a more structured work-life relationship than is typical at academic institutions in the United States. This aspect made it easy to pursue my hobbies and interests outside of work, including music, running, tennis, and biking throughout the city to explore and meet friends. Also, I was surprised by the prevalence of English speakers in Berlin and the willingness of people to cross language barriers. This aspect made me feel welcome at the businesses and restaurants around Berlin.

Privat

left: At the Holzmarkt; right: In the WG (shared apartment) in Berlin Gesundbrunnen

I made many friends during my time at GFZ, both in and outside work, and I anticipate that these will be lasting relationships. Something I struggled with, however, was that it was challenging to make German friends. Yet, I believe this was simply a function of the few German students in my section at GFZ who could have introduced me to their friends outside of the workplace. Nevertheless, I felt socially stimulated between occasional outings and meals with Prof. Faccenna and the family I stayed with for some time and activities with other international peers.

To conclude, I was fortunate to live in several flats in Berlin and Potsdam, which gave me a beautiful sampling of the cities and neighborhoods. The things that I will remember the most are: 1) the days spent in Berlin at Mauerpark, which was right by my last flat, listening to the performers there and enjoying the flea markets and food (especially currywurst), and 2) going to the lakes to swim after work with colleagues/friends.