Lifelong Learners: The Stories That Trees Tell

Description: Dendrochronology (def): The science of dating historical events and variation in environment by comparative study of precisely dated growth rings in trees and aged wood. Most people know that you can determine the age of some trees by counting their annual growth ring. However, those growth rings can tell us so much more. Measurement of dated tree-rings have been used to determine when the Anasazi built their large community in the American Southwest and to document the mega drought that forced them to leave these homes. Using the procedure of “cross-dating”, this tree-ring record for the Southwest extends back 11,000 years and allows scientists to put the current mega-drought in the western USA into a larger context. Measurement of tree-ring size and density have been used to reconstruct historical variation in climate and to access the sensitivity of various tree species to climate and other environmental stresses. Tree-rings have also been used to date earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, and the advance and retreat of glaciers. Tree-rings have been used to determine construction dates for cathedrals in Europe and historical buildings in Indiana. Tree-rings have been used to determine the authenticity of Stradivarians violins and works of art painted on wood. After listening to this presentation, you will never look at trees the same way again.

Presenter Bio:  Dave LeBlanc grew up in Plattsburgh NY, where he graduated from high school and received both his Bachelor of Science in secondary education biology and a master’s degree in biology at SUNY Plattsburgh. He served 2 years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Nepal, teaching math and science to middle and high school students in their native language.  He went on to get a PhD in forest ecology at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry at Syracuse.  His first job, which brought him to Indiana, was a research scientist at the Holcomb Research Institute at Butler University, where he studied the effects of acid rain and other pollutants on tree growth.  In 1991 he was hired at Ball State University to teach ecology, forestry and statistics. He has published numerous papers on the effects of environmental stress on trees and forests.  He also wrote and published a statistics textbook that focused on the specific needs of science students who need to analyze data to answer research questions.  He and his wife Cheryl have two children, Maya and Nathan, and two granddaughters Aralia and Emory. For over 40 years he and Cheryl have gone on many adventures, backpacking or cross-country skiing in Nepal, Alaska, and numerous national parks in the western United States, and going on adventure cruises to Antarctica and the Northwest Passage in Canada and Greenland.  He retired from Ball State in 2022 and is taking a well-deserved rest.