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“Geology rocks,” is certainly more than just digging for conglomerate sediments at the Devil’s Peak or being knee-deep in the Grand Canyon.Enthusiasts at PCC find joy by indulging in their passion for geology by teaching or learning.

As a child, geology professor Bryan Wilbur always enjoyed exploring the outdoors with his family. He went on camping trips, fishing and looking for fossils. But, it wasn’t until college that Wilbur realized his true calling was with geology.

“A friend of mine took a geology class and he was showed me a textbook, with a picture of a national park that I had been to before, Capital Reef National Park. I thought it was really neat that you could study land forms and national parks, and get units for it,” said Wilbur.

Amazed at the discovery, Wilbur spoke with the professor and found that it would not advance toward his biology degree. Nevertheless, he found it interesting.

“I took the class and really enjoyed it and ended up changing my major a semester later to geology,” said Wilbur.

Wilbur brought together his interests in biology and geology to do paleontology.

“I’ve always liked biology in the first place, always liked weird critters, read a lot of science fiction when I was a kid, watched a lot of ‘Star Wars’-type movies,” he said.

Traveling overseas and working in the field is something that geologists enjoy, said David Douglass, dean of natural sciences.

“For me that’s the best part of being a geologist. I got to work all over the world. Most of my research was done in Scotland, Norway, and in the High Arctic, in a place called Spitsbergen,” he said.

Despite almost being struck by lightning while landing in a helicopter or being caught in a snowstorm in August, Douglass describes the field as being “fun” and “exciting”.

Coordinating field studies is something that Wilbur enjoys doing.

Geology major Winnie Wu, 20, went on a five-day Santa Cruz Island trip last semester with her class.

“We went to study the geologic history of the island,” said Wu.

Wu encountered some difficulty after choosing geology.

“Originally I was going to be a music major. My mom wasn’t very open at first about me majoring in geology. She started to understand that I have my own dreams and that I enjoy what I do, so she became more supportive,” said Wu.

Wu, plans on transferring to UCLA to pursue her degree.

Biological anthropology major Jordan Cooper, 22, has a different reason for his interest in geology.

“I’m minoring in it is because it’s a topic I fell in love with. It’s really interesting to see how our planet has changed and will continue to change. An understanding of the environment in the past helps one understand how certain adaptations came to be,” said Cooper.

Cooper believes that a background in geology will help him pursue his degree, and eventually a career as a zoological veterinarian.

He was also on the Santa Cruz Island field study with Wu.

“We got to go around a beautiful island that only had at most 30 people on it at the time. We got to see beautiful geology and see what field work is like,” said Cooper.

Wilbur’s had few personal experiences with difficulties.

“Once I entered geology, I found nothing but supportive people. Everywhere I’ve been, I’ve been involved in a close-knit community of geologists,” said Wilbur.

The greatest difficulty he encountered was finding a job.

“But I was fortunate in that as well. I’m happy as a clam to be here at PCC. This is exactly where I wanted to be when I finished up. One of the benefits to studying geology is that there are myriad options for you to go into professionally,” said Wilbur.

The importance of having some exposure in geology is something that Wilbur stresses to students.

“One of the most important things about this future is that environmental issues will be coming to the forefront, and those environmental issues all have a root in geology, in some way, shape, or form,” said Wilbur.

According to Wilbur, resource allocation is one of the most obvious and important ones.

“You’re going to be voting on these issues, and if you’re going to be voting. It’s important that they have an understanding where these energy resources are coming from,” said Wilbur.

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