During visit to DRI, Congressman Jim Gibbons maps out next phase of a long, distinguished career

Decorated combat pilot, geologist, legislator wants to sample life as a scientist

Congressman Jim Gibbons, center, gets an up-close and personal tour of DRI's Ice Core Lab clean room. Trace Chemist Steve Lambert , left, explains how he analyzes ice cores from Greenland as a cameraman from Reno's NBC-TV affiliate, KRNV, Channel 4, chronicles the event for the evening news. (Photo by Ron Kalb)

It was Congressman Jim Gibbons' first visit to DRI, but you can bet it won't be his last. "I've been a geologist, a lawyer, an airline pilot, a military pilot, a Nevada legislator and now a congressman in Washington , D.C. But I know what I'm going to be when I come back to Nevada ," Gibbons, R-Nev., told an overflow crowd of faculty and staff at a post-tour reception in the E. W. Stout Conference Center .

"I'm going to be a scientist for DRI because of all the fascinating places you get to go. To think that some of you are going to take a snowmobile tour across the frozen icecaps of Greenland ," Gibbons joked.

During an April 16 tour of the Northern Nevada Science Center , Gibbons "suited up" for an up-close view of the Ice Core Lab clean room hosted by Dr. Joe McConnell, DRI associate research professor, and Trace Chemist Steve Lambert. McConnell showed the congressman ice core samples from Greenland that DRI analyses for minute amounts of chemicals, lead and other elements.

McConnell's team has developed a unique system using chemical and elemental tracers to help determine how ocean circulation systems affect ice sheets. Gibbons learned that McConnell was soon heading back to Greenland where he would cross wide swaths of frozen tundra in a snowmobile moving about 6 mph, towing a ground penetrating radar system able to take readings down to 100 meters.

Dr. Jim Thomas discussed DRI's work for the Lake Tahoe Clean Water Initiative and conducted a tour of the Water Analysis Laboratory. Dr. Richard French briefed the congressman and his staff on flash flood issues in Nevada .

Gibbons' visit also included a briefing at the Soils Lab on DRI's desert terrain projects that will help U.S. military pilots, armored vehicle operators and ground troops deal with extreme temperatures and arid lands. Spearheaded by the Center for Arid Lands Environmental Management, the so-called Integrated Desert Terrain Forecasting for Military Operations project is sponsored by the Army Research Office's Environmental Sciences Division.

As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, Gibbons led the effort in the House to authorize funding. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., did the same in the Senate.

Congressman Gibbons serves on four committees that call on his military experience. They include the House Resources Committee, where he serves as Vice Chairman; the Armed Services Committee; the Select Committee on Homeland Security; and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

Congressman Jim Gibbons looks on as DRI President Stephen G. Wells presents him with a thank you gift. A framed photo signed by DRI faculty and staff includes a plaque acknowledging the congressman's support of DRI's desert terrain project for enhancing military operations. (Photo by Ron Kalb)

He is also chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism and serves as chairman of the Intelligence Subcommittee on Human Intelligence and Counterterrorism, Analysis and Counterintelligence.

A former combat pilot and decorated veteran of the Vietnam and Persian Gulf wars, Gibbons served in the United States Air Force from 1967 to 1971 and graduated from the U.S. Air Force Air Command and the Air War College.

He was also a commercial pilot for two major airlines and worked as a hydrologist for the Federal Water Master. He was also a mining and water rights attorney in Nevada .

DRI President Dr. Stephen G. Wells welcomed Congressman Gibbons and staff to DRI and later introduced him at a reception. Wells thanked Gibbons for his help in securing funding for desert terrain studies.

"Understanding desert landscapes is critical to our armed forces-not just because 40 percent of the Earth is arid land, but because these areas are home to so many global geopolitical flashpoints," Wells said.

Wells presented Gibbons with a photo of an Abrams tank with matting signed by DRI staff. A plaque within the frame reads: "Thank you Congressman Gibbons for supporting DRI's project-Desert terrain analysis for enhancing military operations-April 16, 2004."

During his remarks, Gibbons called DRI "an international treasure" that is recognized worldwide.

"So, for me to be able to stand on the sidelines, to be your cheerleader, is probably my greatest achievement... the greatest thing I can do is to support what you do," he said.

According to Wells, several DRI researchers commented about the depth of the congressman's scientific knowledge and the ease with which he was able to discuss technical issues. "There seems to be universal agreement that Jim Gibbons would fit right in, whether in a DRI lab or on snowmobile traversing the frozen north," Wells says.

-Ron Kalb