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Dr. Gabriel S. Jacobs
Science Teacher
Weehawken High School
Dr. Gabriel S. Jacobs
Science Teacher
Weehawken High School
(Me in Pittsburgh at a conference with other geologists)
About me:
About me:
B.S. University of Chicago 2013, Geophysical Sciences/Biological Sciences
M.S. Midwestern State University 2017, Geosciences
Ph.D. University of Missouri 2022, Geological Sciences
B.S. University of Chicago 2013, Geophysical Sciences/Biological Sciences
M.S. Midwestern State University 2017, Geosciences
Ph.D. University of Missouri 2022, Geological Sciences
I'm educated as a paleontologist, a scientist who studies living things from the ancient past by understanding their remains preserved as fossils. My specialties include:
I'm educated as a paleontologist, a scientist who studies living things from the ancient past by understanding their remains preserved as fossils. My specialties include:
trilobites: armored sea creatures that look a bit like horseshoe crabs (their distant relatives)
bivalves: a group of two-shelled aquatic animals that includes clams, oysters, and mussels
taphonomy: the study of how dead things can decay away or be preserved as fossils, the "Laws of the Grave"
microanalysis: the use of X-ray and electron microscopes to learn more about fossils than visible light can tell you
trilobites: armored sea creatures that look a bit like horseshoe crabs (their distant relatives)
bivalves: a group of two-shelled aquatic animals that includes clams, oysters, and mussels
taphonomy: the study of how dead things can decay away or be preserved as fossils, the "Laws of the Grave"
microanalysis: the use of X-ray and electron microscopes to learn more about fossils than visible light can tell you
From my research:
From my research:
The fossilized head of a trilobite, Calyptaulax strasburgensis, with intricate compound eyes.
450 million years old, Virginia
The shell of a littleneck clam, Leukoma staminea, with pits in it made by parasitic worms.
<10,000 years old, Washington
A 3D X-ray microscope picture of a clam shell (red) with three little snail shells (pink) inside it. All four have been turned to iron pyrite.
450 million years old, Virginia
A scanning electron microscope (SEM) picture of the larva of a trilobite, Isotelus. It's as wide as the lead of a mechanical pencil.
450 million years old, Virginia
Teaching experience and philosophy
Teaching experience and philosophy
Before coming to Weehawken High School I taught primarily at the college level, as a teaching assistant at the University of Missouri and as a lecturer at Cornell College and the University of Pennsylvania. My courses have focused largely on fossils, the sedimentary rocks in which they are found, the history of the Earth and life on it, and ocean science.
My high school students can expect a college-like approach to course composition, with less daily homework and more weekly/biweekly problem sets. You are nearly adults, and many of you will be going off to college very soon; my goal is to encourage, nurture, prepare, and support you all as fledgling scholars going forth into the world.
YOU HAVE MY PERMISSION TO MAKE MISTAKES
Getting it wrong is the first step to getting it right —
do not be afraid to give a wrong answer in class.
Getting it wrong is the first step to getting it right —
do not be afraid to give a wrong answer in class.
A wrong answer is not necessarily a bad answer.
If you put careful thought into your response, give your best effort, and still come up with the wrong answer, you shouldn't feel bad about it. This is a learning opportunity, a chance to answer the question: if you did everything right, why is your answer wrong?
There may be a piece of information you are missing. There may be a common misconception circulating in society. There may be a simple mistake in your arithmetic, which you will get right next time.
I promise that I won't criticize you for trying your best and getting the answer wrong anyway when participating in class discussion. I ask that you show each other the same courtesy as well.
Don't feel like you have to know all the answers; you are here to learn, not to prove how much you already know.
Don't feel like you have to know all the answers; you are here to learn, not to prove how much you already know.
If you already knew everything in the textbook, you'd be teaching the class, not taking it. Relax! Breathe!
If you already knew everything in the textbook, you'd be teaching the class, not taking it. Relax! Breathe!
Me visiting Máximo the Patagotitan mayorum (left) and SUE the Tyrannosaurus rex (right) at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.
Note that I am wearing a mask in these photos. If you are feeling unwell or sniffly in my class, feel free to do the same!
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