earth science

Teresa Jordan

Teresa Jordan is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Teresa Jordan rather than just read about it. In short: Teresa (Terry) Jordan is a sedimentary geologist known for her research on the geology and hydrology of the Atacama Desert and the use of water and geothermal heat from sedimentary rocks. Education and career Jordan has a B.S. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (1974) and earned a Ph.D. from Stanford University (1979).

Key takeaways

Teresa Jordan belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Teresa Jordan to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Teresa Jordan from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Teresa (Terry) Jordan is a sedimentary geologist known for her research on the geology and hydrology of the Atacama Desert and the use of water and geothermal heat from sedimentary rocks.

Education and career Jordan has a B.S. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (1974) and earned a Ph.D. from Stanford University (1979). Following her Ph.D., she moved to Cornell University, initially in a research position, then she joined the faculty in 1984. She was named the J. Preston Levis Professor of Engineering in 2005. In 2014, Jordan was named a fellow of the American Geophysical Union, and the citation was "for integration of geodynamic principles and stratigraphic data that has led to understanding of the coupling of continental basins to mountain belts."

Research Jordan's research spans geology and engineering. In Chile, she works on the climate and hydrology of the Atacama Desert, with a particular focus on the impact of large rainfall events on the region. She also examines the tectonic history of the Central Andes Plateau. Jordan is co-investigator on the effort to drill a research borehole to inform the Cornell University project on geothermal heat as an energy source in 2022.

Selected publications JORDAN, TERESA E.; ISACKS, BRYAN L.; ALLMENDINGER, RICHARD W.; BREWER, JON A.; RAMOS, VICTOR A.; ANDO, CLIFFORD J. (1 March 1983). "Andean tectonics related to geometry of subducted Nazca plate". GSA Bulletin. 94 (3): 341–361. Bibcode:1983GSAB...94..341J. doi:10.1130/0016-7606(1983)94<341:ATRTGO>2.0.CO;2. ISSN 0016-7606. Jordan, Teresa E. (1981). "Thrust Loads and Foreland Basin Evolution, Cretaceous, Western United States". AAPG Bulletin. 65. doi:10.1306/03B599F4-16D1-11D7-8645000102C1865D. Jordan, T. E.; Allmendinger, R. W. (1 December 1986). "The Sierras Pampeanas of Argentina; a modern analogue of Rocky Mountain foreland deformation". American Journal of Science. 286 (10): 737–764. Bibcode:1986AmJS..286..737J. doi:10.2475/ajs.286.10.737. Jordan, T. E.; Nester, P. L.; Blanco, N.; Hoke, G. D.; Dávila, F.; Tomlinson, A. J. (2010). "Uplift of the Altiplano-Puna plateau: A view from the west". Tectonics. 29 (5): n/a. Bibcode:2010Tecto..29.5007J. doi:10.1029/2010TC002661. hdl:11336/54246. ISSN 1944-9194. S2CID 129582894. Jordan, Teresa E.; Kirk-Lawlor, Naomi E.; Blanco, Nicolás P.; Rech, Jason A.; Cosentino, Nicolás J. (2014-07-01). "Landscape modification in response to repeated onset of hyperarid paleoclimate states since 14 Ma, Atacama Desert, Chile". GSA Bulletin. 126 (7–8): 1016–1046. Bibcode:2014GSAB..126.1016J. doi:10.1130/B30978.1. ISSN 0016-7606.

Awards and honors Fellow, Geological Society of America (1995) Corresponding Member, Asociación Geológica Argentina (1997) Lawrence Sloss award, Geological Society of America (2005) Fellow, American Geophysical Union (2014) William H. Twenhofel Medal, Society for Sedimentary Geology (2021) Leopold von Buch Medal, German Geological Society (2024)

References

External links Teresa Jordan publications indexed by Google Scholar

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Teresa Jordan

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Teresa Jordan claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Teresa Jordan before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Teresa Jordan ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Teresa Jordan

In research: Teresa Jordan appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Teresa Jordan in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Teresa Jordan is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1953 births, 21st-century American women, American geologists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Teresa Jordan outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Teresa Jordan in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Teresa Jordan means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Teresa Jordan out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Teresa Jordan in simple terms?

Teresa (Terry) Jordan is a sedimentary geologist known for her research on the geology and hydrology of the Atacama Desert and the use of water and geothermal heat from sedimentary rocks. Education and career Jordan has a B.S. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (1974) and earned a Ph.D. from Sta…

Why does Teresa Jordan matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Teresa Jordan?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Teresa Jordan.