NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Frank Press is president of the National Academy of Sciences.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Robert M. White is president of the National Academy of Engineering.
The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Samuel O.Thier is president of the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and of advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Frank Press and Dr. Robert M.White are chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.
Support for this project was provided through the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Bureau of Mines.
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COMMITTEE ON GEOLOGIC MAPPING
Charles J.Mankin,
Oklahoma Geological Survey,
Chairman
W.Gary Ernst,
University of California, Los Angeles
Douglas M.Morton,
U.S. Geological Survey
A.G.Unklesbay,
Columbia, Missouri
H.Jesse Walker,
Louisiana State University
Kenneth N.Weaver,
Maryland Geological Survey
NRC Staff
Joseph W.Berg, Jr.
Betty C.Guyot
Thomas M.Usselman
BOARD ON EARTH SCIENCES
Brian J.Skinner,
Yale University,
Chairman
Donald J.DePaolo,
University of California, Los Angeles
Larry W.Finger,
Carnegie Institution of Washington
Robert N.Ginsburg,
University of Miami
Alexander F.H.Goetz,
University of Colorado
Michel T.Halbouty,
M.T.Halbouty Energy Company
Allen Hatheway,
University of Missouri
Andrew H.Knoll,
Botanical Museum of Harvard University
Amos Salvador,
University of Texas at Austin
Joseph V.Smith,
University of Chicago
Sean C.Solomon,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Steven Stanley,
Johns Hopkins University
George A.Thompson,
Stanford University
Waldo R.Tobler,
University of California, Santa Barbara
Donald L.Turcotte,
Cornell University
Ex-Officio Members
Paul B.Barton, Jr.,
U.S. Geological Survey
Karl K.Turekian,
Yale University
Liaison Members
Miriam Baltuck,
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Jerry Brown,
National Science Foundation
Philip Cohen,
U.S. Geological Survey
Bruce R.Doe,
U.S. Geological Survey
Bruce B.Hanshaw,
28th International Geological Congress
James F.Hays,
National Science Foundation
John G.Heacock,
Office of Naval Research
Donald F.Heinrichs,
National Science Foundation
Marvin E.Kauffman,
American Geological Institute
Ben Kelly,
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
George A.Kolstad,
Department of Energy
Ian D.MacGregor,
National Science Foundation
Benjamin Morgan,
U.S. Geological Survey
Andrew Murphy,
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Dallas L.Peck,
U.S. Geological Survey
Shelby G.Tilford,
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Raymond G.Watts,
U.S. Geological Survey
Kenneth N.Weaver,
Maryland Geological Survey
Arthur J.Zeizel,
Federal Emergency Management Agency
Robert S.Long,
Acting Staff Director
Betty C.Guyot,
Staff Assistant
Shirley E.Cole,
Administrative Secretary
COMMISSION ON PHYSICAL SCIENCES, MATHEMATICS, AND RESOURCES
Norman Hackerman,
Robert A.Welch Foundation,
Chairman
George F.Carrier,
Harvard University
Dean E.Eastman,
IBM, T.J.Watson Research Center
Mayre Anne Fox,
University of Texas
Gerhart Friedlander,
Brookhaven National Laboratory
Lawrence W.Funkhouser,
Chevron Corporation (retired)
Phillip A.Griffiths,
Duke University
J.Ross Macdonald,
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Charles J.Mankin,
University of Oklahoma
Perry L.McCarty,
Stanford University
Jack E.Oliver,
Cornell University
Jeremiah P.Ostriker,
Princeton University Observatory
William D.Phillips,
Mallinckrodt, Inc.
Denis J.Prager,
MacArthur Foundation
David M.Raup,
University of Chicago
Richard J.Reed,
University of Washington
Robert E.Sievers,
University of Colorado
Larry L.Smarr,
University of Illinois
Edward C.Stone, Jr.,
California Institute of Technology
Karl K.Turekian,
Yale University
George W.Wetherill,
Carnegie Institution of Washington
Irving Wladawsky-Berger,
IBM Corporation
Raphael G.Kasper, Executive Director
Lawrence E.McCray, Associate Executive Director
PREFACE
Geologic maps are often the principal means of presenting geologic data. Thus, the Board on Earth Sciences, and its predecessor, the Geological Sciences Board, has been concerned with the status of geologic mapping in the United States. It created the Committee on Geologic Mapping in an effort to gain quantitative information on the status of mapping activities. The committee was primarily charged with determining the current and future usage of geologic maps. This information is essential in evaluating problems facing map producers.
The committee conducted a questionnaire survey designed to obtain information on the current usage of geologic maps, to locate by region current unmet needs for geologic mapping, and to identify future needs for such maps. The questionnaire identified the relative needs for specific map types and the needs by map scale, style of presentation, and type of user (e.g., exploration, basic research, engineering, and hazard assessment). Although the survey was conducted several years ago, the committee believes the results are still representative of the mapping needs, particularly as there are commonly long lead times in planning through final publication of geologic maps. This report presents the results of the questionnaire survey.
The assistance of the Oklahoma Geological Survey in the design of a statistically meaningful sampling procedure and the maintenance of the resulting data base is greatly appreciated.