CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (3:33)
Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, and additional information follow below.
All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 1-29-16.
TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO
From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is
Virginia Water Radio for the week of February 1, 2016.
This week, we eavesdrop on a water-fountain conversation
between two Virginia Tech students. And
what do you know—they’re talking about the people who bring you this radio
show! Sound unbelievable? Well,
just have a listen for about 90 seconds.
SOUND - ~3 sec
Friend: Oh hey Taylor, I heard you got a new internship?
Taylor: Yeah
I did! At the Virginia Water Resources
Research Center!
Friend: What
a mouthful! What is that, some sort of
center that controls water in our faucets?
Taylor: No. The Water Center is a federal- and
state-funded program with a three-part mission: teaching, research, and
engagement. They offer resources and
support to students, researchers, educators, citizens, and decision-makers
throughout the state.
Friend: Oh,
really? So what sort of things do
they do?
Taylor: Well,
they helped to develop and coordinate a new water major that started last year
at Virginia Tech. They’ve got grant
programs that support graduate faculty and students doing water research at
universities and colleges. And they regularly provide information to help
Virginians stay up-to-date on important water issues—even on the radio!
Friend: Well
that sounds really interesting. I've
never heard of the Water Center before. Is
it new?
Taylor: Not
at all. In fact, 2015 was the Center’s
50th anniversary. But the internship is brand new – and I’m the first!
Friend: Dang! 50 years, and you’re the first intern. You must feel special. What do you do for your internship?
Taylor: Well,
it’s all semester and I get to do a bunch of new things, like visiting Congress
and the Virginia General Assembly, helping with their public outreach, assisting in
some field research, and meeting lots of water professionals.
Friend: Wow! Sounds like a great opportunity. I wish I
could do it!
Taylor: Well,
why don’t you apply next year? Part of my
job is helping the Water Center develop the internship program, so next year
it’ll be even better.
Water Center
colleague: Hey, Taylor, wanna give me a hand with this D.C. trip?
Taylor: Oh,
oh. Gotta go!
Friend: See ya.
Since 1965, the Virginia Water Resources Research Center has
worked to provide teaching, research, and information to help Virginians make
decisions about water. As the typewritten
newsletters and research bulletins of the 1960s have become the blogs and
podcasts of the 21st Century, the Commonwealth’s lakes, streams,
rivers, coastal waters, and groundwater continue to present great challenges
and opportunities for the Water Center to serve professionals, elected
officials, citizens, and students.
Thanks to Kriddie Whitmore, Liz Sharp, and the Water Center’s
Spring 2016 intern Taylor Richmond for lending their voices to this episode.
For more Virginia water sounds, music, and information, visit
us online at virginiawaterradio.org,
or call us at (540) 231-5463. Virginia
Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part
of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment. Thanks to Stewart Scales for his banjo
version of Cripple Creek to open and close the show. In Blacksburg, I’m Alan Raflo, thanking you for listening, and wishing you
health, wisdom, and good water.
AUDIO NOTES
The audio states
that Taylor Richmond is the first Water Center intern. To be more precise, Ms. Richmond is the first
intern under a new internship program that the Water Center began in Spring
2016. In the past the Water Center has
had many students performing various kinds of more limited internships, but—to our
knowledge—the Center has never before had an internship program designed for
the student to experience and participate in most or all facets of the Water
Center’s mission and activities.
IMAGE
At the start of the Virginia Water Resources Research Center's first 50 years: the cover
of the Center’s first Research Bulletin,
“Water Resources of Virginia: Inventory of Printed Information and Data,” by
Frederick McJunkin and William Walker, March 1966.
EXTRA FACTS ABOUT THE
VIRGINIA WATER RESOURCES RESEARCH CENTER
(Source: Virginia Water Resources Research Center, online at
http://www.vwrrc.vt.edu/about/.)
In 1964, a congressional act established a network of 54
water resource programs to be placed at land-grant universities across the
nation. Virginia Tech was selected to
house the Commonwealth’s water center in 1965 under the name “Virginia Water
Resources Research Center” (“The Water Center”). The Water Center began operations with
federal and state funding administered through the Virginia Tech’s Research
Division, and was authorized by the Virginia General Assembly as a state agency
in 1982.
The center annually receives a federal base grant for
program administration and development from the U.S. Geological Survey, under
the Department of the Interior. This
funding is combined with a state budget appropriation, faculty and staff
funding through Virginia Tech, and funding secured from project-specific
contracts and grants.
The Water Center is affiliated with the Virginia
Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment and is a member
of the National Institutes for Water Resources (NIWR) and the Universities
Council on Water Resources (UCOWR). A
Statewide Advisory Board provides feedback and guidance on Water Center
activities.
The Water Center has a long-standing tradition of offering
resources and support to researchers, educators, and decision makers throughout
the state. The Code of Virginia (Sec. 23-135.7:8) states that the Water Center
exists
“for the purposes of developing, implementing and
coordinating water and related land research programs in the Commonwealth and
transferring the results of research and new technology to potential users.”
The Water Center’s functions, powers, and duties as
established by the Code of Virginia
including the following:
*Consulting with the General Assembly, federal, state and
local agencies, nonprofit organizations, private industry and other potential
users of research;
*Establishing and administering agreements with other
universities of the Commonwealth to carry out research projects;
*Disseminating new information and research results;
*Facilitating the application and transfer of new
technologies
*Being a liaison between Virginia and the federal research
funding agencies as an advocate for Virginia’s water research needs; and
*Encouraging the development of academic programs in water
resources management in conjunction with the State Council on Higher Education.
SOURCES USED AND
OFFERING MORE INFORMATION
National Institutes for Water Resources (NIWR, a
coordinating group for the 54 state and territory water centers and
institutes), online at http://niwr.info/.
Universities Council on Water Resources, online at http://www.ucowr.siu.edu/.
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), “Welcome to the WRRI Program”
(describing the federal-state partnership that supports state and territory
water centers and institutes), online at http://water.usgs.gov/wrri/index.php.
Virginia Tech College of Natural Resources and Environment,
online at http://www.cnr.vt.edu/.
Virginia Water Resources Research Center, online at http://www.vwrrc.vt.edu/.
RELATED VIRGINIA WATER RADIO EPISODES
For a previous episode on the water resources undergraduate
major at Virginia Tech, please see Episode 243 (12/8/14), “Water’s Complexity,
Connections, and Challenges Await Students as Virginia Tech’s Undergraduate
Water Resources Degree Debuts in 2015,” online at http://www.virginiawaterradio.org/2014/12/episode-243-12-8-14-waters-complexity.html.
All Water Radio episodes are listed by category at the Index
link above (http://www.virginiawaterradio.org/p/index.html).
SOLS INFORMATION FOR
VIRGINIA TEACHERS
This episode may help with the following Virginia’s 2010 Science
Standards of Learning (SOLs):
Grades K-6 Living Systems Theme
6.7 - natural processes and human interactions that affect
watershed systems; Va. watersheds, water bodies, and wetlands; and water
monitoring.
The episode may also help with the following Virginia 2008 Social
Studies SOLs:
Civics and Economics Course
CE.7 – government at the state level.
CE.9 – public policy at local, state, and national levels.
World Geography Course
WG.10 - cooperation among political jurisdictions to solve
problems and settle disputes.
Government Course
GOVT.8 – state and local government organization and powers.
GOVT.9 – public policy at local, state, and national levels.
GOVT.16 – role of government in Va. and U.S. economies,
including examining environmental issues and property rights.
