The structural geology and tectonics research group addresses topical problems in structural geology, regional geology and tectonics. Our goals and interests lie in contributing to our basic knowledge of crustal-scale deformation in the deep and shallow crust and the nature of driving forces for this deformation. We use a variety of approaches, both traditional and innovative. Our work is field-based, involving an important component of geologic mapping in addition to structural analysis, stratigraphic and sedimentologic studies, metamorphic and igneous petrology, and cross-section balancing and modeling. Geochronology and thermochronology represent a critical aspect of our research, permitting us to determine the absolute age of events, rates of geologic/tectonic processes, and the space-time distribution of deformation and magmatism across broad continental regions. Our multidisciplinary approach to problem-solving relies on continued interaction with other faculty in the Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences and in the Geophysics Department and on several key facilities in the Earth Sciences: The Fission Track Thermochronology Laboratory (Trevor Dumitru), the U-Th/He dating facility (Mike McWilliams), the SHRIMP (Sensitive High Resolution Ion Microprobe) and allied facilities for U-Pb dating and isotopic studies (Joe Wooden), the 40Ar/39Ar and (U-Th)/He Laboratory of Mike McWilliams, the program in crustal geophysics (Simon Klemperer), basin analysis, tectonics/sedimentation and seismic stratigraphy (Steve Graham and Don Lowe) and the metamorphic petrology programs of Gary Ernst, J.G. Liou, and Gail Mahood among others. We also interact with geologists at the nearby U.S. Geological Survey, which represents a great resource for many of our faculty and students. Art Grantz and Dave Scholl have been close collaborators on our Alaskan, Arctic and Bering Strait projects and hold courtesy faculty appointments at Stanford. Support for our research comes from a variety of sources, but mostly from grants and contracts with the National Science Foundation and Industry. Funding for thesis research includes Geological Society of America Penrose grants, the U.S.G.S's EDMAP program, AAPG and the McGee and Shell Funds available through the School of Earth Sciences at Stanford.