Here I am on Potato Hill, overlooking the west flank of Rich Mountain, Watauga County, North Carolina. Christmas tree farm delineates young alluvial fan.
Hugh H. Mills
Phone - 931-372-3521 (office)
Professor of Geology
931-526-2594 (home)
Department of Earth Sciences
Fax - 931-372-3363
301 Kittrell Hall
Email - hmills@tntech.edu
Tennessee Technological University
Cookeville, TN 38505
Duke University
1959-1963 B.A. 6/63 (Psychology)
University of North Carolina 1969-1972
M.S. 8/72 (Geology) - thesis: Variation of drumlin form
University of Washington
1972-1975 Ph.D. 8/75 (Geology) - dissertation:
Sediment characteristics of some small
temperate glaciers
My field is geomorphology, the study of landforms and the processes that shape them. I've always been interested in geomorphology, I just didn't know it for a long time. Certainly an interest in the mountains was stimulated by summer afternoon drives with my parents to the top of Mount Mitchell, North Carolina, about 2 hours distant from our home in the inner Piedmont. The nearly 6000-ft altitude gain provided merciful relief from the subtropical heat of a Piedmont summer, especially in those pre-airconditioning days. Since I always hated being hot, I guess I came to associate mountains with escape and comfort. It seems that I always had an innate interest in the subject, however. As I roamed through the woods near my home on the inner Piedmont of North Carolina, I recall wondering why the hillslopes were so steep in some places and much gentler in others. And why was Puzzle Creek so curvy? I never suspected people actually studied such things. I'd heard of geology, but of course everyone knew that geologists study rocks. I knew the word geography, but thought that it referred to knowing the state capitals and stuff, not to an actual field of study. So I went on to college and eventually majored in psychology (i.e., brain physiology, not the Dr. Ruth type of psychology). I even started to grad school in psychology. Although there were fascinating problems in this field, it really didn't satisfy me and I dropped out to go into the U.S. Army. While in the Army I somehow came across an early edition of The Face of the Earth by G. H. Dury. Amazing! I now knew there was a field called geomorphology, and I wanted to be in it. The first problem was to decide whether to go into geology or geography, a hard decision in the USA, where geomorphologists are approximately equally divided between these two disciplines. Looking through college catalogues, however, I decided that geology had fewer non-geomorphic courses that sounded boring than did geography, so I chose geology. Next I had to find a school that would accept me - a little difficult, since I'd never taken a geology course. I wrote to a number of schools, and finally UNC-Chapel Hill, in my home state, was willing to gamble on me. I think John Dennison, the chairman at the time, was a little dubious, but I had good undergraduate grades and good GREs, and the department was a little short on students that fall, and so I was admitted to the graduate program. My career as a geomorphologist had started!
1977-1996 Assistant to Full Professor
at Tennessee Tech University
1976-1977 Visiting Assistant Professor
at Clemson University
1975-1976 Instructor at University
of Washington
Geological Society of America
Society of Sedimentary Geology
American Quaternary Association
American Association for the Advancement of Science
Tennessee Academy of Sciences
Carolina Geological Society
During my career I have taught the following courses: physical and historical geology, geomorphology, photogeology, terrain analysis, Quaternary geology, sedimentology, environmental hydrology, engineering geology, computer techniques in geology, and geology for engineers.
Click here for a description of courses I currently teach.
I have completed research projects and published papers in the following subject areas:
Glacial landforms and sedimentology
Humid-region fans and fan deposits
Sedimentology of mass-movement deposits
Erosional development of volcanic landforms
Hillslope evolution and processes
Tectonic geomorphology
Stream landforms and processes
Karst geomorphology
Morphometric analysis of digital elevation data
Environmental geology
In my early days as a geomorphologist
I was attracted to exotic terrains, and so went to the University of Washington
for my Ph.D. I did my dissertation on recent deposits of alpine glaciers,
and the active volcanoes of the Cascade Range and the giant Pleistocene
floods of the Columbia Plateau were equally fascinating. I returned to
the Pacific Northwest in 1988-1989 on a teaching exchange program to Portland
State, where with the USGS I did a GIS study on the evolution of the Mount
St. Helens crater subsequent to the 1980 eruption. Most of my professional
career, however, has been spent in the Appalachian region. Although returning
to this region after my sojourn in Washington initially seemed a letdown,
I have found that the Appalachians present a huge number of interesting
and challenging geomorphic problems, and, combined with the proximity of
this mountain range, I have ended up doing most of my research in the southern
Appalachian region.
I have been particularly
interested in the transported regolith in the Appalachians. This material
not only has the potential to provide chronological control and information
about past climates, but itself is a factor in influencing geomorphic evolution.
Just as bedrock obviously influences topography, the regolith produced
by weathering and erosion of the bedrock can also influence topography.
A large part of my Appalachian research has dealt with mapping, relative-age
dating, and geophysical investigation of regolith, together with morphological
analysis of associated landforms.
I am interested in combining
computer analysis of DEMs with field work in order to determine the effect
of bedrock on landforms, regolith, and/or surficial process. I am
currently working on 2 projects, one looking at the effect of bedrock type
on topography and drainage characteristics in the Tennessee Valley and
Ridge province, and the other relating particle-size of stream bank sediment
from streams in east Tennessee to the bedrock characteristics of the drainage
basins.
Another problem I am interested
in is the East Tennessee Seismic Zone. This zone has the second-highest
rate of instrumental seismicity in the eastern U.S. (second only to the
New Madrid Zone), yet has had no large earthquake in historical times.
This lack of a large quake appears to be anomalous, as most areas with
high rates of microseismicity have had large earthquakes. Because seismic
hazard is traditionally estimated on the basis of the largest historic
earthquake, this area is not considered to pose more than a moderate seismic
risk.
1987-1988 Research on colluvium and hillslope evolution,
southwestern Virginia: by National Science Foundation
1991-1993 Research on alluvial fans in the southern Blue
Ridge province: by NSF
Mills, H. H., 1976, Estimated erosion rates on Mount Rainier, Washington: Geology, v. 4, p. 401-406.
_____, 1977, Basal till fabrics of modern alpine glaciers: Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 88, p. 824-828.
_____, 1977, Differentiation of glacier environments by sediment characteristics: Athabasca Glacier, Alberta, Canada: Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 47, p. 728-737.
_____, 1977, Textural characteristics of drift from some representative Cordilleran glaciers: Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 88, p. 1135-1143.
_____, 1978, Some characteristics of glacial sediments on Mt. Rainier, Washington: Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 48, p.1345-1356.
_____, 1978, Hillslope evolution on the Pennington Formation, central Tennessee: An illustration of dynamic equilibrium: Journal of the Tennessee Academy of Science, v. 53, p. 150-153.
_____, 1979, Downstream rounding of pebbles: A quantitative review: Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 49, p. 295-302.
_____, 1979, Some implications of sediment studies for glacial erosion on Mount Rainier, Washington: Northwest Science, v. 53, p. 190-199.
_____, 1980, An analysis of drumlin form in the northeastern and north-central United States: Geological Society of America Bulletin, Part I, v. 91, p. 637-639; Part II, v. 91, p. 2214-2289.
_____, 1981, Boulder deposits and the retreat of mountain slopes, or, "gully gravure" revisited: Journal of Geology, v. 89, p. 649-660.
_____, 1981, Some observations on slope deposits in the vicinity of Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina: Southeastern Geology, v. 22, p. 209-222.
_____, 1982, Piedmont-cove deposits of the Dellwood quadrangle, Great Smoky Mountains, North Carolina, U.S.A.: Morphometry: Zeitschrift fur Geomorphologie, v. 26, p. 163-178.
_____, 1982, Long-term episodic deposition on mountain foot slopes in the Blue Ridge province of North Carolina: Evidence from relative-age dating: Southeastern Geology, v. 23, p. 123-128.
Mills, H. H., and Tsai, P. J., 1982, Estimating relative bed-load contributions by means of lithology counts: Mathematical Geology, v. 14, p. 241-247.
Mills, H. H., and Starnes, D. D., 1983, Sinkhole morphometry in a fluviokarst region: Eastern Highland Rim, Tennessee, U.S.A.: Zeitschrift fur Geomorphologie, v. 27, p. 39-54.
Mills, H. H., 1983, Pediment evolution at Roan Mountain, North Carolina, U.S.A.: Geografiska Annaler, v. 65A, p. 111-126.
_____, 1983, Clast fabric strength in hillslope colluvium as a function of slope angle: Geografiska Annaler, v. 65A, p. 255-262.
_____, 1984, Clast orientation in Mount St. Helens debris-flow deposits, North Fork Toutle River, Washington: Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 54, p. 626-634.
_____, 1984, Effect of hillslope angle and substrate on tree tilt, and the denudation of hillslopes by tree fall: Physical Geography, v. 5, p. 253-261.
Mills, H. H., and Wagner, J. R., 1985, Long-term change in regime of New River indicated by vertical variation in extent and weathering intensity of alluvium: Journal of Geology, v. 93, p. 131-142.
Mills, H. H., 1986, Downslope movement of in situ clasts on forested hillslopes, Virginia: Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, v. 11, p. 451-456.
_____, 1986, Piedmont-cove deposits of the Dellwood quadrangle, Great Smoky Mountains, North Carolina, U.S.A.: Some aspects of sedimentology and weathering: Biuletyn Peryglacjalny, v. 30, p. 91-109.
_____, 1986, Possible differential uplift of New River terraces in southwestern Virginia: Neotectonics, v. 1, p. 75-86.
Mills, H. H., Brakenridge, G. R., Jacobson, R. B., Newell, W. L., Pavich, M. J., and Pomeroy, J. S., 1987, Chapter 2: Appalachian Mountains and Plateaus, in Graf, W. L., ed., Geomorphic systems of North America: Boulder, Colorado, Geological Society of America, Centennial Special Volume 2, p. 5-50.
Mills, H. H., 1987, Morphometry of drumlins in the northeastern and north-central USA: in Menzies, J., and Rose, J., eds., Drumlin symposium (Proceedings of the Drumlin Symposium, First International Conference on Geomorphology, Manchester, U.K., Sept. 16-18, 1985): Rotterdam, A.A. Balkema, p.131-147.
_____, 1987, Variation in sedimentary properties of colluvium as a function of topographic setting, Valley and Ridge province, Virginia: Zeitschrift fur Geomorphologie, v. 31, p. 277-292.
_____, 1988, Appalachian geomorphology: an annotated bibliography: Geological Society of America Microform Publication 19, 224 p.
_____, 1988, Surficial geology and geomorphology of the Mountain Lake area, Giles County, Virginia, including sedimentological studies of colluvium and boulder streams: U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1469, 57 p.
_____, 1989, Hollow form as a function of boulder size in the Valley and Ridge province, southwestern Virginia: Geology, v. 17, p. 595-598.
_____, 1990, Thickness and character of regolith on mountain slopes in the vicinity of Mountain Lake, Virginia, as indicated by seismic refraction, and implications for hillslope evolution: Geomorphology, v. 3, p. 143-157.
_____, 1990, Geologic and topographic controls on the rapids of the New River gorge, West Virginia: Southeastern Geology, v. 31, p. 45-62.
_____, 1990, Three-dimensional clast orientation in glacial and mass-movement sediments: a compilation and preliminary analysis: U.S. Geological Survey Open-file Report 90-128, 71 p.
Mills, H. H., and Delcourt, P. A., 1991, Chapter 15: Appalachian Highlands and Interior Low Plateaus, in Morrison, R. B., ed., Quaternary non-glacial geology of the conterminous United States: Geological Society of America, The Geology of North America, v. K-2, p. 611-628.
Soller, D., and Mills, H. H., 1991, Surficial geology and geomorphology, in Horton, J.W., Jr., and Zullo, V.A., eds., The geology of the Carolinas: Knoxville, University of Tennessee Press, p. 290-308.
Mills, H.H., George, D.B., Taylor, H.N., Ogden, A.E., Robinet-Clark,Y., and Forde, R., 1991, Predicting sinkhole flooding in Cookeville, Tennessee, using SWMM and GIS, in Kastning, E.H., and Kastning, K.M., eds., Appalachian karst: Huntsville, National Speleological Society, p. 159-167.
Bartholomew, M. J., and Mills, H. H., 1991, The course of the New River: its late Cenozoic migration and bedrock control inferred from high-level stream gravels in southwestern Virginia: Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 103, p. 73-81.
Mills, H. H., 1991, Temporal variation of mass-wasting activity in Mount St. Helens crater, Washington, as indicated by seismic activity: Arctic and Alpine Research, v. 23, p. 417-423.
Mills, H. H., and Keating, G. N., 1992, Post-eruption dome growth, erosion and deposition in Mount St. Helens crater, Washington, determined by a Geographic Information System: U.S. Geological Survey I-Series Publication I2297, 4 sheets.
Mills, H. H., 1992, Post-eruption erosion and deposition in the 1980 crater of Mount St. Helens, Washington, determined from digital maps: Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, v. 17, p. 739-754.
Mills, H. H., and Allison, J. B., 1994, Controls on the variation of fan-surface age in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Haywood County, North Carolina: Physical Geography, 1994, v. 15, p. 465-480.
_____, 1995, Weathering and soil development on fan surfaces as a function of height above modern drainageways, Roan Mountain, North Carolina: Geomorphology, v. 14, p. 1-17.
_____, 1995, Weathering rinds and the evolution of piedmont slopes in the southern Blue Ridge Mountains: Journal of Geology, v. 103, p. 379-394.
Mills, H. H., and Wilson, M. D., 1997, A statistical analysis of Tennessee topography using digital elevation models: A quantitative evaluation of physiographic-province boundaries: Journal of the Tennessee Academy of Science, v. 72, p. 45-50.
Mills, H. H., and Speece, M. A., 1997, Ground-penetrating radar exploration of alluvial fans in the southern Blue Ridge province, North Carolina: Environmental & Engineering Geoscience, v. 3, p. 487-499.
Mills, H. H., 1998, Before Burgess Falls: Prehistoric change in the course of Falling Water River, eastern Highland Rim, Tennessee: Journal of the Tennessee Academy of Sciences, v. 73, p. 82-86.
Stephenson, S. L., and Mills, H. H., 1999, Contrasting vegetation of noses and hollows in the Valley and Ridge province, southwestern Virginia: The Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society, v. 126, p. 197-212.
Mills, H. H., and Stephenson, S. L., 1999, Forest vegetation on boulder streams in the central Appalachian Valley and Ridge province, southwestern Virginia: The Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society, v. 126, p. 188-196.
Mills, H. H., 2000, The relationship of slope angle to regolith clast size: a study based on surficial mapping in the southern Blue Ridge Mountains: Southeastern Geology, v. 39, p. 243-258.
_____, 2000, Controls on form process, and sedimentology of alluvial fans in the Central and Southern Appalachians, southeastern U.S.A.: Southeastern Geology, v. 39, p. 281-313.
_____, 2000, Apparent increasing rates of stream incision in the eastern United States during the late Cenozoic: Geology, v. 28, p. 955-957.
Mills, H. H., and Kaye, J. M., 2001, Drainage history of the Tennessee River: Review and new metamorphic quartz locations: Southeastern Geology, v. 40, p. 75-97.
Mills, H. H., and Mills, R. T., 2001, Evolution of undercut slopes on abandoned incised meanders in the eastern Highland Rim of Tennessee, USA: Geomorphology, v. 38, p. 317-336.
Shofner, G. A., Mills, H. H., and Duke, J. E., 2001, A
simple map index of karstification and its relationship to sinkholeand
cave distribution in Tennessee: Journal of Caves and Karst Studies, v.
63, p. 67-75.
Geology 415 (515) Geomorphology
General course objectives:
Topics to be covered:
General course objectives:
Topics to be covered:
Geology 321 Geology for Engineers
General course objectives:
This course tries to meet a difficult challenge. Ideally, engineering students would take a basic geology course and then take a course dealing with the application of geology to civil engineering. (The latter course cannot be taught without at least some basic knowledge of geology.) Instead, only one 3-hour course is available to do both. Therefore, I attempt to present a condensed introduction to physical geology during the first half of the course, and then switch to topics more likely to be of interest to engineers during the second half.
Provide an introduction to the basics of
physical geology
Provide a survey of geologic hazards
Introduce the mechanics and genesis of
surficial materials at the Earth's surface
Introduce the application of geological
knowledge to environmental problems
Topics to be covered:
Minerals
Igneous rocks
Sedimentary rocks
Metamorphic rocks
Structural geology
Plate tectonics
Earthquake hazards
Volcanic hazards
Soil and rock mechanics
Surficial deposits
Landslides
Subsidence
Hydrogeology
Geology 104 Geology and the Environment
General course objectives:
Examine the interaction of humans and the
environment, and to see how geological principles can be applied to problems
arising from this interaction.
Provide an introduction to geohazards,
geologic events that threaten human life and property
Provide an introduction to earth resources,
how they are obtained, and the environmental problems associated with them.
Discuss human impacts on the geological
environment, and how these impacts can be mitigated.
The major teaching methods are lectures and laboratory.
Topics to be covered:
I Introduction and geologic framework
II Natural hazards (most of these hazards
are natural processes, but the danger of many of them can be exacerbated
by human activities)
Earthquakes
Volcanoes
Landslides and subsidence
River flooding
Coastal hazards
Meteorite impacts
III Earth Resources
Energy from fossil fuels; energy alternatives
Mineral resources
Soil resources
Water resources
IV Human Impact on the Environment
Waste management and disposal
Contaminants in the geologic environment
The atmosphere and global change