Science at the lake

After talking about for sometime, the Mayor finally made it over to Incline Village to check out the Lake Tahoe Research Center at Sierra Nevada College. The building that houses the center is on the southwest portion of the campus, steps away from the library and a short walk from the student center. I was greeted by one of two docents working the guest desk for Veterans' Day. For the next hour the Mayor was given an overview of the work being done by the staff, a collection of scientists, students, and professionals, all dedicated to enhancing and expanding the basis of knowledge of our world class resource.
Starting with the static display of the stern portion of a vessel, complete with instrumentation, the docent described the data collection effort that results from the sampling and observing of the lake itself. I was able to handle a Secchi dish, used for clarity measurement(s). It was explained that the observations are taken every 10 days throughout the year, and now they are taken at the same location(better data sets!). The water sampling tube was available for handling also.
From here we went to the lab mock up for an explanation of the type of aquatic life being studied. We were shown the quagga mussel, the manila clam, and a shrimp, all non-nativr species affecting the lake environment. Videos were used to assist the docents with their efforts. A few visitors were then shown the lab, and others the 3D movie of the McKinney Bay collapse and it's tsunami that washed the Nevada shoreline about 50000 years ago. Very interesting. Our docent, Fred, gave detailed descriptions of the particulars on the screen. I asked about the work of the submarine that made an appearance last summer in the lake. He explained that the vessel is privately owned and supports private projects and is not part of current research at the lake.
The experience was a fine introduction to the research center, and it definitely warrants another visit, especially when the labs are humming with activities.