Congratulations to all those that entered the GeoPRISMS Student Prize. Of all the quality entries, this page recognizes those that were most highly rated by the judges. Many of the outstanding presentations are available to download via the links from this page.
The GeoPRISMS Prize accepts international entries from any student who can establish a topical link between their research and a stated aim of a GeoPRISMS Program Initiative. To date, winners and honorable mentions have come from both the U.S. and abroad and have gone to around the same number of male and female entrants, and poster and oral presentations.
Thank you to the Judges and the students who entered, whose efforts allow the GeoPRISMS Student Prize to take place.
Poster Presentation Winner

Zach Eilon – Columbia University
Seismic attenuation of teleseismic body waves in Cascadia, measured on the Amphibious Array
Coauthors: Geoffrey A. Abers
From the Judges: “Zach was very enthusiastic and knowledgeable” “I was impressed by the quality of figures, organization of the information and general presentation” “Very clear presentation”
Oral Presentation Winner
Allison Rubin – UC Davis
Constraining timescales of pre-eruptive events within large silicic volcanic centers
Coauthors: Kari M. Cooper, Adam JR Kent, Christy Till, Fidel Costa Rodriguez
From the Judges:“Excellent talk” “Clear, confident and professional presentation” “The speaker exhibited strong presence and maturity”
Honorable Mention
Joel Edwards – UC Santa Cruz
Record of subducting topography revealed in 3D seismic imaging of Pleistocene unconformities, offshore Southern Costa Rica
Coauthors: Jared Kluenser, Eli Silver
From the Judges:“Fantastic talk” “His interpretation of the 3D MCS data was very exciting” “The research presented was thorough, sophisticated and presented in a logical manner”
Honorable Mention
Helen Janiszewski – Columbia University
Surface-wave imaging of the Juan de Fuca Plate and Cascadia Subduction Zone
Coauthors: Jim Gaherty, Geoff Abers
From the Judges:“Very nice talk!” “Slides were extremely comprehensible and logically ordered” “Presentation was clear, organized, and well illustrated”
Honorable Mention
Dylan Meyer – The University of Texas at Austin
Methane hydrate formation in a saturated, coarse-grained sample through the induction of a propagating gas front
Coauthors: Kehua You, Taylor Borgfeldt, Peter Flemings, David DiCarlo, Timothy Kneafsey
From the Judges: “Dylan did a fantastic job presenting his poster” “Clearly explained the motivation, background, experiment design, results, and the importance of the study” “I learnt a lot about methane hydrates and how they form!”
Honorable Mention
Maureen Walton – The University of Texas at Austin
Revisiting the 1899 earthquakes of Yakutat Bay, Alaska using new and existing geophysical data
Coauthors: Sean Gulick, Peter Haeussler
From the Judges: “Maureen did an excellent job communicating the context and significance of the work” “Excellent poster” “Clearly enthusiastic about the work” .