[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 108 (Wednesday, July 21, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1388]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HONORING THE WORK OF DR. CHRISTOPH THOMAS OF OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. KURT SCHRADER

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 21, 2010

  Mr. SCHRADER. Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor of Dr. Christoph 
Thomas, one of my constituents and an Oregon State University 
atmospheric scientist who has received a National Science Foundation 
``Career Award'' which is designed to support emerging influential 
scholars and educators who will become 21st century leaders.
  During the next five years, Dr. Thomas will be receiving funding from 
the NSF to support his research on the relationship between plant 
canopies--such as forests and crops--and the lower atmosphere. The air 
exchange between these environments plays an important role in the 
transport of heat, moisture, momentum and trace gases, but they are 
poorly understood. Dr. Thomas will work with graduate students at 
Oregon State University, an Oregon K-12 high school teacher, and 
several colleagues on the studies. The project will include a teaching 
component, site visits by science classes, and a new graduate-level 
field course for students in atmospheric sciences, forestry, 
engineering and agricultural sciences.
  Madam Speaker, this research will create better models of air 
transport that will lead to better large-scale weather and climate 
models, reducing uncertainty in projections of carbon and energy 
budgets while improving the ability to predict water availability in 
forests. I am proud to represent Dr. Christoph Thomas and Oregon State 
University and wish Dr. Thomas success as he puts National Science 
Foundation dollars to work in the coming years.

                          ____________________