David R. Marchant

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David R. Marchant (* 1961 or 1962 ) is an American geologist and geoscientist . His main study area is Antarctica .

Career

Marchant earned his Bachelor of Science (B Sc.) At Tufts University , where he graduated as Master of Science (M. Sc.) At the University of Maine and received his doctorate in 1993 as a Ph.D. at the University of Edinburgh . From 1985 onwards, in 19  field research campaigns, he used the composition of volcanic ash to research the palaeoclimatic changes and geological stability in the Antarctic dry valleys and uncovered the glacier history of the East Antarctic ice sheet . To do this, he combined traditional geomorphological field research with modern radiometric dating methods , such as surface exposure dating and potassium-argon dating . In doing so, he determined that the ice-free regions of Antarctica show the lowest changes in landscape forms worldwide, the East Antarctic ice sheet is one of the geomorphologically most stable regions on earth and the glacier ice in isolated regions of the Antarctic dry valleys contains gas mixtures of the earth's atmosphere from early epochs of earth's history . In this way, he also contributed significantly to the understanding of the changes in the landscape on Mars .

Marchant had been employed at Boston University since 1995 , where he headed the Antarctic Research Group at the Faculty of Earth Sciences . For his field research, he raised US $ 5.5 million in public funding, including through the National Science Foundation and NASA . In 1999 he was honored with the Royal Society of Edinburgh medal named after William Speirs Bruce and in 2004 with the Metcalf Award , the highest honor for lecturers at Boston University.

The Marchant Glacier, now known as the Matataua Glacier in East Antarctica, Victoria Land, was named after Marchant since 1994 . The United States Board on Geographic Names , in coordination with the New Zealand Geographic Board , decided to rename it in September 2018. The background to this was allegations of sexual harassment , insults and physical attacks that became known in October 2017 by Marchant, initially against one and later another student in the late 1990s and early 2000s. As a result of an investigation by a Boston University commission, which had partially confirmed the veracity of the allegations, Marchant was released from his duties at the university in November 2017, while retaining his salary. In February 2018, the university management rejected an appeal by Marchant against this decision. With this, Boston University initiated the final discharge of Marchant from the university's faculty, which became effective in April 2019. The case was also the subject of investigation by the Standing Committee on Science and Technology in the United States House of Representatives . Marchant is one of a number of well-known American scientists, including the astronomer and astrophysicist Geoffrey Marcy , whose career ended at least temporarily because of sexual harassment.

Fonts (selection)

  • David R. Marchant, Carl C. Swisher III., Daniel R. Lux, David P. West Jr., George H. Denton (1993): Pliocene paleoclimate and East antarctic ice-sheet history from surficial ash deposits. In: Science , 260 (5108), pp. 667-670, PMID 17812227
  • TV Lowell, CJ Heusser, BG Andersen, PI Moreno, A. Hauser, LE Heusser, C. Schlüchter, DR Marchant, GH Denton (1995): Interhemispheric correlation of late pleistocene glacial events. In: Science, 269 (5230), 1541-1549, PMID 17789444
  • Kay D. Bidle, SangHoon Lee, David R. Marchant, Paul G. Falkowski: Fossil genes and microbes in the oldest ice on earth. In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , 104 (33), pp. 13455-13460, PMID 17686983
  • James W. Head, John F. Mustard, Mikhail A. Kreslavsky, Ralph E. Milliken, David R. Marchant (2003): Recent ice ages on Mars. In: Nature , 426 (6968), pp. 797-802, PMID 14685228
  • Sean L. Mackaya, and David R. Marchant (2017): Obliquity-paced climate change recorded in Antarctic debris-covered glaciers. In: Nature Communications , 8, p. 14194, PMID 28186094

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b David R. Marchant , information on the homepage of Carleton College . Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  2. ^ A b John Stewart: Antarctica - An Encyclopedia . Vol. 2, McFarland & Co., Jefferson and London 2011, ISBN 978-0-7864-3590-6 , p. 995 (English).
  3. ^ A b SST Committee Opens Bipartisan Investigation into Alleged Sexual Harassment by Boston University Professor. Press release of the United States House Committee on Science and Technology, October 26, 2017. Accessed October 24, 2018.
  4. ^ Boston University recognizes four professors May 16 for excellence in teaching. Boston University press release of May 16, 2004. Accessed October 25, 2018.
  5. ↑ New glacier name as a signal against sexual harassment. In: Der Standard , September 20, 2018. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
  6. ↑ Meredith Wadman: Disturbing allegations of sexual harassment in Antarctica leveled at noted scientist. In: Science Magazine , October 6, 2017. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  7. ^ A b Jean Morrison: Results of Investigation into Allegations against Professor David Marchant. Notice from the Faculty of Earth Sciences at Boston University, November 17, 2017. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  8. ↑ Meredith Wadman: Boston University rejects geologist David Marchant's appeal of termination. In: Science Magazine, February 28, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  9. ^ Letter to Faculty from President. Notice from Robert A. Brown, President of Boston University, regarding the dismissal of David R. Marchant on April 12, 2019. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
  10. ↑ Ben Guarino: Boston University professor sexually harassed graduate student, investigation finds. In: The Washington Post , November 20, 2017. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
personal data
SURNAME Marchant, David R.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Marchant, David
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American geologist and earth scientist
DATE OF BIRTH 1961 or 1962