Bettie Higgs

The Role of Women in the History of Geology

Where were the women in Geology? This book is a first as it unravels the diverse roles women have played in the history and development of geology as a science predominantly in the UK, Ireland and Australia, and selectively in Germany, Russia and US. The volume covers the period from the late eighteenth century to the present day and shows how the roles that women have played changed with time. These included illustrators, museum collectors and curators, educationalists, researchers and geologists. Originally as wives, sisters or mothers many were assistants to their male relatives. This book looks at all these forgotten women and for the first time historians and scientists together explore the contribution they made to this male-dominated subject. There are individual profiles on remarkable women: Catherine Raisin, Dorothea Bate, Cuviers daughters, Grace Prestwich, Annie Greenly, Nancy Kirk, Margaret Crosfield, Ethel Skeat, Maria Ogivlie Gordon, Marie Stopes, Anne Phillips, Muriel Arber and Etheldred Bennett. Pulling together this extensive research uncovered common issues and generated emergent themes. The Editors have brought this new research together under these themes and tried to answer the question Where were the women in Geology? They go on to discuss how these role models can be applicable to todays society.

The role of women in the history of geological studies in Ireland

Abstract During current research being carried out into the role of women in the history of geological study in Ireland, interesting social and cultural factors are emerging. A list of people who contributed to data gathering, and the unravelling of the complexity of Irelands geology would characteristically contain only male names. Yet when one begins to look more closely, important roles were played by women. The story is one of women carrying out many and varied supporting roles, including stone-workers, illustrators, tutors, assistants, collaborators, wives, mothers, and later, curators, cartographers and technicians. From 1950 onwards, women begin to occupy professional roles as geologists, particularly in the Geological Survey of Ireland, but more slowly in academic circles. This paper concentrates on women now deceased, who paved the way for others, and only briefly indicates their legacy with selected examples leading to the present day.

The role of women in the history and development of geology: an introduction

A conference held at the London Geological Society, Burlington House, London, on 28 November 2005, hosting over 70 participants, was the first to deal solely with the role that women played in the history and development of the science of geology. Sixteen papers were read and there were two poster presentations. Prior to this, there have been individual articles written and papers published on the historical role of women in the history of the geosciences, but this collection of conference papers is, surprisingly, the first time a book has been published bringing the evidence together and giving an overview and a selection of detailed case histories. In carrying out this project the authors ask: ‘Can we really analyse the situation for women in the geosciences today without knowing what happened in the past?’ Consequently, the collection of papers in this book mainly deals with the late 1700s to early 1900s, but also offers some links to the present day. It attempts to evaluate the contribution of women, and their changing roles, in the development of geology as a science. This undertaking has allowed a number of themes and common issues to emerge and be identified, which will be drawn out and discussed in this introduction. This work suggests that, in relation to our question, the past is the key to the present. It is interesting to note that it is not only women who have researched these case histories; there are valuable contributions from respected male colleagues. The mix includes review papers referring not only to the development of geology in Great Britain, but also in other European countries, Australia, and North America. There are papers that look at a particular role, such as women as museum curators, or at a particular issue, such as travel for women during field studies. There are also several papers that focus on the contribution of a particular individual. The conference was publicized using the image of Etheldred Benett (1776–1845), and so an introduction to this early pioneer, originally submitted as a poster, is included in this book. The book is not intended to be an exhaustive study of all women who played a role, as the work of well-known individuals, such as Mary Anning (1799–1847), (Torrens 1995; Tickell 1996; Burek 2001, 2002, 2004) are documented in detail elsewhere. There are other important histories still waiting to be uncovered, including some very influential women, such as Professor Janet Watson (1923–85), first female President of the Geological Society of London, Dr Doris Reynolds (1899– 1985), who developed new ideas on the origin of granites, and Marie Tharp (1920–2006), whose work led directly to the first map of the Atlantic seabed and helped forward ideas on seafloor spreading. The book is necessary because both historians and scientists have neglected the topic to a certain extent. Historians have sometimes omitted to mention a male geologist’s female research assistant, or intellectual wife, sister or daughter, beyond stating that: ‘she was following the fashion’ or ‘she was unusual for her time’. Modern scientists have considered these stories and the gender issue unimportant to their present-day specialized research. However, the picture emerging suggests that these stories are important to the present day. It seems that the treatment of women in the past has left a legacy that has not entirely been overcome in the 21st century. In this book we want to bring these issues to a wider audience, to highlight this legacy, and to ask: ‘What has changed?’. This book crosses the divide between science and the humanities. It is important to note that many contributors are writing outside of their normal discipline to document the role of women in the history of geology. They are palaeontologists, geoconservationists, geophysicists and hydrogeologists, to name but a few. Why would they do this? It is because there has been a gap in our understanding of the role that women have played, and because the research has uncovered fascinating stories. Those who began this research some time ago are becoming more proficient and expert in this interdisciplinary work. The book has benefited from a wide range

Late Pleistocene-Holocene Buried Valleys in the Cork Syncline, Ireland

Abstract Please click here to download the map associated with this article. The accompanying map and cross-sections outline the disposition of fluvioglacial deposits infilling two buried valleys, the Northern and Southern Buried Valleys, which occupy the margins of the E-W Cork Syncline in southwest Ireland. These buried valleys formed during the Pleistocene, probably in response to repeated lowstands in sea level which was in excess of about 130 m. Water well and site investigation borehole data, assembled from various sources, have been analysed and collated using a specialised geological package, Rockworks 2002. These data have been plotted on digitised base maps together with mapped bedrock exposures using AutoCAD. Combined with topographical analysis, an isopach map of the fluvioglacial deposits infilling the buried valleys, has been produced. This defines the courses of Pleistocene river systems which were responsible for the excavation of the valleys. Selected geophysical traverses have confirmed the existence of the buried valleys and their general courses. The Northern Buried Valley has been traced along its length for a distance of almost 60 km, whilst the Southern Buried Valley has been traced for about 35 km. The geophysical surveys suggest a complex bedrock topography and that the depth of these valleys exceeds 100 m in places. However, the absolute depths of the buried valleys cannot be determined with certainty at this stage.

Stress generation at ridge axes by plate divergence and magma rise

Abstract A model is explored for the rifting process particularly at the divergent plate boundary in Iceland, based on direct observations of the Krafla rifting episode 1975–1984. Magma accumulates near the axial crust-mantle transition as the plates diverge from each other and compression on the boundary decreases. Two-dimensional finite-element modelling is applied to investigate how divergence and buoyant rise of magma interact in triggering rifting. Both processes are found to be important, but long intervals between rifting episodes require the time-average deviatoric stress to be compressible normal to the axis.