A Geomorphologist - M. Gordon Wolman

Photo taken from John Hopkins University website. - Pictured is young "reds" Wolman.

M. Gordon "Reds" Wolman was a leading figure in the 20th century geomorphology science. During the time Wolman worked for the United States Geological survey he and his partner did extensive research on streams and rivers, eventually publishing "Fluvial Processes in Geomorphology". "Reds" made his career around teaching methods for applying earth science to the land that benefited the environment and public. He then went on to be a proffesor at John Hopkins university, publishing amazing work until his death in February 2010.

The reason why I picked Gordon is because of his work, I find that the change in the river landscape is amazing. The different ways in which the river will change due to human activity happening around it intrigues me and is something that I'm very interested in. I'm a big fan of learning more. about how humans are affecting our water systems and how we can mitigate effects of pollution, sediment load, and declining fresh water in the future. Understanding the past is the key to unlocking the future.

Wolman, M. G., & Miller, J. P. (1960). Magnitude and Frequency of Forces in Geomorphic Processes. The Journal of Geology, 68(1), 54-74. doi:10.1086/626637

In this journal, Wolman explains the differences between large or catastrophic and small regular events and how they both effect the geomorphology in the same ways but, just at different rates. The journal states that the scientist measured the relative amount of "work" done on the environment by looking at landforms that have been caused by large events. Concluding that regular events simply happen in more frequency, however with less ferocity.

Leopold, L. B., Wolman, M. G., & Miller, J. P. (2012). Fluvial Processes in Geomorphology. Newburyport: Dover Publications.

"Fluvial Processes in Geomorphology" was Wolman's number one piece of work throughout his career. This book analyzes different processes that shape streams and rivers. It dives into all the natural forces on earth and how they all relate with each other in shaping Earth's surface landforms, which is the basis of geomorphology. When this was originally published in the late 1950s, large scientific advancements were made by the researchers as they showed evidence of the natural change through gradual and rapid events.

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