CSDMS lifetime achievement award 2011
From CSDMS
Professor Rudy Slingerland, recipient of the 2011 CSDMS lifetime achievement award
Department of Geosciences, Penn State University
Rudy has operated with fabulous success in all key CSDMS domains (Landscape Evolution Modeling, Transport Modeling, and Morphodynamics Modeling). The award is completely independent of the support Rudy has shown the Earth Science Community for his leadership roles in NCED, CSDMS, MARGINS, but does entrain his leadership efforts in starting the field of Quantitative Dynamic Stratigraphy. By predicting how sediment grains of different density, move across the landscape, Professor Slingerland has changed our understanding on connectedness of sediment process, in a source to sink approach. Expressing our knowledge in terms of the fundamental equations that govern the movement of sediment and fluids, as represented by the work and inspiration of Dr. Slingerland, allows us to understand what we know, what we do not know, and how to go about and experimentally move forward with our understanding. Rudy Slingerland is able to bridge between disciplines: 1) engineering and science, and has published in both venues; 2) physics/geophysics and geology, through his field based computational science; 3) hydrology and geology, through his landmark research on rivers; 4) sedimentology and geomorphology, particularly his work on fold and thrust belts; 5) mathematics and geology, with his leading efforts at bringing quantitative science to an a historically descriptive field; and finally 6) oceanography and geology, particularly his work on the Western Interior Seaway.