Randall R. Parrish
Randall R. Parrish | |
|---|---|
| Alma mater | Middlebury College (BSc, 1974) University of British Columbia (MSc, 1977; PhD, 1982) |
| Awards | Murchison Medal (2010) Schlumberger Medal (2010) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Geochronology and isotope geology |
| Institutions | Canadian Geological Survey British Geological Survey |
| Thesis | Cenozoic thermal and tectonic history of the Coast Mountains of British Columbia: as revealed by fission track and geological data and quantitative thermal models (1982) |
| Doctoral advisor | Richard Lee Armstrong |
Randall Richardson Parrish is an isotope geologist, who has developed improved methods of dating minerals and rocks using isotope geochronology. He was awarded the Murchison Medal of the Geological Society of London in 2010.
Education
[edit]Parrish studied geology at Middlebury College, Vermont, and graduated in 1974 with a senior thesis on the tectonics and metamorphism of central Vermont.[1] He then moved to the University of British Columbia, where he completed an MSc in 1977 with a study of some crystalline rocks of the Canadian Shield, and a PhD in 1982 with a study of the geological history of the Coast Mountains of British Columbia.[2]
Career
[edit]During his career, Parrish worked initially for the Canadian Geological Survey. Later, Parrish worked for the British Geological Survey, where he was head of the NERC isotope geosciences laboratory. In these roles, Parrish worked on multiple applications of isotope systems to the dating of geological events and processes, in settings from the Himalaya to the Canadian Shield. Parrish was awarded the Murchison Medal of the Geological Society of London in 2010, for his "fundamental contributions to geoscience through isotope geochronology".[3] He was also awarded the Schlumberger Medal of the Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland in 2010 for scientific excellence in mineralogy and its applications.[4]
In 2021, Parrish published a report on Gulf War syndrome, in which they had used the isotopic composition of uranium to detect how much exposure soldiers may have had to depleted uranium, which had been used in anti-tank munitions. Parrish’s study showed that there was no evidence to link depleted uranium to the syndrome.[5] [6]
References
[edit]- ^ "Senior Theses, Geology, Middlebury College" (PDF).
- ^ Parrish, Randall Richardson (1982). "Cenozoic thermal and tectonic history of the Coast Mountains of British Columbia: as revealed by fission track and geological data and quantitative thermal models. PhD thesis, University of British Columbia".
- ^ "Society Awards for 2010". Journal of the Geological Society. 167 (5): 841–842. September 9, 2010. doi:10.1144/0016-76492010-Awa – via lyellcollection.org (Atypon).
- ^ "VMSG News February 2010" (PDF).
- ^ "Gulf War syndrome 'not caused by depleted uranium'". February 18, 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ Parrish, Randall; Haley, Robert (February 18, 2021). "Gulf War Illness: depleted uranium ruled out as a cause of mystery condition – new study". The Conversation.