Dan Peter McKenzie (born 21 February 1942) is a Professor of
Geophysics
Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' so ...
at the
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...
, and one-time head of the
Bullard Laboratories of
the Cambridge Department of Earth Sciences. He wrote the first paper defining the mathematical principles of
plate tectonics
Plate tectonics (from the la, label=Late Latin, tectonicus, from the grc, τεκτονικός, lit=pertaining to building) is the generally accepted scientific theory that considers the Earth's lithosphere to comprise a number of large ...
on a sphere, and his early work on
mantle convection created the modern discussion of planetary interiors.
Early life
Born in
Cheltenham, the son of an
ear, nose, and throat surgeon,
[Macfarlane, A. & Harrison, S. (2007]
"An interview with McKenzie"
dspace.cam.ac.uk he first attended
Westminster Under School
Westminster Under School is an independent preparatory school for boys aged 7 to 13, attached to Westminster School in London.
The school was founded in 1943 in the precincts of Westminster School in Little Dean's Yard, just behind Westminster ...
and later
Westminster School
(God Gives the Increase)
, established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560
, type = Public school Independent day and boarding school
, religion = Church of England
, head_label = Hea ...
, London.
Education and career
McKenzie attended
King's College, Cambridge
King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the cit ...
where he read
physics
Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...
, obtaining a 2:1 in his final degree.
As a graduate student, he worked with
Edward "Teddy" Bullard who suggested he work on the subject of thermodynamic variables. He was awarded a Research Fellowship at King's College at the beginning of his second year which enabled him to study anything he wanted. As such, he gave up doing what Teddy had suggested and became interested in how the interior of the earth convects, something completely speculative at that time. McKenzie taught himself fluid mechanics and then went to the
Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the
University of California, San Diego, on the invitation of
Freeman Gilbert and
Walter Munk. After eight months he returned to Cambridge, submitting his
PhD in 1966. He has since said that nothing in his early life as a scientist had such a profound effect on him as those eight months in California.
Plate tectonics
Spending time between Cambridge and a Fellowship held in
Caltech
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
, McKenzie was invited, along with Teddy Bullard, to a conference in New York which initiated his revolutionary work on plate tectonics. After listening to separate talks from Fred Vine on plate tectonics, looking at the thermal structure of oceanic plates as they formed and cooled.
Following this, he published a seminal paper with Bob Parker, which employed
Euler's Fixed Point Theorem, in conjunction with magnetic anomalies and earthquakes to determine a precise mathematical theory on
plate tectonics
Plate tectonics (from the la, label=Late Latin, tectonicus, from the grc, τεκτονικός, lit=pertaining to building) is the generally accepted scientific theory that considers the Earth's lithosphere to comprise a number of large ...
. This work was published some 3–4 months after the same work had been carried out by
Jason Morgan at
Princeton. Allegations were subsequently made suggesting that McKenzie was at Morgan's spring
AGU talk where he presented his plate tectonics work.
Later in 1968 he went to Princeton where he found that he and Morgan had solved two or three problems using identical mathematics in exactly the same way – plate tectonics was one, another was the thermal structure of the oceans and another was looking at earthquake mechanisms in a different way to seismologists.
Working with John Sclater, McKenzie determined the entire geological history of the Indian Ocean, the publication of which eventually resulted in them both receiving Fellowships at the
Royal Society
The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
.
Mantle convection and sedimentary basins
McKenzie was awarded a University position and took it up in 1969. At this point he decided to move away from plate tectonics, choosing instead to focus on the behavior of fluids below the plates. He studied cellular convection and motions in the mantle whilst at the same time pursuing yet another new avenue of research; the development of
sedimentary basins. It was from this work that he produced a classic paper
that has been widely accepted by oil companies as the "McKenzie Model of Sedimentary Basins."
McKenzie was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1976 aged just 34, and by 1978 was awarded a University Readership position.
Later career
McKenzie continues to work at the Bullard Laboratories in Cambridge where he is Professor of Earth Science. Most recently his research has provided new insights into the tectonic evolution of Mars and Venus. In 2002 he was awarded the prestigious
Crafoord Prize
The Crafoord Prize is an annual science prize established in 1980 by Holger Crafoord, a Swedish industrialist, and his wife Anna-Greta Crafoord. The Prize is awarded in partnership between the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and the Crafoord Foun ...
from the
Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences for his contributions to research in the field of plate tectonics, sedimentary basin formation and mantle melting. With his appointment as a
Companion of Honour in 2003, he brought the then current Cambridge membership of this elite group to four:
Brenner, McKenzie,
Hobsbawm and
Hawking. He also served on the Physical Sciences jury for the
Infosys Prize
The Infosys Prize is an annual award given to scientists, researchers, engineers and social scientists of Indian origin (not necessarily born in India) by the Infosys Science Foundation and ranks among the highest monetary awards in India to r ...
from 2009 to 2011.
Selected bibliography
* McKenzie, D., Nimmo, F., Jackson, J., Gans, P. B. & Miller, E. L. 2000 Characteristics and consequences of flow in the crust. J. geophys. Res. 105, 11029-11046.
* McKenzie, D. & Fairhead, D. 1997 Estimates of the effective elastic thickness of the continental lithosphere from Bouguer and free air gravity anomalies. J. geophys. Res. 102 27523-27552.
*
* Jackson, J. A. & McKenzie, D., 1988 The relationship between plate motions and seismic moment tensors, and the rates of active deformation in the Mediterranean and Middle East. Geophys. J. R. astr. Soc. 93, 45–73.
* Bickle, M. J. & McKenzie, D., 1987 The transport of heat and matter by fluids during metamorphism. Contrib. Mineral. Petrol. 95, 384–92.
* McKenzie, D. & O'Nions, R. K., 1983 Mantle reservoirs and ocean island basalts. Nature 301 229–231.
* England, P. & McKenzie, D., 1982 A thin viscous sheet model for continental deformation. Geophys. J. R. astr. Soc. 70, 295–321.
*
* Parsons, B. & McKenzie, D., 1978 Mantle convection and the thermal structure of plates. J. geophys. Res. 83, 4485–96.
* McKenzie, D., Roberts, J. & Weiss, N. O., 1974 Convection in the Earth's mantle: towards a numerical simulation. J. Fluid Mech., 62, 465–538.
* McKenzie, D., Molnar, P. & Davies, D., 1970 Plate tectonics of the Red Sea and East Africa. Nature 226, 243–8.
*
*
*
Awards
* Fellow of the Royal Society (
FRS), 1976
*
A.G. Huntsman Award for Excellence in the Marine Sciences, Royal Society of Canada, 1980
*
Wollaston Medal
The Wollaston Medal is a scientific award for geology, the highest award granted by the Geological Society of London.
The medal is named after William Hyde Wollaston, and was first awarded in 1831. It was originally made of gold (1831–1845), ...
, Geological Society of London, 1983
* Rutherford Memorial Lecture, 1988
*
Japan Prize, with Dr W. Jason Morgan and Dr Xavier Le Pichon, 1990
[Laureates of the Japan Prize]
japanprize.jp
* Awarded a
Royal Society
The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
Research Professorship, 1996
* Awarded an Honorary DSc from the
University of Bristol
, mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'')
, established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter
, type ...
, 2000
*
William Bowie Medal, 2001
*
Crafoord Prize
The Crafoord Prize is an annual science prize established in 1980 by Holger Crafoord, a Swedish industrialist, and his wife Anna-Greta Crafoord. The Prize is awarded in partnership between the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and the Crafoord Foun ...
, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, 2002
*
Order of the Companions of Honour by
Queen Elizabeth II, 2003
*
Copley Medal, 2011
References
External links
Personal web page at the Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridgeinterviewed by Alan Macfarlane, 11 May 2007 (video)*
ttp://sounds.bl.uk/View.aspx?item=021M-C1379X0024XX-0001V0.xml Listen to an oral history interview with Dan McKenzie– a life story interview recorded fo
An Oral History of British Science at the British Library
Dan Mckenzie and Friends 2011 (film)*
{{DEFAULTSORT:McKenzie, Dan
Living people
1942 births
Alumni of King's College, Cambridge
Fellows of the Royal Society
Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences
Foreign Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy
Tectonicists
Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour
British geophysicists
Fellows of King's College, Cambridge
Wollaston Medal winners
People educated at Westminster School, London
British geologists
Royal Medal winners
Recipients of the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society
Recipients of the Copley Medal
Marine geophysicists