Kirk Bryan (22 July 1888 in

Albuquerque Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding i ...

New Mexico Territory The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of '' Nuevo México'' becomin ...

– 22 August 1950 in

Cody Cody may refer to: People *Cody (given name) *Cody (surname) * Cody (wrestler), a ring name of Cody Runnels Places Canada *Cody, British Columbia United States * Cody, Florida * Cody (Duluth), Minnesota * Cody, Missouri * Cody, Nebraska *Cody, ...

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to t ...

) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...

on the faculty of

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

from 1925 until his death in 1950. The son of R.W.D. Bryan (Astronomer under Hall in the Polaris expedition), Bryan received his undergraduate education at the

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...

and later obtained a Ph.D. from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the w ...

. A

geomorphologist Geomorphology (from Ancient Greek: , ', "earth"; , ', "form"; and , ', "study") is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topographic and bathymetric features created by physical, chemical or biological processes operating at or ...

, he worked primarily in arid regions, and was one of the pioneers in explaining the forces that formed landmasses in those areas. According to

Luna Leopold Luna Bergere Leopold (October 8, 1915 – February 23, 2006) was a leading U.S. geomorphologist and hydrologist, and son of Aldo Leopold. He received a B.S. in civil engineering from the University of Wisconsin in 1936; an M.S. in physics-meteor ...

, one of his students, Bryan was influential as a teacher. In 2004, Leopold wrote:

His students made important advances in a variety of subjects, including alluvial chronology, periglacial and
glacial geology Glaciology (; ) is the scientific study of glaciers, or more generally ice and natural phenomena that involve ice. Glaciology is an interdisciplinary Earth science that integrates geophysics, geology, physical geography, geomorphology, clima ...
, wind action, soil and vegetative effects on landscape development, and
archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsc ...
. His influence is indicated by the fact that of the four geologists who have received the
National Medal of Science The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social scienc ...
, three were students of Kirk Bryan.

The

Geological Society of America The Geological Society of America (GSA) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of the geosciences. History The society was founded in Ithaca, New York, in 1888 by Alexander Winchell, John J. Stevenson, Charles H. Hitch ...

Kirk Bryan Award The Kirk Bryan Award is the annual award of the Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology Division of the Geological Society of America. It is named after Kirk Bryan a pioneer in geomorphology of arid regions. The award was established in 1951 and is ...

is named in his honour. It is awarded annually in recognition of a publication of distinction advancing the science of geomorphology or

Quaternary geology Quaternary geology is the branch of geology that study developments from 2.6 million years ago onwards. In particular, Quaternary geology study the process and deposits that developed during the Quaternary, a period characterized by glacial-intergl ...

,Kirk Bryan Award
, Geological Society of America website which were Bryan's areas of specialization.

Publications

Bryan was a prolific writer. This is a partial list of his scientific contributions: *1925. Date of channel trenching (arroyo cutting) in the arid Southwest. ''

Science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence ...

'' 62(1607): 338–344. *1927. Channel erosion of the Rio Salado, Socorro County, New Mexico. '' U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin'' 79: 15–19. *1928. Historic evidence on changes in the channel of Rio Puerco, a tributary of the Rio Grande in New Mexico. ''Journal of Geology'' 36(3): 265–282. *1928. Change in plant associations by change in ground water level. ''

Ecology Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overl ...

'' 9(4): 474–478. *1929. Flood-water farming. ''Geographical Review'' 19:444–456. *1929. Folsom culture and its age. ''Geological Society of America Bulletin'' 40:128-129. *1938. Prehistoric quarries and implements of pre-Amerindian aspect in New Mexico. ''Science'' (new series) 87 (229): 343–346. *1941. Geologic antiquity of man in America. ''Science'' 93 (2422): 505-514. *K. Bryan and C.C. Albritton. 1943. Soil phenomena as evidence of climate changes. ''

American Journal of Science The ''American Journal of Science'' (''AJS'') is the United States of America's longest-running scientific journal, having been published continuously since its conception in 1818 by Professor Benjamin Silliman, who edited and financed it himsel ...

'' 241: 469-490. *1950. The Place of Geomorphology in the Geographic Sciences. ''Annals of the Association of American Geographers'', Vol. 40, No. 3 (Sep., 1950), pp. 196–208

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bryan, Kirk 1888 births 1950 deaths 20th-century American geologists University of New Mexico alumni Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni Harvard University faculty American geomorphologists