Gail Ashley, ''née'' Mowry, (born 29 January 1941) is an American

sedimentologist Sedimentology encompasses the study of modern sediments such as sand, silt, and clay, and the processes that result in their formation (erosion and weathering), transport, deposition and diagenesis. Sedimentologists apply their understanding of mo ...

. She is known for her studies of the

Olduvai Gorge The Olduvai Gorge or Oldupai Gorge in Tanzania is one of the most important paleoanthropology, paleoanthropological localities in the world; the many sites exposed by the gorge have proven invaluable in furthering understanding of early human evo ...

sediments, focused on the water supplies available to hominids and the paleoclimate of the region. She has participated in multi-disciplinary projects that include

meteorology Meteorology is the scientific study of the Earth's atmosphere and short-term atmospheric phenomena (i.e. weather), with a focus on weather forecasting. It has applications in the military, aviation, energy production, transport, agricultur ...

oceanography Oceanography (), also known as oceanology, sea science, ocean science, and marine science, is the scientific study of the ocean, including its physics, chemistry, biology, and geology. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of to ...

paleoanthropology Paleoanthropology or paleo-anthropology is a branch of paleontology and anthropology which seeks to understand the early development of anatomically modern humans, a process known as hominization, through the reconstruction of evolutionary kinsh ...

, and

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

. She has served in professional organizations in the fields of sedimentology and

geology Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...

, including the presidency of 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. Hi ...

, the second woman to hold that post.

Early life and education

Ashley was born Gail Mowry in

Leominster, Massachusetts Leominster ( ) is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the second-largest city in Worcester County, with a population of 43,222 at the 2023 census. Leominster is located north of Worcester and northwest of Boston. Bo ...

, on January 29, 1941. Her interest in geology developed at a young age under the tutelage of a neighbor and professor of geology. She earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

in 1963 and a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in 1972, both in geology, from the

University of Massachusetts, Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the Flagship university, flagship campus of the Univer ...

. In 1977 Ashley received a Ph.D. from the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

for research on sediment transport in

tidal river A tidal river is a river whose flow and level are caused by tides. A section of a larger river affected by the tides is a tidal reach, but it may sometimes be considered a tidal river if it had been given a separate and another title name. Gene ...

Research career

In 1977, Ashley was hired at

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

, where she currently serves as a full professor. She has served as editor for several journals, including as the first female editor of the

Journal of Sedimentary Research The Society for Sedimentary Geology is an international not-for-profit, scientific society based in the US state of Oklahoma. It is commonly referred to by its acronym SEPM, which refers to its former name, the Society of Economic Paleontologists a ...

and the

Geological Society of America Bulletin The ''Geological Society of America Bulletin'' (until 1960 called ''The Bulletin of the Geological Society of America'' and also commonly referred to as ''GSA Bulletin'') is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that has been published by the Geolog ...

. She presented a lecture on "The Paleoclimate Framework of Human Evolution, Lessons from Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania" at Rutgers, publicized by WISE (Women in Scientific Education) in 2014. Olduvai Gorge-1

Ashley's research career has focused on

glaciation A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate be ...

and

paleoecology Paleoecology (also spelled palaeoecology) is the study of interactions between organisms and/or interactions between organisms and their environments across geologic timescales. As a discipline, paleoecology interacts with, depends on and informs ...

. In 1998, she first introduced the term

Critical Zone Critical or Critically may refer to: *Critical, or critical but stable, medical states **Critical, or intensive care medicine *Critical juncture, a discontinuous change studied in the social sciences. *Critical Software, a company specializing in ...

in Earth sciences to describe this thin zone of complex interactions involving rock, soil, water, air, and living organisms.

Honors and awards

From 1991 to 1992, Ashley was the president of the

Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists The Society for Sedimentary Geology is an international not-for-profit, scientific society based in the US state of Oklahoma. It is commonly referred to by its acronym SEPM, which refers to its former name, the Society of Economic Paleontologists a ...

and chaired the Northeast Section of the

(GSA). She is active in the

Association for Women Geoscientists Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

to bring more women into scientific fields. From 1998 to 1999, she presided over the GSA and was the second female president in its history. From 1998 to 2002 she served as vice president of the

International Association of Sedimentologists International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

. In 2012, Ashley was the recipient of the GSA's

Laurence L. Sloss Award Laurence is in modern use as an English masculine and a French feminine given name. The modern English masculine name is a variant of Lawrence and originates from a French form of the Latin ''Laurentius'', a name meaning "man from Laurentum" ...

for lifetime achievements and in 2020 received the GSA Limnogeology Division Israel C. Russell Award.

Personal life

Ashley has two children with her first husband, Stuart Ashley.Where are the women geoscience professors, 2003

Retrieved December 1, 2016. She is currently married to Jeremy Delaney.

References

External links

Rutgers University profile
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ashley, Gail 1941 births Living people American women geologists University of Massachusetts Amherst College of Natural Sciences alumni University of British Columbia Faculty of Science alumni Rutgers University faculty 20th-century American geologists 21st-century American geologists 20th-century American women scientists 21st-century American women scientists Presidents of the Geological Society of America American academic journal editors 20th-century American women academics