Ray Smith Bassler (July 22, 1878 – October 3, 1961) was an American

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 ...

and paleontologist.

Biography

Bassler was born in 1878, in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. When he was in

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

he used to sell fossils for

Edward Oscar Ulrich Edward Oscar Ulrich (1 February 1857, in Covington, Kentucky – 22 February 1944, in Washington, D.C.) was an invertebrate paleontologist specializing in the study of Paleozoic fossils. Biography Ulrich was educated at Wallace College and the O ...

. He got his bachelor's degree in 1902 from the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,00 ...

, and received master's degree in 1903 and Ph.D. in 1905 from

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

. Starting from 1904 to 1948 he was an assistant professor there. From 1905 to 1931 he was working with

Ferdinand Canu Ferdinand Canu (1863–1932) was a French paleontologist and author. In 1923 he was awarded Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal The Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal is awarded by the U.S. United States National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Sciences ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Tertiary Tertiary ( ) is a widely used but obsolete term for the geologic period from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago. The period began with the demise of the non-avian dinosaurs in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, at the start ...

Polyzoa Bryozoa (also known as the Polyzoa, Ectoprocta or commonly as moss animals) are a phylum of simple, aquatic invertebrate animals, nearly all living in sedentary colonies. Typically about long, they have a special feeding structure called a l ...

of the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

and

Gulf coast The Gulf Coast of the United States, also known as the Gulf South, is the coastline along the Southern United States where they meet the Gulf of Mexico. The coastal states that have a shoreline on the Gulf of Mexico are Texas, Louisiana, Mississ ...

s. Starting from 1910 to 1922 he was working as a curator for the Division of Paleontology and for the Division of Stratigraphic Paleontology from 1923 to 1928 at the

United States National Museum The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

. By 1929 he was appointed as a head curator of the Department of Geology, a job that he kept till his promotion to associate in

Paleontology Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

in 1948. He died in 1961. He worked extensively on

bryozoans Bryozoa (also known as the Polyzoa, Ectoprocta or commonly as moss animals) are a phylum of simple, aquatic invertebrate animals, nearly all living in sedentary colonies. Typically about long, they have a special feeding structure called a l ...

(then called also polyzoans). In particular, he was the author of the bryozoan volume (Part G) of the ''

Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology The ''Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology'' (or ''TIP'') published by the Geological Society of America and the University of Kansas Press, is a definitive multi-authored work of some 50 volumes, written by more than 300 paleontologists, and co ...

'', the first volume of this multi-volume compendium to be published (1953). In

1925 Events January * January 1 ** The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus having been replaced by the State of Syria. * January 3 – Benito Mussolini makes a pivotal speech in the Italia ...

, he described the conodont families

Prioniodinidae Prioniodinidae is an extinct family of conodonts in the order Prioniodinida. Genera Genera are: * †'' Bryantodus'' * †'' Camptognathus'' * †''Chirodella ''Chirodella'' is an extinct genus of conodont Conodonts (Greek ''kōnos'', "co ...

and

Polygnathidae Polygnathidae is an extinct family of conodonts. References External links * Polygnathidaeat fossilworks Fossilworks is a portal which provides query, download, and analysis tools to facilitate access to the Paleobiology Database The ...

. In

1926 Events January * January 3 – Theodoros Pangalos declares himself dictator in Greece. * January 8 **Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz. ** Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuy ascends the throne, the last monarch of V ...

, with E. O. Ulrich, he described the conodont genus ''

Ancyrodella ''Ancyrodella'' is an extinct genus of conodonts from the Late Devonian. During the Famennian stage of the Late Devonian, a biologic event occurred (Upper Kellwasser Extinction of all ''Ancyrodella'' and ''Ozarkodina'' and most ''Palmatolepis' ...

''.A classification of the toothlike fossils, conodonts, with descriptions of American Devonian and Mississippian species. EO Ulrich and RS Bassler, 1926

Tributes

The conodont species name '' Neognathodus bassleri'' is a tribute to RS Bassler.

Publications

* * *

References

American paleontologists Conodont specialists 1878 births 1961 deaths University of Cincinnati alumni George Washington University alumni Scientists from Philadelphia {{US-geologist-stub