W. A. Berggren
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick
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Primary Section: 15, Geology Secondary Section: 16, Geophysics Membership Type:
Member
(elected 1989)
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Research Interests
As a marine micropaleontologist, I have been engaged in the use of calcareous plankton (foraminifers and nannoplankton) in studying Earth history. By integrating data from associated fields of geophysics (paleomagnetic stratigraphy, sea floor anomalies) and geochemistry (stable isotopes and radioisotopic dating), I have formulated several iterations of a Cenozoic (last 65 million years) geologic time scale together with several colleagues. This time scale forms the basis for a unified, global correlation network between disjunct marine and terrestrial stratigraphies—a fundamental tool in formulating a truly global historical geology. A further aspect of my recent and current research has been fundamental (monographic) reevaluation of the taxonomy, systematics, phylogenetic history and biostratigraphy of Paleogene (and in particular Paleocene) planktonic foraminifers, with a view to synthesizing the vast (and disparate) literature of the former Soviet Union with that published in the West over the past 35 years. The main purpose of this work has been to leave a unified legacy for the next generation at a time of diminishing expertise in the field of micropaleontology.
