(1921- ) German Sedimentologist
Two of the main benefits that geology provides to society are energy and environmental analysis. The principles behind these seemingly opposite fields overlap in the most important parts. The passage of oil and gas through sediments and sedimentary rock to a point of accumulation is analogous to the passage of groundwater and pollutants through the same materials. For this reason, there was a large migration of oil geologists to the environmental field during the oil bust of the 1980s. Unlike most academicians who simply refused to acknowledge the transition, Gerald Friedman moved from his position as one of the true leaders in petroleum geology to a position of prominence in environmental geology. Friedman’s area of expertise is sedimentology of both clastic and carbonate rocks. He worked in the petroleum industry for some 10 years, discovering some of the major oil and gas fields mostly by using this expertise in sedimentology. When he moved on to academia in earnest, he brought his practical experience to research. Prior to his oil experience, he had done some of the groundbreaking research on carbonate diagenesis, which he continued upon his return. He performed primary research on the development of petroleum reservoirs in carbonate rocks and on sedimentology and depositional environments. He investigated both modern systems in the Gulf of Mexico, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Florida, the Red Sea, and the Dead Sea in Israel, and ancient systems in the Anadarko Basin in Oklahoma, the Permian Basin of west Texas, the Michigan Basin, the Appalachian Basin, and the Williston Basin.
Friedman truly came to the service of the world during the oil crises of the 1970s both with his research and by training large numbers of students to work in the petroleum industry or in academia related to petroleum exploration. He is also of service to the profession with his exceptional organizational ability.
Gerald Friedman was born on July 23, 1921, in Berlin, Germany. He attended the University of London, England, where he earned a bachelor of science degree in chemistry in 1945. He immigrated to the United States and accepted a position as an analytical chemist at E.R. Squibb and Sons, New Jersey. He married Sue Tyler Theil-heimer in 1948 and entered the graduate program at Columbia University, New York. He earned a master of arts degree in 1950 and a Ph.D. in geology in 1952. In 1950, he joined the faculty at the University of Cincinnati, Ohio, but took a job as a consulting geologist in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada, in 1954. From 1956 to 1964, Friedman was a research geologist and supervisor of research for Amoco Production Company in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In 1964, he joined the faculty at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, New York. He additionally became the president of the Northeastern Science Foundation, New York, in 1978, a position he holds today. He joined the faculty of Brooklyn College of the City University of New York (CUNY) and the CUNY Graduate School in 1985, where he continues today. In 1988, he was named Distinguished Professor of geology. He also served as deputy executive officer for the graduate program. Over the years, Friedman was a visiting professor at several schools, including He brew University, Israel; University of Heidelberg, Germany; Institute of Petroleum Research and Geophysics, Israel; the Geological Survey of Israel; and Martin Luther University in Halle-’Witten-berg, Germany. Friedman and his wife have five children. In his leisure time, Friedman is a Judo master. He achieved third-degree black belt and was named a sensei.
Gerald Friedman leads a field trip for the International Geological Correlation Project (IGCP) in the northern Appalachians in 1979
Gerald Friedman is an author of more than 300 articles in international journals, professional volumes, and governmental reports. Several of the papers are seminal works on sedimentology and diagenesis. He has written or edited 16 books. One textbook, Principles of Sedimentology, sold more than 30,000 copies and won an award. Other highly regarded books by Friedman include Depositional Environments in Carbonate Rocks and Exploration for Carbonate Petroleum Reservoirs, among others. Friedman’s achievements in research and professional leadership have been recognized with honors and awards too numerous to list fully here. Therefore, these are just the highlights. He has two honorary doctorates, one from the University of London, England, in which he was hooded by the late Queen Mother, and one from the University of Heidelberg, Germany, which issues them only once every 50 years. He received the Kapitsa Gold Medal of Honor from the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences. From the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG), he received the Distinguished Service Award in 1988, the Distinguished Educator Award in 1996, the Sidney Powers Medal in 2000, and the Environmental Teaching Award in 2001. From the eastern regional AAPG, he received the John T. Galey Memorial Award and a Certificate of Merit. He won the Twenhofel Medal from the Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists (SEPM), the Award for Outstanding Editing or Publishing Contributions from the Association of Earth Science Editors, and the James Hall Medal from the New York State Museum, among others. He also received a Best Paper Award and two Honorable Mentions from The Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, as well as a Best Paper Award from an SEPM section.
Friedman’s service to the profession rivals his honors and awards and as such can only be touched upon. He was president (1975-1978) and vice president (1971-1975) of the International Association of Sedimentologists. He was the president (1974-1975) and the vice president (1970-1971) of SEPM and vice president of AAPG in 1984-1985, among many other positions in both societies. He was president (1972-1973) and vice president (1971-1972) of the Association of Earth Science Editors and co-founder of the History of Earth Sciences Society. His editorial work is equally impressive. He served as editor for Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, Northeastern Geology and Environmental Sciences, Earth Sciences History, and Carbonates and Evapor-ites, and associate editor for Sedimentary Geology, Journal of Geology, Geo Journal, and Journal of Geological Education among others.
