Barbara Ann Maher is a Professor Emerita of

Environmental Science Environmental science is an interdisciplinary academic field that integrates physics, biology, and geography (including ecology, chemistry, plant science, zoology, mineralogy, oceanography, limnology, soil science, geology and physical geograp ...

Lancaster University Lancaster University (legally The University of Lancaster) is a public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several pla ...

. She served as director of the Centre for Environmental magnetism & Palaeomagnetism until 2021 and works on magnetic nanoparticles and pollution.

Education and early career

Maher earned her Bachelor's degree in geography at the University of Liverpool. She remained there for her graduate studies, earning a

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

in environmental geophysics for research on the origins and transformations of

magnetic minerals Magnetism is the class of physical attributes that are mediated by a magnetic field, which refers to the capacity to induce attractive and repulsive phenomena in other entities. Electric currents and the magnetic moments of elementary particles ...

in soils.

Career and research

After completing her PhD, Maher was made a Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) Fellow at the

Department of Geophysics, University of Edinburgh Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

. She joined the

School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compulsor ...

as a lecturer in 1987 and was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 1996 and Reader in 1998. Here she investigated the magnetic properties of ultrafine sub-micron magnetites. Using her understanding of magnetic mineral formation in soils, she evaluated the paleo-climate of the

Chinese Loess Plateau The Chinese Loess Plateau, or simply the Loess Plateau, is a plateau in north-central China formed of loess, a clastic silt-like sediment formed by the accumulation of wind-blown dust. It is located southeast of the Gobi Desert and is surrounde ...

. She developed spatial and temporal reconstructions of the Asian palaeo monsoon. She was the

Royal Institution The Royal Institution of Great Britain (often the Royal Institution, Ri or RI) is an organisation for scientific education and research, based in the City of Westminster. It was founded in 1799 by the leading British scientists of the age, inc ...

''Scientists for the new century'' lecturer in 1999. She edited the book ''Quaternary Climates, Environments and Magnetism'' in 1999. Maher also studies magnetic nanoparticles to track dust impacts on climate change and changes in human health due to particulate air pollution. She was described by Richard Harrison as having "single-handedly developed the field of environmental magnetism". She demonstrated that soils that were exposed to higher rainfall make more magnetite. She has studied how windblown dusts impacted the levels of

greenhouse gas A greenhouse gas (GHG or GhG) is a gas that Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorbs and Emission (electromagnetic radiation), emits radiant energy within the thermal infrared range, causing the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse ...

es. She is interested in magnetic records of

Quaternary The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.58 million years ...

terrestrial sediments. She launched the Quantifying Uncertainty in the Earth System (QUEST) Working Group on Dust in 2008. Maher became interested in metal-rich particulate pollution. In 2013 Maher demonstrated that silver birch trees could be used as pollution filters. The result was part of an investigation into the impact of roadside trees on the concentration of particulate matter found in people's homes. Silver birch trees are covered in tiny hairs, which can trap the particulate matter whilst allowing clean air to circulate. The matter is washed off the leaves when it rains, allowing the birch trees to trap even more particulate matter. Her work was examined by Michael Mosley and

Gabriel Weston Gabriel Jessie Corfield Weston (born 15 July 1970 in London) is an English surgeon, author and television presenter. Her memoir entitled ''Direct Red: A Surgeon's Story'' was published in February 2009. It was long-listed for the Guardian First ...

on the BBC show '' Trust Me, I'm a Doctor''. They found that the pollution collected in houses protected by silver birch trees was 50 - 60% lower than in houses without them. In 2016 Maher found toxic, metal-rich nanoparticles in human brain tissue. By studying the nanoparticles using an electron microscope, Maher found they were small and round, some with surface crystallites, indicating that they had been formed at high temperatures, rather than in the brain itself. The nanoparticles comprise a mix of iron-rich, strongly magnetic particles associated with other metals, including platinum, cobalt, aluminium and titanium. Similar metal-rich nanoparticles occur in abundance in urban air pollution, especially at busy roadsides. As the nanoparticles have diameters that are less than 200 nm, they can enter the brain via the lungs and blood circulation, via ingestion and transport through the neuroenteric system, and through the

olfactory nerve The olfactory nerve, also known as the first cranial nerve, cranial nerve I, or simply CN I, is a cranial nerve that contains sensory nerve fibers relating to the sense of smell. The afferent nerve fibers of the olfactory receptor neurons tr ...

. Magnetite can produce reactive oxygen species in the brain. Maher became concerned that these magnetite particles could be linked to

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...

mental illness A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...

and reduced intelligence. Her work on air pollution nanoparticles in human tissues attracts worldwide scientific, and media, attention. She has appeared on numerous BBC News and World Service TV and radio programmes, including BBC Radio 4's '' Inside Science'' in 2018, discussing the Government of the United Kingdom Clean Air Strategy. S

Awards and honours

*1999

Lecturer, Scientists for the New Century *2005 Chree Medal and Prize, Institute of Physics (IOP), renamed Institute of Physics Edward Appleton Medal and Prize in 2008 *2002-2006 and 2006-2008 Chair, Rock Magnetism group, International Union of Geophysics & Geodesy *2006-2012 Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award *2008 -2010 Vice President of the '' Quaternary Research'' Association *2013 Pilkington Teaching Award,

*2014 Schlumberger Medal and Award,

Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland The Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland began in 1876. Its main purpose is to disseminate scientific knowledge of the Mineral Sciences (mineralogy) as it may be applied to the fields of crystallography, geochemistry, petrology, e ...

, renamed the Neumann Medal in 2021 *2020 Fellowship, American Geophysical Union *2021 Bullard Lecturer, American Geophysical Union *2023 AGU College of Fellows Distinguished Lecturer *2024 Awarded membership, Academia Europaea *2024 Elected, Fellow of the Royal Society

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maher, Barbara Environmental scientists British climatologists Women climatologists Academics of Lancaster University Alumni of the University of Liverpool Academics of the University of East Anglia 1960 births Living people Fellows of the Royal Society