Germaine Anne Joplin (26 February 1903 – 18 July 1989) was an Australian

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 winner of the

Clarke Medal The Clarke Medal is awarded by the Royal Society of New South Wales, the oldest learned society in Australia and the Southern Hemisphere, for distinguished work in the Natural sciences. The medal is named in honour of the Reverend William Bran ...

in 1963.

Early life

Joplin, born in Strathfield, New South Wales in 1903, was educated at Presbyterian Ladies' College in Croydon, Sydney. She initially trained as a nurse on leaving school, but at age 23 commenced studies at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

, graduating with a

B.Sc. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

and First Class Honours, the

University Medal A University Medal is one of several types of award conferred by universities upon outstanding students or members of staff. The usage and status of university medals differ between countries and between universities. As award on graduation Many ...

in Geology, the Science Research Scholarship, the Deas-Thomson Scholarship for Mineralogy and Professor Cotton's Prize in 1930. Joplin then pursued study in England, earning a Junior Fellowship of the World Federation of University Women to study petrology at

Newnham College Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicent ...

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

with

Cecil Edgar Tilley Cecil Edgar Tilley FRS Hon FRSE PGS (14 May 1894 – 24 January 1973) was an Australian-British petrologist and geologist. Life He was born in Unley, Adelaide, the youngest child of John Thomas Edward Tilley, a civil engineer from London, a ...

. A number of Australian women were studying with her at Newnham College during the 1930s, including

Dorothy Hill Dorothy Hill, (10 September 1907 – 23 April 1997) was an Australian geologist and palaeontologist, the first female professor at an Australian university, and the first female president of the Australian Academy of Science. Education Doroth ...

and Betty Ripper. Joplin attained her Ph.D. in 1936.

Career

After returning from England, Joplin took up an assistant lectureship in petrology at the University of Sydney. She resigned from this position in 1941 when she received a full time Linnean Macleay Research Fellowship to research the geology of the

Cooma Cooma is a town in the south of New South Wales, Australia. It is located south of the national capital, Canberra, via the Monaro Highway. It is also on the Snowy Mountains Highway, connecting Bega with the Riverina. At the , Cooma had a po ...

district. In 1945 she returned to lecturing in igneous and metamorphic petrology, publishing studies of granites at Hartley, the skarns at Ben Bullen and metamorphic rocks around Albury. She took a D.Sc. from the University of Sydney in 1950 for her thesis 'On the question of interaction between primary granitic and primary basaltic magma under varying tectonic conditions'. Simultaneous to her teaching and research, Joplin was taking night classes to earn a B.A and a Diploma in Social Studies from the University of Sydney in 1950. After graduation, she left geology and the university for a time to join the NSW Society of Crippled Children as a social worker. In 1951 Joplin moved to Canberra and worked for the

Bureau of Mineral Resources Geoscience Australia is an agency of the Australian Government. It carries out geoscientific research. The agency is the government's technical adviser on all aspects of geoscience, and custodian of the geographic and geological data and knowl ...

for a year, before commencing a permanent research position as a Fellow in the recently established Department of Geophysics at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...

. Joplin was the first academic appointed by J. C. Jaegar who had been tasked with setting up the Department of Geophysics. This was her first permanent position, and the beginning of a long career at the Australian National University. She was appointed to Fellow of the governing body of University House, a residential college, in 1953, and served on the University Council between 1969 and 1975. Joplin also served as Divisional chair of the Canberra branch of the Geological Society of Australia in 1955, ran the Standing Committee on Collection and Recording of Chemical Analyses of Australian Rocks from 1964 to 1969, and was a foundation member of the Geological Society of Australia Specialist Group in Geochemistry, Mineralogy and Petrology. Joplin's principal works were three critical compilations of analytical data on Australian rocks, commenced during her short time with the Bureau of Mineral Resources and published in their ''Bulletin'' series, plus two petrology monographs and a book for high school readers. ''A Petrology of Australian Igneous Rocks'' (1964; 2nd Ed. 1968; 3rd Ed. 1971) was also published in New York and later ''A Petrology of Australian Metamorphic Rocks'' (Sydney, 1968) was published. ''Finding the Age of Rocks'' (Sydney, 1972) was written in collaboration with John Richards and Christine Joplin.

Awards

In 1963 Joplin was awarded the Clarke Medal by the Royal Society of New South Wales. In 1986 Joplin was awarded the W. R. Browne Medal by the

Geological Society of Australia The Geological Society of Australia (GSA) was established as a non-profit organisation in 1952 to promote, advance and support earth sciences in Australia. The founding Chairperson was Edwin Sherbon Hills. William Rowan Browne was a founder of th ...

'for distinguished contributions to the Geological Sciences of Australia'. Also in 1986, she became a Member of the General Division of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

(AM) 'for service to science, particularly in the field of geology'. Joplin died in Sydney in 1989. After her death, the Australian National University honoured her by giving her name to both the library at University House and a street in the Kambri precinct.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joplin, Germaine Anne 1903 births 1989 deaths Australian women geologists University of Sydney alumni Alumni of Newnham College, Cambridge 20th-century women scientists Members of the Order of Australia