Martin Bott facts for kids

Martin Harold Phillips Bott (born July 12, 1926 – died October 20, 2018) was a famous British geologist. He was a professor at the University of Durham in England. Geologists study the Earth, including its rocks, mountains, and how it changes over time.

Education and Early Life

Martin Bott went to school at Clayesmore School in Dorset, England. Later, he studied at Magdalene College, Cambridge, which is part of Cambridge University. There, he earned his Master of Arts degree and a PhD. A PhD is a very high university degree, showing deep knowledge in a subject.

Martin Bott's Work at Durham University

Martin Bott spent his entire career teaching and researching at the University of Durham. He started there in 1954 as a research fellow. In 1956, he became a lecturer in Geophysics. Geophysics is the study of the Earth using physics, like looking at its magnetic field or gravity.

He was promoted to a higher academic rank, called a Reader, in 1963. By 1966, he became a full Professor of Geophysics. He held this important position until he retired in 1988. He only took one break in 1970 to work for a year in the United States at Columbia University.

Exploring the Earth's Secrets

Martin Bott's research focused on understanding the Earth's hidden structures.

Studying Earth's Forces

He first studied how magnetic and gravity changes could tell us about what's beneath the surface. He looked at areas in England, like Devon and Cornwall, and in the Alps mountains.

In the late 1950s, he started looking into how geological disturbances happen. These are things like earthquakes or how mountains form. He published papers about the structure of the Earth's crust. The crust is the outermost layer of our planet.

Using Computers for Geology

In the 1960s, Martin Bott was one of the first to use computers to solve geology problems. He continued to study the Earth's crust and did regional studies in England and Ireland.

In the early 1970s, he wrote a textbook called The Interior of the Earth. This book brought together all the known information about what the Earth looks like inside. Even after he retired, he kept doing research and writing many scientific papers and books. He studied places like the Faroe Islands, South Greenland, and the Lesser Antilles.

Awards and Special Recognitions

Martin Bott received many important awards for his work.

Fellow of the Royal Society

In 1976, he was chosen as a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS). This is a very high honor for scientists in the United Kingdom.

His nomination for this award mentioned his important discoveries:

• He investigated how changes in gravity relate to large rock formations called granites.
• He found ways to tell the difference between these granite formations and hidden sedimentary basins. Sedimentary basins are areas where layers of rock and sediment have built up.
• His work helped explain how igneous intrusions, which are molten rocks that push into the Earth's crust, are formed.
• He predicted that a hidden granite formation was under a place called Weardale, and later drilling proved he was right!
• He also explained how the Earth's crust moves and changes over time, especially in the upper mantle. The mantle is the layer of the Earth below the crust.
• He developed many computer methods to understand gravity and magnetic changes.
• His studies of the Earth's crust in northern England and the Cornubian peninsula helped us understand how the North Atlantic Ocean formed.

Wollaston Medal Winner

In 1992, he received the Wollaston Medal from the Geological Society of London. This is another very important award for geologists.

Personal Life

Martin Bott was a Vice-President of an organization called Christians in Science. He passed away on October 20, 2018, at the age of 92.