Research

Research Priorities: Geology, paleoclimatology, taxonomy, biostratigraphy, paleoceanography

William Hay was a US-American geologist who worked in the fields of paleoclimatology, paleoceanography, taxonomy and the biostratigraphy of calcareous nannofossils and sediment mass balance. His research was primarily focused on climate change from prehistoric times to the present.

William Hay participated in multiple deep sea drilling projects for his research. He gained his insights on millions of years of climate change from the results of these projects. One of his central focuses was the research of climate changes on Earth. William Hay believed that humankind has been unintentionally conducting a huge uncontrolled “experiment” with the climate for a long time, which is leading to undesirable changes. Hay’s studies explain many phenomena that have become even more significant in recent times. For example, he explored why weather was becoming more chaotic and why Earth was heating up faster than ever before.

In addition to many scientific essays, Hay also presented his insights to a wider public with his popular science book entitled “Experimenting on a Small Planet”. In this book he clearly illustrated the links between various disciplines of natural science in climate research. He also discussed theses regarding future conditions on Earth. One of his theories was that the environment would react in many surprising ways to accelerated climate change.

Career

• 2010 Visiting Professor, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
• 1999-2002 Professor, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, Kiel, Germany
• 1996 Visiting Professor, The Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research, Warnemünde, Germany as well as University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
• 1995 Visiting Professor, Department of Palaeontology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
• 1993 Visiting Professor, University Utrecht, Utrecht, Netherlands, and The Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research, Warnemünde, Germany
• 1982-1998 Professor, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, USA
• 1968-1981 Professor of Marine Geology and Geophysics, University of Miami, Miami, USA
• 1961-1973 Professor, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, USA
• Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
• 1960 Doctorate, Stanford University, Stanford, USA
• 1958 Master of Science in Geology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, USA
• 1955 Bachelor’s degree, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, USA
• Study visits to Ludwig-Maximilian University of Munich (LMU), Munich, Germany and University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

Functions

• 1979-1982 President, Joint Oceanographic Institutions (JOI), Washington D.C., USA

Honours and Memberships

• 2006 William H. Twenhofel Medal, Society for Sedimentary Geology (SEPM), Tulsa, USA
• 1991 Humboldt-Research Award, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Bonn, Germany
• since 1986 Member, German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, Germany
• 1981 Frances P. Shepard Medal for Marine Geology, SEPM, Tulsa, USA
• 1976 Leopold von Buch Medal, German Geological Society – Geological Association (DGGV), Germany