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K-State Today

March 7, 2016

International expert Julian Pearce to present seminar in geology

Submitted by Pamela Kempton

International expert on subduction zone magmatism, Julian Pearce, will present a seminar on "Subduction through Time: The Evidence from the Volcanic Record Volcanoes, Granites and Continent Collisions" at 4 p.m. Monday, March 7, in 213 Thompson Hall.

Pearce is professor emeritus at the University of Cardiff, United Kingdom. His early work involved major field projects on ophiolites — in Cyprus and Oman — and on subduction and collision-related lavas and plutons, in the Chilean Andes and Tibet. Subsequently, he worked more in marine geology, helping to lead research cruises to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the back arc basins of Tonga, Japan; the Scotia Sea and was co-chief scientist on two ocean drilling expeditions to the Izu-Bonin-Mariana forearc.

His principal aim within these projects has been to integrate field observations with geochemistry and computer modeling. This resulted in a number of highly cited papers on the geochemical fingerprinting of the tectonic settings of formation of igneous rocks.

In this talk, Pearce will demonstrate how geochemical fingerprinting can be used to recognize subduction-related lavas in the geological record and so address the controversial questions of when subduction — and hence plate tectonics — first started on Earth and how it subsequently evolved.