Marie Morisawa

Marie Morisawa (November 2, 1919 – June 10, 1994) was an American geomorphologist. Morisawa was an integral part of the revolution in the field that began in the 1950s. She studied the geomorphology of rivers, active fault zones, plate tectonics, coastal geomorphology, geological hazards, and environmental geomorphology.

Early life and education Morisawa was born on November 2, 1919, and died in a single-car She earned a B.S. in mathematics from Hunter College in 1941, with a minor in chemistry. She then earned an M.A. in theology before turning to geology and obtaining an M.S. from University of Wyoming in 1952. She taught at Bryn Mawr College from 1955 to 1959. In 1960 she earned her Ph.D. from Columbia University. Arthur Newell Strahler was the advisor for her doctoral work on the quantitative geomorphology of Pennsylvania streams.

During her career in Binghamton, New York, Morisawa always kept the door open for her students to join lunches where discussions took place on the different factors of the state of geology as well as geomorphology. Marie loved to teach and engage with her students on geological discussions. She became "the first female chair" of the Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology Division of the Geological Society of America and helped found "the annual Binghamton Geomorphology Symposia." To recognize her research and educational achievements she received the Outstanding Educator Award from the Association of Women Geoscientists in 1992.

Research Marie Morisawa was part of the geomorphology revolution in the 1950s and 1960s. This work involves measuring both slopes and stream channels and understanding the relationship they have on larger scale impacts. Marie worked on talus slopes in the Rocky Mountains doing research involving geomorphology. Morisawa was also one of the founders of environmental geomorphology.

Geomorphic changes caused by the 1959 Hebgen Lake earthquake in Montana played a significant role in the start of her research. The earthquake remains provided an ideal outdoor laboratory for Morisawa's studies on the initiation of drainage systems. This work produced several abstracts including the 1964 article publication in the American Journal of Science.

In 1976 Morisawa presented her research on riverscape preferences at the first northeastern women's geoscientists conference at St. Lawrence University. Her research determined which characteristics of riverscapes are valued by certain demographics of the population through a ratings system that determined factors of beauty.

Morisawa furthered her research on watersheds and geomorphology, publishing the article Quantitative Geomorphology of Some Watersheds in the Appalachian Plateau. Her research included looking at the geologic structure of the watershed basins in the Appalachian Plateau, and how other interactions affect the streamflow and geomorphology of the basins. The stratigraphy or specifically sequence stratigraphy of basins include anticlines that have been eroded over time and the outer edges of the basin defined with steep scarps. The strata in these basins change over time and these changes can affect direction or velocity of streamflow.

Grants and awards Throughout the years, Morisawa received many grants, following the successful geomorphic and geological research she produced. Organizations such as: The National Science Foundation, The US Department of Commerce Sea Grant Program, The United States Geological Survey, Ford Foundation, and The Office of Water Resources provided the funding Morisawa required to continue her research. Rivers: Form and Process in 1971 Geomorphology Laboratory Manual in 1977