- George Demas
Infobox_Scientist
name = George P. Demas
caption = George P. Demas in the field.
birth_date = birth date|1958|4|28|df=y
death_date = death date and age|1999|12|23|1958|4|28|df=y
death_place = Snow Hill,Maryland
residence = U.S.
nationality = American
field =Pedology (soil study)
work_institution = USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
alma_mater = University of Maryland
known_for = Subaqueous Soils in the USAGeorge Demas (
28 April 1958 -23 December 1999 ) was a pedologist whose pioneering studies ofsubaqueous soil contributed to the understanding of soil formation and the expansion of the concept of soil.USDA soil taxonomy was revised as a result.Born in the U.S., he earned a
B.S. inSoil Science from theUniversity of Maryland, College Park in 1980 followed by anM.S. in soil genesis in 1982. He earned aPh.D. from the University of Maryland in 1998. His thesis on subaqueous soils earned two awardsUSDA - Secretary’s Honor Award for Scientific Research, andSSSA - The [http://www.soils.wisc.edu/soils/people/emeritus/truog/truog.htm Emil Truog Award] for outstanding contribution to Soil Science.George Demas worked as a soil surveyor for the
Natural Resources Conservation Service in the states ofMaryland andNew Jersey from 1982 to 1994. During this time he determined that submerged sediments function in the landscape sufficiently similar tosoil s to be indistinguishable. Soil Survey Horizons published his concept in 1993. He returned to the University of Maryland and researched his ideas from 1994 to 1998. He resumed his duties with USDA-NRCS and continued working until his death in 1999 after contractingpneumonia .References
* [http://www.sawgal.umd.edu/MAPSS/demas.htm George Demas Elected as Honorary Member of MAPSS]
Published works
*Demas, G. P. 1993. Submerged soils: a new frontier in soil survey. Soil Survey Horizons 34: 44-46.
*Demas, G. P., M. C. Rabenhorst, and J. C. Stevenson. 1996. Subaqueous Soils: A pedological approach to the study of shallow water habitats. Estuaries 19: 229-237.
*Demas, G. P., and M. C. Rabenhorst. 1998. Subaqueous soils: a resource inventory protocol. Proceedings of the 16th World Congress on Soil Science, Montpellier, France. August 20-26, 1998. Sym #17, on CD.
*Demas, G. P., and M. C. Rabenhorst. 1999. Subaqueous soils: pedogenesis in a submersed environment. Soil Sci. Soc. Am J. 63: 1250-1257.
*Demas, G. P., and M. C. Rabenhorst. 2001. Factors of Subaqueous Soil Formation: a System of Quantitative Pedology for Submersed Environments. Geoderma. 102:189-204Persondata
NAME= Demas, George
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Pedologist
DATE OF BIRTH= birth date|1958|4|28
PLACE OF BIRTH= U.S.
DATE OF DEATH= death date|1999|12|23
PLACE OF DEATH=Snow Hill,Maryland
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