Marcia Bjornerud

Marcia Bjornerud is Professor of Geosciences and Environmental Studies at Lawrence University in Wisconsin.  Her research focuses on the physics of earthquakes and mountain building, and she combines field-based studies of bedrock geology with quantitative models of rock mechanics. She has done research in high arctic Norway (Svalbard) and Canada (Ellesmere Island) as well as mainland Norway, Italy, New Zealand, and the Lake Superior region.  A contributing writer to The New Yorker, Wired, the Wall Street Journal and the Los Angeles Times, she is also the author of several books for popular audiences: Reading the Rocks, Timefulness, Geopedia and Turning to Stone: Discovering the Subtle Wisdom of Rocks, which received the 2025 John Burroughs Medal for natural history writing. 

Language spoken: English

Photo credit: Danny Damiani