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NTU Distinguished Chair Professor Bor-Ming Jahn awarded Geological Society of Japan 2014 International Prize

National Taiwan University Alumni and Distinguished Chair Professor Bor-Ming Jahn (江博明) was awarded the 2014 International Award of the Geological Society of Japan (JGS) for his decades of contribution to the field of geological research. JGS was established in 1893 and has since been dedicated to the advancement of geological research. The annual International Prize is awarded to members or non-members of the Society who have made innovative contributions to the development of geology in Japan or cooperative efforts with Japanese geologists.

Professor Jhan’s recommendation letter by the Geological Society of Japan’s is cited as below:

Professor Bor-ming Jahn (Distinguished Chair Professor, National Taiwan University, Taiwan) is known for his groundbreaking and innovative work on the evolution of continental crust using the principles and techniques of isotope geochemistry and geochronology. He is a recognized world leader in those research fields and has made outstanding contributions to the geoscience community in Japan through research exchange, technical training and academic cooperation.

Prof. Jahn graduated from National Taiwan University in 1963, and received a master's degree at Brown University in 1967 which was followed by a Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis in 1972. His early work at NASA (1972–1974) and the Lunar Science Institute (1974–1976) focused on the geochemistry of Archean komatiites and granitoids and the development of analytical techniques. After his successful career as a professor in France at the Université de Rennes 1e (1976–2003), he returned to Taiwan, first as Chair Professor at National Taiwan University (2003-2004) and then was chosen as the Director of the Institute of Earth Sciences (IES), Academia Sinica (2004-2010). After his retirement from Academia Sinica, he was re-hired as “Distinguished Chair Professor” at National Taiwan University (2010-present). Throughout his long career, he has made numerous, cooperative academic exchanges with Japanese researchers. He has recruited young Japanese researchers as post-doctoral fellows of IES, and helped to integrate them into the international scientific community. He maintains a vigorous research program and provides a nurturing environment for young scientists. Prof. Jahn has increased the profile of Asian geology as Chief Editor of Journal of Asian Earth Sciences which provides a world-class venue for Asia-based researchers to publish their work. Additionally, he is an associate editor or editorial board member of seven Science Citation Index (SCI) journals including "Island Arc".

Prof. Jahn has published over 240 scientific papers and 15 special volumes; his publications have been widely cited as he was ranked among the most highly-cited authors (> 10,000 citation) in the Thompson-Reuters Web of Science 2013. He is one of the earliest researchers that applied modern geochemical and isotope techniques to the study of continental evolution and was the first to identify the oldest rocks (ca. 3.8 Ga) in North China Carton. His studies of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt established that a significant amount of juvenile crust within Eastern and Central Asia developed during the Phanerozoic. His studies on Asian granitoids have extended into the Japanese Islands as well. Prof. Jahn's contributions also include rare-earth element typology of komatiites and geochemical and isotope studies of Archean granitoids and UHP eclogites. The term "TTG" (tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite suite) was a derivative of his work in Western Australia.

Prof. Jahn's scholarly accomplishments have received a number of honors. He was elected Fellow in four distinguished academic societies (Geological Society of America, Mineralogical Society of America, Geochemical Society, and European Association of Geochemistry), honorary professorships in nine research institutions in China, Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Palmes Académiques (Knight of the Order of Academic Palms, France) in 2008, and Academician of Academia Sinica in 2012. He was also awarded Prix Prestwich 2013 from the Société Géologique de France.

Based on his scientific achievements and important contributions to the Japanese geological community, we recommend Prof. Bor-ming Jahn for the 2014 International Award of the Geological Society of Japan.

(Read original at Department of Geosciences website HERE)

Chinese version