David S Berman
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| Photo courtesy of David S Berman. |
I can actually recall the single event that steered me into the field of vertebrate paleontology, a chance encounter with Peter P. Vaughn in the summer of 1962 at the University of California, Los Angeles. I had just received my BA in Zoology at UCLA and was desperately trying to find my way career-wise, when his offer of a part-time job as a preparator seemed like the perfect escape from the harsh world of reality. I was hired on the spot, despite having no idea how a fossil is prepared. I quickly became totally engrossed in the Early Permian research projects handed me, as well as gaining Peter's enthusiastic approval of my developing preparation skills. A year hadn't passed before Peter, believing that he recognized in me a bent for paleontology, asked me if I had "ever considered a career in VP, and would I be interested in being his student?" My answer to the first question was no, whereas an apprehensive yes was my response to the second question. This was the auspicious beginning of my career in VP, and managing to barely survive the rigors of graduate studies, I received a MA in 1965 and then a PhD in 1969, with my thesis test being a vertebrate assemblage from the middle of the Lower Permian, terrestrial type section of Texas.
Infected with Permian fever, I was hired as a curator by the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in 1970, where you can still find me today. It wasn't long before I realized how fortunate I was to be at the CMNH, which has allowed me a boundless range of academic freedom to pursue not only my primary interest, all varieties of Permo-Pennsylvanian vertebrates, but also access to a collection storehouse containing untapped research projects that frequently lured me into new and unfamiliar territories, most especially that of dinosaurs. 1992 marked a fortuitous opportunity to expand my field research to a global scale in a collaborative study with Dr. Thomas Martens of the Museum der Natur Gotha, Germany, who had discovered Early Permian vertebrate skeletal remains at the Bromacker locality in central Germany, which for over a century has been well known strictly for its exquisite vertebrate trackways. With the help of many colleagues, an uninterrupted series of 13 summer field seasons at the Bromacker from 1993 to the present has elevated its stature to a level we unabashedly proclaim makes it the most important Early Permian terrestrial locality ever discovered in Europe, not only in far surpassing all others of comparable age in Europe in the quantity, quality, and diversity of specimens yielded, but also in comprising taxa that occur otherwise only in the U.S. The successes of the Bromacker project and those of my other forays into the late Paleozoic and infrequent diversions into the Mesozoic and Tertiary, invariably reflect vital collaborative support and encouragement of numerous colleagues. Those who I owe the greatest gratitude in enriching my career over the long haul have been Mary Dawson, David Eberth, Amy Henrici, Betty Hill, Jack McIntosh, the late E. C. Olson, Robert Reisz, and Stuart Sumida. But most of all, I will always be especially indebted to Peter P. Vaughn for not only his patient guidance as instructor and mentor, but also instilling in me that there is no richer experience in paleontology than the excitement and satisfaction that comes from discoveries made in the field and lab. Having never sought celebrity status, I am not only deeply flattered and honored as a recipient of the highly prestigious award of Honorary Member of the SVP, but also overwhelmed by the nomination campaign effort that must have been made by colleagues and friends for me to receive this truly unexpected distinction.
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| Photo courtesy of Everett Lindsay. |
I am very honored to receive this recognition from the SVP. When I read the list of Honorary Members I am delighted to see names of many of my role models, mentors, and friends: it is a prestigious group, and I cherish the opportunity to join this distinguished group. I only hope this doesn't mean that I have to act dignified now.
My first SVP meeting was 39 years ago, at UC Berkeley, where I was an eager and inexperienced graduate student. That was before PowerPoint so the graduate students got to run slide projectors and mess up the sequence of slides for distinguished speakers. I regret that graduate students no longer have this opportunity, but hope that they will find some other means to disrupt our hallowed proceedings. Let me take this opportunity to formally apologize to all of the speakers (and students) that I may have abused over the years, and I hope that humility and candor will always be hallmarks of SVP meetings.
I started my academic career as an athlete and am eternally grateful to a former football coach, who was also my freshman biology professor, when he pointed out to me that I had more talent in the classroom than on the football field. I changed my major to biology, and after graduation thought that I wanted to become a mammalogist. Again, I am grateful to my mammalogy professor, Herb Wright, who explained to me that the questions I was asking (How are cats related to dogs? How are deer related to cows?) were more appropriate for vertebrate paleontology than mammalogy. Several years later I was teaching science at Yuba City Union High School in northern California when Sputnik was launched, igniting the drive to upgrade (and broaden support for) our educational system. I joined the band wagon and with financial help from the NSF obtained an excellent background in geology (and Masters degree) at Cornell University before applying for admission to graduate school at UC Berkeley at the ripe old age of 32. I was fortunate to have excellent instructors and mentors at UC Berkeley, who were doing first-class research.
My research has had two main themes, small mammals and Cenozoic chronology. I attribute my interest in small mammals to John White, who in 1963 co-taught (with Dave Webb) Stirton's mammalian taxonomy class at Berkeley. John pointed out early on that you could collect a small mammal skeleton in little more than an hour and carry the specimen to the lab in your pocket whereas it might take several years to collect a dinosaur skeleton. I attribute my interest in Cenozoic chronology to Don Savage. The classic Evernden et al. paper (with Savage the second author) was published during my first year at Berkeley and I felt very privileged to work in the shadow of that esteemed friend and mentor. One aspect of that Evernden et al. paper was the report of reversed magnetic polarity in basalts from Hawaii. I found that very difficult to believe until I met Noye Johnson and Neil Opdyke in 1970 who made a believer of me and culminated in a long and productive collaboration and friendship. This collaboration took us to Pakistan where we joined forces with David Pilbeam and his students for many more years of productive collaboration.
In 1967 I took the role teaching vertebrate paleontology at the University of Arizona, following John Lance who had been a close associate and friend of Don Savage. When I came to Arizona I was blessed with the friendship and support of three esteemed colleagues who, over the years, became mentors to my students. These now-deceased colleagues (George Simpson, John White, and Charles Repenning) contributed significantly to the progress of all my students; I didn't always agree with their counsel, but I appreciated it, and we all gained from it. Eight students completed their doctorate and 14 students completed their masters thesis in vertebrate paleontology at the University of Arizona under my guidance and direction. Most of these students have continued in vertebrate paleontology and I am very proud of their progress and achievements. We formed a loosely organized social club when they were students, calling ourselves the Red Fire Balls, and we still get together to rub antennae and tell lies. We shared many exciting and memorable experiences, too many to mention. I retired from the University of Arizona in 1996.
Over the last four decades I have enjoyed seeing many new concepts and advances in our discipline. I hope that the next four decades will by marked by many more changes and advances; moreover, I sincerely hope that being a participant in those developments will be as much fun as it has been for the last four decades.