Lebenslauf

Lebenslauf

Geboren: August 13, 1964, Bad-Saarow, Brandenburg, Deutschland

Forschungsschwerpunkte

  • Computational Geophysics, especially Mantle and Lithosphere Dynamics
  • Parallel and High-Performance Computing (HPC), especially clustered computing
  • Data-assimilation and fluid dynamic inverse techniques for global geodynamic Earth models
  • Work at the interface of computational, theoretical and observational Geodynamics

Ausbildung

  • Abitur, 1984, Clausthals-Zellerfeld
  • Vordiplom Geologie, 1987, Eberhard-Karls Universität Tübingen
  • Vordiplom Physik, 1988, Eberhard-Karls Universität Tübingen
  • Ph.D. Geophysics, Fall 1996, University of California, Berkeley
    Thesis title: Global Mantle Convection Models
    Thesis advisor: Mark Richards

Beruflicher Werdegang

  • Research Assistant, 1986-88, Structural Geology
    Eberhard-Karls Universität Tübingen
  • Research Assistant, January 1989 - May 1989, Mining Geology
    Council for Mineral Technology (MINTEK), Johannesburg, South Africa
  • Graduate Research Assistant, 1990-1996, Geophysics
    Los Alamos National Laboratory and UC Berkeley
  • European Union post doctoral scholar, 1997-1998
    Invited to the Institut de Physique du Globe, Paris
  • Visiting Professor, June - July 1999
    Laboratoire des Sciences de la Terre, Ecole Normale Superieure de Lyon
  • Assistant Professor, 1998 - 2003
    Department of Geosciences, Princeton University
  • Professor and Chair of Geophysics, since 2003
    Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich

Preise

  • Fulbright Scholar, 1989-1990
  • Student Fellow "Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes", (top 0.1% German students)
    1985-1991
  • PhD Fellow "Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes", (top 0.1% German PhD students)
    1991-1996
  • Fellow of the University of California, Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics
    since 1996
  • Bernard Friedman award in Applied Mathematics
    Department of Mathematics, UC Berkeley, 1997
  • Computerworld Honors Program, Smithsonian Institution, 2001
  • LMU Research Professor for Geophysics (Bundesexzellenzinitiative) 
  • Member of the LMU Center of Advanced Studies since 2010

Mitgliedschaft in Akademien

  • Member of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences (BAdW)
  • Member of the Academia Europaea

Mitgliedschaft in Standesorganisationen

  • Member American Geophysical Union (AGU)
  • Member European Geophysciences Union (EGU)
  • Member German Geophysical Society (DGG)

Ausgewählte Service-Tätigkeiten

  • Reviewer for NSF, DFG, ERC and other funding agencies (since 1993)
  • Member National Center for Supercomputer Applications (NCSA) resource allocation committee (2000-2003)
  • External advisor of the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics (IGPP) (since 2001)
  • Member of the scientifc advisory board of the Geoforschungszentrum (GFZ) (2004-2007)
  • Associate and Guest Editor for various journals
  • Editorial Board Member – Proceedings of the Royal Society A (since 2018)
  • President EGU Geodynamics Division (2007-2009)
  • Coordinator of DFG Schwerpunktprogramm (SPP) 1375 'SAMPLE' on South Atlantic Margin Processes  (2008-2016)
  • ESA appointed lecturer in Geophysics to European Astronauts since 2010
  • Board of Trustees, Universitaet der Bundeswehr Muenchen (2016-2024)
  • Head, Commission of Geodesy and Glaciology, Bavarian Academy of Sciences (BAdW)
    charged with directing geophysical and geodetic research of the BAdW
  • Resource Allocation Board Member, Leibniz Rechenzentrum (LRZ) Munich
    German National Supercomputing Center (Tier-1 Supercomputer)
  • Permanent Secretary (speaker for the president of the BAdW) of the LRZ Advisory Board

Outreach

  • Scientific Advisor for American Museum of Natural History (New York)
    Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth ‘Deep Earth’ scientific display, charged with
    development of video and explanation material for Deep Earth Dynamics (2000-current)
  • TV and radio presentations (e.g., BR, Arte, ZDF, RTL)
  • Frequent presentations to general audiences (e.g., Ars Electronica Linz) and decision makers (e.g., federal and state ministers) on HPC simulations applied to deep Earth dynamics