Kornprobst, Jacques 1937-

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Kornprobst, Jacques 1937-

PERSONAL:

Born 1937, in Strasbourg, France. Education: Sorbonne, University of Paris, graduate.

ADDRESSES:

Office—1 Laboratoire de Geologie, CNRS, UMR 6524, 5 rue Kessler, 63038 Clermont-Ferrand Cedex, France. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Author. Sorbonne, University of Paris, professor until 1972. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Clermont-Ferrand, France, professor emeritus and honorary director of geology. Vulcania (volcanological park), Clermont-Ferrand, chairman of scientific committee.

MEMBER:

French Society of Mineralogy and Crstallography (former chairman), Geological Society of France (former chairman).

AWARDS, HONORS:

Awarded Distinguished Cross, French Legion of Honor, 1999.

WRITINGS:

Métamorphisme et roches métamorphorphiques, Dunod (Paris, France), 1981, translated as Metamorphic Rocks and Their Geodynamic Significance: A Petrological Handbook, Kluwer Academic (Boston, MA), 2002.

(Editor) Kimberlites and Related Rocks: Proceedings of the Third International Kimberlite Conference, Elsevier (New York, NY), 1984.

(With Christine Laverne) Living Mountains: How and Why Volcanoes Erupt, Mountain Press Publishing (Missoula, MT), 2006.

Author of numerous scientific papers.

SIDELIGHTS:

French vulcanologist Jacques Kornprobst worked for many years as a professor of geology at France's leading universities. Now, in addition to being professor emeritus of geology at the prestigious Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, he is also chairman of the scientific committee of Vulcania, a volcanological park near Clermont-Ferrand, France. As a researcher and academic, Kornprobst has published numerous scientific papers on the science of volcanos. He also shares his expertise with younger readers in Living Mountains: How and Why Volcanoes Erupt, a book written with Christine Laverne that introduces the fascinating study of volcanoes around the world. Enhanced with a number of vividly colored watercolor illustrations, Living Mountains focuses on the variety of elements that contribute to a volcanic eruption, such as changes in terrain due to new geological formations, crystallization, and the viscosity of lava, among other factors. The coauthors' text includes intriguing examples of volcano lore, such as the history of Santorini, a large volcanic crater in Greece that is currently collapsing. Starting at Earth's surface and descending deep into its core, the discussion in Living Mountains is factual and thorough without becoming too technical. Reviewing the book for Kliatt, Mary Ellen Snodgrass praised Kornprobst and Laverne's work as "an attractive introduction to volcanology," and a California Bookwatch reviewer credited the coauthors for their "coverage of the latest volcanology findings."