Pilkey, Orrin H. 1934-

PERSONAL: Born September 19, 1934, in New York, NY; son of Orrin H., Sr., and Elizabeth Pilkey; married Sharlene Greenaa (a researcher), December 31, 1956; children: Charles, Linda, Diane, Keith, Kerry. Education: Washington State University, B.S., 1957; Montana State University, M.S., 1959; Florida State University, Ph.D., 1962.

ADDRESSES: Home—Hillsborough, NC. Office—Division of Earth and Ocean Sciences, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Box 90228, Durham, NC 27708. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Geologist, educator, and writer. University of Georgia, Athens, research associate at Marine Laboratory and assistant professor of geology, 1962-65; Duke University, Durham, NC, assistant professor, 1965-67, associate professor, 1967-75, professor, 1975-83, James B. Duke Professor of Geology, then professor emeritus of earth sciences, 1983—. University of Puerto Rico—Mayaguez, visiting professor, 1972-73. U.S. Geological Survey, research geologist, 1975-76. Coproducer of The Beaches Are Moving, a television documentary special broadcast by Public Broadcasting Service, 1990. Military service: U.S. Army; became captain.

MEMBER: International Association of Sedimentologists, American Association of Petroleum Geologists, American Association for the Advancement of Science (fellow), Association of Earth Science Editors, Society for Sedimentary Geology, Geological Society of America, North Carolina Academy of Science (president, 1982), Society of Economic Paleontologists and Minerologists (president, 1985-86), American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Coastal Alliance (member of board of directors, 1985), American Geological Institute, National Association of Geology Teachers, Sigma Xi, Explorers Club.

AWARDS, HONORS: Francis Shepard medal, 1987, for excellence in marine geology; named conservation educator of the year, North Carolina Wildlife Federation, 1991; George Cohee Public Service Award, American Association of Petroleum Geologists, 1992; James H. Shea Award, National Association of Geology Teachers, 1993; award for outstanding contributions to public understanding of geology, American Geological Institute, 1993; Public Service Award, Geological Society of America, 2000.

WRITINGS:

(With D.J.P. Swift and D.B. Duane) Shelf Sediment Transport, Process and Pattern, Dowden, Hutchinson & Ross (Stroudsburg, PA), 1972.

(With father, Orrin H. Pilkey, Sr., and Robb Turner) How to Live with an Island, North Carolina Science and Technology Research Center (Research Triangle Park, NC), 1975.

(With Orrin H. Pilkey, Sr., and William J. Neal) From Currituck to Calabash, North Carolina Science and Technology Research Center (Research Triangle Park, NC), 1978.

(With W. Kaufman) The Beaches Are Moving: The Drowning of America’s Shoreline, Doubleday (New York, NY), 1979, reprinted with a new epilogue, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1983.

(Editor, with Dag Nummedal and James D. Howard) Sea-level Fluctuation and Coastal Evolution: Based on a Symposium in Honor of William Armstrong Price, The Society (Tulsa, OK), 1987.

(Coauthor) Coastal Land Loss, American Geophysical Union (Washington, DC), 1989.

(With Katherine L. Dixon) The Corps and the Shore, Island Press (Washington, DC), 1996.

A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, illustrated by Mary Edna Fraser, Columbia University Press (New York, NY), 2003.

(With Tracy Monegan Rice and William J. Neal) How to Read a North Carolina Beach: Bubble Holes, Barking Sands, and Rippled Runnels, University of North Carolina Press (Chapel Hill, NC), 2004.

(With William J. Neal and Joseph T. Kelley) Atlantic Coast Beaches: A Guide to Ripples, Dunes, and Other Natural Features of the Seashore, Mountain Press (Missoula, MT), 2007.

(With daughter, Linda Pilkey-Jarvis) Useless Arithmetic: Why Environmental Scientists Can’t Predict the Future, Columbia University Press (New York, NY), 2007.

Contributor of several hundred articles to scholarly journals and other magazines. Editor, Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, 1978-83; associate editor, Marine Geology, Journal of Coastal Research, and Geology.

“LIVING WITH THE SHORE” SERIES

(With R. Morton and William J. Neal) Living with the Texas Shore, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1983.

(With Sharma Dinesh, H. Wanless, L.J. Doyle, and others) Living with the East Florida Shore, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1984.

(With William J. Neal and C. Blakeney) Living with the South Carolina Shore, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1984.

(With L.J. Doyle and others) Living with the West Florida Shore, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1984.

(With J.R. Kelley, A.R. Kelley, and A.A. Clark) Living with the Louisiana Shore, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1984.

(With L.R. McCormick, William J. Neal, and Orrin H. Pilkey, Sr.) Living with Long Island’s South Shore, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1984.

(With W.F. Canis, William J. Neal, and Orrin H. Pilkey, Sr.) Living with the Mississippi-Alabama Shore, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1985.

(With K.F. Nordstrom and others) Living with the New Jersey Shore, Duke University Press (Durham, NC) 1986.

(With C. Carter and others) Living with the Lake Erie Shore, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1987.

(With J.T. Kelley and A.R. Kelley) Living with the Coast of Maine, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1989.

(With Larry G. Ward, Peter S. Rosen, William J. Neal, and others) Living with Chesapeake Bay and Virginia’s Ocean Shore, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1989.

(Coauthor) Living by the Rules of the Sea, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1996.

(Coauthor) Living with the Coast of Alaska, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1997.

(Coauthor) The North Carolina Shore and Its Barrier Islands: Restless Ribbons of Sand, Duke University Press (Durham, NC), 1998.

Also editor (with William J. Neal) of Living with the California Coast, Living with the Connecticut Coast, Living with the Georgia Shore, and Living with Puget Sound and Georgia Straight.

SIDELIGHTS: Orrin H. Pilkey once told CA: “My primary motivation is the need for public education concerning the interaction of man and nature at the shoreline.”

Pilkey is a geologist and earth scientist whose primary interest is in basic and applied coastal geology, focusing primarily on barrier island coasts. He also has expertise in coastal zone management. He has written, contributed to, and edited numerous papers and books on these topics. For example, in The Corps and the Shore Pilkey and coauthor Katherine L. Dixon examine how the future of the U.S. shoreline rests in the hands of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. For the authors, this is not a good situation, and they argue that the coastal scientists should be the ones overseeing America’s shorelines, perhaps through a natural resource agency. “This book is an eloquent call for public debate about improving coastal management,” wrote a Publishers Weekly contributor.

A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands is part coffee-table book and part popular science book as it examines the barrier islands that protect much of the world’s coastlines from the sea. From North Carolina’s Outer Banks to the Netherlands and Vietnam, the author examines these barrier islands in detail. The book is organized by island types, with each section including the islands’ history and lore as well as their likely ecological future. The book also includes highly praised artistic renderings of the islands by artist Mary Edna Fraser. In addition, aerial and satellite photographs illustrate the barriers’ various geological peculiarities. Loren Porcaro, writing in the New Yorker, called the book a “careful study of the ‘restless ribbons of sand.’” Susan E. Brazer noted in the Library Journal that the book gives “the reader a clear idea of why these fragile ecosystems deserve … attention.”

Pilkey is coauthor with William J. Neal and Joseph T. Kelley of Atlantic Coast Beaches: A Guide to Ripples, Dunes, and Other Natural Features of the Seashore. The book, which includes black and white photographs, delves into the intricacies of the Atlantic Coast beaches and beach life, from rippling sands to miniature organisms such as microscopic nematodes. The authors explore the numerous and wide-ranging features of these beaches, which range from Maine to Florida. For example, they explain how miniature sand volcanoes form and how barrier islands migrate. They also discuss how these beaches are changing dramatically due to rising ocean waters, and they explore the development of conservation efforts to save the beaches. “General readers receive a strong blend of geology and natural history,” wrote a contributor to Internet Bookwatch.

Pilkey collaborated with his daughter Linda Pilkey-Jarvis, also a geologist, to write Useless Arithmetic: Why Environmental Scientists Can’t Predict the Future. In the book, the authors assail the overreliance on mathematical models to forecast in detail the behaviors of complex natural processes, from beach erosion to the effects of nuclear waste storage. In the author’s opinion, this reliance has resulted in real damage to society in numerous ways, especially through the formation of faulty or incomplete environmental policies. For example, they point to such forecasting as resulting in the collapse of the prime North American fishery industry and giving coastal communities overly optimistic expectations concerning certain beach conservation projects. Overall, the authors discuss mathematical modeling in relation to numerous issues, including invasive species, global warming and rising sea levels, and groundwater contamination.

Ian D. Gordon, writing in the Library Journal, commented that the best parts of the book focus on “the history and development of environmental issues central to understanding the reliability, appropriateness, and assumptions behind modeling behavior.” A contributor to the Earth Island Journal noted that the authors “are no Luddites: They concede that modeling has its place, as long as each model’s assumptions, and limitations, are stated up front,” adding: “Their readily accessible book should be read by any activist who’s ever had to face off against the opposition’s engineers.” Another reviewer commented that the book is also especially important for scientists with a vested interest in computer modeling. Writing in Issues in Science and Technology, Stephen R. Carpenter noted: “The book’s sharp critique might turn away some engineers and scientists who appreciate the value of computer modeling. That would be unfortunate, because the argument merits careful consideration.”

Pilkey later told CA: “I am driven by concern about the future of our beaches and the fact that they are being overdeveloped in a time of rapidly rising sea level.

“When Hurricane Hugo came by in 1989 and hit the Carolina Coast I realized for the first time that storms are a double whammy. First they destroy a bunch of buildings, and second the buildings are replaced by larger, more costly buildings so the next storm will do even more damage. In the middle of all this comes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to respond to the storms in the most inflexible manner, all the while predicting (always inaccurately) what their projects (such as seawalls and artificial beaches) will do to the beach and how long they will last. Needless to say, writing in this context is controversial, and if my reviews are bimodal (both positive and negative) I think I’ve succeeded.

“Some of my recent books, however, have been of a less controversial sort. My two books on beach features discuss what one can see on a beach and what it all means. Nothing original, and in fact any student with two courses in geology could have written them. Beaches can tell us so much about themselves if we just observe them (and get beyond the birds and seashells!). Collaboration with batik artist Mary Edna Fraser to write the book on the world’s barrier islands was a particularly exciting and unique experience. It required each of us to understand the mentality of the other’s discipline and to bend accordingly.

“I hope that all of my writings will lead to a greater appreciation of how precious and threatened our beaches are. They are such a limited resource. I try to promote the feeling that beaches are sacred and must be preserved in their natural state at all costs. Working against this is a line of costly buildings next to beaches owned by wealthy and influential people. I think beaches are more important than those buildings.

“I write in a disorganized, somewhat undisciplined fashion on planes, early in the morning, late at night, in hotel rooms and never at my office where there are phones and friends.”

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

American Scientist, March 1, 2007, Carl Wunsch, “Misuse of Models,” review of Useless Arithmetic: Why Environmental Scientists Can’t Predict the Future, p. 171.

California Bookwatch, April, 2007, review of Useless Arithmetic.

Choice, September, 1998, P.R. Pinet, review of Living with the Coast of Alaska, p. 161; December, 2003, P.R. Pinet, review of A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, p. 739; August, 2007, N.W. Hinman, review of Useless Arithmetic, p. 2125.

Chronicle of Higher Education, October 6, 1993, Kim A. McDonald, “A Geology Professor’s Fervent Battle with Coastal Developers and Residents,” p. 8.

Earth Island Journal, spring, 2007, review of Useless Arithmetic.

Environment, May, 1980, John H. Perkins, review of The Beaches Are Moving: The Drowning of America’s Shoreline, p. 5.

50 Plus, July, 1988, Henry Leifermann, “Saving the Shoreline: Dr. Pilkey Makes Waves,” p. 38.

Geology, June, 1989, David W. Valasek, review of Sealevel Fluctuation and Coastal Evolution: Based on a Symposium in Honor of William Armstrong Price, p. 580.

Geotimes, December, 2003, review of A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, p. 40; August, 2007, review of Atlantic Coast Beaches: A Guide to Ripples, Dunes, and Other Natural Features of the Seashore, p. 45.

Internet Bookwatch, August, 2007, review of Atlantic Coast Beaches.

Issues in Science and Technology, summer, 2007, Stephen R. Carpenter, “No Model for Policymaking,” review of Useless Arithmetic, p. 82.

Library Journal, July, 2003, Susan E. Brazer, review of A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, p. 118; July, 2003, Susan E. Brazer, review of A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, p. 118; December 1, 2006, Ian D. Gordon, review of Useless Arithmetic, p. 161.

Mathematics Magazine, October, 2007, Paul J. Campbell, review of Useless Arithmetic, p. 316.

Natural History, December, 2003, review of A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, p. 59.

New Scientist, August 3, 1996, Paul D. Komar, review of The Corps and the Shore, p. 41; July 26, 2003, Jeff Hecht, “Built on Sand,” p. 48.

New Yorker, August 4, 2003, Lauren Porcaro, “Great Barriers,” p. 11.

New York Times, December 1, 1980, Seth S. King, “Engineers and Naturalists Fight over Work on Inlet,” p. 16.

Oceans, July-August, 1981, Miner K. Brotherton, review of The Beaches Are Moving, p. 60; November-December, 1984, Joel W. Hedgpeth, review of Living with the South Carolina Shore, p. 59.

Popular Science, October, 1983, Michael Neubarth, “A House on the Beach? What Beach?,” p. 92.

Publishers Weekly, April 29, 1996, review of The Corps and the Shore, p. 60.

Quarterly Review of Biology, December, 2007, Erik M. Conway, review of Useless Arithmetic, p. 438.

Reference & Research Book News, August, 2003, review of A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, p. 73.

Science, August 1, 2003, review of A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, p. 600; April 13, 2007, M. Bruce Beck, “How Best to Look Forward?,” review of Useless Arithmetic, p. 202.

Science Books & Films, November, 2003, review of A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, p. 257.

SciTech Book News, February, 1990, review of Coastal Land Loss, p. 2.

Sierra Club Bulletin, January-February, 1980, Eric Salzman, review of The Beaches Are Moving, p. 58.

Smithsonian, October, 1992, Steve Kemper, “This Beach Boy Sings a Song Developers Don’t Want to Hear,” p. 72.

Times Higher Education Supplement, July 9, 2004, Andrew Goudie, “It’s Not All Fun and Sun on Threatened Coastal Isles,” review of A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, p. 30.

Underwater Naturalist, annual, 2003, review of A Celebration of the World’s Great Barrier Islands, 47.

Whole Earth, winter, 1997, review of Living by the Rules of the Sea, p. 98.

ONLINE

Duke Magazine,http://www.dukemagazine.duke.edu/ (February 20, 2008), Orrin Pilkey, “Eye of the Storm.”

Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences Web site,http://www.nicholas.duke.edu/ (February 20, 2008), faculty profile of author.

Grist,http://www.grist.org/ (September 29, 2006), “Orrin Relations.”