National Academies Press: OpenBook

Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences (1991)

Chapter: APPENDIX B: Profiles of the Hydrologic Community, 1960 and 1988

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Suggested Citation:"APPENDIX B: Profiles of the Hydrologic Community, 1960 and 1988." National Research Council. 1991. Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1543.
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Page 322
Suggested Citation:"APPENDIX B: Profiles of the Hydrologic Community, 1960 and 1988." National Research Council. 1991. Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1543.
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Page 323
Suggested Citation:"APPENDIX B: Profiles of the Hydrologic Community, 1960 and 1988." National Research Council. 1991. Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1543.
×
Page 324
Suggested Citation:"APPENDIX B: Profiles of the Hydrologic Community, 1960 and 1988." National Research Council. 1991. Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1543.
×
Page 325
Suggested Citation:"APPENDIX B: Profiles of the Hydrologic Community, 1960 and 1988." National Research Council. 1991. Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1543.
×
Page 326
Suggested Citation:"APPENDIX B: Profiles of the Hydrologic Community, 1960 and 1988." National Research Council. 1991. Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1543.
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Page 327

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Profiles of the Hydrologic Community, 1960 and 1988 This appendix reveals a changing profile of the hydrologic com- munity by contrasting data obtained in a recent survey as part of this study with information published nearly three decades ago. The 1960 data, taken from "Scientific Hydrology" (Federal Council for Science and Technology, 1962), were obtained from the National Register of Scientific Personnel, which was discontinued in 1971. The Register in 1960 included 811 individuals who called themselves hydrologists. The data for 1988 were obtained by surveying the approximately 3,000 members of the American Geophysical Union's Hydrology Sec- tion. A survey form (Figure B.1, which follows Table B.4) was sent to each member; about 2,200 individuals responded. Of these respondents about 50 did not follow instructions to the extent that their returns were rendered unusable. Table B.1 compares personal data on hydrologists; Table B.2, their educational backgrounds; Table B.3, employment of hydrologists; and Table B.4, their areas of specialization. Comment on Possible Bias The 1960 sample was presumably drawn from across the full spec- trum of hydrologists employed in science and technology at that time. The 1988 sample was drawn solely from the membership of a scientific society, the American Geophysical Union. A sampling bias is therefore possible that might lead to underrepresentation, in the 1988 survey, of hydrologists in He consulting engineering sector, of Hose with an engineering educational background, and of those with less than a doctoral degree. 322

APPENDIX B TABLE B.1 Personal Data on Hydrologists 323 Respondents 1960 (percent) Respondents 1988 All Male Female (percent) (number) (number) Gender Male N/A 89 Female N/A 11 Age distribution 20-24 2 <1 2 0 25-29 7 8 119 44 30-34 15 20 327 95 35-39 18 22 421 55 40-44 13 13 271 17 45-49 14 11 234 6 50-54 16 9 178 6 55-69 13 12 271 3 70 and over 2 4 99 2 TABLE B.2 Educational Backgrounds of Hydrologists Respondents 1988 All Male Female (percent) (number) (number) Respondents 1960 (percent) Level of education Less than a bachelor's degree 4 <1 6 1 Bachelor's degree 74 11 212 29 Master's degree 17 36 639 133 Professional degree N/A 1 26 0 Doctoral degree 5 51 1,039 65 Field of highest degree Agriculture N/A 1 25 0 Engineering 55 35 698 49 Environmental sciences N/A 5 73 21 Forestry N/A 2 36 1 Mathematics, physics, chemistry 6 4 73 7 Hydrology N/A 14 276 29 Geography N/A 3 55 12 Geology 28 28 529 82 Soil science N/A 3 67 4 Meteorology 6 N/A N/A N/A Other 5 5 90 23

324 TABLE B.3 Employment of Hydrologists APPENDIX B Respondents 1988 Surface Ground Respondents 1960 All Water Water (percent) (percent) (number) (number) Location of employment Educational institutions 6 27 277 240 State and local government 11 7 59 81 Industry, business, and self-employed 10 32 172 515 Federal government 65 30 289 276 Military 1 <1 2 3 Nonprofit organizations 1 1 8 22 Others 6 2 18 27 Work activity distribution Teaching and university research N/A 26 Other research N/A 21 Consulting, engineering and other applied hydrology N/A 40 Management, administration and regulation 28 13 Research, development, or design 30 N/A Teaching 4 N/A Production and inspection 5 N/] Other, including no report 33 N/,

APPENDIX B TABLE B.4 Hydrologic Specialties 325 Respondents 1988 Respondents 1960 All B.S. M.S. Ph.D. (percent) (percent) (no.) (no.) (no.) Traditional principal specialties Surface water 63 38 Ground water 27 54 Snow, ice, permafrost 2 2 Glaciology 2 2 Other 6 4 Contemporary scientific specialties Earth crust N/A 26 70 247 239 Land forms N/A 12 20 70 156 Climatic processes N/A 4 10 14 57 Weather processes N/A 6 29 36 73 Surficial processes N/A 13 28 77 156 Living communities N/A 2 2 10 28 Chemical processes N/A 23 54 225 204 Data technologies N/A 6 19 44 66 Other N/A 8 9 49 125

326 MEMORANDUM TO: Members, AGU Section of Hydrology From: Date: Subject: APPENDIX B P.S. Eagleson, Chairman NRC Committee on Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences September 26, 1988 Profile of Hydrologic Community The National Research Council's Committee on Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences needs to compare the profile (i.e., education background and level, specialty, employer, etc.) of those calling themselves hydrologists _ today with that of a similar sample done in 1960.* This should be an indicator of educational and employment trends and as such will be helpful to the work of our Committee and should be of interest to you. Please take the two minutes needed to complete the enclosed questionnaire and return it in the enclosed envelope. The results will appear in EOS. Thank you. *Federal Council for Science and Technology, "Scientific Hydrology", June 1962. QUESTIONNAIRE TO PRIMARY AFFILIATES. AGU SECTION OF HYDROLOGY A. Level of Educatior, _ Less than a bachelor's degree Bachelor's degree _ Master's degree Professional degree Doctoral degree B. Field of Highest Degree (check one) Agriculture Engineering _ Environmental Science Forestry Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry C. Employment (check one) Educational institutions State and local government Industry, business and self-employed D. Work Activity (check one) Teaching and university research Other research Consulting engineering and other applied hydrology Management, administration, regulation Hydrology Geography Geology Soil Science Other Federal Government Military Nonprofit organizations Others

APPENDIX B E. Hydrologic Specialty (check one ~Traditional" category and one "Contemporary Scientific" category) Traditional Surface water Ground water Snow, ice, permafrost Glaciology Other Contemporary Scientific Earth Crust (i.e., ground water and associated heat and mass transfer, etc.) Land Forms (i.e., erosion, deposition, and fluvial geomorphology, etc.) Climatic Processes (i.e., global water balance, interaction of land surface and climate, paleohydrology, etc.) Weather Processes (i.e., space-time precipitation, flash floods, interaction of land surface and mesoscale weather systems, etc.) Surficial Processes (i.e., infiltration, evaporation, snowmelt, etc.) Living Communities (i.e., relationships between vegetation patterns and climate, metabolism and energetics of microbial communities in water, etc.) Chemical Processes (i.e., geochemical characterization of surface and ground waters, etc.) Data Technologies (i.e., remote sensing, computer systems, etc.) Other (i.e., applied mathematics for hydrology such as fractals, chaos, etc.) F. Age Distribution _ 20-24 25-29 30-34 _ 35-39 40-44 G. Gender Male 327 45-49 50-54 55-69 70 and over _ Female

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Hydrology—the science of water—is central to our understanding of the global environment and its many problems. Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences explains how the science of water historically has played second fiddle to its applications and how we now must turn to the hydrologic sciences to solve some of the emerging problems. This first book of its kind presents a blueprint for establishing hydrologic science among the geosciences.

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Opportunities in the Hydrologic Sciences is indispensable to policymakers in science and education, research managers in geoscience programs, researchers, educators, graduate students, and future hydrologists.

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