Community Advice To Young Hydrologists
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Community advice to young hydrologists Community advice to young hydrologists Scott T. Allen and Wouter R. Berghuijs ETH Zurich ([email protected] [email protected]) Published 17 October 2017 Early career hydrologists can benefit from the advice of others who are more advanced in their careers. We have solicited short answers from established hydrologists to (one or more of) the following questions: Q1. What book or paper has been most influential to your career and why? Q2. If I could only work on one problem in hydrology it would be […], because […] Q3. What is your golden tip for current early career scientists? Q4. What (avoidable) mistakes did you make early in your career? Q5. How can young scientists improve their writing or presentations? We thank all hydrologists that have been so generous to share their knowledge, and took the effort to respond. The advice here reflects a diversity of philosophies that have led to wide variety of careers. All responses are listed below (in alphabetical order). Enjoy reading! We welcome more advice! You never know who it will help or inspire. Submissions can be added in the comments section on the website’s version of this article, available at www.younghs.com physical chemistry. Brian Berkowitz (Weizmann Q1. What book or paper has been most influential to your career and why? Institute of Science) Q1. Groundwater by Freeze and Cherry – this Q1. The most important influence was a person – Mike textbook, now out of print, was a critical reference as I Kirkby and particularly the undergraduate course on began my graduate training in hydrogeology and I still quantitative hydrology he taught at the University of refer to it today. Jean Bahr (University of Wisconsin) Bristol when I was taking my degree there (later, I would do a post-doc with him at Leeds that resulted in Q1. I can think of no single one. However, papers that the development of Topmodel). That gave me a lot of were a combination of field observations and clever reading to do – but it was probably not the hydrological analyses leading to new insights always are intriguing. reading that had most influence, but rather the papers Papers which I find of little value are those that on theoretical geomorphology starting with Horton propose a new modeling approach with little to no field BGSA 1945, then picked up by Kirkby, Frank Ahnert verification, or which use existing models to reach and others in the late 1960s. I struggled to understand some conclusion. For example, we seem to be seeing a them (at the time I wanted to be a geomorphologist but proliferation of papers using complex models to I have never quite finished getting the water part right) highlight some “new” effect of climate change on the but they left me the idea that it was possible to theorise hydrologic cycle, with no grounding in hindcasts. (See about environmental processes and systems in approximate but useful ways. this, also) The musings of Keith Beven always have been insightful, including his Advice to a Young Hydrologist. Jerad Bales (CUAHSI) During my PhD the most influential paper was undoubtedly Freeze and Harlan JH 1968, and the Q1. I can’t identify single “most influential” books or papers about the field site I was applying my model to papers – I learned early to read as widely as possible, by Darrell Weyman (HSB 1970, IAHS 1973). If I had and not just within narrow/specific research problems talked to him a little more (he was doing his PhD at of direct interest. I have been inspired by a range of Bristol while I was an undergraduate) or read those articles – including books on philosophy, history of papers more carefully, then I might have been more realistic in my PhD modelling. physics, etc. – which broadened my approach and ways of looking at a given problem. Indeed, some of my most influential work developed from studying The most important book at that time was Zienkowicz, methods and approaches in statistical physics and Finite Element Modelling (that was the technique I was 1 Community advice to young hydrologists trying to master). Hillslope Hydrology edited by Kirkby Q1. Ecological and General Systems – H.T. Odum. was also important but came later. Keith Beven This book explores general systems theory in the (Lancaster University) context of ecosystem behaviors. It is holistic, comprehensive, and full of important insights about the Q1. Paper: Scale of Fluctuation of rainfall models by I. structure and dynamics of systems. Matthew Cohen Rodriquez-Iturbe. It formed the basis for my MSc (University of Florida) research that I did during 11 months in Davis California (As a Dutch Student from Wageningen). It Q1. It is a novel by Milan Kundera: “Slowness”. My was extremely difficult stuff, but I kept on it and it natural tendency is to rush up, be as fast as possible, understanding gave me the stamina to really dig into a quickly fix things... Yet, speed often leads to miserable subject. It was the basis for my first paper entitled outcomes. Many lines of Kundera’s book are still in my “Analytically derived runoff models based on rainfall mind, and they work as a continuous reminder for me point processes” in WRR. To obtain better background that only slowness allows thoughtful consideration, I also read in depth the influential. Book: Random serious reflection, and appreciation of reality. Realizing Functions and Hydrology by R. Bras and I. this has strongly influenced my academic career as it Rodriquez-Iturbe”. Marc Bierkens (Utrecht made me focus on the quality (and not the quantity) of University) my work. Giuliano Di Baldassarre (Uppsala University) Q1. Dooge' 1986 Looking for hydrologic laws in WRR. This paper gives a broad perspective on science, Q1. Several hydrogeology-related texts were very including scales. Günter Blöschl (TU Vienna) helpful for me. These include some of Mary Hill's papers, John Doherty's PEST manual (as much for the Q1. Konrad and Booth (2005), Hydrologic changes in philosophy as the instruction), some of Jasper Vrugt's urban streams and their ecological significance, early papers, and work by both Wolfgang Novak and American Fisheries Society Symposium, 47:157-177. Steve Gorelick on measurement design. The real This paper is a bit outside my area of expertise, but I recommendation would be to find authors that you think the linkage they make between physically enjoy and read as much of their work as possible - in measurable streamflow changes and stream ecology this category, I would add Shlomo Neuman, Randy represents a fundamental shift in thinking from Hunt, Hoshin Gupta, Dani Or, Keith Beven and engineering hydrology to more of an eco-hydrology Graham Fogg. I am sure that I am forgetting more than perspective. They illustrated that we need to go I have listed. I think it is equally important to read beyond analyzing just changes in peak flow or low broadly. Rather than provide a list, I'll encourage you to flows (or fixed percentiles), to look at more derived look at my recent paper in Ground Water (Sept 2016) metrics that better capture hydrologic regime change. for some suggestions! Ty Ferre (The University of Laura Bowling (Purdue University) Arizona) Q1. That is a very hard question. As a Geography Q1. Book: Groundwater Hydrology by David Keith undergraduate student, I had to write a particular essay Todd, 1st edition, 1959. As a 3rd-year undergraduate in on the "all models are wrong" theme and this involved hydrology at University of New Hampshire in 1973, critiquing two papers which completely changed my this book (and course by Francis Hall) kindled my worldview about models and modelling: Konikow and interest in groundwater and completely changed my Bredehoeft's 1992 'Ground-water models cannot be career path, which previously was essentially an aimless validated' Advances in Water Resources 15(1):75-83. sleepwalk through my major in mathematics. and Beven's 1989 'Changing ideas in hydrology - the case of physically-based models' Journal of Hydrology. Paper/report: Kaiser, W. R., Johnston, J. E., and Bach, W. N.. 1978, Sand-body geometry and the occurrence But in the last year I would say it has been Lab Girl by of lignite in the Eocene of Texas: The University of Hope Jahren (2016) who is a gifted and talented Texas at Austin, Bureau of Economic Geology scientist and writer and has the knack of intertwining Geological Circular 78-4, 19 p. This paper the natural world with tales of remaining brave in your demonstrated in stunning detail how modern borehole career. I wish I'd had the opportunity to read it earlier geophysical data together with understanding of the in my career. Hannah Cloke (University of Reading) geologic genesis of sedimentary deposits could be used to create unprecedented subsurface maps of 2 Community advice to young hydrologists