Scott G. Borg

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Scott Borg (left) with John Kerry in Antarctica in 2015

Scott G. Borg is an American geologist and civil servant. Since 1 September 2017 he has been the Deputy Assistant Director of the Directorate for Geosciences at the United States' National Science Foundation (NSF).[1][2]

Education[edit]

Borg graduated from Pomona College with a B.A. in geology, and earned M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Arizona State University, where his doctoral dissertation was titled Granitoids of Northern Victoria Land, Antarctica (Tectonics, Neodymium-isotopes, Geochemistry, Petrology, Strontium-isotopes).[3][4]

Career[edit]

He began his career as a researcher at the University of California at Berkeley.[3] He later worked for the United States Department of Energy, and subsequently joined the staff of the National Science Foundation.[3][5] Between 2003 and 2016 he was director of the Division of Antarctic Sciences at the National Science Foundation,[5] and in 2016-17 he served as the acting Section Head for Antarctic Infrastructure and Logistics (AIL) within the National Science Foundation Division of Polar Programs.[3][6] In 2017, he began serving as associate director for geosciences at the National Science Foundation.[3][7][8]

Research expeditions[edit]

Borg has participated in a total of six research expeditions to Antarctica, four of which he has led.[3] During a 1978–1979 expedition in which he participated, the Sagehen Nunataks were first visited, receiving their name from the Pomona Sagehens, athletic moniker of Borg's alma mater Pomona College.[9] During the same expedition, Borg named Tongue Peak, choosing the name from a tongue-shaped moraine on the peak.[10]

Awards and honors[edit]

In 1994, Borg Bastion, the summit on Johns Hopkins Ridge, was named in his honor.[11] Borg has received the Samuel J. Heyman Medal from the Partnership for Public Service and been decorated with the Presidential Rank Award of Distinguished Executive.[6][12] In 2014, United States Representative Gerald Connolly read a statement of recognition into the Congressional Record in which he credited Borg with overseeing "the development of clean drilling technology that retrieved the first-ever pure water samples from an Antarctic lake a half mile below the surface of ice sheet ... [which] may enable researchers to understand what types of life can survive on other worlds".[12]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Borg appointed temporary Geosciences assistant director". National Science Foundation. US National Science Foundation. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  2. ^ "Staff Directory, Directorate for Geosciences (GEO/OAD)". National Science Foundation. US National Science Foundation. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "Biographical Sketch Scott G. Borg" (PDF). uvm.edu. University of Vermont. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
  4. ^ "Borg, Scott 1984". lib.asu.edu. Arizona State University. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
  5. ^ a b Somers, Meredith (April 29, 2016). "Scott Borg: Passion for science, education not cooling anytime soon". WFED. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
  6. ^ a b "Senior Executive Service Presidential Rank Awards 2015". Office of Personnel Management. United States Government. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  7. ^ Mervis, Jeffrey (February 27, 2017). "Departing senior NSF manager offers hopeful assessment of agency's future". Science Magazine. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
  8. ^ "Steering Committee on Agency Reform" (PDF). National Science Foundation. US National Science Foundation. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  9. ^ "Sagehen Nunataks". Australian Antarctic Data Centre. Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  10. ^ "Tongue Peak". Australian Antarctic Data Centre. Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  11. ^ "GNIS - Antarctica Detail". U.S. Geological Survey. United States Government. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
  12. ^ a b "Recognizing the Contributions and Career Achievements of Dr. Scott Gerald Borg". Congressional Record. 160 (137). 2014.