Dianne Edwards
Encyclopedia
Dianne Edwards CBE
ScD
FRSE FLSW FRS (1942 – ) is a palaeobotanist, who studies the colonisation of land by plants, and early land plant interactions.
(fools' gold); much of her later work has centred on the Rhynie chert
and charcoalified fossils, large and microscopic, from the Welsh borderlands and south Wales - a short drive from the University of Cardiff, at which she is a research professor in the School of Earth, Ocean and Planetary Sciences. She also has links with China, consulting for the Beijing Museum of Natural History
, and working on fossils from that country.
, the description and analysis of stomata in early land plants, and very early liverwort-like plants. The charcoalified nature of many of her fossils have enabled her to prove that wildfires took place in the Siluruan period.
She has also worked on several enigmatic fossils such as Nematothallus
, Tortilicaulis
and Prototaxites
. She is the author or co-author of a considerable number of botanical names of fossil plants, such as Danziella
D.Edwards (2006) and Demersatheca
C.-S. Li & D.Edwards (1996).
, London. She was the 2004 winner of the Lyell Medal
. She is also a Founding Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales
and in July 2010 was appointed as its inaugural Vice-President for Science, Technology and Medicine.
CBE
CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...
ScD
Scd
-In medicine:* Schnyder corneal dystrophy* Semen collection device* Sequential compression device an intermittent pneumatic compression system intended to reduce blood clot formation* Sickle-cell disease...
FRSE FLSW FRS (1942 – ) is a palaeobotanist, who studies the colonisation of land by plants, and early land plant interactions.
Career
Edwards's work has centered on early plant fossils, the majority of which have been retrieved from the UK. Her interest in early plants was initiated after she studied plant fossils preserved in three dimensions in the mineral pyritePyrite
The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold because of its resemblance to gold...
(fools' gold); much of her later work has centred on the Rhynie chert
Rhynie chert
The Rhynie chert is an Early Devonian sedimentary deposit exhibiting extraordinary fossil detail or completeness . It is exposed near the village of Rhynie, Aberdeenshire, Scotland; a second unit, the Windyfield chert, is located some 700 m away...
and charcoalified fossils, large and microscopic, from the Welsh borderlands and south Wales - a short drive from the University of Cardiff, at which she is a research professor in the School of Earth, Ocean and Planetary Sciences. She also has links with China, consulting for the Beijing Museum of Natural History
Beijing Museum of Natural History
The Beijing Museum of Natural History is located at 126, Tian Qiao Nan Street, Chong Wen District, Beijing, 100050, and is the most popular natural history museum in China. It was originally founded in 1951 as the National Central Museum of Natural History, and its name changed to the Beijing...
, and working on fossils from that country.
Discoveries
Among Edwards's most notable works are the discovery of vascular tissue in CooksoniaCooksonia
Cooksonia is an extinct grouping of primitive land plants. The earliest Cooksonia date from the middle of the Silurian ; the group continues to be an important component of the flora until the Early Devonian, a total time span of...
, the description and analysis of stomata in early land plants, and very early liverwort-like plants. The charcoalified nature of many of her fossils have enabled her to prove that wildfires took place in the Siluruan period.
She has also worked on several enigmatic fossils such as Nematothallus
Nematothallus
Nematothallus is a form genus comprising cuticle-like fossils.- History of research :Nematothallus was first described by Lang in 1937, who envisioned it being an early thallose land plant with tubular features and sporophytes, covered by a cuticle which preserved impressions of the underlying cells...
, Tortilicaulis
Tortilicaulis
Tortilicaulis is a moss-like plant known from fossils recovered from southern Britain, spanning the Silurian-Devonian boundary . Originally recovered from the Downtonian of the Welsh borderlands, Tortilicaulis has since been recovered in the famous Ludlow Lane locality.Whilst it is generally...
and Prototaxites
Prototaxites
The genus Prototaxites describes terrestrial organisms known only from fossils dating from the Silu-Devonian, approximately 420 to 370 million years ago. Prototaxites formed large trunk-like structures up to wide, reaching in height, made up of interwoven tubes just in diameter...
. She is the author or co-author of a considerable number of botanical names of fossil plants, such as Danziella
Danziella
Danziella is a genus of extinct vascular plants of the Early Devonian . Fossils found in the Artois region of northern France were first described as Zosterophyllum artesianum, but a later review by Edwards showed that they did not fit the circumscription of that genus.-Description:Compressed...
D.Edwards (2006) and Demersatheca
Demersatheca
Demersatheca is a genus of extinct vascular plants of the Early Devonian . Fossils were first found in the Posongchong Formation of eastern Yunnan, China. The plant had smooth leafless stems at least 1 mm in diameter, but only regions which bore spore-forming organs or sporangia are well-known...
C.-S. Li & D.Edwards (1996).
Distinctions
Edwards was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1996, and is a trustee of the Natural History MuseumNatural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is one of three large museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, England . Its main frontage is on Cromwell Road...
, London. She was the 2004 winner of the Lyell Medal
Lyell Medal
The Lyell Medal is a prestigious annual scientific medal given by the Geological Society of London, equal in status to the Murchison Medal, awarded on the basis of research to an Earth Scientist of exceptional quality...
. She is also a Founding Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales
Learned Society of Wales
The Learned Society of Wales is a society that exists to “celebrate, recognise, preserve, protect and encourage excellence in all of the scholarly disciplines”.The society was launched on 25 May 2010 at the National Museum of Wales...
and in July 2010 was appointed as its inaugural Vice-President for Science, Technology and Medicine.