Harry Bolton Seed
Encyclopedia
Harry Bolton Seed was an educator, scholar, former Professor at the University of California, Berkeley
. He was regarded as the founding father of the Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering
.
, England
, on August 19, 1922 into a family of a cotton mill manager. He spent his childhood in Lancashire
and attended Farnworth Grammar School, where he exhibited talent both at sports and academics. At the age of eighteen he chose a scholarship to King's College
, University of London
over a possible professional soccer career. Seed's studies were interrupted by the Second World War, when he served the military as a lieutenant. After military service, Seed returned to the University of London
to finish his study, and received a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering in 1944 and a Ph.D. in Structural Engineering in 1947. His thesis title was "Non-elastic deformations in concrete and their effects on design". Seed also captained the University of London's soccer team, and the All-England team during this period. Following two years as assistant lecturer at King's College, Seed came to Harvard University
to study soil mechanics under the tutelage of engineering giants Karl Terzaghi and Arthur Casagrande
. He received his S.M. degree from Harvard in 1948 and spent the next year as an instructor at Harvard, followed by a year as a foundation engineer for Thomas Worcester, Inc., in Boston.
, where he spent the next thirty-nine years as an educator, researcher and consultant. He built up the geotechnical engineering program at Berkeley into one of the best in the world. He served as chair of the Civil Engineering Department from 1965 to 1971. He successfully guided fifty Ph.D. degree candidates to complete their dissertations during his career. He died of cancer at his home in Orinda, California on August 23, 1989.
. His early research on pile-soil interaction, soil compaction and pavement formed the scientific basis for modern design. In the 1960s he established a new research area, geotechnical earthquake engineering, and he is commonly regarded as the founding father of this area. His pioneering works included the development of equivalent linear method (SHAKE) for seismic site response analysis, soil structure interaction
analysis, evaluation and mitigation of soil liquefaction
, etc. He investigated many major disasters, such as the 1964 Great Alaska Earthquake, the 1971 San Fernando earthquake in California, the 1976 failure of the Teton dam
, the 1979 slide at the port of Nice
in France, and the 1985 Mexico City earthquake. He served as a consultant on hundreds of projects all over the world, including more than 100 major dams, more than 20 nuclear power plants, and innumerable major buildings and transportation facilities. His research, founded on sound scientific principles, have led to a total revision of concepts and methods for geotechnical earthquake design, as well as revision of codes of practice, design procedures, and regulations throughout the world.
in 1970 and National Academy of Sciences
in 1986. He received the National Medal of Science
, the nation's highest scientific honor, from President Reagan in 1987. The American Society of Civil Engineers
accorded him more awards than any other engineer in the history of the society, including two Norman Medal
s, three James J. R. Croes Medals, four Thomas A. Middlebrooks Awards, and Thomas Fitch Rowland Prize, Wellington Prize, Walter A. Huber Research Prize, the Karl Terzaghi Award. He was elected honorary member in the American Society of Civil Engineers
in 1985, honorary member in the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
in 1988. He was awarded Distinguished Teaching Award and Faculty Research Lecturer from the University of California
.
He was Karl von Terzaghi
Lecturer and Rankine Lecture
among many lectureships from many professional societies. In 1993, American Society of Civil Engineers
established H. Bolton Seed Medal in his honor.
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
. He was regarded as the founding father of the Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering
.
Early life
Harry Bolton Seed was born in BoltonBolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, on August 19, 1922 into a family of a cotton mill manager. He spent his childhood in Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
and attended Farnworth Grammar School, where he exhibited talent both at sports and academics. At the age of eighteen he chose a scholarship to King's College
King's College London
King's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
, University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
over a possible professional soccer career. Seed's studies were interrupted by the Second World War, when he served the military as a lieutenant. After military service, Seed returned to the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
to finish his study, and received a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering in 1944 and a Ph.D. in Structural Engineering in 1947. His thesis title was "Non-elastic deformations in concrete and their effects on design". Seed also captained the University of London's soccer team, and the All-England team during this period. Following two years as assistant lecturer at King's College, Seed came to Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
to study soil mechanics under the tutelage of engineering giants Karl Terzaghi and Arthur Casagrande
Arthur Casagrande
Arthur Casagrande was an Austrian-born American civil engineer who made important contributions to the fields of engineering geology and geotechnical engineering during its infancy...
. He received his S.M. degree from Harvard in 1948 and spent the next year as an instructor at Harvard, followed by a year as a foundation engineer for Thomas Worcester, Inc., in Boston.
Career at the University of California, Berkeley
In 1950 Seed joined the civil engineering faculty at the University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, where he spent the next thirty-nine years as an educator, researcher and consultant. He built up the geotechnical engineering program at Berkeley into one of the best in the world. He served as chair of the Civil Engineering Department from 1965 to 1971. He successfully guided fifty Ph.D. degree candidates to complete their dissertations during his career. He died of cancer at his home in Orinda, California on August 23, 1989.
Father of Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering
Professor Seed's published nearly 300 papers and reports on various topics on Geotechnical EngineeringGeotechnical engineering
Geotechnical engineering is the branch of civil engineering concerned with the engineering behavior of earth materials. Geotechnical engineering is important in civil engineering, but is also used by military, mining, petroleum, or any other engineering concerned with construction on or in the ground...
. His early research on pile-soil interaction, soil compaction and pavement formed the scientific basis for modern design. In the 1960s he established a new research area, geotechnical earthquake engineering, and he is commonly regarded as the founding father of this area. His pioneering works included the development of equivalent linear method (SHAKE) for seismic site response analysis, soil structure interaction
Soil structure interaction
Most of the civil engineering structures involve some type of structural element with direct contact with ground. When the external forces, such as earthquakes, act on these systems, neither the structural displacements nor the ground displacements, are independent of each other...
analysis, evaluation and mitigation of soil liquefaction
Soil liquefaction
Soil liquefaction describes a phenomenon whereby a saturated soil substantially loses strength and stiffness in response to an applied stress, usually earthquake shaking or other sudden change in stress condition, causing it to behave like a liquid....
, etc. He investigated many major disasters, such as the 1964 Great Alaska Earthquake, the 1971 San Fernando earthquake in California, the 1976 failure of the Teton dam
Teton Dam
The Teton Dam was a federally built earthen dam on the Teton River in southeastern Idaho, set between Fremont and Madison counties, USA, which when filling for the first time suffered a catastrophic failure on June 5, 1976. The collapse of the dam resulted in the deaths of 11 peopleand 13,000 head...
, the 1979 slide at the port of Nice
Nice
Nice is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of more than 955,000 on an area of...
in France, and the 1985 Mexico City earthquake. He served as a consultant on hundreds of projects all over the world, including more than 100 major dams, more than 20 nuclear power plants, and innumerable major buildings and transportation facilities. His research, founded on sound scientific principles, have led to a total revision of concepts and methods for geotechnical earthquake design, as well as revision of codes of practice, design procedures, and regulations throughout the world.
Honors and awards
Seed received numerous awards and honors during his career. He was elected to the National Academy of EngineeringNational Academy of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering is a government-created non-profit institution in the United States, that was founded in 1964 under the same congressional act that led to the founding of the National Academy of Sciences...
in 1970 and National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
in 1986. He received the National Medal of Science
National Medal of Science
The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social sciences, biology, chemistry, engineering, mathematics and...
, the nation's highest scientific honor, from President Reagan in 1987. The American Society of Civil Engineers
American Society of Civil Engineers
The American Society of Civil Engineers is a professional body founded in 1852 to represent members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. It is the oldest national engineering society in the United States. ASCE's vision is to have engineers positioned as global leaders who strive toward...
accorded him more awards than any other engineer in the history of the society, including two Norman Medal
Norman Medal
The Norman Medal is the highest honor granted by the American Society of Civil Engineers for a technical paper that "makes a definitive contribution to engineering science"....
s, three James J. R. Croes Medals, four Thomas A. Middlebrooks Awards, and Thomas Fitch Rowland Prize, Wellington Prize, Walter A. Huber Research Prize, the Karl Terzaghi Award. He was elected honorary member in the American Society of Civil Engineers
American Society of Civil Engineers
The American Society of Civil Engineers is a professional body founded in 1852 to represent members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. It is the oldest national engineering society in the United States. ASCE's vision is to have engineers positioned as global leaders who strive toward...
in 1985, honorary member in the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
The Earthquake Engineering Research Institute is a leading technical society in dissemination of earthquake risk and earthquake engineering research both in the U.S. and globally. EERI members include researchers, geologists, geotechnical engineers, educators, government officials, and building...
in 1988. He was awarded Distinguished Teaching Award and Faculty Research Lecturer from the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
.
He was Karl von Terzaghi
Karl von Terzaghi
Karl von Terzaghi was an Austrian civil engineer and geologist, called the father of soil mechanics.-Early life:...
Lecturer and Rankine Lecture
Rankine Lecture
The Rankine Lecture is hosted in March each year by the British Geotechnical Association. It is widely viewed as the most prestigious of the invited lectures in Geotechnics.The lecture commemorates W. J. M...
among many lectureships from many professional societies. In 1993, American Society of Civil Engineers
American Society of Civil Engineers
The American Society of Civil Engineers is a professional body founded in 1852 to represent members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. It is the oldest national engineering society in the United States. ASCE's vision is to have engineers positioned as global leaders who strive toward...
established H. Bolton Seed Medal in his honor.