| Gerald M. Friedman | |
| Birth Date: | 23 July 1921 |
| Birth Place: | Berlin, Germany |
| Death Date: | (age 90) |
| Workplaces: | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute CUNY Graduate Center Brooklyn College |
| Known For: | Sedimentology |
| Awards: | William H. Twenhofel Medal and Sidney Powers Memorial Award |
| Spouse: | Sue (Tyler) Friedman |
Gerald M. Friedman (1921–2011) was a distinguished professor in Geology and was one of the founders of modern rock sedimentation. Friedman was a professor in Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the Graduate Center of the City University of New York and Brooklyn College.[1]
Friedman was born in Berlin, Germany, on July 27, 1921. Being a Jew, Friedman escaped the Nazis in 1938 to England. Friedman completed a bachelor's degree in the University of London in the year 1945, with chemistry as the major and geology as a minor. In the year 1945 Friedman immigrated to the United States and worked three years as a Chemist in Squibb.[2]
Friedman published 573 papers and 19 books,[3] including the highly cited book "Principles of Sedimentology".[4] Friedman received numerous awards including the prestige William H. Twenhofel Medal (in 1997), the Sidney Powers Memorial Award (in 2000),[1] and the Mary C. Rabbitt History And Philosophy of Geology Award (in 2005).[5] Friedman was the founder and director of the Northeastern Science Foundation which hosts symposia and publishes several journals, including Northeastern Geology, Environmental Science, and Carbonates and Evaporites,[6] as well as the Carbonates and Evaporites journal.[7]
The Sue Tyler Friedman Medal was named after Friedman's wife, Sue (Tyler) Friedman.[8]