Education
Troubled by illness throughout his life, Sederholm originally chose to study geology to allow him to work outdoors.
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Jakob Sederholm
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After studying first in Helsinki (where he was a student of Fredrik Johan Wiik), then in Stockholm and Heidelberg, Sederholm returned to Finland to work for the Geological Survey of Finland. In 1893 he assumed the role of director of this institution, a post he occupied until his death forty years later. Working on local Precambrian basement rocks, Sederholm instigated a map-making programme that, between 1899 and 1925, published many maps and descriptions of their geological history.
Gneisses in the areas he studied (the so-called Baltic Shield) were often of mixed composition, with layers of granitic rock being interleaved with metamorphic rock.
Sederholm termed these as migmatites, and viewed them as the product of the intrusion of igneous magma into metamorphic rocks at depth. The mineral sederholmite is named in his honour.
He was also a member and chairman (twice) of the Economic Society of Finland. In the 1974 historical novel Centennial, James Michener listed Sederholm among those scientists who made early estimates of the age of the Earth.
Sederholm"s estimate was 40 million years.
Hackman V. Jacob Johannes Sederholm: Biographic notes and bibliography // Bulletin de la Commission géologique de Finlande. 1935. North 112. 34 p. Papunen H. Jakob Johannes Sederholm – geologi, humanisti ja totuudenetsijä // Geologi. 2009. North 2. P. 35-38.
Achievements
Membership
Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences]
Aside from his geological work, Sederholm was a member of the Diet of Finland, and undertook missions from this to the League of Nations.
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Born
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Died
June 26, 1934 (aged 70) -
Nationality
Finland
Awards
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Murchison Medal; Penrose Medal
The Murchison Medal is an award established by Roderick Murchison, who died in 1871.; The Penrose Medal was created in 1927 by R.A.F. Penrose, Junior. as the top prize awarded by the Geological Society of America to those who advance the study of geoscience.The Murchison Medal is an award established by Roderick Murchison, who died in 1871.; The Penrose Medal was created in 1927 by R.A.F. Penrose, Junior. as the top prize awarded by the Geological Society of America to those who advance the study of geoscience.