External links
- IUSS Official Website
- ASSSI Official Website
- UQ Website for Neal Menzies
- Journal of Environmental Quality
| International | |
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Neal W. Menzies | |
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| Born | 7 December 1959 |
| Alma mater | University of Queensland |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | soil science |
| Institutions | Griffith University |
Neal Menzies AM (born 7 December 1959) is an Australian professor [1] of soil science at Griffith University. [2] In his early adult years, he completed a bachelor of agricultural science (hons) in 1985, a master of agricultural studies in 1987, and a PhD in 1992. Menzies has worked for the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Cameroon, the Newcastle University (Newcastle upon Tyne) in England, the University of Queensland, [3] and Griffith University in Australia (where he is currently Pro Vice Chancellor (Sciences)) [4]
As of October 2022, Neal Menzies has published more than 300 articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals. [5] and had a h-index of 53. [6] In 2011, Menzies was appointed Dean of Agriculture and Head of the School of Agriculture and Food Sciences in the University of Queensland. [7] In 2016 he was elected President of the Australian Council of Deans of Agriculture [8] for a two-year term. [9] Menzies has served as secretary, vice-president and president of the Queensland branch of the Australian Society of Soil Science Inc. (ASSSI), and vice-president and president of the federal ASSSI branch. [10] In addition, from 2006 to 2010, Menzies was elected as vice-president of the International Union of Soil Sciences (a union representing approximately 55,000 soil scientists internationally). [11] [12] In September 2022 he was appointed Pro Vice Chancellor (Sciences) in Griffith University. [13] Menzies is a member of the New South Wales Independent Planning Commission, [14] where he chairs the Mining and Petrolium Gateway Panel. [15]
Menzies has helped attract more than $100,000,000 of research funding since joining the University of Queensland in 1994. [16] He was also a program leader in the Cooperative Research Centre for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment (CRC-CARE), [17] Associate Editor of the Journal of Environmental Quality, [18] and vice-chair of the organizing committee (and chair of the scientific committee) for the 19th World Congress of Soil Science (WCSS) held in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia in 2010. [19] [20]
His current research focuses largely on the phytotoxicity of trace metals in soil solutions, giving particular consideration to aluminium and other trace metals such as lead, copper, zinc, and nickel. Professor Menzies was one of the first soil scientists to examine the impact of amendments such as agricultural lime and gypsum on soil solution composition and soil chemical fertility. [21] Since this time, much his research has focused on the development of novel plant nutrition technologies, with a focus on improving plant growth and food production in South Asia. His key research colleagues in the University of Queensland Soil Science group include Dr J Bernard Wehr, [22] Dr Peng Wang [23] and Dr Peter Kopittke. [24]
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Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula CaSO4·2H2O. It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, drywall and blackboard or sidewalk chalk. Gypsum also crystallizes as translucent crystals of selenite. It forms as an evaporite mineral and as a hydration product of anhydrite. The Mohs scale of mineral hardness defines gypsum as hardness value 2 based on scratch hardness comparison.
Soil pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity (alkalinity) of a soil. Soil pH is a key characteristic that can be used to make informative analysis both qualitative and quantitatively regarding soil characteristics. pH is defined as the negative logarithm (base 10) of the activity of hydronium ions in a solution. In soils, it is measured in a slurry of soil mixed with water, and normally falls between 3 and 10, with 7 being neutral. Acid soils have a pH below 7 and alkaline soils have a pH above 7. Ultra-acidic soils and very strongly alkaline soils are rare.
The University of Queensland is a public research university located primarily in Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Founded in 1909 by the Queensland parliament, UQ is one of the six sandstone universities, an informal designation of the oldest university in each state. UQ is also a founding member of edX, Australia's leading Group of Eight and the international research-intensive Association of Pacific Rim Universities.
Soil classification deals with the systematic categorization of soils based on distinguishing characteristics as well as criteria that dictate choices in use.
An Acrisol is a Reference Soil Group of the World Reference Base for Soil Resources (WRB). It has a clay-rich subsoil and is associated with humid, tropical climates, such as those found in Brazil, and often supports forested areas. In the USDA soil taxonomy, Acrisols correspond to the Humult, Udult and Ustult suborders of the Ultisols and also to Oxisols with a kandic horizon and to some Alfisols. The Acrisols low fertility and toxic amounts of aluminium pose limitations to its agricultural use, favouring in many places its use for silviculture, low intensity pasture and protected areas. Crops that can be successfully cultivated, if climate allows, include tea, rubber tree, oil palm, coffee and sugar cane.
Oscar Loew was a German agricultural chemist, active in Germany, the United States, and Japan in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Acid sulfate soils are naturally occurring soils, sediments or organic substrates that are formed under waterlogged conditions. These soils contain iron sulfide minerals and/or their oxidation products. In an undisturbed state below the water table, acid sulfate soils are benign. However, if the soils are drained, excavated or otherwise exposed to air, the sulfides react with oxygen to form sulfuric acid.
The Australian Society of Soil Science Incorporated (ASSSI) was founded in 1955 to "advance soil science in the professional, academic, and technical fields". The Society consists of a federation of branches operating the 'umbrella' of the ASSSI Federal Council.
The World Congress of Soil Science (WCSS) is a conference held every four years under the guidance of the International Union of Soil Sciences (IUSS). The purpose of a congress is to: (i) ensure the advancement of soil science and its application, and (ii) to handle the business of the society. Of the 18 congresses, eight have been held in Europe, five in the Americas, three in Asia, one in Australia and one in Africa. The congresses are only open to society members. The number of members attending has steadily increased, with approximately 2000 members attending each congress since the 15th WCSS in Acapulco, Mexico.
Laurence John Hartley Teakle was Professor of Agriculture from 1947 until 1963 at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia.
Base-cation saturation ratio (BCSR) is a method of interpreting soil test results that is widely used in sustainable agriculture, supported by the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service (ATTRA) and claimed to be successfully in use on over a million acres (4,000 km2) of farmland worldwide. The traditional method, as used by most university laboratories, is known variously as the 'sufficiency level', sufficiency level of available nutrients (SLAN), or Index(UK) system. The sufficiency level system is concerned only with keeping plant-available nutrient levels within a well studied range, making sure there is neither a deficiency nor an excess. In the BCSR system, soil cations are balanced according to varying ratios often stated as giving 'ideal' or 'balanced' soil. These ratios can be between individual cations, such as the calcium to magnesium ratio, or they may be expressed as a percentage saturation of the cation exchange capacity (CEC) of the soil. Most 'ideal soil' theories stress both approaches.
Professor Jennifer Louise "Jenny" Martin is an Australian scientist and academic. She was the Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Wollongong, in New South Wales from 2019-2022. She is a former director of the Griffith Institute for Drug Discovery at Griffith University. and a former Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland. Martin is Professor Emerita at the University of Queensland and adjunct professor at Griffith University. Her research expertise encompasses structural biology, protein crystallography, protein interactions and their applications in drug design and discovery.
Peter Bordier Høj is a Danish-Australian academic and Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Adelaide. Peter Høj is one of the longest serving Australian Vice-Chancellors having served for 17 years across three universities. He has previously served as Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Queensland and the University of South Australia. Educated at the University of Copenhagen, Høj completed a Bachelor of Science where he majored in biochemistry and chemistry, a Master of Science in biochemistry and genetics and a Doctor of Philosophy in Photosynthesis. He has worked in Denmark and Australia as a researcher and published multiple scientific articles. Høj has also served on a number of different company boards in a variety of roles, including current roles on the boards of CSIRO, Wine Australia and of the Australian Cancer Research Foundation. In 2017 he was elected chair of the Group of Eight, a lobby group that represents Australia’s research-intensive universities. He was the vice-chancellor of the University of Queensland from 2012-2020.
Martin Hubert Gerzabek is an Austrian ecologist and soil scientist. He is a professor of ecotoxicology and isotope application and was rector of BOKU, the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna from 2010 to 2018.
John Catt was a British geologist and soil scientist.
Kerrie Ann Wilson is an Australian environmental scientist who is the Queensland Chief Scientist and a Professor in the Faculty of Science at Queensland University of Technology (QUT). She was formerly the Pro Vice-Chancellor at QUT. Wilson is also an affiliated professor in conservation science at the University of Copenhagen, honorary professor at The University of Queensland, a member of the Australian Heritage Council and the Australian Natural Sciences Commissioner for UNESCO.
Rattan Lal is a soil scientist. His work focuses on regenerative agriculture through which soil can help resolve global issues such as climate change, food security and water quality. He is considered a pioneer in soil-centric agricultural management to improve global food security and develop climate-resilient agriculture.
Donald L. Sparks is an American soil scientist, currently Unidel S. Hallock duPont Chair of Soil and Environmental Chemistry, Francis Alison Professor, Director, Delaware Environmental Institute, University of Delaware, and Hagler Fellow in the Hagler Institute for Advanced Study at Texas A&M University.
John Errol Chandos Aberdeen was an Australian botanist, mycologist and agricultural scientist.
