earth science

Samuel S. Adams

Samuel S. Adams is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Samuel S. Adams rather than just read about it. In short: Samuel Sherman Adams (January 26, 1937 – May 5, 2006) was an economic geologist who was a leading advocate of cooperation and multidisciplinary collaboration among professional geologists, the business community, the government, and public interests. He began his career as a geologist for International Minerals and Chemical Corporation (subsequently renamed IMC Global and merged into The Mosaic Company) and the Anac…

Key takeaways

Samuel S. Adams belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Samuel S. Adams to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Samuel S. Adams from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Samuel Sherman Adams (January 26, 1937 – May 5, 2006) was an economic geologist who was a leading advocate of cooperation and multidisciplinary collaboration among professional geologists, the business community, the government, and public interests. He began his career as a geologist for International Minerals and Chemical Corporation (subsequently renamed IMC Global and merged into The Mosaic Company) and the Anaconda Copper Mining Company. In 1986, he became a professor at the Colorado School of Mines and head of its Geology and Geological Engineering Department. In 1991, he returned to his native New Hampshire to become president and general manager of Loon Mountain, a major ski and summer resort in the state. Apart from his occupational pursuits, he was a leading member of the broader geosciences community and contributed to it in many ways. He was president of the American Geological Institute (AGI), receiving its highest award, the Ian Campbell Medal, in 2005; in addition, he was editor-in-chief of Geotimes, the AGI's monthly news magazine. He also served as president of the Society of Economic Geologists. He was a member of the council of the Geological Society of America and received its Distinguished Service Award in 2002. Adams served the government in a number of capacities. In 1996, Adams was named chairman of the United States National Research Council (NRC) panel that reviewed the Mineral Resource Surveys Program Plan of the United States Geological Survey (USGS). In recognition of his service to the USGS, he was presented with the John Wesley Powell Award, the USGS's highest honor, in 1998. He was subsequently vice chairman of the NRC Committee on Hardrock Mining on Federal Lands. For many years, he served as a member of the Board of Earth Sciences and Resources of the National Academy of Sciences, advising the United States Congress and government agencies on issues and policy related to earth science and environmental science. Born in Lincoln, New Hampshire, as Samuel Sherman Adams, he was the son of Sherman Adams, who served as White House Chief of Staff for President Dwight D. Eisenhower and as Governor of New Hampshire, and Rachel White. He graduated from Cardigan Mountain School in 1951 and St. Paul's School in 1955. He received a B.S. in 1959 and an M.S. in 1961 from Dartmouth College. He earned a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1968.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Samuel S. Adams

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Samuel S. Adams claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Samuel S. Adams before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Samuel S. Adams ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Samuel S. Adams

In research: Samuel S. Adams appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Samuel S. Adams in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Samuel S. Adams is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1937 births, 2006 deaths, 20th-century American geologists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Samuel S. Adams outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Samuel S. Adams in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Samuel S. Adams means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Samuel S. Adams out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Samuel S. Adams in simple terms?

Why does Samuel S. Adams matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Samuel S. Adams?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Samuel S. Adams.