Dr. Grant Bybee
Associate Professor
School of Geosciences
University of the Witwatersrand
South Africa
Biography
Dr. Grant Bybeeis currently working as Associate Professor of Geosciences at University of Witwatersrand.
Research Interest
His passion for geoscience focuses on using the chemistry of rocks (and other Earth materials) to understand and explain aspects of Earth’s evolution, magmatism and geodynamic framework. These interests have led him to investigate the origins of enigmatic ultramafic bodies in Madagascar during the controversial petrogenesis of Proterozoic anorthosites. This work used petrology and a variety of geochemical methods to investigate and understand the genesis of these rocks in a global geodynamic context. The geochemical tools that he use frequently include major and trace elements, but more importantly he rely on the particularly powerful radiogenic and stable isotope geochemistry of rocks to track and date geological processes in the solid Earth. Chemical geodynamics, however, does not only relate to understanding the mechanisms operating within the solid Earth, but involves understanding how solid Earth processes and consequent chemical cycles relate to surficial processes and society. While maintaining a strong focus on solid earth geochemistry/petrology and geodynamics in the future, he have begun to develop research thrusts that will link an understanding of geochemistry with surficial processes (be it natural or human processes) and the impacts on individuals and society.
