Samuel M. Savin
Provost & Vice President for Academic Affairs
Professor of Natural Sciences
Ph.D., California Institute of Technology
B.A., Colgate University
Research Interests
Samuel Savin became Provost of New College in 2006. His scientific work has been in the areas of Geology, Geochemistry, Oceanography and Environmental Science. He is particularly interested in understanding natural processes that occur at or near the surface of the earth (down to a depth of a few miles below the surface). A common thread through much of Professor Savin's work has been the application of chemical principles and chemical techniques to the understanding of the earth and the environment. Areas in which he has worked include documentation of the evolution of the climate of the earth over the past 100 million years, understanding the geologic factors that result in a sedimentary rock being a good or a poor petroleum reservoir, study of the processes by which rocks become converted to soil in tropical and mid latitudes, and tracing the environmental sources of lead in the blood of urban children with elevated lead levels.
