Professor Dorothy Hill’s 111th Birthday

“I couldn’t really see why a woman couldn’t run a university,” said Dorothy Hill, the trailblazing Australian geologist and paleontologist who became president of the Professorial Board at her alma mater, the University of Queensland, in 1971. A pioneer in her field, Hill was the first woman to become a professor at any Australian university as well as the first female president of the Australian Academy of Science.

After studying chemistry in at university, Hill took an early interest in the geology of coral. After graduating with honours, she won a scholarship to earn her PhD at Cambridge University, where she published papers on the structure and morphology of coral and earned a pilot’s license in her spare time. In 1939, Hill worked with the Geological Survey of Queensland studying early core samples of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

Following the war, Hill continued to win prestigious accolades, becoming president of the Royal Society of Queensland, Chairman of the Geological Society of Australia, Queensland Division, and the first female fellow of the Australian Academy of Science in 1956. She edited the Journal of the Geological Society of Australia and published more than 100 research papers in various respected journals. In 1964, Hill was awarded the Lyell Medal for scientific research and became the first Australian woman to be a Fellow of the Royal Society of London.

Professor Hill retired from the University in late 1972, returning to research her landmark Bibliography and Index of Australian Paleozoic Coral, which was published in 1978. A Dorothy Hill chair in Paleontology and Stratigraphy was endowed in her honor, and the Australian Academy of Sciences now bestows the Dorothy Hill Award for female researchers in earth sciences. Her colleagues at the University of Queensland created a 3D model of her rock hammer for an exhibition at the School of Earth Sciences. Her name was also given to numerous species of invertebrate fossils, including Acanthastrea hillae, Australomya hillae, Filiconcha hillae, and Reticulofenestra hillae.

Born on this day in 1907, Professor Hill’s accomplishments inspire countless other young women to pursue careers in academia. Today’s Doodle celebrates the intrepid field researcher, scholar and inspirational role model for future generations.

Happy Birthday Professor Hill!