J. Brendan Murphy is a native of Birr, Ireland, and came to Canada after completing his B.Sc. in geology at University College Dublin. He received a Ph.D. in geological sciences at McGill University in 1982 and joined St. Francis Xavier University, where he is now a professor in the Department of Earth Sciences. His research interests include mountain-building processes and the relation between tectonic activity and igneous processes. Address for Murphy: Department of Earth Sciences, St. Francis Xavier University, P.O. Box 5000, Antigonish, Nova Scotia B2G2W5, Canada. Internet: bmurphy@stfx.ca