Zoe Kai Shipton is a British geologist. She is a professor of Geological Engineering at Strathclyde University. In July 2014, Shipton's career in geology was featured on the BBC Radio 4 show The Life Scientific Early life Shipton’s affinity for geology began when she was a young child. Her parents gifted her an educational book on volcanoes in response to Shipton having dreams about the hill behind their home turning into one. At the age of 8 she went to the site of Stromboli, an active volcano in Italy, with her father — a time which Shipton claims was greatly influential in solidifying her interest in geology. Zoe's paternal grandfather was Himalayan mountaineer, Eric Shipton. She initially entered the field due to her interest in Earth’s geological history. Education and career Shipton is a professor of geological engineering at the University of Strathclyde. Shipton specializes in structural geology, geological engineering, and geological uncertainty. Shipton received a bachelor of science degree from the University of Leeds in January 1994, and subsequently received a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Edinburgh in January 1999. For her PhD, Shipton studied geological faults and the way that fluid flows through them, to better understand how faults initiate and grow. Her specialization lies in the research of faults; she has travelled to places such as Utah and Taiwan to conduct studies on earthquakes by drilling into the resulting ruptures. Shipton has spoken on the topic of earthquakes caused by fracking, both in the UK and the US, in an effort to better the public’s understanding of the process. Shipton is a member of the Royal Society and Royal Academy of Engineering working group on “Shale gas extraction in the UK: a review of the scientific and engineering evidence”. In a report by the Royal Academy of Engineering Shipton stated that, through careful procedures, fracking could be performed safely with little environmental detriment. Recently Shipton has written of finding a more sustainable energy source for heating homes in the UK. In Scotland, Shipton and colleagues from the University of Strathclyde received funding to introduce and create detailed plans to make use of geothermal energy from abandoned and flooded coal mines in Scotland. The use of the trapped heat that Shipton tapped into could be used in home heating and generate jobs and income. Shipton is heavily involved in research quantifying geological uncertainties, further influencing more