J. E. Matthews received the B.S. degrees in mathematics and geology from the University of Oklahoma in 1960, and the M.S. degree in geophysics from the University of Utah in 1970.He served as a Hydrographic Officer in the U.S. Navy before joining the U.S. Naval Oceanographic Office to work in marine acoustics. Since 1976 he has been with the Naval Ocean Research and Development Activity, where his work is primarily in the area of geoacoustic modeling.