The Franciscan Complex is a large accretionary prism that has been accreted onto the western margin of the North American continent. Unlike most such prisms, which are submarine, it is exposed on land, making it a magnet for researchers such as John Wakabayashi. In the podcast, he describes this remarkable complex and explains the mechanisms that may have operated over its 150-million-year history.

John Wakabayashi is a Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at California State University, Fresno. He has devoted much of his 40-year research career to the Franciscan Complex.