He was essentially a geographer and geologist by training but with his accumulated experience over the years, he later branched out into other fields of the natural sciences. In particular, he devoted much of his time from 1922 in pursuing a subject which he called Cultural Geography and he applied the term Geo-pacifics to a new sub-division of this field. He continued, his journeying around the world for purposes of study mainly, (though he was a keen observer wherever he went) until his retirement in 1951.

Simultaneous with his application for a position with the Commonwealth Bureau of Meteorology, Taylor was negotiating for inclusion in Scott's Antarctic Expedition, for which he was accepted. Thus his first association with the Bureau lasted about 4 months in the latter part of 1910; the Australian authorities appointed him their Weather Service representative (with salary) with Scott, and he sailed for New Zealand in October. He spent some weeks of his short stay in Melbourne at the new Federal Capital site (then unnamed) making a rough topographical survey.

Taylor claims that 'Canberra' was one of the suggestions he made in an official report on the naming of the capital.

Bureau of Meteorology