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Geodynamics

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Applying for a PhD in Geoscience: To do or not to do

and August 27, 2025
Applying for a PhD in Geoscience: To do or not to do
"To do or not to do a PhD?", image generated by AI

Fresh out of your bachelor’s degree, or more commonly these days, your master’s degree, it can be tempting to pursue your PhD as quickly as possible. While there are compelling reasons to dive straight in, rushing into a PhD might not be your best choice.   To be or not to be a researcher? Before you start firing off applications, take a step back. Forget any expectations you had ...[Read More]

Phase transitions control plume layering during Earth’s secular cooling

and August 20, 2025
Phase transitions control plume layering during Earth’s secular cooling
Figure 1: A schematic summary. Time evolving in a clockwise direction. The dashed line marks a depth of 500 km, and the dotted shading indicates the pressure–temperature range where the wadsleyite ⇔ garnet (majorite) + ferropericlase phase transformation occurs. Purple shading marks areas of partial melting. The timeline calculation assumes a mantle potential temperature of 1900 K at ~3 Ga, cooling by about 100 K per Gyr.

  Earth’s structure and dynamics have evolved quite a lot since its formation, and so has mantle dynamics and convection patterns changed along with it. It turns out that phase transition in certain mantle minerals can be an important driver of this change. Today, Ranpeng Li from GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Germany explains how coupling geodynamic models with thermodynami ...[Read More]

One Ring to Rule Them All: The Geology of Middle-earth

August 13, 2025
One Ring to Rule Them All: The Geology of Middle-earth

Few fantasy worlds have captured the imagination of readers and viewers like J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth. Whether you first encountered it through The Lord of the Rings or the sweeping visuals of Peter Jackson’s films, chances are your eyes lingered on the same thing geologists can’t help obsessing over: the mountains. Towering, treacherous, mysterious — the Misty Mountains, the White Mountains, ...[Read More]

Resisting self-guilt as a PhD student

August 6, 2025
Resisting self-guilt as a PhD student

Self-guilt is a common feeling among PhD students. It often leads us to devalue ourselves more harshly than is fair and to form unrealistic expectations. It is important to understand how it shows up in our daily work, what fuels it, and how we can resist it — because over time, it can quietly undermine both our well-being and our work. The ideas below are the results of group discussions that hav ...[Read More]