Every year, the Stratigraphy, Sedimentology and Paleontology Division awards one scientist for their outstanding contribution to stratigraphy, sedimentology or paleontology with the Lamarck medal in recognition of the scientific achievements of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (Bazentin-le-Petit, 1-02-1744 – Paris, 18-12-1829). It was the 11 May 1800 when Jean Baptiste Lamarck presented a lecture at the Muséum national d’histoire naturelle …[Read More]
Stratigraphy, Sedimentology and Palaeontology
County Clare, Ireland: A World-Class Geological Locality
By John Counts and Emma Morris. Europe has a wide variety of interesting sites for geologists, including areas with scientifically interesting formations, amazing scenery, and classic outcrops, many of which are recognized for their international geological significance and are designated as UNESCO Global Geoparks. Rarely, however, do all of these factors come together in such …[Read More]
Congo Canyon: A Chat with Dr Steve Simmons
It is always an interesting period when the time comes around for me to write my blog for the SSP page. My research is predominantly in numerical modelling, which would be interesting if I was modelling awesome natural phenomena, but I don’t. I general assess the sensitivities of the numerical models to different sorts of …[Read More]
Workshop on planning of the Weihe Basin Drilling Project: Cenozoic tectonic-climate interactions – in Xi’an, China
From climate to drilling technology – international participants of the workshop for planning the ‘Weihe Basin Drilling Project: Cenozoic tectonic-climate interactions’ covered a wide range of topics. In Xi’an, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IEECAS) invited an international team of researchers to discuss a possible International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP) project …[Read More]
Use of Ultraviolet Light in Plattenkalk Research
By Jack Wilkin. One of the techniques used to examine fossils in the laboratory is photography with the aid of UV light. Ultraviolet light causes minerals in the fossils to fluoresce creating a clearer contrast between the fossil and the surrounding matrix. Ultraviolet photography is a cost-effective laboratory technique that can be readily applied to …[Read More]
Architecture and sediments, heritage and future
As geoscientists in Europe, we should consider ourselves to be very lucky to have a rich architectural heritage. The first insights we gain about the geology of an area can be read in beautiful historic buildings. For centuries, construction and architecture have been driven by two constraints: adapt to the local environment, and use locally …[Read More]
The hard part of life: the secrets of biomineralization
Biomineralization is a fascinating natural process by which living organisms produce hierarchical mineral structures with diverse functions. The “secrets” of biomineralization are explored by the scientists since decades but there are still open questions regarding its function, the regulating mechanisms and why and when biomineralization started.This process occurs through self-organization of organic and inorganic molecules …[Read More]
Investigating the climate history of Central Asia in Kashmir/India
As in most arid areas, dust storms are quite common in India. Repeatedly, the wind carries large quantities of dust from the Thar Desert in the south-west into the Asian country, sometimes across long distances. There have also been dust storms in India in the past, making geoarchives of aeolian dust a suitable recorder of …[Read More]
Slimy Landscapes 2: This time it’s Precambrian
Slime is important to the developments of Earth’s landscapes – I have already explored this in a previous post where I learnt how Extracellular Polymeric Substances (EPS), a fancy phrase for a slime produced by organisms, can bind sediments together and making them resistant to erosion. This has impacts on the development of landscapes, from …[Read More]
DeepDust ICDP workshop in Norman, Oklahoma, USA discussed drilling the equatorial terrestrial Permian
From microbiology to geophysics – more than 50 international participants of the first DeepDust Workshop covered a wide range of topics. In Oklahoma researchers exchanged views on a possible international drilling project to study the continental geology of the Permian. During a change from the cold to a warm period, large ice masses melted. This …[Read More]