GeoLog

GeoLog

The prize that failed forward: How a 100,000-franc quest for aliens funded a century of astronomy

December 17, 2025
The prize that failed forward: How a 100,000-franc quest for aliens funded a century of astronomy
Photo by Leo Visions. Source: Unsplash

Today, 17 December, marks 125 years since the formal announcement of one of the most eccentric, ambitious, and ultimately consequential prizes in the history of science: the Prix Pierre Guzman. Announced by the French Académie des Sciences in December 1900, the award promised 100,000 francs, which is the equivalent of hundreds of thousands of dollars today, to the first person who could successful ...[Read More]

GeoTalk: meet Robert Piotrowski, geomythologist and folklorist

December 12, 2025
Robert Piotrowski
Robert Piotrowski

Hello Robert! Thank you for joining GeoTalk. Before we turn the page, could you introduce yourself to our readers? I am an ethnologist and cultural anthropologist. I have the privilege of working in ‘Laboratory for Interdisciplinary Research into the Anthropocene’, led by Prof. Dariusz Brykała, which is part of the Institute of Geography and Spatial Organisation of the Polish Academy of Sciences. ...[Read More]

Rethinking Europe’s historical climate leadership in a ‘Time of Transition’

and December 10, 2025
Rethinking Europe’s historical climate leadership in a ‘Time of Transition’

The Think2030 Dialogue Denmark was held in crucial times, since once the uncontested frontrunner in global climate governance, Europe now faces the dual challenge of renewing its leadership and maintaining competitiveness amid a shifting geopolitical and technological landscape, alongside a constantly changing multilateral world order. At a time when global competition over clean technologies, res ...[Read More]

Why we need to put plants back in the soil carbon picture

December 5, 2025
Why we need to put plants back in the soil carbon picture
The shades of soil versus the shape of the gully by Anindya Majhi Source: Imaggeo

Happy International Soil Day (5 December)! Today, we’re celebrating the incredible capacity of soil organic carbon (SOC) to fight climate change. But hold the celebratory cake! A paper in the journal SOIL by Raza et al. (2025) has exposed an unexpected scientific blind spot, and it’s a bit surprising! The paper, titled “Missing the input: the underrepresentation of plant physiology in ...[Read More]