We highlight some of the items that have caught our eye in the news recently Volcanic History In a recent study, published in IOP Science, Irish historical records were used to trace the impact of volcanic eruptions on climate over a 1200 year period. Geological events are recorded by geochemical proxies and physical changes within the rocks – these are the lines of evidence that geol ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Guest Blog: Disaster Resilience in Dharamsala, India
John McCarthy and Sam Bradley are collaborating to develop an earthquake awareness and disaster resilience program for vulnerable communities in Dharamsala, India. The region is predicted to have an extremely large earthquake in the next 50 years and they are looking to raise awareness, develop community programs and improve the resilience capacity for the population. John and Sam both have Master ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Friday Photo (83): Wildlife in the Field – Giant Millipede Inspects Stromatolites
A giant millipede kindly provides a scale for a photo of some stromatolites in the Nama group, Namibia. Microbial communities grow upwards towards the light. Each growth phases is cemented by carbonate grains that stick to the sticky EPS substance that the communities produce, forming layered stromatolite columns. The stromatolites pictured above formed 550 million years ago – just as some o ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Guest Blog: Programme Review – Rise of the Continents
Helen Ashcroft is currently a DPhil student at the University of Oxford. She blogs for the Bang! Science Magazine (Planet Blog) and is also a STEMNET Ambassador, working to promote science, technology, maths and engineering to young people. Helen has written for the GfGD Blog before, about career paths in the development sector and the economics of natural resources. Today, Helen reviews Professo ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Historical Hazards: Lessons From Ancient Rome
The town of Pompeii was enveloped in ash during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79AD. To the north of Pompeii lies the small, relatively unknown town of Herculaneum, where the ash fell hotter and deeper. Careful excavation by a team of archaeologists, led by Andrew Wallace-Hadrill, has revealed intricate details of daily life for the vibrant mix of people that once lived in Herculaneum. The cast ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Friday Photo (82): Wildlife in the Field – Confused Sheep
Each morning when we arrived in the field, hoards of sheep* would come marching over sandstone ridges from miles around to congregate in front of our car. After spending a while thinking we may have established a new animal religion, we realised the poor animals mistook us for their farmer coming to feed them. *We acknowledge that sheep aren’t actually ‘wildlife’! (c) Geology for ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Borehole Implementation in Tanzania: The Story of Kabalekela
Joel Gill writes about the implementation of a borehole in Kabalekela, a village in the north-west of Tanzania. In 2009 and 2010 I visited the village of Kabalekela in the Kagera region of Tanzania to observe the situation there with regards to access to clean and safe water. In short, the village severely struggled to access any clean water. The nearest sources were several kilometres away, and t ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Book Review – Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded (Simon Winchester, 2003, Penguin Books)
“Should form an essential part of the reading list for every undergraduate geologist” – Joel Gill, GfGD’s National Director, reviews Simon Winchester’s 2003 bestseller Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded… During a recent break I had the privilege of reading Simon Winchester’s best-selling book Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded (I know what you’re thinking – ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Friday Photo (81): Wildlife in the Field – Glacial Tortoises
A pair of tortoises retreat into their shells in fear as a couple of geologists appear to study the diamictite they are walking over. Clasts visible in the rock below mark melting events at the end of the Gondwana glaciation, 300 million years ago. Deposits like these cover much of southern Gondwana, and can be found today in southern Africa, Antarctica, Australia, India and South America. This se ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Rare Earth Elements: Geochemistry and Geopolitics
The ‘rare earth elements’ (REEs) are a series of similar elements that are rarely encountered on the Earth’s surface. They’re not even allowed to sit in the proper periodic table, banished to a small row floating below with only the ‘actinide series’ (the what?!) for company. REEs have always been the lonely kid in the playground, but now our mum is making us in ...[Read More]