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]
Geology for Global Development
Friday Photo (80): Wildlife in the Field – Lizard on Dolomite
A lizard basks on top of a very uncomfortable looking dolomitised grainstone. This dolomitised layer is part of a sequence of platform carbonates that formed 550 million years ago. Only some of the layers are dolomitised, and it is unclear whether the dolomite is primary, or formed secondarily, possibly as a result of Mg-rich fluids flowing along small faults. (c) Geology for Global Development 20 ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Guest Blog: An Economist’s Perspective on Natural Resources
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. Jim Cust, a graduate student in economics, presented this term’s Oxford University Group GfGD seminar. In addition to his research Jim is also a directo ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
New Placement Opportunities – Deadline Midday 2nd June 2013
Placements give students a valuable opportunity to get an insight into the international development sector, consider what key skills they need to develop to contribute to such work, and better understand the role of geoscience in fighting poverty. Following successful placements with the NGO CAFOD, GfGD are delighted to announce two new placement opportunities for UK-based geoscience students ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Friday Photo (79): Wildlife in the Field – the Underside of a Cricket
The underside of a cricket in focus against a blurred carbonate ramp succession in the background. Taken in Namibia in 2012. Send us your favourite photos of wild encounters whilst out in the field! Blog[at]gfgd.org (c) Geology for Global Development 2013
Geology for Global Development
GfGD Recommends: Other Good Blogs!
A new generation of scientists are embracing the chance to interact with each other and the public through social media (twitter, facebook pages and blogs). We’ve looked around and picked out some of our favourite geoscience blogs. Why not consider starting a blog for yourself or your research group? You could write about your own research, the best bits from your lectures or items in the ne ...[Read More]
GeoSphere
Tools of the Trade
It is already May!! Crazy. Everyone in the department is incredibly busy right now trying to get all of those things on their winter to-do list checked off before it is time to head out to the field once again and re-fill the to-do list for next winter with sample prep, analysis and some interpretation. It is also time to start thinking of preparing for the field. Some of you hard rock folk might ...[Read More]
Green Tea and Velociraptors
Conservation biology – let’s get integrated!
Conserving our world’s biodiversity is currently one of the biggest challenges we face. I wrote a post recently about some of the issues palaeontologists face when trying to make our science relative to current conservation management and biodiversity issues (and have written elsewhere about this too). This is very much a developing issue within which palaeontology is framing itself, as with ever ...[Read More]
GeoSphere
Geology Photo of the Week #33
The photo of the week this week is of a very special place in Canada. Yes, predictably, it is the Yukon. However, this part of the Yukon is unique. It is a special region known as Beringia, which extends into Alaska and Siberia and it is the only part of Canada that was not covered by kilometers of ice during the last glaciation. Beringia is a special place because it is believed that that first h ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Chinese-African Partnerships: Impact in the Mining Industry
China has boosted its aid contribution to the African continent. Whilst the total is still low compared with the US aid budget, the trend signifies a wider partnership between the two giants. In the UK, international aid is mainly spent on protecting our national interests. China is emerging as an economic superpower and as a major aid donor, and this raises the question – what interest does ...[Read More]