This week in GeoTalk, we’re talking to Flo Bullough – Policy Assistant at the Geological Society who writes about both climate and policy at Four Degrees… Hi Flo, why don’t you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got into science communication? I would say that science communication is something I have always done in my academic studies without having labelled it as such. I deliberately cho ...[Read More]
Polluting the Internet
Spoiling the view
Probably the most obvious manifestation of air pollution comes when looking out of the window and scanning the horizon – does the landscape go on for miles or is the view reduced? The build-up of air pollution can often dramatically reduce visibility via a shroud of haze. On a recent trip to the Turkish Mediterranean coast near Antalya, the impact of air pollution on visibility was abundantl ...[Read More]
GeoLog
Geosciences Column: Getting a handle on glacial lakes
Glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) are caused when masses of meltwater are released from behind a glacier moraine. Moraines are piles of unconsolidated debris that have either eroded from the glacier valley or have been deposited by melting glaciers. When they fail, a huge volume of water can be released, threatening populations further down the valley. Moraine failure can be caused by avalanche ...[Read More]
VolcanicDegassing
Volcanoes Under the Ice
A fascinating story has emerged this week from a paper in Nature Geoscience by Amanda Lough and co-workers (Lough et al., 2013), on the discovery of a new volcano deep beneath the ice of the Western Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS). The discovery is partly a story of scientists looking in a place where no-one had looked before; this case, using a network of seismometers, as a part of POLENET/ANET ̵ ...[Read More]
Green Tea and Velociraptors
Theropod skulls: a note of caution
Morphometrics is a horrible word, but refers to a technique that is gaining increased traction in palaeontology in recent years. It essentially is a way of measuring anatomy, or specific aspects of anatomy. An extension of it is called geometric morphometrics, and this relies on using co-ordinate points on fossils to analyse things like shape variation. The newly minted Dr Christian Foth had a stu ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
New Placement Opportunity: Hazards Education in the Himalayas – Literature Reviews
In June 2014 a conference will take place in Leh (Ladakh Region, India) with a focus on sustainable resource development in the Himlayas. Prior to the main conference, there will be a two-day school’s conference involving students (aged 14-16 years) from 10-15 local schools. A series of lessons will be delivered to these students on the key topics of (i) climate change, energy resources and energy ...[Read More]
Geology Jenga
Make the Most of your PhD
People decide to do a PhD for a whole host of different reasons. Some are driven by wanting to explain the unknown, whilst others see it as a means of securing a better job. No matter what your reasons are there is one certain thing, you’ve got to enjoy learning and you’ve got to be curious. A PhD trains you in the arts of research, independent and critical thinking, and in geology, there is most ...[Read More]
Green Tea and Velociraptors
A new power is rising…
This post originally appeared at: http://the-briefing.com/a-new-power-is-rising/ People always under-estimate the power of the fossil record. There has always been this stigma surrounding it that it is too poor, or too biased to read ‘properly’, and is consequently of no use. I still hear this quite a bit, and there are a couple of reasons for it. Over the last ten years or so, there has been a su ...[Read More]
Green Tea and Velociraptors
Three-dimensions of palaeontological awesomeness
Scientific publishing is entering a new era, with digital content becoming more and more important in a world where data is openly and freely shared. In palaeontology, we’re not being left behind. Along with this shift, 3D fossils are adding a new breadth to the field, both in a scientific and educational context. A great example is the British Geological Survey’s immense 3D fossil project. I thou ...[Read More]
GeoLog
Townhall and Splinter Meetings at EGU 2014
In addition to the wealth of scientific sessions at the General Assembly (27 April – 2 May 2014), there is also the option to attend other meetings during EGU 2014. These include Townhall and Splinter Meetings, which are organised by conference participants. Townhall Meetings Townhall Meetings are meetings open for all participants in the conference. During these meetings new initiatives or decis ...[Read More]