As we enter the 400ppm world for the first time in a good chunk of geological history, issues of environment, sustainability and climate change are, more than ever, a source of discussion – and often heated dispute – in the media. As these issues are debated by governments and policy-makers, hardly one day goes by without a series of news articles on topics such as shale gas, warming c ...[Read More]
Geology Jenga
How to Find Ghosts in Sediment Cores
Hi! And welcome to Geology Jenga and our very first blog post :)! As this is our first post, we have picked a topic that integrates elements of both our research interests. In this initial post, we aim to give a flavour of the science that will be covered on our blog in the future, provide an introduction to the techniques we employ in our PhD’s and hopefully provide some useful insight into how s ...[Read More]
Polluting the Internet
If it wasn’t for those pesky aerosols…
Climate change is a subject that science knows a lot about; broadly, we can demonstrate that greenhouse gases have accumulated in the atmosphere over the past 200 years or so due to our burning of fossil fuels and that this has led to a rise in temperatures across the globe. However, our atmosphere is a complex beast and we have proven particularly adept at altering it. It turns out that as well a ...[Read More]
VolcanicDegassing
Santorini: a volcano in remission?
In January 2011, Santorini volcano in Greece began to show the first subtle signs of stirring after many decades of quiet – or at least many decades without detectable activity. This presented an exceptional opportunity to track the behaviour of a very well-studied volcano at the start of a phase of ‘unrest’. Although it may seem counter-intuitive, volcanologists don’t real ...[Read More]
GeoLog
GeoTalk: Veerle Vanacker on land use, degredation and the potential of revegitation
Today in GeoTalk, we’re talking to Veerle Vanacker, and eminent geomorphologist and winner of the EGU Division Outstanding Young Scientist Award last year. She tells us about her breakthroughs in modelling land use change and erosional processes… First, could you introduce yourself and tell us a little about what you are currently working on? I currently work as a lecturer in geomorphology at the ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Reminder: GfGD Blog Competition
The GfGD Blog Competition is a great opportunity to put science communication into practice. Clear communication, particularly of complex scientific problems, is a skill that is highly valued by many employers. Good science communication is also essential for people working within NGOs and in developing countries to access beneficial scientific ideas and progress. We are currently accepting articl ...[Read More]
GeoLog
Imaggeo on Mondays: A clash of hard and soft landscapes
This week’s Imaggeo on Mondays is brought to you by the photographer himself, who describes the striking scenery of the Conwy estuary in Wales… After a workshop with salt-marsh specialists in Conwy (Wales, UK), I stayed a couple of days to explore the surroundings. Living and working in The Netherlands, for me intertidal areas are typically wide, flat expanses of land, where the horizon is far awa ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Professionalism and Social Responsibility (4): Popular Science Writing – Polished, Punchy Pyramids and Some Barbarously Bad Writing
Tim Middleton, GfGD Advocacy Development Officer, writes on a freelance basis for a number of organisations and was previously the President of the Cambridge University science magazine, BlueSci. Here he offers a few thoughts on how to go about composing an engaging piece of popular science. George Orwell had six rules for writers. It’s true that Orwell didn’t write a great deal of popular ...[Read More]
Geology for Global Development
Friday Photo (90): Eruption at Sakurajima, Japan
An eruption at Sakurajima, in Japan on 25th July 2013. Explosions of this type occur almost daily at this volcano. Our Friday Photos for the following few weeks will all be of volcanoes visited by Rick Wall during research for his PhD at UCL. Credit: Rick Wall (c) Geology for Global Development 2013
GeoLog
GeoCinema Online: The extremes
In our final instalment of GeoCinema Online, we’ve put together a collection of climate and weather documentaries covering the incredibly hot and incredibly cold, together with the extreme events that shape our planet. Settle into your sofa and enjoy some scintillating science! Fennec: Into the Saharan Cauldron The central Sahara has one of the most extreme climates on Earth, but prior to th ...[Read More]