Geobulletin alpha

Misc. fossil bits and pieces from the Bois D'Arc formation 

To close out this series of posts featuring fossils I found in the Bois D'Arc formation of Oklahoma, I have a few pieces left from my finds that don't merit a full blog post entry so I'm consolidating them here. They are each interesting in their own right and deserve at least a mention.This is a piece I kept as a curiosity. It appears to be the mold from some sort of epitheca that belongs to a coral (like Favosites conicus) or Bryozoan (like Lichenalia sp.).  There is some sort of [...]

It’s not all field work… 

We left Palmer yesterday morning, after picking up cargo and some passengers. We headed back up to Livingston Island, where there is a field camp at Cape Shirreff. We have to pick up some scientists who have been living and working there and take them back to Punta Arenas with us. Since the field camp is closing for the season, there was a lot of cargo to load onto the ship! We pitched in to help with the loading and unloading. There isn’t a pier at Cape Shirreff, so everything had to [...]

The Red Hills Weren't Exactly Red Today: Goldfields in the Gold Fields 

If my blog posts seem a bit scattered of late, bouncing from one place to another, well, it's kind of true. On the other hand, there is an occasional theme that runs through many of my disparate posts: California has had more water fall from the sky this year than any of the last five. We have been and still are in the grips of the worst drought in California's state history, and so a season

Field Rucksack – Inside the bag of a mining geologist 

Inspired by a post on Lifehacker on what your average geologist carries in their rucksack/backpack, we’ve put together a few blog posts showcasing what a range of our EGU members carry in their bags whilst in the field! Of course, it’s not only research geoscientists who carry kit! Earth scientists in industry often require a number of tools to carry out their daily duties. Today we feature the contents of Dave Perkin’s bag, a mining geologist working in a gold mine in Western Australia. [...]

Top 3 posts 2015 

Today I was reviewing my blog posts of 2015 in search for ideas for what topics to write more about. Going through the statistics I found three blog posts that received the most of attention since restarting my blog in 2015. So, I here are the Top 3 posts 2015! Most viewed was the rather short Online clay science resources post with 2050 views. Seems like there is a need for such information

What is in your field rucksack? A trip to Chilean Patagonia 

Inspired by a post on Lifehacker on what your average geologist carries in their rucksack/backpack, we’ve put together a few blog posts showcasing what a range of our EGU members carry in their bags whilst in the field! Of course, fieldwork in Northern Europe vs. research in Australia is very different, think only of the weather! The same is true if you’ve been embarked on research in the Arctic vs. the Amazon, for instance. The second bag we take a peek into belongs to Alejandro [...]

Job opportunity at the EGU General Assembly 

We have a vacancy for an early career science communicator or science journalism student in Europe to work at the press office of the 2016 General Assembly, which is taking place in Vienna, Austria, from 17–22 April. Applications from geosciences students with science communication experience are also welcome. We are particularly interested in receiving applications from people with experience in photo and video reporting. The student will join the team assisting the EGU press officer and [...]

What is in your field rucksack? Take a peek in Zoe Mildon’s bag 

Inspired by a post on Lifehacker on what your average geologist carries in their rucksack/backpack, we’ve put together a few blog posts showcasing what a range of our EGU members carry in their bags whilst in the field! Of course, fieldwork in Northern Europe vs. research in Australia is very different, think only of the weather! The same is true if you’ve been embarked on research in the Arctic vs. the Amazon, for instance. The first bag we take a peek into belongs to Zoe Mildon, a PhD [...]

Link to posts from Wooster Geologists in the United Kingdom in June 2015 

I spent 25 days in England, Scotland and Wales this month, 12 of them with these two happy Senior Independent Study students, Mae Kemsley (’16) and Meredith Mann (’16) — dubbed “Team Yorkshire”. We had to delay our blog posts until today. You can see all of them by clicking the UK2015 tag. It was

Using Social Media for Food Security: Talk to Us 

The 2nd International Conference on Global Food Security will feature a social media-savvy Junior Researcher Task Force, responsible for capturing and distributing via Twitter and blog posts the key insights and conversation topics that evolve during the conference. Read on to

A Dinosaur Reading List for Everyone 

So you want to learn more about dinosaurs. There are blog posts and videos, of course, but what

Domes galore: Panum Dome, Long Valley 

Oh, man. Summer is a terrible time for keeping up with blog posts, but I've had a good reason to be absent - I was off in Denver on business and slightly wilder parts of California with my alma mater's summer field course. I mean, what geologist could pass up the chance to tag along on a trip to Long Valley and Yosemite? During the Long Valley and Mono Lake portion of the trip, I actually did do a little work, serving as the trip's volcanology expert and talking about lava domes as much as [...]

No love for Ichthyodectes? 

It seems like nearly every year a new book, film, or television program comes out featuring the long-dead seaway that covered most of the central part of North America back in the late Cretaceous. Invariably they have cameos featuring Xiphactinus, Cretoxyrhina, Protosphyraena, and even the "bait fish" Gillicus and Enchodus. They have mosasaurs, pterosaurs and even sea turtles. If you didn't follow the science closely, you'd understandably figure that's about all that lived in that shallow [...]

Monday Geology Picture: More Sydney Sandstone 

I’m still in Australia at the moment but will be home in a few days. I’m looking forward to writing up a few blog posts about some geological sights in Australia once I’m back home. For now, though, here’s a picture showing another beautiful example of sandstone in the Sydney area. This picture was taken at the Sydney Zoo. The red and orange colors are a result of iron oxidation.

Monday Geology Picture: Cross-Bedding Near Bondi Beach, Australia 

I’m visiting Australia at the moment and will have a few blog posts to write up once I’m back at home. For now, though, here’s a sneak peek at some geology in Sydney. I took this picture close to Bondi Beach. There are some lovely exposures of sandstone outcrops near the

Constellaria Bryozoan Fossil 

Here is a picture of a Constellaria bryozoan fossil. It is known for its star like patterns on the fossil surface. Recently, it was found in Maysville, Kentucky, USA. The Upper Ordovician Period formations found at that location are Grant Lake (Maysvillian) and Bull Fork (Richmondian). Thanks to Kenny for the image. Past related blog posts:

Sea arch in pyroclastic deposits, Santorini, Greece 

A series of blog posts on the geology of Santorini and Athens, Greece begins with a look at a sea arch on the south shore of

3QD blogging contest metadata 

The long-lived, old-school blogging site 3 quarks daily is holding its annual science blogging contest  They have nominated eighty-five blog posts upon which one can vote to advance it into the finals round.  In theory, this means that everyone voting should read all 85 posts, and make an honest choice.  If that doesn't work, then they should at least skim each post- OK, how about

Geolocating GNS Science Outreach 

Announcing our new Google Map that shows the locations of videos and blog posts within New Zealand. Zoom in and out to find a location and click on any icon to go straight to the online content.If you enable full screen (by clicking on the square icon at the top right of the map) you can switch layers off or on and change the style of the base map.We will be uploading more layers of GNS Science content onto this map in the future.To access the map at any time you can find it in the menu on the [...]

Vintage Dinosaur Art: The AMNH's Book of Dinosaurs, Part 2 - James Robins 

Over the years of writing these blog posts, I'd like to think that I've matured somewhat - that the vodka-fuelled gratuity of my late university years has mellowed into something more thoughtful and, dare I say it, nuanced. (Oh yes. I went there.) Sure, I'll still point out shonky dinosaur art, but with less savagery, and an acknowledgement that, by contemporary standards, it's often not so bad. Plus, illustrators gotta eat.On the other hand, one is occasionally reminded that a few - a very few [...]