No trip to Aberdeen would be complete without incorporating Scotland’s most famous export (apart from shortbread and Andy Murray). Luckily, we had a valid geological reason too – the link between whisky and geology is well known. Continue reading
Category Archives: Events
The heat beneath our feet
We were expecting chilly weather here in northern Scotland, but so far the sun has been shining on the British Science Festival in Aberdeen! We don’t think of Scotland -or the UK for that matter -as a particularly warm place, but underground it’s a different story. Yesterday, scientists from the British Geological Survey explained the … Continue reading
Flippin’ Earth
The Earth’s magnetic poles might feel like a constant – north is north, south is south – but they turn out to be a lot more complicated than that, as we found out yesterday in our event at the British Science Festival in Aberdeen, where Kathy Whaler, Conall Mac Niocaill and Ciaran Beggan took our … Continue reading
Olympic Games count down…!
With just one week to go until the big launch, we arrived at the geology castle this week to find ourselves Wenlocked! Continue reading
BGS centre announces geology’s key worth
BGS celebrates completion of a £25m investment that mirrors Earth science’s value to the nation, says Chief Scientific Adviser. The Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser, Professor Sir John Beddington CMG FRS, opened the headquarters of the British Geological Survey in Keyworth, after its £25m makeover. Formerly named for former Director Sir Kingsley Dunham, the Nottinghamshire campus … Continue reading
Something wiki this way comes…
What are the most visited websites in the world? To answer this question, many of us will refer to Wikipedia. While the site hasn’t quite achieved the stratospheric heights of Facebook and Google, it is rarely out of the top ten. “Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the … Continue reading
Geology with added microbes
One of the fastest growing areas of research in the geosciences is what is now called ‘geomicrobiology’. Although bacteria and other microbes have long been used in industrial processes such as bioleaching, where metals are extracted from their mined ores, it is only now that the role played by microbes in geological processes is being … Continue reading
Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink – the future for water?
The problem Coleridge’s Ancient Mariner faced, becalmed in the middle of the ocean, was that despite ‘water, water, everywhere’, none of it was suitable for drinking. The average human can survive for only a few days without access to clean drinking water. It is literally a vital resource. Continue reading
Between a rock and a Bard: geology and poetry
Over a year ago the Geological Society put out a call for ‘the best geological poems, original or otherwise’ to be read at an event this October 10th to mark National Poetry Day and Earth Science Week. It has been my privilege to read the submitted poems and a delight to see the variety of material … Continue reading
To mine or not to mine?
Last week’s tragic events in the Swansea Valley serve as a stark reminder of the dangers of looking underground for our fuel sources. It came on a day when we joined the Archaeology and Anthropology section at the British Science Festival for a field trip to the National Coal Mining Museum in Bradford. We spoke … Continue reading
The Geological Society Blog 