Yes, the summer is technically over, but if there’s one thing geologists excel at, it’s being out doors in all weathers. Earth Science Week 2013 is upon us, and to celebrate we want as many people as possible to explore the geology in their local area – whether you live in a city or the … Continue reading
Tag Archives: maps
William Smith’s County Maps
William Smith, the ‘father of English geology’, is famous for creating the first geological map of a country – the ‘Map that changed the world.’ One of his famous geological maps of England and Wales now hangs in our entrance hall at Burlington House, where visitors still flock to see it. But what did he … Continue reading
Part two: Problems in the field
Part two of a guest blog from Layik Hama at the University of Leeds. Layik is undertaking a research project on finding techniques that will lead to the development of an app for use in the field. You can read part 1 of his blog here. Novice geologists participating in introductory level field work are … Continue reading
Turning smart phones into student smart phones
A guest blog from Layik Hama, University of Leeds ‘I would say that what makes smartphones smart, in large measure, is their sense of location’ Michael T Jones – Google Earth/Maps Smart phones and geoscience fieldwork ought to be a perfect match. Both are about location. Both are becoming increasingly accessible, as smart phones become … Continue reading
Publishing maps: a cautionary tale
Visitors to the building may notice an addition to the Lower Library – a display about the fortunes and misfortunes of one the UK’s most famous geologists never to be a Fellow, William Smith. Smith’s most celebrated achievement, the first geological map of a complete country, now hangs in our entrance hall, but he didn’t … Continue reading
Murchison’s Peacetime Map of Siluria
Sir Roderick Impey Murchison spent much of the early 1830s stomping round Wales and the West Midlands immersed in an oceanic world of metre-long sea scorpions. A world which later gave rise to both leeches and creatures with backbones. Above the waters, plants began to grow on Avalonia. It was the dawn of the age of … Continue reading
Top 5 less-volcanic lairs for Evil Geologists
Skyfall – the best Bond film ever? We’re not sure, but one thing is certain. You don’t get to be a creditable Bond villain without a proper lair in which to lurk. One year on from our first suggestions, here are a few more to choose from… Continue reading
Earth Science Week 2012 – mapping the future
All week, we’re exploring some of the more unusual directions a career in Earth sciences can take you. We’ve been as far as the Philippines, but for today’s profile we don’t even need to leave the building, as our map librarian Paul discusses a fascinating career path you might not have thought of… Continue reading
Early Geological Social Networking
When I imagine the early geological map-makers, I think of men on grand tours, taking geological hammers to prise fragments of rock from exposed strata. Late at night they’d examine their findings by candlelight, take notes and draw sketch maps, later to be incorporated into the great cartographic works they published and left to us … Continue reading
Digitising the map collection: new toys
‘Do you have a digital copy of that map?’ It’s probably the most common question I get asked in the Map Room. Currently our collection is almost 100% hardcopy mapping, collected by Fellows and librarians throughout the 200 years of the Society’s existence. We hold all sorts of maps including one printed on silk and … Continue reading
The Geological Society Blog 