Ed McGowan

Photo of attendees at VMSG 2024 conference taken from the upper balcony, looking down over the rows of people sat watching a presentation

Photo looking down on the conference dinner. People are sat round circular tables in a grand hall with a vaulted ceiling and a pipe organ.

Photo of Sir Steve Sparks giving a 60th anniversary talk looking back on 60 years of VMSG to a packed hall of attendees

Photo of attendees at VMSG 2024. Everyone is stood up two sets of stairs which flank the entrance hall of a grand gothic building.

A few highlights from our 60th Anniversary VMSG Meeting last week in Bristol. Thanks to Sam Mitchell for taking all these fab images and thanks again the local organising committee led by @pyroclasticpete.bsky.social for putting on a wonderful conference!

That’s crazy! Passing the base to parents at the ironing board was always the riskiest stage of the process

I haven’t used those beads in years. Brilliant idea!

A bit behind on the upload but I had such a great time @vmsg.bsky.social 2024 conference in Bristol. It was so great to see everyone and catch up on our volcanic adventures 🌋⚒️🧪

Photo of hexagonal columns of basalt extending out into the sea at the Giant's Causeway, N Ireland. Credit: Elliot Carter

Hi Bluesky 👋 we're the Volcanic and Magmatic Studies Group, a special interest group of the MinSoc and GeolSoc (@geolsoc.bsky.social). Follow us for updates on all things volcanic and magmatic! You can find more about what we do via the links to our website and other accounts here: linktr.ee/vmsg

I’m not sure if it is hand made, but it is very good quality

It was purchased off Zazzle for those interested

The perfect blanket doesn’t exis-

Thank you Santa! (I mean Mum)

The second of my two recently purchased old geology books has arrived! Earth-lore: geology without jargon by S. J. Shand, published in 1933.

Both of my books I got from Oxfam’s online store. They’re a great go-to for stuff like this.

Thoroughly enjoyed spending the day with Jaco Bass & Jeffrey Peakall, admiring, measuring, and discussing the beautiful Uni of Leicester BVG slabs. I’ve walked past them so many times I never truly realised just how complex their sedimentology is 😅

Yeah I was in a large company too. It’s there you notice everything is dictated by those 3-4 levels higher and are more disconnected from the ‘shop floor’ where the most people are. And too many reasons for not doing things is because it costs them money

Maybe if I find the time to digitise them 😊

The first of two recently ordered old geology books arrived! ‘The students elements of geology’ by Sir Charles Lyell (revised by Murray, 1885). The illustrations in these books is always outstanding! And the bluntness of the text can be amusing.

I noticed similar when going from an industry job back into academia for my PhD. Some PGRs were confused why the uni functioned in certain ways, but to me it made sense. Universities are businesses

So many questions. No answers 😅

All set and ready for a busy, but fun, Open Day for Geog/Geol/Env at Leicester Uni today 🌍🔨

It annoys me far more than it should that this tile in Leicester’s Highcross shopping centre is upside down (even if heavily tilted) 🙈⚒️

My first paper is now out!!
“Cohesional behaviours in Pyroclastic material and the implications for deposit architecture” 🌋

Thank you so much to my *incredible* supervisory team and the enthusiastic and thorough reviews from the Editor and 2 reviewers

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Map of the world from 1825 showing the parallel trains of volcanic vents and great mountain ranges. From George Poulett Scrope’s ‘Considerations on Volcanos’, W Phillips, London 1825.

George Poulett Scrope’s 1825 global map of volcanoes (pink) and mountain ranges (grey) showing their ‘parallelism’; and the ‘remarkable train of openings circling the Pacific’. Scrope suggested that processes of ‘subterranean expansion’ might both raise mountains, and cause eruptions. #geo #envhist

Watched it three times… 👀

My latest geo-gaming paper managed to survive the review process with only minor revisions needed! It got amazingly positive comments from all reviewers, so I can’t wait for everyone else to read it. Just need to get through pesky Reviewer 3’s comments #volcanoesinvideogames #geogaming ⚒️🧪🎮

We're almost at 2000 signatures so we're keeping it open until we got that milestone.
Please sign of you are in science- academia, industry, other, UK or abroad. Signatures can be anonymous too!

So cool to sit in an undergrad lecture today and see my own research on video games used as a teaching example! Proof video games have a place in geog/geol education 🧪⚒️

It is! Shame they just take so long to make with the drying and all

I discovered a YouTube video on how to paint ‘burnt lava’ volcanic bases for Warhammer minis and I just HAD to try it! Pretty happy with how they turned out and can’t wait to make more

Today’s University of Leicester’s #OpenDay is in full swing. Got the Geology physical volcanology stand up to show off the fantastic array of specimens that our students get to study!

Letter to Secretary of State re EDI in science Online survey BOS

✉️ Some science 🧪 buddies and I have written an open letter to the UK government, strongly opposing their “kicking woke ideology out of science” sentiments, which stand to damage the UK’s scientific standing and ability to deliver for public good.

Please read and consider signing ✍🏻

t.co/H7rNzb0wGh

Demonstrated for the Leicester Uni geology 2nd years for the first time this morning. It was great to see them not only use their knowledge learnt from last year, but also apply it and start questioning real data. Solid bunch

A fantastic blog - it’s amazing how much you can learn from video games, even ones not designed to teach. But if you combine engaging gameplay with a solid teaching plan, people can gain so much 🧪⚒️🎮🌋

The resounding joy of finding a lost paper that I forgot to cite when drafting a thesis chapter ❤️ Now I can put that paragraph to rest #PhDSky