Magnus Harding obtained this picture of the element distribution in a ~60 million year old plant fossil (Taxodium or Sequoia) using TOF-SIMS on a specimen from the Natural History Museum of Denmark collections. The graphics was awarded the annual Art in Science Award 2017for “the best scientific explanation”. Here is a photo from the award show.
BSc thesis defence: Magnus A. R. Harding
BSc student Magnus August Ravn Harding will defend his thesis project, entitle: “Surface analyses of fossil leaves”. When: November 8, 2017 @ 15.00–16.00. Where: Meeting room, Geological Museum, Øster Voldgade 5-7, 1350 Copenhagen K
Why did it take so long before animals appeared on Earth?
One of the big mysteries in the history of life is why it took so long time for complex organisms to evolve. The Earth is 4.5 billion years old and fossils of the first motile animals are ca. 555 million years old. It took 3,945,000,000 years or almost 4 million millennia before evolution in mostly microbial ecosystems evolved organisms with a capacity to … Read More
Science sets sail: outreach and networking onboard tall ship Thor Heyerdahl
Friedrich-Alexander Universitat Erlangen-Nurnberg have arranged an old fashioned expedition with the three-masted scooner, Thor Heyerdahl. The cruise will bring together scientists from a wide range of fields and from countries around the Baltic Sea. Tais will attend the cruise along with geologists from Germany and the UK on the first leg fra Malmø (Sweden) to Riga (Latvia) from July 18-25. … Read More
Publication: Brief oxygenation event during the Cambrian explosion linked to a reorganization of the marine biogeochemical cycles – might be animal-driven
A recent article published in Geochemical Perspectives Letters, we present carbon, sulfur and uranium isotope data from Siberian limestone sections straddling the Cambrian Stage 2–3 boundary (Tommotian-Atdabanian) 521–519 million years ago. We discovered a new type of oceanic event where enhanced marine organic carbon and pyrite burial coincides with a more oxygenated ocean state. The event was relative brief, … Read More
Lecture: Andy Knoll – Systems Paleobiology
The relationship between Earth and life through time How Systems Paleobiology uses physiology as the conceptual bridge between paleobiological and geochemical data sets and provides us with a template for understanding global climate change and evaluation of the habitability of other planets. Professor Andrew H. Knoll, Fisher Professor of Natural History,Departments of Organismic and Evolutionary … Read More
Publication: Molybdenum re-dissolves and re-precipitates in euxinic lake sediments
In a paper published in Chemical Geology entitled: “Molybdenum isotope fractionation and speciation in a euxinic lake—Testing ways to discern isotope fractionation processes in a sulfidic setting”, we compare molybdenum isotope and speciation data from lake sediments deposited under euxinic (anoxic and sulfidic) waters. We conclude that the chemical Mo species present in sediments did not … Read More
MSc thesis defense: Sune F. Månsson
When Wednesday April 26, 2017 at 12:30-14:00 Where Undervisningslokalet Øster Farimagsgade 2D What Sune F Månsson will defend his MSc thesis entitled: “Did Bioturbating Animals in the Early Cambrian Influence the Global Biogeochemical Cycles of Carbon and Sulfur?” Abstract A major global change in the biogeochemical cycle of carbon in the Early Cambrian, Stage 2 … Read More
Call for applications: PhD in geochemistry / geobiology. Deadline April 30
The project is to study how the invasions of land plants influenced the oxygenation state of Earth’s oceans. The project will include experimental geochemistry (laboratory work), field work and geochemical modelling. Check out the official call here: We are looking for a self-driven student with a background in experimental geochemistry (or equivalent) and a strong motivation to conduct research in Earth history. Please … Read More
Molybdenum review: The answer is 42
Molybdenum is element number 42 in the periodic table. Although, this element is a trace constituent in the Earth and life, it currently deserves a lot of attention. With Brian Kendall and Ariel Anbar, I have written a review that brings the latest update on the various aspects of molybdenum isotopes and their current use in geochemistry, cosmochemistry and … Read More