2025-2026
All talks for 2025-26 will take place at the Central Teaching Hub of the University of Liverpool, Lecture Theatre C, but please check the LGS Newsletter to make sure there has not been a change of room for a particular meeting. Entrance will be via the main door.
Talks will start at 7.30pm and finish by 9.00pm.
Please be aware that for security reasons, the building manager may lock the main door to stop access from outside at some time after 7.30pm. If you arrive late and are unable to gain access, you may need to contact someone inside the lecture to let you in.
2025
7th Oct
Professor Pete Burgess
University of Liverpool
Presidential Address:
Artificial Intelligence in Geoscience:How it works and why it often doesn’t.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has been headline news in recent years, but how does it work, and what does this new technology mean for geoscience? Will AI revolutionise geoscience as often claimed, or is this just the latest in a long serious of bubbles with exaggerated claims of AI capability? This talk will explain the basics of how the latest AI methods work and show examples of
how it can be very useful, but also explain the limitations that mean AI often does not work as well as required, and make an argument that true and truly useful machine intelligence has not yet been invented; Sarah Connor is likely safe for a while yet.
14th Oct
Dr. Rob Duller
University of Liverpool
Alluvial stratigraphic architecture viewed through a mass-balance lens.
Rob is an Earth scientist with expertise in Earth surface processes and sedimentary geology. My research focuses on combining novel and innovative techniques in sedimentology, stratigraphy, geomorphology, and
basin analysis to answer timely research questions in both pure and applied aspects of the Earth sciences. I have strong research interests in sediment routing system dynamics, Earth surface morphodynamics,
sedimentation & stratigraphy, and catastrophic outburst floods
28th Oct
Dr. Paige dePolo
Liverpool John Moores University
The taphonomy of a pantodont-rich assemblage from the San Juan Basin, New Mexico, USA
66 million years ago, an asteroid hit the earth and kicked off the Cretaceous-Paleogene mass extinction. In the wake of this extinction, many weird and enigmatic mammals began radiating into empty niches. One group, pantodonts, quickly grew to the largest mammals yet known in Earth history. In this talk, we’ll look at a collection of fossils from Torreon Wash in the San Juan Basin of New Mexico and think about their taphonomy (what happened to the animals after death). I will then develop an argument for gregariousness within Pantolambda bathmodon (a small pantodont) and illustrate that grouping behaviour is wide-spread within this clade.
4th Nov
Professor Jim Marshall
University of Liverpool
Bill Harper
The Deva Debate
Did water from the Mersey ever flow into the Dee Estuary? A hundred and more years ago many historians and some geologists accepted the hypothesis that the historic Mersey flowed westwards through the ‘Deva Spillway’ (an erosional channel through the Wirral) to enter the Dee near Chester. Despite arguments to the contrary the idea has persisted through to modern times. In this debate Jim will discuss early (but post-glacial) origins for the channel whilst Bill (recent book available – £5) will discuss the evidence for much more recent change. You can decide what you think!
11th Nov
Professor Yani Najman
Lancaster University
Geology of the Himalayas
Dr William Brown is a geophysicist at the British Geological Survey in Edinburgh, specialising in geomagnetism. His work combines research into understanding and modelling observations of Earth’s magnetic field and applications of geomagnetic models to global and local navigation. He is particularly interested in how the field changes in time.
18th Nov
Dr. William Brown
British Geological Survey (Edinburgh)
“The wandering magnetic north pole”
Many of us are aware that Earth has a magnetic field, and that the magnetic compass has been around for a while and can help us navigate, but fewer of us are aware of how changeable Earth’s magnetic field is, and to what extent magnetic navigation is still integrated in our modern technology-heavy lives. We will look at what observations and models tell us about the changing field – from the particularly active recent decades for the north magnetic pole to the possibility of a reversal of the magnetic poles.”
25th Nov
Professor Jim Marshall & Dr Lis Rushworth
University of Liverpool
Practical session: Digital Landscape Mapping using LIDAR surveys
Feature mapping has always been an important aid in the construction of Geological Maps. Participants will have the opportunity to develop a better understanding of modern, digital, terrain maps and have a chance to explore the use of online resources that can be used at home or on their phones. We will go on a virtual field trip to explore an area in the Pennines which is very familiar to LGS members!
This practical session will be in the CTL ENVS Lab and start at 7.00 p.m. Numbers will be restricted so booking is essential. Contact Jim Marshall if you wish to reserve a place: email: isotopes@liverpool.ac.uk
9th Dec
2026
6th Jan
Members’ evening
Anyone with some short presentation lasting 10 – 15 minutes, that they would like to share, please contact Chris Hunt email: chris1972scfc@outlook.com
26th Jan
Dr. Iestyn Barr
Manchester Metropolitan University
Volcanic hazard response
3rd Feb
Dr. Neil Meadows
Redrock Associates
Triassic
17th Feb
The Hazel Clark memorial practical.
Dr. Maggie Williams & Dr. Lis Rushworth
University of Liverpool
Volcanic ash
This practical is the first LGS event to be held in memory of Hazel Clark. The volcanic ash samples used in this practical are samples that were collected by Hazel.
24th Feb
Dr. Alan Thompson
Cuesta Consulting
Geoconservation
3rd Mar
Dr. Katy Chamberlain
University of Liverpool
Something Igneous?
