SEE Here School of Earth and Environment In this update: WELCOME from the Head of School & Editors Celebrating our new building No recession in research Learning and Teaching news, including an update on our UTF and ADF projects Prizes awarded to our staff and students both in research and in learning and teaching In the news: highlighting where our research has hit the headlines Next Issue: Autumn 2010 Welcome to an update on our activity in 2010! 2010 represents an exciting and important period in the history of the School and of earth and environmental science excellence at Leeds. The state-of-the-art facilities provided by the new building, together with the co-location of all staff and students for the first time, is proving a real stimulus to continued growth and success at a time when the external funding climate is tightening. The move in was successfully co-ordinated through the treacherous icy months of winter with the final touches now being provided in the spring sun. The School’s future vision is built on strong collegiality and the ability to draw on research excellence across and between disciplines. As such, the new communal spaces are proving pivotal to the vibrant atmosphere of enquiry that is central to our future successes in world-leading research and student experience. Here’s to many years of success in the SEE building ! Andy Dougill, Piers Forster and Joanna Bowen, Spring 2010 University of Leeds Chancellor Melvyn Bragg will officially open the new School of Earth and Environment building on Friday 30 April in the presence of Vice-Chancellor Professor Michael Arthur and Pro-Chancellor Linda Pollard and over 100 invited guests. The £23 million facility provides state-of-the-art facilities to house staff and students from the School’s four research institutes, allowing them to tackle global environmental challenges such as on climate change, energy, water and sustainable development as one powerful interdisciplinary team. The new facility features purpose-built laboratories, flexible teaching rooms, computing suites and a range of formal and informal meeting spaces designed to facilitate the sharing of ideas. It also boasts a range of eco-features such as rainwater harvesting, solar panels and an insulating grass roof, that now make it the most energy-efficient building on campus. Lord Bragg said: “The opening of this fantastic new facility comes at a critical time when the world is preparing to tackle grand challenges of importance to us all. I am sure the School of Earth and Environment will flourish in its new surroundings.” Prof Michael Arthur added: “The University of Leeds is one of the leading centres for environmental research in the UK. Not only is the new building a wonderful addition to our great campus, but facilities such as this will allow us to remain at the forefront of research and education on a broad range of environmental and societal issues in 2010 and beyond.” SEE Here: Learning and Teaching New building offers new opportunities for L&T Our new building brings together a series of state-of-the-art facilities to support the student experience, marrying the existing Earth Visualisation Laboratory with new computer clusters and Kennedy Library, as well as highly innovative technology. We have a brand new 3D visualisation suite and a high spec Masters computing laboratory, equipped with industry standard software. The 3D visualisation suite will be used to enhance undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, enabling us to produce simulations of weather systems, natural disasters such as earthquakes and Hurricane Katrina, and geological models of aquifers and hydrocarbon reservoirs. We have funding from the Teaching Enhancement and Student Support (TESS) fund and Geography, Earth and Environmental Science (GEES) subject centre to develop a range of immersive activities that will link traditional classes with field trips across a range of our degree programmes. To further help us to make the most of our new facilities, we have Strategic Infrastructure Funding that will provide a new technology pool for blended learning in the School. This includes digital video and voice recorders for producing multimedia content for our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), and ‘Who wants to be a millionaire?” style clickers or ‘personal response systems’ to allow for highly interactive learning within lectures, practicals, workshops or seminars. Spring 2010 www.see.leeds.ac.uk www.see.leeds.ac.uk Recession will only delay dangerous climate change by 21 months Annual global emissions of carbon dioxide in 2012 will be up to 9 per cent lower than predicted before the global economic downturn, according to a new CCCEP Report published. However, this lower level of emissions will only delay by 21 months the point at which world experiences 2°C of warming above pre-industrial temperatures if 'business as usual' levels of greenhouse gas emissions resume after economic recovery. The report by researchers at the ESRC Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy, concludes that even if the downturn deteriorates into a depression similar to that of the 1930s, carbon dioxide emissions from the use of fossil fuels will still only be 23 per cent lower than they would have been without the downturn. This means that even a severe global depression would delay by only five years the point at which the world passes through the threshold of 2°C of warming, compared with pre-industrial levels, if 'business as usual' trends in emissions resume afterwards. Professor Andy Gouldson, who is a co-author of the report and director of the Centre at the University of Leeds, said: "Our results show that although the downturn is likely to cause a measurable decrease in global emissions, it will only delay temporarily the relentless rise in emissions that we have seen over the past few decades. "If we return to 'business as usual' emissions after the economic crisis is over, the profound and severe risks of climate change impacts will continue to grow. So the global downturn does not remove the urgent need for a strong political agreement to be reached." The results are based on an economic model, developed by Dan O’Neill and Klaus Hubacek, coupled with a climate model developed by Alex Rap and Piers Forster. UK emissions are also predicted in the report to be up to 9 per cent lower in 2012 than would have been expected without the recession. A reduction of 9 per cent would occur if the downward trend in carbon intensity continues through the recession because of, for example, the impact of new policies and improvements in energy efficiency. However, the report also points out that UK businesses with newer buildings and equipment tend to be more energy efficient. Any reduction in investments in new buildings and equipment as a result of the recession would slow down improvements in the energy efficiency of UK businesses, and would lead to emissions being lower by less than 9 per cent. Professor Gouldson said: "It is clear that the recession has made it easier for the UK to meet its commitments under the Kyoto Protocol. But that is no reason for complacency, given that the recession and lower energy prices may have slowed down investments in energy efficiency by UK businesses." The report was commissioned by the UK Economic and Social Research Council and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. Earth’s increased sensitivity to carbon dioxide The Earth’s temperature may be 30-50% more sensitive to atmospheric carbon dioxide than has previously been estimated, according to research by a scientist at the University of Leeds. Published in Nature Geoscience, the results show that components of the Earth's climate system that vary over long timescales -  such as land-ice and vegetation - have an important effect on this temperature sensitivity, but these factors are often neglected in current climate models. Dan Lunt, from the University of Bristol, with colleagues, including Alan Haywood in SEE, compared results from a global climate model to temperature reconstructions of the Earth's environment three million years ago, when global temperatures and carbon dioxide concentrations were relatively high.  The temperature reconstructions were derived using data from three million-year-old sediments on the ocean floor. The authors demonstrate that the increased temperatures indicated by the reconstructions can be explained if factors that vary over long timescales, such as land-ice and vegetation, are included in the model. This is primarily because changes in vegetation and ice lead to more sunlight being absorbed, which in turn increases warming. Alan Haywood, a co-author on the study from the University of Leeds, said "If we want to avoid dangerous climate change, this high sensitivity of the Earth to carbon dioxide should be taken into account when defining targets for the long-term stabilisation of atmospheric greenhouse-gas concentrations". Including these long-term processes in the model resulted in an increased temperature response of the Earth to carbon dioxide, indicating that the Earth's temperature is more sensitive to carbon dioxide than previously recognised. Climate models used by bodies such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change often do not fully include these long-term processes, thus these models do not entirely represent the sensitivity of the Earth's temperature to carbon dioxide.  Lunt added: "This study has shown that studying past climates can provide important insights into how the Earth might change in the future." Temperature response of the Earth (in degrees C) to an increase in atmospheric CO2 from pre-industrial levels (280ppm by volume) to higher levels (400ppm by volume): Shows predicted global temperatures when processes adjust on relatively short-term timescales (for example sea-ice, clouds and water vapour( are included in the model. Includes additional long-term processes that adjust on relatively long timescales (vegetation and land ice). Rock music from the Cumbrian hills The world-famous percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie is taking part in a new project which introduces children to geology by constructing and playing ‘musical rocks’. The University of Leeds was awarded nearly £200,000 by Natural England, through DEFRA's Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund, to create a 21st century percussion instrument using rocks found throughout Cumbria. Although most rocks simply give a dull thud when struck, some rocks ‘ring’ – including a number of those found in Cumbria. With the assistance of music and multimedia technologies, this project will use real-time digital signal processing to bring out the qualities of the rock sound beyond the range of natural hearing - making an innovative percussion instrument. The project co-ordinator, Bobbie Millar, said: “This project is a great example of bringing together different disciplines to create something that is unusual, exciting and accessible. For some people geology can seem very academic, but this project is designed to make it fun and understandable by blending it with music and technology.” The project is being hosted by Brantwood, the former home of philosopher John Ruskin, and will reflect Ruskin’s approach to geology, nature and music. As well as constructing instruments from musical rocks and stones, the project will link multimedia, computer vision, computer music and digital media, to create interactive explanations of the geology and musical properties of the selected rocks. Dame Evelyn Glennie said: "This project links closely to many new and conceptual ideas. It seeks to unlock the potential of the fabric of our landscape to teach us not only about the past but also the future. It is right and proper that the natural curiosity of children is embraced and they will be able to embed their findings of both music and geology into the history books of tomorrow. The musical rock instrument will be available to be played by visitors of all ages after its launch in August 2010. Brantwood will host the installation which will include a large rock instrument, interactive electronics and related interpretation materials in the Linton Room, a small stone cottage adjacent to the main house with views over Coniston Water. The project is being led by Bruce Yardley, Professor in the School of Earth and Environment at the University of Leeds. Geologists with extensive knowledge of the Lake District are also taking part, as well as Dr Kia Ng director of the Leeds University Interdisciplinary Centre for Scientific Research in Music (ICSRiM), instrument specialists and the staff at Brantwood. Dame Evelyn Glennie will demonstrate the completed instrument at its launch on 19 August 2010, which is open to the public. Palaeoclimatic research adds to the climate change debate SEE Here: Research in the News SEE Here: Research in the News SEE Here: Research in the News SEE Here: Successes and Awards SEE Success in L&T too! ...and we’ve been busy in other ways too: with musical rocks... Dan Parsons (ESSI) has been awarded the British Society for Geomorphology (BSG) 2010 Gordon Warwick Award made for excellence in geomorphological research as recorded in a named publication or set of publications by a researcher who is under 35 years of age. Alan Haywood (ICAS) has won a 2nd Mendenhall Fellowship project from the US Geological Survey. The USGS Mendenhall Fellowship Scheme is very prestigious in the US Earth Sciences community and Alan is the only UK scientist to ever have obtained such a project. Bill Murphy (ESSI) was part of the SEACAP 21 project team to manage landslide problems in Laos through low cost engineering intervention, training of local practitioners and guiding policy who won a sustainability award as part of a series of awards given by Ground Engineering, a publication of the Institution of Civil Engineers in London. John Marsham (NCAS) has been awarded the LF Richardson Prize by the Royal Meteorological Society, an annual prize in recognition of the best paper published in the society's journals by an author under the age of 35. Three postgraduate students in ESSI have also been successful: Sarah Wallace (ESSI) won the "Royal Society of Chemistry Radiochemistry Group Young Researcher Award" award for a presentation in London.   Jo Venus (ESSI) has been elected as President of the International Network of Young Earth Scientists (YES), an international association aiming to link early-career geoscientists through scientific research and interdisciplinary networking.  Amanda "Meg" Galsworthy (ESSI) was one of the recipients of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) 2009 Ziad Beydoun Memorial Award for Best International Poster.  SEE Research Success! Issue 1 Autumn 08 SEE Here: Research in the News John Prescott and Hilary Benn were among the political heavyweights discussing climate change at an event hosted by the Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy at the University of Leeds on 13 November 2009. The panel also included: * Edward McMillan-Scott MEP, Vice-President of the European Parliament * Franny Armstrong, Director of the 'Age of Stupid' and founder of the 10:10 campaign * Ashok Sinha, Director of the Stop Climate Chaos Coalition * Piers Forster , professor of climate change at the University of Leeds and contributor to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) * The event was chaired by Andy Gouldson, Co-Director of the Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy and professor of sustainability research The event gave approx. 350 members of the public the opportunity to put their questions to some of the key players in UK and European politics, campaigning and climate science. At a second event held in Leeds on 18 March 2010, the key question posed was “What effect will climate change have on the region of Yorkshire and its residents?” 'Climate risk and the city' aimed to discuss the impact that climate change is likely to have on UK cities, and on Leeds in particular, through a seminar, debate and exhibition. The event, which was part of the nationwide ESRC Festival of Social Science, examined:  - the projected impacts of climate change - the different risks that climate change could pose for cities - the ways in which these climate risks might best be managed - the ways in which we can move toward climate resilient, low carbon cities. Those present included Professor Andy Gouldson of the University of Leeds, director of CCCEP, Simon Bowens, Local and Regional Campaigner for Yorkshire and the Humber and the North East, Friends of the Earth, Gail Hammond, Principal Officer Climate Change, the Environment Agency and David Wilkes, Associate Director at ARUP. This event attracted over 100 people in total. Our Research Prize and Award Winners 3 7 8 9 10 www.see.leeds.ac.uk Spring 2010 5 Climate Change Accelerating beyond expectations Global climate change is accelerating beyond expectations and the human role is now firmly established, according to some of the world's top climate scientists. The Copenhagen Diagnosis was prepared by 26 researchers from around the world, most of whom are authors of published Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports. The UK authors include Prof Jane Francis and Dr Alan Haywood from the University of Leeds. The report concludes that several important aspects of climate change are already taking place at levels beyond the expectations of only a few years ago. Key findings include: * Satellite and direct measurements now demonstrate that both the Greenland and Antarctic ice-sheets are losing mass at an increasing rate and that Arctic sea-ice has melted far beyond the expectations of climate models. * Sea level rise has accelerated and may exceed one metre by 2100, with a rise of up to two metres considered an upper limit by this time. Both the recent sea level rise and the 2100 levels are much higher than previously projected by the IPCC. * The global rate of carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel burning accelerated from 1 per cent per year during the 1990s to 3.4 per cent during 2000-2008. Global CO2 emissions are now tracking near the highestscenario considered by the IPCC. * Recent global temperatures demonstrate human-induced warming: Over the past 25 years temperatures have increased by 0.19°C per decade. Even over the past ten years, despite a temporary decrease in solar forcing, the trend continues to be one of warming.  Jane Francis, Professor of Paleoclimatology at the University of Leeds, said: "New ice-core records confirm the importance of greenhouse gasses for past temperatures on Earth, and show that CO2 levels are higher now than they have ever been during the last 800,000 years.  The last time Earth experienced CO2 levels this high was millions of years ago." The Copenhagen Diagnosis documents the key findings in climate change science since the publication of the landmark IPCC Fourth Assessment Report in 2007. The report concludes that global emissions must peak then decline rapidly within the next five to ten years for the world to have a reasonable chance of avoiding the very worst impacts of climate change. Dr Alan Haywood, Reader in Paleoclimatology, also at the University of Leeds said: "The reconstruction of past climate reveals that recent warming in the Arctic and in the Northern Hemisphere is highly inconsistent with natural climate variability over the last 2000 years."  Ozone hole healing could cause further climate warming The hole in the ozone layer is now steadily closing, but its repair could actually increase warming in the southern hemisphere, according to scientists at the University of Leeds. The Antarctic ozone hole was once regarded as one of the biggest environmental threats, but the discovery of a previously undiscovered feedback shows that it has instead helped to shield this region from carbon-induced warming over the past two decades. High-speed winds in the area beneath the hole have led to the formation of brighter summertime clouds, which reflect more of the sun’s powerful rays. “These clouds have acted like a mirror to the sun’s rays, reflecting the sun’s heat away from the surface to the extent that warming from rising carbon emissions has effectively been cancelled out in this region during the summertime,” said Professor Ken Carslaw of the University of Leeds who co-authored the research. “If, as seems likely, these winds die down, rising CO2 emissions could then cause the warming of the southern hemisphere to accelerate, which would have an impact on future climate predictions,” he added. The key to this newly-discovered feedback is aerosol – tiny reflective particles suspended within the air that are known by experts to have a huge impact on climate. Greenhouses gases absorb infrared radiation from the Earth and release it back into the atmosphere as heat, causing the planet to warm up over time. Aerosol works against this by reflecting heat from the sun back into space, cooling the planet as it does so. Beneath the Antarctic ozone hole, high-speed winds whip up large amounts of sea spray, which contains millions of tiny salt particles. This spray then forms droplets and eventually clouds, and the increased spray over the last two decades has made these clouds brighter and more reflective. As the ozone layer recovers it is believed that this feedback mechanism could decline in effectiveness, or even be reversed, leading to accelerated warming in the southern hemisphere. “Our research highlights the value of today’s state-of- the-art models and long-term datasets that enable such unexpected and complex climate feedbacks to be detected and accounted for in our future predictions,” added Professor Carslaw. The Leeds team made their prediction using a state-of-the-art global model of aerosols and two decades of meteorological data. The research was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council’s Surface Ocean-Lower Atmosphere Study (UK SOLAS) and the Academy of Finland Centre of Excellence Programme. www.see.leeds.ac.uk Spring 2010 www.see.leeds.ac.uk Spring 2010 2 Spring 2010 Climate Change Research features strongly www.see.leeds.ac.uk Spring 2010 Oxygen emerged in Earth's oceans millions of years earlier than previously thought Scientists, including SEE’s Rob Raiswell, have uncovered evidence that oxygen production began in the Earth’s oceans at least 100 million years before oxygen began to accumulate in the atmosphere. Published in Science, the results prove that oxygen existed in the oceans before the Earth's atmosphere underwent a dramatic change around 2.4 billion years ago, when oxygen levels rose sharply, known as the "Great Oxidation Event" (GOE). Researchers from the University of California Riverside and the University of Leeds have shown that very low concentrations of oxygen had profound effects on ocean chemistry. The team argue that the presence of small amounts of oxygen may have stimulated the early evolution of eukaryotes - organisms whose cells have nuclei - millions of years prior to the GOE. "This early fingerprint of oxygen may signal the first hesitant evolution of photosynthesis," said Professor Rob Raiswell, a geochemist from the University of Leeds and co-author of the paper. "This first step set the scene for the evolution of more complex life-forms leading ultimately to animals." To arrive at their results, the researchers analysed 2.5 billion-year-old black shales from Western Australia. Essentially representing fossilised pieces of the ancient seafloor, the fine layers within the rocks allowed the researchers to scroll through the history of ocean chemistry. Specifically, the shales revealed that episodes of hydrogen sulfide accumulation in the oxygen-free deep ocean occurred nearly 100 million years before the GOE and up to 700 million years earlier than such conditions were predicted by past models for the early ocean. The two-year study was supported by the National Science Foundation and NASA. www.see.leeds.ac.uk Spring 2010 SEE’s research has gone from strength to strength in 2009/10. In the last year SEE scientists and social scientists have published over 300 papers helping to understand aspects of the Earth from its core to the upper atmosphere (see institute reports on later pagers for key examples). At the same time our research income continues to rise with notable examples being the Leeds led NERC funded EQUIP consortium examining uncertainty in climate impact prediction and AXA insurance company funding to examine risks from increased European storminess. We have also welcomed 3 NERC Advanced Fellows to the School studying the earth's geodynamo, Oligocence climate changes and biosphere-atmosphere feedbacks. In March SEE took part a pilot as part of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) to examine the impact of its research beyond academia. Exemplars from across the School included international on dryland degradation and climate change, natural hazard prediction of volcanoes and landslides, oil and gas industry practises, upland management and airport forecasting systems. New initiatives such as the Centre for Integrated Petroleum Engineering and Geoscience (CiPEG) and closer links to the Met Office, as well as the odd Icelandic volcanic eruption, will continue to enhance SEE's impact on society, governments and industry. Professor Stephen Mobbs, Director of National Centre for Atmosphere Science co-ordinated the only European planes flying during the eruption of Eyjafjallajokull. Their sophisticated instrumentation allowed them to monitor the ash plume and investigate its effect on the atmosphere. Much exciting science will be forthcoming from these risky but exciting measurements. Nationally SEE's ability to generate research income is top of the environmental leader board with continuing effort to increase the production of the highest quality research outputs. With the opportunities for collaboration and excellence the new building represents we want to set a research tone whereby we have research standards and benchmarks that will consistently generate truly world leading research. No Recession in Research New School of Earth and Environment opens with a bang! Ozone and its implications for Climate Change Gardeners must unite to save Britain’s wildlife Householders in the UK should be looking beyond their own garden fence to protect vulnerable British wildlife, according to scientists at the University of Leeds. To encourage urban biodiversity, neighbours should co-ordinate their gardening efforts to create a network of interlinking habitats where birds, bees and mammals can flourish. “Gardens don’t exist in isolation, they link together to form interconnected habitat networks that should be planned and managed in conjunction with parks, nature reserves and the surrounding countryside,” said Mark Goddard, PhD student funded by the Earth Biosphere Institute.. “One person may plant a tree or create a pond in their own back garden, but the survival of many of the mobile species that live in towns and cities, such as birds and mammals, is dependent on the provision of larger areas of habitat.” Urban green spaces such as gardens and parks are an increasingly important refuge for wildlife as towns and cities encroach further into the countryside. In Leeds alone, private gardens cover 30% of the total urban area making them a valuable resource for native species. ‘Wildlife-friendly’ gardening has become more popular in recent years and there are now an estimated 4.7 million nest boxes and 3.5 million ponds in the UK*. But, according to the researchers, actions by individuals within the boundary of their own back garden are unlikely to make a meaningful contribution to the conservation of biodiversity alone. “If neighbours in a street were all to coordinate the management of their gardens in a complementary way, for example by planting a continuous strip of trees throughout a swathe of gardens, the benefits to backyard biodiversity will far outweigh the contribution made by one or two households alone,” added Mr Goddard. Dr Andy Dougill, co-author of the paper, added: “The key message is that collective action makes a real difference at the city scale. Such co-operation between neighbours to create a ‘wildlife-friendly’ habitat across groups of gardens can be encouraged by a range of mechanisms. These include top-down financial incentives such as tax cuts or government grants, or bottom-up, community-driven initiatives such as wildlife garden certification schemes.” The research, which is the cover story of February’s Trends in Ecology and Evolution journal, forms part of Mr Goddard’s PhD, which looks at how the size, shape and connectivity of gardens affects the diversity of birds, bees and butterflies within them. …investigating how gardening can protect British wildlife... Two Climate Change Events hosted in Leeds Photo-voltaic panels on the roof of the new Earth and Environment Building are the largest array of panels that Mitsubishi have installed in the UK. 6 www.see.leeds.ac.uk Spring 2010 New Centre for Low Carbon Futures (CLCF) Launched Regionally An innovative new research centre will be meeting the global challenge of climate change by harnessing the expertise and research power of Yorkshire universities, including Leeds. Professor Andy Gouldson and colleagues in SRI lead key societal and policy work packages for this centre. The Centre for Low Carbon Futures (CLCF) is the first to bring together world-leading research expertise based within Yorkshire and Humberside to help build a competitive, sustainable and carbon efficient regional economy, while providing climate change solutions of national and international significance. A joint initiative between the Yorkshire Universities and the regional development agency, Yorkshire Forward, the Centre will adopt a multidisciplinary approach across the sciences, social sciences and engineering. The Centre will improve our understanding of the impact and costs of climate change and identify ways in which organisations and communities can adapt to meet these challenges. The Centre will also develop innovative technologies and methodologies for carbon reduction in partnership with regional business and industry, helping the region to meet its own emissions reduction targets and to exploit the opportunities available as world economies change to a low carbon model. One of the key projects, lead by Leeds, will be to develop s regional transition plan to accelerate the emergence of a low carbon, climate resilient regional economy. Interim Director, Tony Hardy, said: "The Centre will provide the knowledge base to generate workable solutions for businesses and communities, promoting the uptake of innovations and creating change in the real world. Its work will protect those most vulnerable to the changes that climate change will bring to us all." Tom Riordan, Chief Executive of Yorkshire Forward, adds: "The Centre for Low Carbon Futures will put our region at the forefront of low carbon technologies. It will allow Yorkshire and Humber's businesses to address low carbon challenges and access cutting edge solutions which will help them exploit the opportunities arising from climate change. In turn this will help build a competitive, sustainable and carbon efficient regional economy." SEE Here: Research in the News Satellite image of the devastating windstorm Klaus, which made landfall near to Bordeaux on 24 January 2009. Peak gusts were over 200km/h. ...and using hospital scanners in novel ways to curb nuclear waste. WELCOME WELCOME WELCOME Meet our new staff for 2009/ 2010: Academic Staff George Holmes, Lecturer in Environment & Development, SRI Piroska Lorinczi, Lecturer in Petroleum Reservoir Engineering Rodrigo Lozano, Lecturer in Corporate Social Responsibility Bridget Wade, NERC Advanced Fellow ESSI Research Staff Fay Davies, Senior Instrument Scientist in NCAS FGAM Helen Harwatt, PDRA SRI working with Andy Gouldson Luis Silva, PDRA IGT working with Jon Mound Anna Stork, PDRA IGT working with Graham Stuart James Watson, PDRA ICAS working with Andy Challinor Steve Palmer, PDRA ICAS working with Andy Shepherd Teaching Staff Findlay Craig, Teaching Assistant, IGT Chris Green, Teaching Fellow IGT James Witts, Teaching Assistant, ESSI Technical Staff Russ Dixon, Sorby Lab Technician Jane-Marie Stocks, Laboratory Manager www.see.leeds.ac.uk Spring 2010 11 SEE Here: Research in the News; Welcome to our new staff Medical equipment used for diagnosis of patients with heart disease and cancer could be a key weapon in stopping nuclear waste seeping into the environment, according to new research. A team of scientists from the Universities of Leeds and Manchester have joined forces with experts in nuclear medicine at Manchester Royal Infirmary, using medical gamma-ray cameras to track radioactive isotopes in soil samples from a US civil nuclear site. This is the first time the technique, which is used in hospitals for heart, bone and kidney scanning, has been used to study the environmental behaviour of nuclear waste - and its success could help scientists find new ways of using bacteria to control the spread of radioactivity. Radioactive isotopes of the element technetium (Tc) are produced in bulk by nuclear facilities, while a specific isotope of Tc with a very short life is routinely used as a medical tracer in human bodies. Nuclear fission of Uranium has released tonnes of Tc from nuclear facilities over the past decades, with the element remaining radioactive for thousands of years. But although the short lived medical isotope is chemically indistinguishable from that in long lived waste, it can be used safely in tests. In the study, Manchester researchers took soil samples from the Oak Ridge nuclear facility in the United States and successfully tracked the movement of medical Tc through the soil. Scientists at the University of Leeds, led by Dr Ian Burke, were then asked to verify the observations using a special microscope technique called Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). With the help of DNA analysis the researchers confirmed that certain microbes - and particularly some that use ferric iron for energy - can fix Tc in place in soils. They also found that nearly all the Tc remained fixed when ferric iron was present with these 'iron-reducing' bacteria. This finding itself is not new - Professor Jon Lloyd, from the University of Manchester and his colleagues had previously reported that microbes in laboratory cultures could perform this role in fixing Tc. But the researchers' success in using the gamma camera could see the technique being used to probe how Tc and ferric iron move together in far more complex soil systems more representative of the 'real world' - helping develop future remediation techniques.  Prof Lloyd said: "Using this medical scanning technique we were able to explore, in real time, the mobility of one of the most problematic and mobile radionuclides in sediments." Dr Burke added: "Leeds scientists established the protocols necessary to apply high resolution electron microscopy techniques to samples radioactively contaminated with Tc. This produced very novel insights into the way this contaminant metal binds in sediments and will help to predict how easily it will spread in the environment." www.see.leeds.ac.uk Spring 2010 12 SEE Here: We’re proud of our new facilities! The editors would like to thank all those who contributed text and images to this issue of SEE Here. The next issue will be produced and distributed in Autumn 2010. School of Earth and Environment University of Leeds Leeds LS2 9JT t 0113 343 5222 f 0113 343 5259 www.see.leeds.ac.uk 5 www.see.leeds.ac.uk Spring 2010 Iceland—Fire and Ice Scientists from the School of Earth & Environment play a leading role in predicting the impacts of the erupting Eyjafjöll volcano in Iceland… Marjorie Wilson from the Institute of Geophysics & Tectonics (IGT) has this week been appointed to a Scientific Advisory Group (SAGE) set up to advise the Government (Cabinet Office) on the current crisis caused by the eruption. Her PhD student, Anja Schmidt, jointly supervised by Ken Carslaw in the Institute for Climate & Atmospheric Sciences (ICAS), has recently returned from Iceland where she had a close up view of the opening phase of the eruption. The School hosts the Directorate of the NERC funded National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS). The NCAS Director, Stephen Mobbs (also a member of SAGE), has been leading experiments involving flying research aircraft directly into the ash cloud to obtain information about its composition, grain size and distribution. On April 14th the focus of the eruption migrated to the west from the initial fissure at Fimmvörduháls to below the glacier Eyjafjallajökull, generating highly explosive, phreatomagmatic eruptions due to the interaction of the hot magma (> 1000 ºC) with the ice. This eruption style has generated extremely fine volcanic ash which has been carried across the UK and Europe by the prevailing wind for the past week, resulting in the closure of UK airspace. The eruption appears to be becoming less violent as the ice cover has now melted away from around the active crater. Nevertheless scientists remain vigilant to the possibility that a new vent might open elsewhere beneath the glacier or that activity might migrate to the adjacent Katla volcano, which is currently dormant. Ken Carslaw, Mat Evans, Steve Arnold, Dom Spracklen, Alan Gadian, Graham Mann, Doug Parker, Jim McQuaid, Anja Schmidt and Matt Woodhouse in ICAS are focussing their modelling skills on improving predictions of the direction of migration of the ash cloud over the UK, Scandinavia and Europe and the amount of ash and size of particles present in the atmosphere. This is critical information for air traffic control and is dependent upon our understanding of the characteristics of the plume of ash and steam being generated at the volcanic vent in Iceland. Jurgen Neuberg, Marjorie Wilson, Ivan Savov and Dan Morgan within IGT are looking into the eruption dynamics and the likelihood of future eruptions based upon the analysis of geophysical, geological and geochemical data. All photos are of the current Icelandic eruption, including Anja Schmidt next to Eyjafjöll volcano taken at the end of March. SEE Here: Research in the News Andrea Jackson (ICAS) has been awarded a Full University Teaching Fellowship Award. William Young (SRI) has received an Academic Development Fund Award: Equipping students for a sustainable low carbon society. Teaching Enhancement and Student Success (TESS) projects: Nigel Mountney: A virtual field course for Earth and Environment students with disabilities Anne Tallontire: Step up to Masters Colin Pitts: Evaluating and enhancing careers development modules in the Faculty of Environment Douglas Paton: Blended teaching in a 3D World Pre Carbo: Why study maths? Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences (GEES) Subject Centre Grant: Douglas Paton: Blended Teaching in a 3D world Leeds will also host the next GEES Annual Conference in Jan 2011. Rebecca Hurst, a second year undergraduate Environment and Business student, was part of a team that came second in the national npower Future Leaders challenge.  The group designed and distributed a book on "carbon cutting cooking", promoting seasonal cooking and the use of local ingredients. Many congratulations to all our award winners! Counting Down to University Study. University Teaching Fellow, Andrea Jackson provides an update on this key project To support students to make the leap from School to University we have developed an on-line resource called ‘Countdown to University Study’. It is available to students from the time their University place is confirmed to ease this transition by communicating: What it is like to be a student studying at Leeds The opportunities that University life has to offer / how to prepare People they’ll meet & the exciting research that occurs within the School Enhancing academic community awareness What is expected when learning about their subject area Becoming an independent learner / critical thinker The development of this supportive and informative resource involved consultation with staff, current university students and secondary school students in the local area. It sits within Blackboard, the University’s Virtual Learning Environment, and includes features such as video welcomes from key members of staff and advice from current students; photo storyboards to show fieldtrip locations; degree programme information and optional activities to demonstrate the links between research and teaching; and collation of pre-induction materials and support links. The resource which was piloted on 400+ students in both the School of Earth and Environment and School of Geography in August 2009 was viewed by incoming students from the UK, Oman, Ireland and Australia and is now available to prospective students all with the aim of enhancing the first year experience and improving engagement with the discipline, School and the institution. Evaluation has identified areas for improvement such as ‘a day in the life of…’ video diaries, and greater student society presence which will all be acted upon for the next student intake. A copy of the resource can be found at www.see.leeds.ac.uk/countdown/SEE. If you would like to be involved in the development of this project then please contact Andrea Jackson (A.V.Jackson@leeds.ac.uk). 4 www.see.leeds.ac.uk Spring 2010 Reporting progress on our L&T Projects Pathways to success: A blended learning approach to a distinctive Geological Sciences (GS) programme. “Blended learning” is a new phrase, but not a new concept. However, our students don’t know what it is, so we need to broaden its use and signpost it better to take full advantage of it. Rob Mortimer is leading an Academic Development Fund (ADF) grant that aims to: i. To create a distinctive new Geological Sciences (GS) programme in which students can follow bespoke ‘pathways’ or ‘Tracks’ which augment the core curriculum and develop distinctive skills appropriate to particular areas of graduate research and/or employment. ii. To produce an electronic Course Compass to help students navigate these pathways through the programme and make informed module choices. iii. To facilitate this programme through distinct practical teaching by developing a dynamic research-led specimen collection, with an accompanying e-collection (“Rockbase”) of supporting material relevant to each track. The new programme structure has been created, and a Course Compass produced to show prospective and current students different routes through their degree. The pilot version of “Rockbase” is being made available now for students to use as a revision aid. The full version will be launched in September to support teaching for the 2010/11 session. SEE Here: Learning and Teaching Our Teaching Prize and Award Winners Evaluating feedback mechanisms in the School of Earth and Environment: Rob Mortimer is using funding from his University Teaching Fellowship to undertake a project on feedback within the school. Graham McLeod, the project officer on the work, has used questionnaires and focus groups of staff and students to identify approaches that are most effective, and to assess attitudes to a range of potential innovative solutions. These are currently being collated into a final report which will put the findings into a wider context, building on educational research undertaken elsewhere. The project will produce a series of recommendations on how to improve feedback in the future. The aim is to implement these recommendations and continue to build on the success of our recent National Student Survey scores for feedback and assessment, which rose significantly last year.