SEES News & Events 2012

The AAA Annual Conference is the major event in the professional calendar for archaeologists, including AAA members and non-members alike, along with Traditional Owners, cultural heritage managers and other related disciplines to get together, present and listen to papers and posters in order to find out about the latest archaeological discoveries, and catch up with colleagues they haven’t seen for 12 months. AAA has approximately 1000 members and the Annual Conference typically attracts about 400 delegates from Australia and overseas.

I can now also report that Sarah Hamylton has been confirmed in her appointment and Christine Eriksen has been confirmed in her position and promoted to Level C.

It is with pleasure that I can advise that Helen McGregor and Tim Cohen have both been promoted to Level C appointments in the recent promotion round.  It goes without saying that these promotions are very well-deserved.

Small lethal tools reveal much about early modern humans

On the south coast of South Africa, scientists (including a researcher from the University of Wollongong), have found evidence for an advanced stone age technology dated to 71,000 years ago at Pinnacle Point near Mossel Bay. 

A world of its own: earliest human occupation of the Maros karsts in Southwest Sulawesi, Indonesia

Dwellers on the threshold: the evolution of human behavioural complexity in peripheral regions of southern Africa

Experiments in space: geospatial information technologies for cultural environmental research:

By harnessing the power of emerging digital mapping technologies, this research will extend how we understand the

relationship between humans and the environment. Specifically it will use maps to generate new knowledge across

two important yet everyday problems: bushfire management and urban quality of life.

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'Delightfully Deco' End of Year Ball

Thursday 1st November @ Portofino Function Centre, 1920-30s themed. $70pp ($75 for non-members), Pay before the mid-session recess (end of week 9) and get a $10 discount. Includes 3 course meal and 5 hour drinks package.  Final payment by end of week 12.

Payments can be made to any committee member (find us at the Members BBQ's!) and the Groundswell drop box, near the staff pigeon holes in building 41 level 1 (email uowgroundswell@gmail.com & notify us to check it).

This year, the retreat will be held at a new venue: Koloona Conference Centre in the Shoalhaven, about 1.5 hours from Wollongong (15 minutes from Nowra). We are scheduled to arrive on Wednesday 26 September at 4pm; and to depart on Friday 28 September at 2pm. For those who are teaching, this is during the mid-session break.

As in the past, it is anticipated that all postgraduate (research) students will attend – both Masters and PhD are welcome. All staff (including general staff) are also welcome.  Contact Natascha Klocker for more information.

Featured in
ABC Science Online

GROUNdSWeLL

AGM

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Winery Tour

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Trivia Night

Thursday 9th, @ City Diggers from 7:30pm, $7pp and all money raised goes to a charity to be chosen by the winning team!

Congratulations to Emily O'Gorman on the publication of this new book:

Flood Country: An Environmental History of the Murray-Darling Basin

Congratulations to Lesley Head, Jennifer Atchison and Alison Gates on the publication of this new book:

Ingrained: A Human Bio-geography of Wheat

Dr Anthony Dossetto with colleagues at ANU for the project entitled “Landscape evolution Landscape evolution, environmental change and human occupation history of Lake George - an outstanding natural archive”

Dr Tim Cohen with colleagues at Griffith for the project entitled “The big flood: will it happen again?”

Congratulations to all our Graduands from SEES

The award, which is judged by the Editorial Board, is for Chris’s paper entitled “Plate-driven extension and convergence along the East Gondwana active margin: late Silurian – Middle Devonian tectonics of the Lachlan Fold Belt, southeastern Australia’.

Chris has undertaken a vast body of meticulous research on the geology and geotectonics of this region and it is very appropriate that he receive this award.

As incentive for SEES students to enter the 3 minute thesis competition, students were offered a chance to sit in the "Big Chair" for a day. 

Colin Murray-Wallace was relegated to Ebbies postGrad cubicle.

Who won the People’s Choice award in the Faculty of Science 3 minute thesis competition last Friday.  We hear it was a very tight competition.  So well done Ebbe and thankyou for representing the School in this competition.

The journal Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, one of the best journal in Geochemistry

Congratulations to Bert Roberts and Adam Brumm for their respective Vice-Chancellor Awards for Research Excellence.

At the awards ceremony to be held on the 22^nd June 2012, Bert will receive the Research Excellence Award for a Senior Researcher and Adam will receive the Research Excellence Award for an Emerging Researcher

Nick's diverse engagement activities with community partners is evidenced through his teaching, research and professional activities. Nick's lengthy list of achievements and activites include his development of research relationships with the Rural Fire Service, securing funding for bushfire management education, running rural fieldtrips to encourage students to think across regional rural/urban boundaries plus founding a campus Bicycle User Group and co-organising the UOW Ride to Work Day in 2010 and 2011.

Congratulations to Christine Metusela and Gordon Waitt on the publication of this new book:

SEES Annual Prize Night
Friday 27 April 2012 6:30pm
Building 41.Foyer

Photo Gallery & 2012 Program

Colin has received this award for his long and distinguished research contributions in the field of Coastal Geomorphology.  The award was presented at the annual meeting of the Association of American Geographers in March 2012.

R.J. Russell is internationally renown for his coastal geomorphological research in southern Louisiana, the Mississippi Delta and for studies of cheniers (shell accumulations on mud).  He also worked on tropical coasts in northern Australia as well as the Cocos (Keeling) Islands – all regions that were coincidentally studied by Colin.

Please join with me in congratulating Colin for this achievement.

Congratulations to Allen Nutman & Victoria Bennett; On their successful project application - Carbon dioxide sequestration more than 3.7 billion years ago and the oldest climate cycles 

The University’s newest lab,The Distillery, was officially opened with a celebration attended by staff and students of the School of Earth & Environmental Sciences. Read more