Palaeocast

The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology are this year holding their annual conference in the Westin Bonaventure Hotel, Los Angeles. The SVP were formed in 1940 by thirty-four paleontologists, the society now has more than 2,300 members representing professionals, students, artists, preparators and others interested in vertebrate paleontology. It is organised exclusively for educational and scientific purposes, with the object of advancing the science of vertebrate paleontology.

At this event, we’re aiming to continue our daily reports, following on from our coverage of GSA, bringing all those who can't attend a flavour of the conference.

Direct download: SVP1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:41pm UTC

This year sees the GSA celebrate its 125th anniversary, having formed in  1888. It's a massive event with thousands of attendees. There are literally hundreds of talks to hear and posters to see, so we're hoping to bring just a sample of it to you.

Each day we’ll be posting interviews and pictures from the conference, giving you a flavour of what it’s like to attend.

Direct download: GSA3.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:15pm UTC

This year sees the GSA celebrate its 125th anniversary, having formed in  1888. It's a massive event with thousands of attendees. There are literally hundreds of talks to hear and posters to see, so we're hoping to bring just a sample of it to you.

Each day we’ll be posting interviews and pictures from the conference, giving you a flavour of what it’s like to attend.

Direct download: GSA2.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:15pm UTC

This year sees the GSA celebrate its 125th anniversary, having formed in  1888. It's a massive event with thousands of attendees. There are literally hundreds of talks to hear and posters to see, so we're hoping to bring just a sample of it to you.

Each day we’ll be posting interviews and pictures from the conference, giving you a flavour of what it’s like to attend. 

Direct download: GSA1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:57pm UTC

Most people would consider fire to be an entirely destructive process, however given the right circumstances organic materials can be exquisitely preserved by charcoalification. We no doubt all know charcoal from the BBQ, but how many of us stop to consider what it actually is?

Charcoal is formed when organic material is subjected to high temperatures in the absence of oxygen. In this situation oxidation (burning) is not possible, however water and volatiles are driven off leaving behind a carbon-rich residue. This thermochemical alteration not only increases the preservation potential of the material in the fossil record, but can also preserve details down to a cellular level as a 'carbon skeleton'.

In this episode we discuss the importance of this greatly overlooked source of palaeontological information with Professor Andrew C. Scott of the Department of Earth Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London.

Direct download: Ep22.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:21pm UTC

In this episode we talk to Jørn Hurum, Associate Professor of Vertebrate Paleontology at the Natural History Museum Oslo, Norway.  Jørn has varied research interests including dinosaurs and mammals (being one of the team of researchers who described Darwinius masillae, more commonly known as 'Ida'), but perhaps his most productive work has been with the Spitsbergen Jurassic Research Group. The Jurassic sediments of the Svalbard archipelago, north of mainland Norway, are rich in fossils of marine reptiles.

Direct download: Ep21.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am UTC

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