Mark Williams

Palaeontologist and author, interested in changing patterns of life on Earth over geological timescales, notably those occurring at present in the Anthropocene

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

My friend Julia Adeney Thomas @thomasjna just brought my attention to Shen Zhou's 'Poet on a Mountaintop'

.....Leaning on a bramble staff
far and free I gaze,
To the warble of valley brook
I will reply, whistling

That we are a part of nature on this beautiful Cosmic Oasis

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

Drifting in the desert of space the cosmic oasis is a special place: its been habitable for billions of years. We now threaten the delicate balance that supports life. Our new book asks what might we do to save this precious oasis in the midst of the #Anthropocene?

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

End of the 2nd year mapping trip to Side Pike in the English Lake District. Mission completed, all students have made a geological map - well done! @GeologyLeics

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

Midway through our week of fieldwork in the Lake District and 2nd-year students making geological maps of Side Pike @GeologyLeics And leaders Ben and Tiff take a break for lunch near the summit.

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

Day one of the 2nd year mapping trip to Side Pike in the English Lake District and Tiff on the right (red rain jacket) and Maxime (sitting) compare notes on the best field hats for the trip. @GeologyLeics

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

As part of the Literary Leicester Festival the distinguished author Amitav Ghosh https://t.co/2IeXrdrQ1N speaks on the subject of the 'climate emergency' next Tuesday, June 7th. https://t.co/lWeKVkN8dH

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

Surviving in the #Anthropocene: Angharad Evans presents the results of her Master's project using the palaeontological signal from Narborough Bog (8000 years of record) as a way to inform us about the resilient ecosystems of the English Midlands. Well done Angharad @GeologyLeics

[NHM Fossil Fish @NHM_FossilFish]

The moment everyone was waiting for!
Mary Anning statue is finally revealed!

Congratulations to all involved and to @MaryAnningRocks for making it happen!

#MaryAnning #LymeRegis #palaeontology #fossils

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

And if you are in Berlin, have chance to go to the @HKW_Berlin and are interested in the #Anthropocene, the Earth Indices exhibition put together by Giulia Bruno https://t.co/sB7o3ig2P7 and Armin Linke https://t.co/gZGqZFpUuw is well worth a visit.

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

Stephen Himson @GeologyLeics preparing for his talk on 'Extinction, past present and future' @HKW_Berlin in the session 'Memory and oblivion in times of extinction' https://t.co/fRCdXkiEj0

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

The @HKW_Berlin meeting 'Unearthing the present' is into its first day. My colleagues Jens Zinke and Stephen Himson presented great talks on candidates for the geological boundary of the #Anthropocene. Lots of useful information here: https://t.co/4e8pMmMhmT

[Jens Zinke @coralmannie]

First international trip since Corona lockdown, attending the Unearthing the Present science and public events @HKW_Berlin . Looking forward to present Flinders Reef coral cores as GSSP candidate.

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

One of the defining geological archives of our time will be the fossil record of the #Anthropocene. If you'd like to hear more, I'll be giving a series of lectures under the auspices of the Palaeontological Association @ThePalAss. More here: https://t.co/BmwVmA9YLN

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

Just another heads-up about the 'Pint of Science' festival in Leicester next week and the session on the meaning of life on May 9th (please stop by if you can) https://t.co/KYSBC4GqvT

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

If you are in Leicester on the evening of May 9th, I'll be talking about the amazing 'cosmic oasis' of life that is planet Earth #Leicester @pintofscience #pint22 https://t.co/Gvdri9pybU Please stop by if you can. @GeologyLeics

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

A beautiful, rich tapestry of information to connect with here https://t.co/9PbXFj7LfP about folks trying to mitigate the impacts of the #Anthropocene presented through webcasts by Andrew Revkin @revkin at The Earth Institute of Columbia Climate School

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

@TomCBHill @GeologyLeics Thanks Tom, its a wonderful landscape that stays with you forever I think
best wishes, Mark

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

Day 8, and time to go home. A last chance to see some history with a visit to Pentre Ifan Neolithic burial chamber. If you've followed us on Twitter, I hope you've enjoyed the photos of our field trip and we look forward to you joining us again next year @GeologyLeics

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

@samdavtur @GeologyLeics PS I've just realised this is you Simon 🙂 - I'm still getting to grips with Twitter, and thank you for following us on this trip

We met UCL at Freshwater and Marloes Sands

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

Next week (April 8th) we'll be leaving for the Wales undergraduate fieldtrip for the first time in 3 years. If you came on this trip years ago (or missed it because of the pandemic), please follow us. We'll be tweeting magnificent geological localities each day @GeologyLeics

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

@Heike_b98 @GeologyLeics Sorry about that Heike, but hoped you have enjoyed the various photos 🙂

[Mark Williams @MarkPalaeo]

@PalaeozoicJapan @McChris1993 @GeologyLeics Thanks for saying that Chris, much appreciated 🙂