New publication (from my PhD)

I just got the sharing link today! Rachael S. Avery, Alan E. S. Kemp, Jonathan M. Bull, Richard B. Pearce, Mark E. Vardy, J. James Fielding, and Carol J. Cotterill (2019). A new varve sequence from Windermere, UK, records rapid ice retreat prior to the Lateglacial Interstadial (GI-1). Quaternary Science Reviews 225, December, 105894. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2019.105894 …

Advertisement

Autumn again?!

Time flies! We've lived in Sweden now for about a year and a half, and it's scary how fast the time has gone. At the moment the trees, largely deciduous around Stockholm, are turning brilliant shades of yellow, orange, and red everywhere I look. I don't remember it being quite as spectacular last year: perhaps …

Day trip from Stockholm: Nynäshamn

I've lived here for over a year now, but there are still so many places I've never got around to visiting, for whatever reason. This weekend, after a pretty gruelling few months at work, I finally had the time and energy to head somewhere fun for a day. SL runs all of the public tranport …

Research cruise in coastal Sweden, April 2019

This was my first research cruise! It wasn't on one of the big ships over several months, but on R/V Electra, Stockholm University's research vessel. It's a really nice little ship, with four cabins, living space, a computer room for geophysics, and lab space for sample processing. I'm studying the history of ice retreat in …

Musings: Birds, winter, home

I have previously established that I like birds. In fact, I find watching and listening to them a useful mental health strategy. Towards the beginning of autumn in Sweden I was starting to worry that I would get depressed in the winter due to the lack of sunlight and the lack of birds (most species …

What do I study at Stockholm University?

When I announced my new job a couple of months ago, I said I'd write a more detailed post about what I actually do. Well, I can't really put it off any longer. I've been in this job for nearly three months so I have a pretty good idea now of what I'm actually doing! …

Autumn colours around Stockholm

This is my first autumn here. Most of the migratory birds have gone, and the fieldfares are flocking in ever-greater numbers in preparation to leave also. The nights are around five hours longer than the days, and the coats have (finally!) come out. Stockholm sits towards the northern edge of the natural range of most …

Stockholm foraging: Crabapples

Crabapples are the Caucasian predecessors to domestic cultivated apples, and when cooked can make delicious preserves. In Swedish they are vildäpplen, literally 'wild apples', and there happen to be several trees growing in our neighbourhood and at the University. We collected some windfalls to funny looks from passersby, then proceeded to make a tasty crab …

Stockholm foraging: Apples & pears

We collected a good several carrier bags' worth of apples and pears, many from around Stockholm University and the surrounding countryside (Norra Djurgården), and from near the southern bank of Malaren. About ten apples went in the food processor to make juice, but the amount was so small that we gave up on that without …

Stockholm foraging: Haws, hawthorn chutney

Haws are the fruits of the hawthorn tree, the size of currants. There is a fair amount of variation in their appearance, from a musty purplish-red to shining crimson jewels. I was on a walk around the woodland at Bredäng in early October when I came across a little hawthorn tree bedecked in plump, shiny, …