Event: BCRA Cave Science Symposium, 2016

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27th British Cave Research Association Cave Science Symposium – Saturday 22nd October, 2016

Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford

Field-trip – Sunday 23rd October, 2016, Box Mines, Wiltshire

The British Cave Research Association is pleased to give the final details of its one-day annual Cave Science Symposium to be held on Saturday 22nd October, 2016 in Oxford, UK. Whether you are an academic, an amateur scientist, or a caver wanting to find out more about the karst environment, you should find something of interest at the Symposium. A provisional programme of presentations is attached and the BCRA AGM will be held from 12.00 until 1.00pm. For any further information, please contact the lecture secretary, Dr. Gina Moseley by 19th October at: [email protected].

Registration

Registration will take place on the day between 9.00 and 9.30 am in the Earth Science Department building main atrium. The main rotating glass door to the building faces South Parks Road and is clearly marked with signs.

The admission charge, to include morning and afternoon refreshments, will be £5, with free entry to speakers, students and BCRA members. Donations to help finance the meeting will also be accepted.

Lab Tour

There will be the possibility to join a short tour of the geochemistry laboratories after the close of the main symposium on 22nd October, 2016. Please email Gina Moseley by 8th October, 2016, if you would like to join the tour.

Venue & Transport

The venue is located in the University Science Area on South Parks Road, around the corner from the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. The address is Department of Earth Sciences, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3AN, UK.  (https://www.earth.ox.ac.uk/)

The event is being hosted by Prof. Gideon Henderson and Dr. Stacy Carolin.

View on Google Maps http://tinyurl.com/hcrx8yk

Oxford is easily accessible by road and rail and is just over an hour’s travel from London’s Heathrow Airport. Parking is hard to find in Oxford so it would be wise to use the Park and Ride services (https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cms/public-site/park-and-ride). Visitor parking at the department is for people with disabilities only and is by prior arrangement.

Lunch

There are many options for places to eat in the vicinity of the Department of Earth Sciences. Possible lunch options include:

-Café in the Natural History Museum

-Jimbob’s at the Pavilion in University Parks

-King’s Arms pub down Parks Road

-Several international street food stands at Gloucester Green market

Evening Meal – Saturday 22nd October, 2016

Following the symposium, we will head for an informal evening pub meal at The Royal Oak (https://www.theroyaloakoxford.co.uk/), half a mile from the symposium venue. It’s a favourite of the Oxford-based Earth Scientists! The Symposium is tentatively scheduled to finish at 5.20pm, followed by a short lab tour at 5.30pm, and the meal at 6.30pm. If you are interested in attending the meal please email Gina Moseley ([email protected]) by October 8th and she will send you the menu as soon as it becomes available. Examples of the food that the Royal Oak serves and their prices are available on their website, though note that this is the summer menu and will change by the date of the meal.

Accommodation

There are a number of Hotels and Guest Houses within easy walking distance of the Department. Please see the Oxford City website for more details: (http://www.oxfordcity.co.uk/oxford/home_accommodation.html)

Alternative accommodation may be found at Booking.com or Airbnb.com

Field-Trip to Box Mines, Wiltshire – Sunday 23rd October, 2016. In memory of Charlie Self.

The field trip to Box Mines is now full. Please direct any questions related to the field trip to Dr. Trevor Faulkner ([email protected]).

Important Dates

8th October, 2016                    Register for the short geochemistry laboratory tour

8th October, 2016                    Register for the evening meal

19th October, 2016                  Contact Gina Moseley with enquiries relating to the symposium

22nd October, 2016                 27th BCRA Cave Science Symposium, Oxford

23rd October, 2016                  Field-trip to Box Mines, Wiltshire

21st October, 2017                  28th BCRA Cave Science Symposium, Leeds

13th October, 2018                  29th BCRA Cave Science Symposium, Bristol

Symposium Organisers

Please contact Stacy Carolin (‎[email protected]) for details of the venue and local facilities in Oxford. Contact Gina Moseley ([email protected]) for details of the programme and for enquiries concerning oral or poster presentations. Contact Trevor Faulkner for details of the field trip ([email protected]).

Timetable 22nd October, 2016

0900 Doors open, registration, book stall, coffee
0930 Welcome and housekeeping Gideon Henderson
Session 1. Archaeology & Palaeontology Andrew Chamberlain
0940 Mammal faunas of Britain 45-20 ka BP: a new look Rob Dinnis
1000 Why are millipedes better preserved than vertebrates in the Red Hills Road Cave, Jamaica? Steve Donovan

 

1020 The Dark Side Neolithic. Balkan Cave Archaeology 2016 season and the excavations in Mala Pecina cave. Konstantinos Trimmis
1040 Coffee
Session 2. Analytical methods Andy Farrant
1105 Advances in U-Pb speleothem chronology using laser ablation MC-ICPMS techniques: applications in quantifying long-term rates of landscape change Chris Smith
1125 Proxy development and natural records: using cave measurements to reconstruct past climate Chris Day
1145 Open discussion of morning presentations
1155 Pause
1200 BCRA AGM
1300 Lunch
Session 3. Hydrogeology & Speleogenesis Ian Fairchild
1400 Malham Spring tracer test John Gunn
1420 Weakly cavernous carbonate aquifers: karst and groundwater protection Lou Maurice
1440 Why we should thank a meteorite for the caves at Assynt? Trevor Faulkner
1500 Gull Caves: implications for landscape evolution Andy Farrant
1520 Coffee
Session 4. Speleothem Records Gina Moseley
1545 Interpolation of climate of the Northern Hemisphere in the Eemian interglacial based on data extracted from speleothems Jakub Bernadič

 

1605 Semi-arid Iranian stalagmite captures shift in climate during the penultimate glacial-interglacial transition Stacy Carolin
1625 The UK speleothem archive Dan Awcock
1645 Open discussion of afternoon presentations
1700 Summing up and work carried forward John Gunn
1710 Details for Sunday visit to Box Mines Trevor Faulkner
1720 Close
1730 Short lab tour
1830 Evening meal at The Royal Oak

 

All are welcome, and we look forward to seeing you at the Symposium.

Correspondent: Gina Moseley