A series of new publications by our very own prolific Dr Jamie Bojko are presented here:
Dr Jamie Bojko’s latest publications
Teesside team investigating climate change risk to peat-buried archaeological site
A magnificent video explaining current research. This work was picked up by the BBC News with this article.
Happy Birthday Hadrian!
This week marks the 1900th Birthday of Hadrian! Born on 24th january 76 AD in Italica, Spain, Hadrian was a Roman conquerer that lead the Romans toward entrenchment and consolidating the empire rather than ongoing expansion. And so, we’ve got a doozy of updates for you in our first post of 2022 – which we reckon will be called 202TUBA!
Revealing Magna
This week, Vindolanda was featured on BBC Breakfast showing the incredible impact of Climate Change at Fort Magna. The rapid heating and drying of climates over the past few decades have led to a drop in the ground and water levels, resulting in parts of Roman masonry becoming exposed. Vindolanda Trust produced an absolutely fantastic video to discuss this:
We’re absolutely thrilled to be part of the scientific investigation into why these changes are being observed, and the rapid destructive impact being made to the delicate artefacts that have been preserved for thousands of years. We started this work last summer, drilling bore holes in what turned out to be the hottest week of the year – and the hottest summer on record! We have never been so grateful to see a single lone tree in the field offering shade for refuge…
Digging up Memories
We’ve also been part of the Digging up Memories online exhibit (we chatted a little about this here), which saw volunteers at Vindolanda Museum select and discuss their favourite wooden artefacts. Through the online exhibit, you can find interviews, videos, behind-the-scenes information and many of our 3D models showcasing a wonderful narrative of life at Vindolanda.
We urge you to check it out and dive through the archives! You can still view them at: www.vindolanda.com/Listing/Category/digging-up-memories
Individual Milestones
As this is our first post of 2022, we thought it would be nice to have a quick look at some of the milestones achieved by the team.
We published the first work we started with Vindolanda in Scientific Reports, writing all about the chemical and microbial factors toward the vivianite formation in one of the ditches at Vindolanda. We’re thrilled to see this come out to such great reception!
Helga submitted her 31 MB thesis (plus supplementary files!) in time for a well-deserved Christmas break with baby Breki.
Rhys was awarded his doctorate in Developing pXRF soil analysis of preservation at Vindolanda, and is now Lecturer in Forensic Science. Congrats Dr Williams!
Gillian was appointed Associate Professor in Research at Teesside University where she’s already powering through the development of analytical techniques towards forensic and archaeological applications.
Becki Scott joined Teesside University and TUBA in September – we’re looking forward to driving forward provenance research with her fantatsic expertise. Look out for some of our blog posts together coming soon!
New year new me, except clearly TUBA has always been dedicated to high quality research and public engagement – we’re allowed to gloat in the conclusion, right? Until next time!
TUBA
Lecturer in Geography (1 Posts)
Our Department is advertising for one permanent positions of lecturer in geography with specialism in GIS and river and coastal systems. The newly appointed lecturer has an opportunity to take a leading role in our Earth, Ecology and Environment research collective and bring their own research and/or consultancy expertise.
The job ad can be found following the two links below:
If you would like to discuss how your research could fit within the Earth, Ecology and Environment research collective – please get in touch with Ambroise a.baker@tees.ac.uk.
Call for Expressions of Interest in Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowships
Teesside University, the School of Health and Life Science, and the Earth, Ecology and Environment research collective are welcoming expressions of interest in Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowships.
The research areas of existing strength are as follows:
- Climate change Impacts and palaeoclimate reconstruction
- Archaeological advances in preservation and outreach
- Sustainable agriculture and aquaculture
- Rewilding for ecological recovery and sustainability
- Sustainable food supply chain and environmental impact
- Microbial biotechnology and bioremediation
Contact point for inquiries: Dr Ambroise Baker (A.Baker@tees.ac.uk)
Dr Baldini’s collaboration with the Durham Wildlife Trust to research microplastic pollution from Source to Sea
Plastic pollution in the marine environment is widely recognised as one of the major challenges of our time. In an attempt to contribute to addressing this problem Dr Lisa Baldini and the Durham Wildlife Trust decided to tackle the problem at the source. The project from Source to Sea investigates the source and abundance of plastics in river sediments and waters focussing on the River Wear. This work will not only inform conservation work for the river Wear, but also benefit coastal habitat in the North Sea where plastic get transported to and, importantly, serve as a case study of international relevance.
Sampling field work has been conducted throughout the summer and into the autumn of 2021.
Dr Ed Rollason in the news
Dr Ed Rollason shared his expertise about coastal flood risk on a ITV News report:
Tees Valley Youth Climate Summit 2021
Climate researchers, members of the Earth Ecology and Environment research collective led the organisation of the first Tees Valley Youth Climate Summit with colleagues from across the university.
The summit was a success widely relayed in the local press, for example in the Northern Echo.
There are already talks of a 2022 summit…
Dr Jamie Bojko and PhD Candidate Amy Burgess in the news
Dr Jamie Bojko and Amy Burgess shared their expertise in an interview with ITV, following the crustacean mass kill observed on Teesside coastline. The incident is being investigated by the Environmental Agency and CEFAS. You can catch up with the interviews following this link to ITV.com: Why are hundreds of crabs washing up dead on Teesside’s beaches?
The news and the interview was widely relayed in the press.
Promotions
We are proud to announce that four members of the Earth, Ecology and Environment research collective have been promoted to senior lecturer:
Dr Lisa Baldini, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Science (Research & Innovation)
Dr Danny McNally, Senior Lecturer in Human Geography (Research and Innovation)
Dr Jamie Bojko, Senior Lecturer in Disease Ecology (Research and Innovation)
Dr Ambroise Baker, Senior Lecturer in Ecology (Research and Innovation)
We can expect many more promotion to come in the coming years following the University’s research path, of the academic progression framework.