International Geological Congress Research Articles

Negotiating the norms of an international science: standardization work at the International Geological Congress, 1878-1891.

In the second half of the nineteenth century, geologists created the International Geological Congress (IGC) to achieve the methodological and terminological uniformity that they thought their science lacked. Their desire to standardize their practice and their use of the conference to do so was neither new nor unique. Although late nineteenth-century international conferences have been recognized as important arenas of standardization, relatively little is known of the ways in which conferences organized standardization negotiations. This article aims to fill this gap by exploring how the IGC practically and socially organized standardization work. It appears that the session hall was not the sole and not even the main stage of geological standard-setting. The standardization process was also enacted through comparative study and informal exchanges that regular visits to purpose-built comparative geological exhibitions made possible. Relying on a sophisticated apparatus of commissions and subcommittees, the IGC also socially organized standards negotiation beyond the space and time of the triennial sessions. By tracing the material, spatial and social practices engineered through the IGC to serve geological standardization, this article unboxes the conference process and in so doing enriches our understanding of the period's wave of standardization.

Jaume Marcet i Riba (1894-1963), baula poc coneguda de la geologia catalana

Jaume Marcet i Riba (1894-1963), a poorly known Catalan geologist. Marcet graduated in 1916 from the University of Barcelona, where he also received his doctorate, under the guidance of professors Pardillo and San Miguel de la Cámara. He was an expert on the Fedorow method and until 1930 he showed concern for the problems of interest to petrologists, in particular the problems of systematics. In El método natural en Petrografia he devised creative proposals to determine the groups of genetically related igneous rocks with implications for systematics. These ideas guided the research of the rest of his career. Marcet collaborated with the pedagogical work of the Mancomunitat de Catalunya, and in this framework, he was decisive in the introduction of modern geography in Catalonia. During the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera, he was part of the editorial staff of the magazine Ciència from the beginning. He gave lectures and courses on geology in popular clubs (athenaeums) and hiking centers. Following the session of the International Geological Congress held in Spain in 1926, he embarked on publishing the work Géologie de la Méditerranée Occidentale, an international, multilingual work, focused on, and seen from the Catalan speaking Countries, a task that occupied him until at the end of the civil war. Under the Franco regime, from the position of Conservator of Paleontology at the Geology Museum of Barcelona (Museu Martorell), he carried out, in addition to the functions of his position, regional research, guided by the Stille’s ideas. Teaching complemented his career for much of his life. From 1917 until 1939, he worked as an assistant professor at the University of Barcelona and he was in charge of the practical teaching of Professor San Miguel de la Cámara. In 1932 he won a chair at an Institute of Secondary Education in Barcelona, Institut Maragall, where he developed his teaching activity until he passed away

Imagining Taking Tiger Mountain (by strategy): two landscapes of the Anthropocene, 1970 and 2014

ABSTRACT The International Geological Congress has yet formally to adopt the Anthropocene. It is still, to that extent, an imagined epoch. The term ‘Anthropocene’ refers us to the deep time of geological epochs, but alternate terms for what we can expect to experience have a more specifically anthropological focus: the Capitalocene, Chthulucene and Misanthropocene. Only Entropocene breaks with the humanistic tradition. Comparing Tsui Hark’s 2014 The Taking of Tiger Mountain (Zhiqu weihu shan), the second adaptation of Qu Bo’s adventure novel of the People’s Liberation Army, with the 1970 film of the Peking Opera version directed by Xie Tieli, demonstrates the stakes in imaginations of mountains separated by 45 years. This paper argues that the later film evolves from the failure of the Cultural Revolution’s imagination to encompass the landscape of its setting. The increased incoherence of the later film derives from its increased engagement in technical mediations, which in turn enable a complex interaction between utopian Revolution and dystopian Anthropocene imaginaries.

The 23rd International Geological Congress (Prague, 1968) and the five Warsaw Pact members occupation of Czechoslovakia

The 23^rd International Geological Congress (Prague, 1968) and the five Warsaw Pact members occupation of Czechoslovakia

The XIII International Geological Congress of 1922 in Brussels (Belgium): between wounds of the Great War and theory passed under silence

The XIII International Geological Congress of 1922 in Brussels (Belgium): between wounds of the Great War and theory passed under silence

Science and prestige: the 9th International Geological Congress, Vienna (1903)

Science and prestige: the 9th International Geological Congress, Vienna (1903)

The history and outcomes of the 30th International Geological Congress, Beijing (1996)

The history and outcomes of the 30th International Geological Congress, Beijing (1996)

Primitivo Hernández-Sampelayo (1880−1959): Paleozoic ironstones and fossils

The mining engineer Primitivo Hernández-Sampelayo was one of the most relevant figures in the study of the Spanish Paleozoic since Lucas Mallada’s time. After a few years working in mining companies, he entered the Geological and Mining Institute of Spain in 1914, where he worked until his retirement in 1950. The results of his studies are the large monographs on Paleozoic sedimentary ironstones (the one devoted to Galicia, 1922–1935, was published in four volumes with a total of 1,813 pp.), or the explanations to the geological map of Spain at a 1:1,000,000 scale (Cambrian System, 1934, 240 pp.; Silurian System –Ordovician included–, 1942, 848 pp.). In addition to other contributions on mineral raw materials, his papers include numerous Paleozoic regional studies, maps for the first cartographic series at a 1:50,000 scale and, above all, regional and systematic paleontological works. The latter were dedicated to Cambrian, Ordovician and Silurian trilobites, graptolites, cephalopods, archaeocyathids and ichnofossils, as well as to Carboniferous mollusks. His interest in the Paleozoic and the geology of northwestern Spain were the main subjects of his reception at the Royal Academy of Sciences of Spain (1934: Geology of Galicia) and of the inaugural address of the 1953/54 course at the same institution (Paleozoic marine life. Fossil remains). A monograph on Spanish graptolites was published in 1960 as a posthumous paper of the author. To the research work of Hernández-Sampelayo we must add his personal interest to form a museum to exhibit the mineralogical, paleontological and petrological diversity of Spain. As a result of his know-how, he established the current Geominero Museum in the great hall of the headquarters of the Geological and Mining Institute of Spain, where it was held the XIV International Geological Congress of 1926.

QUATERNARY DEPOSITS AND ECOLOGICAL MONITORING OF THE ICE AGE PARK IN CARPATHIAN REGION, UKRAINE

An international geopark "The Park of Ice Age" located near the Starunia village in Bohorodchany district of Ivano-Frankivsk region is world-famous for being a paleontological site of Pleistocene fauna of the woolly rhinoceroses and mammoth (the Eemian interglacial period- 46-10 000 years ago according to radiocarbon dating C14) and for its mud volcano which is unique in the Carpathian region, This is a geological nature monument with an area of 60 hectares where abandoned ozokerite mine and oil and gas exploratory boreholes are presented. The detailed investigations carried out in the years 2004 - 2009 by Ukrainian-Polish expeditions were focused on discoveries of possible new sites of fauna fossils and human remains of European early modern humans (EEMH). The future discoveries at the paleontological site of Starunia are extremely important. They intend to carry out ecological assessment of soil, surface and stream waters, atmospheric air, snow, ashes of meadow grasses, radiological screening, and geo-radar sensing to find new locations of extinct mammals. The Starunia area meets all the requirements of a geopark according to UNESCO standards and concepts. The first research findings (1907) are connected with the remains of woolly rhinoceros, mammoth, horse, roe deer and other Pleistocene mammals which had been found in the ozokerite mine at the depth of 12 m near Starunia (Bohorodchany district, Ivano-Frankivsk region). In 1914 the scientists from Lviv (Ukraine) and Krakow (Poland) fully appreciated these discoveries and published a set of articles and a monograph. In 1929 the members of the expedition of Skill Academy (Krakow, Poland) found the remains of three more woolly rhinoceroses in the ozokerite mine at the depth of 17 m. Numerous bones of vertebrates (rodents), remains of mussels, a lot of species of insects, beetles, parasitic worms, fleas, butterflies, spiders, snails, vascular plants, mosses, seeds and branches of dwarf birch (Betula Nana), alder (Alnus glutinosa), and other fossil of tundra flora were also discovered. Polish scientists organized detailed investigations of flora and fauna around Starunia, their results were published in articles but the World War II suspended this process. The investigations around Starunia intensified the comprehensive study of stratigraphy, paleontology, paleogeography, geochronology and other aspects of the Quaternary Period. In 1932 there was established the International Geological Congress (the International Union of Quaternary Study) by INQUA in Leningrad. The main methodological principals of this study dealt with the investigations around Starunia.

Soviet geologists at the international geological congress in Prague in 1968

Soviet geologists at the international geological congress in Prague in 1968

100th anniversary of the Carpathian-Balkan geological association (CBGA)

During the 22nd Congress of the Carpathian-Balkan Geological Association (CBGA) held in Plovdiv, Bulgaria (September 7?11, 2022), the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the CBGA was marked. A resolution for establishing the ?Carpathian Geological Association? was adopted during the 13th session of the international Geological Congress in Brussels (August 19, 1922). it was a result of the efforts and initiative of R. Kettner(Czechoslovakia), J. Nowak (Poland), G. Munteanu Murgoci (Romania), and V. Petkovic (Yugoslavia). Later, after the Second world war, the association changed its name to the Carpathian-Balkan Geological Association (CBGA). during the last hundred years, the CBGA has passed several phases of its existence and organization regarding European geopolitical changes. the main goal of the CBGA remained the same as at the beginning: to promote and encourage joint fundamental and applied geological research in the Carpathian-Balkan region and surrounding area. today, many geoscientists from the 16 member states collaborate in the frame of official working groups of CBGA, EU professional projects, business meetings and joint topics, education programs, etc. CBGA is affiliated with the international union of Geological Science (IUGS) as one of the oldest regional organizations. Based on increasing industrial and environmental demands and needs and an interest in the region?s vast scientific and professional community, we believe the CBGA can improve its activity and give additional benefits to the scientific community, industry, and the environment.

Contribution of I. O. Brod to oil and gas geological research in the Eastern Ciscaucasia

The article dwells upon the organizational and scientific activities of I.O. Brod being a famous scientist in the field of oil and gas geology. His contribution to the development of scientific research and exploration for oil and gas in the Eastern Ciscaucasia in the 30s and in the first half of the 50s of the 20th century has been disclosed. Brief biographical details (birth, studies, positions, etc.) and data from his report at the 17th International Geological Congress (IGC) held in 1937 are given. The activities of I.O. Brod with regards to studying the geological structure and oil and gas content of the Eastern Ciscaucasia regions (Dagestan, Chechnya, etc.) are characterized. It is noted that the generalized text and graphic geological materials of the expedition enabled to identify the main features of the geological structure and assess the prospects for the oil and gas potential of the Mesozoic stratigraphic complexes and served as a scientific justification for the further increase in regional, geological prospecting and exploration work for oil and gas in the region under consideration. Listed are oil and gas fields and deposits (Achisu, Khoshmenzil, Izberbash, Duzlak, Eldarovo, etc.) established as a result of geological exploration under the leadership of I.O. Brod. The focus in describing the scientific and organizational activities of I.O. Brod in the early 50s of the 20th century is on large-scale studies by the integrated south geological expedition in the North Caucasus under his leadership with the participation of many specialized scientific, educational and industrial organizations and institutions. In conclusion, the main monographic, educational and popular scientific works of I.O. Brod are listed and accompanied by a brief reflection of their content and significance.

Prospects for new sites of wooly rhinoceros and mammoths on the territory of paleontological site in Starunia, Carpathian region

An international geopark “Park of the Ice Age” located near the Starunia village in Bohorodchany district of Ivano-Frankivsk region is world-famous for being a paleontological site of Pleistocene fauna of the woolly rhinoceroses and mammoth (the Eemian interglacial period, 46–10 000 years ago according to radiocarbon dating C14) and for its mud volcano which is unique in the Carpathian region. This is a geological nature monument with an area of 60 hectares where abandoned ozokerite mine and oil and gas exploratory boreholes are presented. The detailed investigations carried out in the years 2004–2009 by Ukrainian-Polish expeditions were focused on discoveries of possible new sites of fauna fossils and human remains of European early modem humans (EEMH).The future discoveries at the paleontological site of Starunia are extremely important. They intend to carry out ecological assessment of soil, surface and stream waters, atmospheric air, snow, ashes of meadow grasses, radiological screening, and geo-radar sensing to find new locations of extinct mammals. The Starunia area meets all the requirements of a geopark according to UNESCO standards and concepts. The first research findings (1907) are connected with the remains of woolly rhinoceros, mammoth, horse, roe deer and other Pleistocene mammals which had been found in the ozokerite mine at the depth of 12 m near Starunia (Bohorodchany district, Ivano-Frankivsk region). In 1914 the scientists from Lviv (Ukraine) and Krakow (Poland) fully appreciated these discoveries and published a set of articles and a monograph. In 1929 the members of the expedition of Skill Academy (Krakow, Poland) found the remains of three more woolly rhinoceroses in the ozokerite mine at the depth of 17 m. Numerous bones of vertebrates (rodents), remains of mussels, a lot of species of insects, beetles, parasitic worms, fleas, butterflies, spiders, snails, vascular plants, mosses, seeds and branches of dwarf birch (Betula Nana), alder (Alnus glutinosa), and other fossil of tundra flora were also discovered. Polish scientists organized detailed investigations of flora and fauna around Starunia, their results were published in articles but the World War II suspended this process. The investigations around Starunia intensified the comprehensive study of stratigraphy, paleontology, paleogeography, geochronology and other aspects of the Quaternary Period. In 1932 there was established the International Geological Congress (the International Union of Quaternary Study) by INQUA in Leningrad. The main methodological principals of this study dealt with the investigations around Starunia.

Technological map of the Starunsky geodynamic landfill on the Prycarpathia

Starunia’s Geodynamic Landfill is an area of 60 hectares of the geological monument of nature of the national significance “Starunia” – the world-famous location of the Pleistocene mammoth fauna and four hairy rhinos. The first findings of the mummified carcasses of animals of the so-called mammoth fauna were found at a depth of 12 m at the mine (mine) for the extraction of ozokerite near the village. The old town of Bohorodchany district, Ivano-Frankivsk region, 1907 Scholars of Krakow and Lviv appreciated these unique discoveries enough and published a number of articles and a monograph in 1914. In 1929, an expedition of the Skill Academy from Krakow found the remains of three more hairy rhinos at a mine depth of 17 m. Numerous bones of small vertebrates (rodents), shell remains, numerous species of insects, beetles, parasitic worms, bedbugs, butterflies, spiders, snails, vascular plants, midges, seeds and branches of dwarf birch, alder and other flora were also collected. Polish scientists have organized comprehensive studies of fauna and flora, partly their results were published in articles, but the Second World War halted this process. It is important to note that Starunia’s findings intensified the comprehensive study of stratigraphy, paleontology, paleogeography, geochronology, and other aspects of the Quaternary – the quartet. It should be recalled that in 1932, in Leningrad, the International Geological Congress established INQUA – the International Union for the Study of the Quaternary. But the basic methodological foundations of this study were laid on the materials of Elder.

IACS: past, present, and future of the International Association of Cryospheric Sciences

Abstract. The International Association of Cryospheric Sciences (IACS) became the eighth and most recent association of IUGG at the general assembly in Perugia, Italy, in July 2007. IACS was launched in recognition of the importance of the cryosphere within the Earth system, particularly at a time of significant global change. It was the first new association of the union to be formed in over 80 years and IACS celebrated its 10th anniversary only a year before the IUGG centennial. The forbearers of IACS, however, stretch back even further than IUGG, starting with the formation of the Commission Internationale des Glaciers (CIG) by the International Geological Congress in 1894. Here we record the history of the transition from CIG to IACS, the scientific objectives that drove activities and changes, and some of the key events and individuals involved.

Book review: Kew Observatory and the Evolution of Victorian Science 1840–1910

The International Association of Cryospheric Sciences (IACS) became the eighth and most recent association of IUGG at the general assembly in Perugia, Italy, in July 2007. IACS was launched in recognition of the importance of the cryosphere within the Earth system, particularly at a time of significant global change. It was the first new association of the union to be formed in over 80 years and IACS celebrated its 10th anniversary only a year before the IUGG centennial. The forbearers of IACS, however, stretch back even further than IUGG, starting with the formation of the Commission Internationale des Glaciers (CIG) by the International Geological Congress in 1894. Here we record the history of the transition from CIG to IACS, the scientific objectives that drove activities and changes, and some of the key events and individuals involved.

JAMSTEC reorganization and its relationship to Japan Society of Geoinformatics, Report of the GIS training session for resources exploration, Mathematical Geology and Geoinformatic themes at the 36th International Geological Congress (36<sup>th</sup>GC)

JAMSTEC reorganization and its relationship to Japan Society of Geoinformatics, Report of the GIS training session for resources exploration, Mathematical Geology and Geoinformatic themes at the 36th International Geological Congress (36<sup>th</sup>GC)

HP–UHP metamorphism and tectonic evolution of orogenic belts: introduction

AbstractHigh pressure (HP) and ultrahigh pressure (UHP) metamorphic rocks play a key role for understanding the tectonic evolution of orogenic belts (Johnson, M.R.W. & Harley, S.L. 2012. Orogenesis: The Making of Mountains. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge). They have typically experienced complex changes during subduction and exhumation processes, arising from recrystallization, deformation, element redistribution, fluid–rock interactions and even partial melting, and may therefore carry a valuable record of evolving geodynamic systems in an orogenic belt. Until now, more than 20 UHP metamorphic belts, i.e. belts which contain rocks that experienced pressure–temperature (P–T) conditions exceeding the lower limit of the coesite stability field, have been identified all over the world (Carswell, D.A. & Compagnoni, R. 2003. Ultrahigh Pressure Metamorphism. Eotvos University Press, European Mineralogical Union, Notes in Mineralogy, Budapest; Liou, J.G., Ernst, W.G., Zhang, R.Y., Tsujimori, T. & Jahn, B.M. 2009. Ultrahigh-pressure minerals and metamorphic terranes – the view from China. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences,35, 199–231; Zheng, Y.F., Zhang, L.F., McClelland, W.C. & Cuthbert, S. 2012. Processes in continental collision zones: preface. Lithos, 136, 1–9). New and innovative studies from different geoscience disciplines have been invaluable in developing a better understanding of the geodynamic evolution of orogenic belts. This special issue contains 15 papers, most of which were presented as part of the session ‘HP–UHP metamorphism and tectonic evolution of orogenic belts’, held at the 35th International Geological Congress in Cape Town, South Africa during 27 August to 4 September, 2016.

The mapping of the Lombard geologists in the XIX Century from Brocchi to Taramelli

The purpose of this paper is to show the contribution given, during the XIX century, from the Lombard researchers in order to carry out geological maps able to support the comparison with those realized by foreign geologists as L. von Buch, F. R. von Hauer, H.T. de La Beche and others. Indeed still in the first quarter of the century in Italy, the geological mapping was scarce and inadequate in order togive reliable information, surely owing to lack of suitable mapping proceedings and topographical basis. But it is really in this time the Lombard geology becomes animated by strong personalities as G.B. Brocchi and S. Breislak, inclined to work on the field because their public offices (and in the same conditions will be also G. Curioni), all skilled in the mining researches, but also scrupulous observers of the soil features.On the basis of the experiences matured in contact with the French, Swiss German and Austrian geologists, one must remember the researches and monographs made by G. Omboni, the maps made by E. Cornalia, C.F. Parona and others. Lastly, the best contribution to the Lombard and Italian geological mapping is that given by T. Taramelli, loyal disciple of A. Stoppani, indefatigable surveyor of the Carnic and Julian Alps of which he leaved very extraordinary documents. The remarkable level reached by the Italian geological mapping will be esteemed, during the second International Geological Congress in Bologna in 1881, by means also of the first edition of the official great Geological Map of Italy made by the Royal Geological Survey of Italy.

Stratigraphic and morphologic signatures of continental shelves, IGC 2016, Cape Town: an introduction

This special issue of Geo-Marine Letters comprises seven contributions to the session “Stratigraphic and morphologic signatures of continental shelves” of the 35th International Geological Congress held in Cape Town (Republic of South Africa) on 27 August–4 September 2016. There is an additional article not presented at the conference but falling into the same general theme. The guest editors are A.N. Green and J.A.G. Cooper. The eight articles address several contemporary themes in continental shelf geology. They include the role of antecedent conditioning on the development of shelf stratigraphy and geomorphology; erosion of submerged shorelines and their preservation during (stepped) postglacial sea-level rise; the role of glacial processes (e.g. iceberg scouring during ice-sheet retreat); and the utility of archival data in addressing contemporary issues such as Holocene climate change and global oceanographic circulation systems. The continental shelf holds important information for understanding past and present global circulation and earth–ice–atmosphere interactions including sea-level change. It is hoped that these themes will spur further research that is slowly coming to the fore in several new and innovative mapping and exploration programmes emerging from an increasing number of coastal nations.