2007 Annual Report - School of Geosciences - The University of ...

of the Torrens Taskforce to tackle the problems of
the river, while the City of Adelaide established
the Urban Rivers Symposium as a forum for
community debate on this issue.
Prof. Iain Mason was elected as a Fellow of the
Australian Academy of Technological Sciences
& Engineering (FTSE) in 2007, and won the
Best Paper Award in Mining Geophysics, South
African Geophysical Association AGM in Natal,
October, 2007. He also received the Australian
Society of Exploration Geophysics Grahame
Sands Award for innovation in applied geophysics
through a significant practical development
of benefit to Australian Exploration Geophysics
in November 2007.
In June 2007 (on the wettest and coldest day of
the year!) Honorary Research Fellow Dr. David
Branagan was awarded an Honorary Doctor of
Science degree from the University of Sydney.
His book ‘TW Edgeworth David: A Life’, was one
of four books short-listed for the inaugural Prime
Minister’s History Prize. Interest in Edgeworth
David’s life and work remained high and during
the year presentations were given in Sydney,
country venues and interstate. Partly funded by
the Geological Society of Australia and the History
of Geology Group (Geological Society of London),
Dr. Branagan represented the Geological
Society of Australia, and was an invited speaker
at the November meeting in London organised
by the History of Geology Group celebrating the
bicentenary of the Geological Society of London.
Dr. Branagan also authored a paper on the
authenticity of the mineral Davidite (named
in 1907 by Douglas Mawson for his mentor,
Edgeworth David, based on the introductory
presentation given at the Earth Resources Foundation
Edgeworth David Day in 2006). This was
published by the Royal Society of NSW in 2007.
As part of a Geoscience Australia project to
assess the potential of mass failures on submarine
slopes to generate tsunamis, Honorary
Research Fellow A/Prof. Jock Keene participated
in a 15-day research cruise on RV Southern
Surveyor to map, for the first time, the continental
slope off central NSW between Jervis
Bay and Newcastle. Remarkable features were
discovered including extensive areas of mass
failure along with intricate canyon systems,
volcanic peaks and ridges and fault scarps. Many
Continental shelf and slope
bathymetry off Newcastle
showing submarine canyons
meandering on the upper
continental slope along with
sediment slides and fluid
escape pockmarks and
volcanic outcrops on the
lower continental slope.
Black contours are plotted
in 500 m intervals.
Image courtesy of
Jock Keene.
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