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Vis à vis an elementary class on the expediencies of a proper understanding of geological sections

Following last year’s sell out fossil drawing masterclass ‘Ghosts of the Museum’, the author and journalist Dr Ted Nield returned to deliver his next elementary geological lesson on Thursday, 3 December 2015.

‘Delineation of the Stratification of Rocks’ was our final event marking the bicentenary of the publication of the first geological map of a country, William Smith’s ‘A Delineation of the Strata of England and Wales, with part of Scotland…’ (1815).  The Upper Library was arranged in the style of a Victorian school room, complete with blackboard, where the twenty-four ‘pupils’ were treated to a lecture by Dr Nield on understanding geological sections, based on the theories of Smith.  The lesson ended with the pupils sitting a short examination (based on Dr Nield's 1970s O Level paper) to test their newly acquired knowledge.

With spirited contributions from the audience, the results came down to a tense tie-break. Richard Thomas was crowned the lucky winner and took home the "Ancient and Glorious Order of William Smith" medal.

Find out about William Smith's geological sections

Image Gallery

View a selection of images from the evening