A casi todos los viajeros que visitan Guatemala, suena familiar el nombre "Atitlán". El famoso Lago Atitlán es la joya en la corona de bellezas naturales de país, y ha sido conocido así por décadas. El escritor Aldous Huxley lo describió así: "(Lago de) Como, con el embellecimiento adicional de algunos volcanes inmensos. Seguramente es … Continue reading El otro mundo: Volcán Atitlán
“Todas las personas grandes han sidos niños antés. (Pero pocas lo recuerdan.)”Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Uno de mis libros favoritos es El Principito. También es el primer libro que leí en español. Yo me acuerdo claramente el día en que conseguí una copia. Era 2015, acababa de llegar en Quito, y me había asignado la tarea … Continue reading El Principito y sus estímulos improbables
“When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.”C. S. Lewis One of my favourite books is The Little Prince. It's also the first book that I read in Spanish. I remember quite clearly how I came across it. I had … Continue reading The Little Prince and its unlikely inspirations
After a week doing fieldwork in the villages south of Fuego, my friend Beth and I discussed the importance of reflecting on our work. Beth suggested that as well as evaluating our research approaches, it would be important to write about what it feels like to be there. I thought this was a splendid idea. … Continue reading A tale of two aldeas
"Geology is too important to be left to geologists." - Patrick Corbett Guatemala. Although by name the land of many trees, I encourage you to consider it fauna not flora. You will find it alive and bristling, breathing its hot breath. From its sinuous green skin spring spines of sheer earth, steep and sharp. The … Continue reading Guatemala Vuelta
It's finally done! I began a PhD thinking one finished with a "big bang" of the viva voce, with its teeming discussion with your examiners and, afterwards, continuing the debate over drinks. It turns out you leave a PhD by a series of bangs and whimpers, from the original submission, through the viva, corrections, exam … Continue reading PhDone
At dawn the ants riseMarch to probe the dragon's backIt exhales fire, piqued We made the cover of VOLCANICA! Find the current issue, brimming with astonishing science, here (Vol. 3, No. 2). Our article, Fireside Tales, tells tales of past eruptions and evacuations at Fuego through interviews with local people. The cover photo was taken … Continue reading Just look at that volcano
What's in a name? More specifically, what's in the name of a volcanic hazard? Different names carry different meanings, conveying an emotion or communicating a threat. Volcanic vocabulary ranges from the descriptive ("the fire like a Christmas tree"), through the technical ("pyroclastic flow"), to the sensory ("roaring"). Language is fundamental to knowledge of volcanic hazards. … Continue reading Volcabulary
Regresé de Guatemala el lunes pasado, y desde luego no he hablado español por mas que 15 minutos. ¡Como lo extraño! Un cambio dramático desde el sábado pasado, cuando pasé una cena muy feliz con mis amigo-compañeros de INSIVUMEH y CONRED en la Ciudad [de Guatemala], platicando sobre todo desde cumpleaños hasta nuevas estaciones sísmicas. … Continue reading Hasta la proxima vez
I recently gave my second-year talk at university, which involved preliminary results from our previous fieldwork campaign to Guatemala in November 2017. In my PowerPoint I embedded a short video on some extraordinary eruptive activity that we observed from Fuego's summit vents. Of course the video didn't work (does it ever?)*, so I decided I'd … Continue reading A glimpse through the clouds
Reasoning With Volcanoes 