David Nash
@davidjnash
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Geographer. Born at 322.50 ppm CO2. Geomorphology, archaeology, climate history, West Ham. He/him. https://t.co/vOfCV8StuL
Brighton
Joined March 2011
I’ve spent a lot of time looking at the sarsen stones at Stonehenge, including under petrographic and scanning electron microscopes. They might look solid but the stone is full of pore spaces. The orange dye sprayed on the stones today is going to be around for a very long time.
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Possibly the best thing I’ve ever invested in - @OrdnanceSurvey wallpaper for the landing. I’ve already identified that there are 13 pubs within a 5 mile radius of us. #everygeographershouldhaveone
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Our new paper on the provenance of the large sarsen stones at @EH_Stonehenge is out now in Science Advances. We show that most of the sarsens were brought to Stonehenge from West Woods, 25km north in the Marlborough Downs. Read the paper for free here:
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Well done Charlie Stayt on @BBCBreakfast for giving Nick Gibb a hard time on school funding this morning. We’ve had 9 years of cuts in real terms (despite claims that spending is ‘higher than ever’). Parents are buying pencils and toilet rolls. Shocking.
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Posting this so that everyone knows what we’re dealing with at @uniofbrighton. Having a week off now. Really not looking forward to spending the summer reshaping our curriculum following 7 (yes, SEVEN) of our Geography team leaving or being made redundant.
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Prof Danny Dorling… has noted that the effect of the methodology is to “give significant priority to areas represented by Conservative MPs or representatives, even in circumstances where those areas are on any objective view affluent, and subject to low levels of need”.
Pork Barrel Politics – we have filed our claim #goodlawproject.
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We had solar panels installed on the roof of our garage a couple of weeks ago, and I’m now obsessed with monitoring our energy use and power generation. It’s a bright but cloudy winters day and the panels are powering the house, topping up the battery and feeding into the grid.
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"You won't like me when I'm angry, because I always back up my rage with facts and documented sources." The Credible Hulk.
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Beautiful morning at Stonehenge doing some filming with the BBC and ITN about our forthcoming publication on the sarsen stones.
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Call me suspicious, but what exactly is buried in the #WithdrawalAgreementBill that the government so desperately want to rush through Parliament just to meet a 31 October deadline? This is so important for everyone. Give the bill proper scrutiny please.
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@JolyonMaugham Keep digging Jolyon - if something smells this bad you’ll find the rotting corpse somewhere. If you could start looking into the procurement process for the Nightingale hospitals that would also be appreciated. Lots of very deep pockets being lined here.
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First time I've seen an archaeological display in a motorway service station. Well done Peterborough Services, southbound A1(M)!
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Our latest paper on sources of sarsen stones at Stonehenge is out today. For this one we have been analysing sarsen fragments excavated at the monument to understand their source. It’s a long paper so I’ll summarise the key findings. 1/8.
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Blimey, we’ve only gone and won @uniofbrighton Outstanding Research & Enterprise Project of the Year for our research at @EH_Stonehenge. Well done to @Twigneousrocks and @genius_pebbles, and our colleagues on Twitter @SueGreaney and @artefactual_KW!
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Morning @BBCBreakfast. A correction. University students ARE getting their full education, they just aren’t getting the same general university experience as previous cohorts. Please stop perpetuating the myth that teaching is somehow inferior this year.
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The #Okavango Delta - one of the world's most important wetlands for wildlife #WorldWetlandsDay #botswana
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To anyone who follows me and lives in an EU state, can I apologise and reassure you there are huge numbers of Brits who don’t want to leave the EU and who didn’t vote for this government. The way Boris Johnson and his Cabinet are conducting themselves is - frankly - embarrassing.
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@TimothyDaw Please keep anything that looks like a weather diary. Absolutely invaluable for research purposes.
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You know that really big manuscript I mentioned the other day? Accepted with minor grammatical changes, and possibly the best set of reviewer comments I’ve ever read. Happy days. Is it too early for gin?.
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Just remember that everything made by humans will eventually be crushed and destroyed within a subduction zone….
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Some good news to brighten up a day spent writing text for our REF2021 environment template - I've just been awarded a Higher Education Academy Fellowship. I believe the phrase is "Go Me".
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Just received some pics (courtesy of English Heritage) of a mad morning at @EH_Stonehenge and West Woods in July with @SueGreaney and colleagues, just before our Science Advances paper was published.
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Fieldwork progressing really well on our @LeverhulmeTrust Makgadikgadi archaeology project. Some beautiful MSA finds already.
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Interested in Stonehenge? You might also like to read our piece in The Conversation: "Stonehenge: how we revealed the original source of the biggest stones". via @ConversationUK.
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I’m gradually getting used to my new home working arrangements. My new assistant is also settling in well, although his notetaking skills leave a little to be desired.
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A fantastic piece about our research at Stonehenge on @Channel4News this evening. You can watch the clip here.
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I’ve never seen a collapsible stile before. Here is @AOckelford modelling said stile. Amazing piece of engineering.
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Dear @Conservatives, I know I’m in a privileged position, but I’d rather be able to get a GP appointment, use the bus, visit well-funded museums, drive safely on well-kept roads, swim in clean seas, and not have to wait 16 hrs in A&E. You can keep your 2p thanks. #ToryManifesto.
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I’ll be supporting the #UCUstrike to protest against rising workload. This week I was emailed asking me to approve a workload of 2003 hrs for the 2019-20 academic year (I’m contracted to work 1650 hrs/yr). It is November. I have been pointing out workload issues since the summer.
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Against my better judgement, I’m watching #Marr. Fascinating to see the deference with which he treats Boris Johnson compared to the constant interruptions and aggressive questioning given to Jonathan Ashworth.
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You know it’s a special day when not one but two of your longtime @uniofbrighton colleagues are awarded Personal Chairs. Huge congratulations to Prof Becky Elmhirst (@RJElmhirst) and Prof James Ebdon (@JamesEEbdon). We are due one hell of a party once we are out of lockdown!.
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Huge congratulations to Dr @Bm_Boyes who successfully defended his PhD thesis today, passing with minor corrections. If you want to know anything about the glacial history of the Kola Peninsula, Ben’s the person to ask! Many thanks @uniofbrighton for funding his studentship.
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Taking a day of annual leave and, as it’s drizzly, thought I’d pop to the @TownerGallery to visit the @Ravilious1942 gallery. This painting of the meanders at Cuckmere Haven is still one of my favourites.
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@nytimes Thanks for your concern. Today I'll be reeling in shock whilst mowing the lawn and going for a bike ride. I'll also be voting on Thursday.
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@eggsbened David, our whole research team are phenomenally grateful to your father for taking care of the core, and to your family for getting it back to the UK. Without it this research would not have been possible. It’s just a shame your father never saw the results.
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It’s a stunning morning here at Seaford Head, where I’m doing a bit of filming with Clare Blencowe from @SussexWildlife ahead of International Geodiversity Day next week. Watch this space.
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Not had a paper rejected outright in a while. Just posting this as a reminder that this academia malarkey doesn’t get any easier, even as you get more “senior”. Chin up, make revisions, and submit elsewhere. Happy Friday everyone.
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If I was an 18 year old, I'd be camped outside Downing St today. Their right to work/travel in the EU has been taken away. Their employment chances are in tatters due to govt mishandling of the pandemic. Now their futures are being decided by an algorithm that favours the elite.
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Errrr @BBCNews. British universities haven’t ‘closed’ during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sure, our buildings have closed, but lecturers and professional services staff been working bloody hard to support our students and deliver online learning to the best of our abilities.
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Worth a read. Robert Jenrick pushed through a major property development the day before a rise in the local community infrastructure levy. This will have saved the developer (who just happens to be a very wealthy Tory donor) between £20 and £30 million.
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Never been part of the #BrightonPride Parade in my 29 years living in Sussex, but what an experience. So much energy, so much love, so much joy, so much positivity, I want to bottle it and draw on it for the rest of the year. Thank you @uniofbrighton, thank you Brighton & Hove!
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*Bohemian Geography*. It’s out! Watch the singing efforts of dozens of geomorphologists from @BSG_Geomorph as they tackle this Queen classic in a brilliant video expertly put together by @rob_storrar. Worth 6 mins of anyone’s day! (Yes, I’m there at 3:20)
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Paper 2, led by yours truly, uses the geochemical fingerprinting approach applied at Stonehenge to map silcrete outcrops used for tool manufacture at five open-air Middle Stone Age sites in the Makgadikgadi Pans, Botswana. @LeverhulmeTrust @uniofbrighton
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While parts of the U.K. are enjoying the snow, I’m in a basement in Pietermaritzburg looking for historical accounts of snow in KwaZulu-Natal. It’s 28 deg C, 95% humidity and very sweaty down here.
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I wasn’t going to comment on the results of #REF2021 today. But you know what, I’m really chuffed with our outcome for Geography. Reflects the efforts of a brilliant bunch of colleagues and some genuinely amazing support staff.
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As featured on @BBCBreakfast this morning. Great privilege to be able to work with @Twigneousrocks at the @EnglishHeritage archaeology store in Temple Cloud, analysing the 1.08m sarsen core extracted from Stone 58 at @EH_Stonehenge in 1958. @uniofbrighton @GeogGeoBrighton
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Already hearing from geologists spotting (in some cases potentially serious) flaws in the underpinning datasets and stats used in the Altar Stone study. Will be interesting to see if any ‘comment’ papers emerge.
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The emotional roller-coaster when you get the “application unsuccessful” email on a grant, then you read that you received a score of 9 out of 10 (‘Outstanding’) from the panel. I wish those 10/10 applications every success. We regroup and try again. So close.
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The two main archaeology papers from our @LeverhulmeTrust project in the Makgadikgadi Basin, Botswana, are now out! The first documents the silcrete assemblage at 5 open-air Middle Stone Age sites on Ntwetwe Pan, deposited during palaeolake lowstands. 1/5
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@maxrushden Laughing aside, you’ve going to be pretty thick-skinned to put up with that sort of personal abuse, day in day out. Social media is not a kind place.
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On behalf of @Twigneousrocks, @genius_pebbles and the rest of the Stonehenge team, I’m extremely proud to receive our award for @uniofbrighton Research & Enterprise Project of the Year. A beautiful shiny thing!
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Having seen the Okavango floodwaters arrive in the Maun area many years ago, I can confirm just how exciting it is. Only a trickle at first, then over days the channels fill. Everyone out and playing in the water.
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Today, I am mostly in the sports hall at @LancingCollege talking to sixth formers from along the south coast about our Geography and Environment courses. @BrightonUniGeo
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This thing of beauty arrived in the post this morning. What can I say, except that every climate historian and historical climatologist needs a copy! Fantastic work by the editors and a huge team of authors. #climhist #envhist #meteohist @Palgrave_
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Three years married to this one (and fifteen years together before that). Happy anniversary @Shakey63!
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In case you’re interested in finding out about what we’ve been up to at Stonehenge, our project is likely to be featured on Channel 4 News plus the main ITN and BBC news programmes this evening. @SueGreaney is also going to be talking about our results on BBC Breakfast tomorrow.
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Sad news. We had to say goodbye to The Pussy today. He had a degenerative spinal condition and had gradually lost the use of his back legs. He had the best 5 1/2 years with us. I hope he is now chasing bunnies somewhere, free of pain. Go well, little Charlie. #CatsOfTwitter
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Does anyone else find themselves referring to what they did early in the COVID pandemic relative to periods of lockdown? i.e. “That was just after the first lockdown”. Are lockdowns the equivalent of stadials during the Coronacene? What should we call an ‘inter-lockdown’ period?.
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Had some new portrait photos taken for work last week. This is probably the best of the bunch. I'm hoping it says 'friendly and approachable' rather than 'sweaty beachball'.😀
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Hello Cockcroft my old friend. Somewhat surreal to pop into the office today.
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On the train to Sheffield to give a seminar at @sheffieldgeog about our @LeverhulmeTrust work mapping Stone Age human mobility patterns in the Makgadikgadi Pans, Botswana. It’ll be nice to return to my alma mater and catch up with old friends.
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Stonehenge news: Latest results from our @BritishAcademy_ and @LeverhulmeTrust funded research on the giant sarsen stones at @EH_Stonehenge are published today in the open access journal @PLoSONE: A thread. 1/9.
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Big news: our @BritishAcademy_ funded work on the origins of the @EH_Stonehenge sarsens has been nominated as ‘Research Project of the Year’ by @CurrentArchaeo (the biggest popular archaeology magazine in the UK). You can view the nominees and vote here:
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Right, off to vote. I live in Wealden, a very Conservative constituency, so I’m going in undercover. Do you think I’ll be spotted? #VoteLabourOnThursday #VoteCorbyn #VoteCorbyn #VoteTacticallyActually
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Pembrokeshire Day 3: How come I’ve never visited Tenby before? Fantastic little place.
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Ah well, we didn't win 'Project of the Year' for our work at Stonehenge - but well done to Gordon Noble (University of Aberdeen). Huge thanks to everyone who voted for us and to @CurrentArchaeo. Don't forget, you can still read our research for free here:
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OK, back to work after a very relaxing week in Pembrokeshire. Still, I’ve got memories like this to keep me going.
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Fantastic to see 6 (yes, six) of our PhD students graduate today, including the brilliant @samir_bromfield, @MattTurley01 and @paulkilkie. Huge congratulations everyone.
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Here we are in fancy dress a couple of years back. Things won’t be the same without you Huw Taylor.
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Ever wanted to know how documentary evidence can be used to understand historical droughts? Then have a look at our mega-review paper just out in Climate of the Past. Oh, and it’s free access too.
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Neat video by @Reuters explaining our latest research on the sarsens at Stonehenge, including video clips of yours truly. @uniofbrighton
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I don’t normally check my email out of hours and at the weekend - life/work balance and all that - but I’m glad I did this afternoon. Paper with @Weather_Extreme, @jrgnklein and @DrGeorgeAdamson accepted in Climatic Change!!! 💥🎉💥.
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@AJ_Watson_ @OrdnanceSurvey Redcliffe Imaging. They do all sorts of bespoke map wallpaper. You choose your area online by postcode, enter wall dimensions, and they deliver pretty quickly.
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Thank you to all the NHS staff and volunteers in Eastbourne. That was unbelievably efficient. Just goes to show what you can do when you trust the organisation of a vaccination program to professionals rather than some wealthy mate of a government minister. #COVIDVaccination
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Back from a productive day with @Twigneousrocks at @SalisburyMuseum analysing a second sarsen core from Stone 58 at @EH_Stonehenge. Last piece in the jigsaw for a manuscript to be submitted in the next couple of months.
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Just seen James Cleverly on @BBCBreakfast trying to twist the phrase ‘oven ready’ by claiming it related to the Withdrawal Agreement only, and then suggesting that ‘we hold all the cards’ meant that we ‘should’ hold all the cards. Honestly, they won an election on these untruths.
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New Year, new #climhist paper. We explore how 3 droughts that affected large areas of southern Africa in the 19th century are reported in different source types (newspapers, letters/reports, diaries/journals). Headline: choose your sources carefully!
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Here’s a better picture of m’colleagues James and Diogo with their Outstanding Impact Award. Well done team! @JamesEEbdon @uniofbrighton @GeogGeoBrighton @AquaticBrighton
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Beautiful morning out on the saltmarshes with our Geography and Environment students in sunny Pembrokeshire.
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Five years since we met this little fella, who has since completely bossed our lives. #CatsOfTwitter #Caturday
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The look of someone who has just drunk a gin and tonic as big as his head.
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Absolutely love this picture of myself and ‘him indoors’ taken by my very talented photographer friend Trevor Thomas.
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Random acts of kindness from colleagues make all the difference.
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A full day of thesis examination beckons. My home office is freezing and “Two-Stroke Jason” across the road is at it with the petrol driven leaf blower. Nothing for it but the deerstalker to block out the noise and keep my ears warm.
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That’s it. Bags packed. Out of office on. Ready for a week in sunny Pembrokeshire. Will be the furthest I’ve travelled since March. 😳.
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Some of my @GeogGeoBrighton and @BECivEngUoB colleagues pre-graduation. Don’t we brush up well?! @uniofbrighton.
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Perfect first day in Pembrokeshire. Circular walk from Llanrhian to Abereiddy to Porthgain to Llanrhian. Now shattered.
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