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Palaeontology is a lot more than dinosaurs, and fossils are a lot more than the remains of past life. Together, rocks and fossils tell remarkable stories about our Earth, how it has changed, and how lifeforms and ecosystems on its surface have evolved over billions of years. Palaeoscience and geoscience are fundamental topics—central to a sustainable future—but how do we make these topics better understood and accessible for everyone? How can we communicate the thrilling depths of geological time, disentangle geology from climate change, and provide better awareness of the inextricable relationship between geology, landscape and First Nation’s culture? This talk will touch on the speaker’s experience with these topics, particularly in the context of Hollywood films and documentary film-making as a medium for powerful and engaging science communication.Ìý
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Bio: Marissa Betts is a geologist and palaeontologist at the University of New England in Armidale, working on the Cambrian Period (~538–485 million years ago). Her research in Australia, Antarctica, China and Mongolia unearths new fossil species, aims to track how the positions of continents have changed and continues to refine the geological timescale by dating and correlating key packages of rocks around the world. After completing her PhD at Macquarie University in 2016, Marissa started at UNE in 2017 on a Postdoctoral Fellowship and has since transitioned to Senior Lecturer in Earth Science, and is now a DECRA-funded Research Fellow. In 2023, she was appointed as Secretary of the International Subcommission on Cambrian Stratigraphy. She has been awarded the Geological Society of Australia's A.H. Voisey Medal (NSW Division) and Walter Howchin Medal (SA Division), selected as a NSW Young Tall Poppy and an STA Superstar of STEM, and is a proud STEM Coach for the Curious Minds program. She is the host of the popular Sci-Flicks science film nights at the Belgrave Cinema in Armidale, and the companion Sci-Flicks podcast. In 2022, she directed and produced the award-winning film ROLA[STONE].

Members and visitors are warmly invited to attend and to stay for supper following the meeting. No booking required. If the door to the Mawson Building is closed, ring the FGC doorbell to left of the door for admittance. Note that the door to the building will not be monitored after 7.45 pm (and there will be no doorbell) so please be sure to arrive on time. The door will however be opened briefly for latecomers just before the main lecture starts, at around 8 pm.Ìý

The lecture will be preceded by a wine tasting, drinks and nibbles in the Alderman Room, Mawson building, commencing at 5.30 pm.

Please be warned that there is no wheelchair access to the lecture theatre.