Week 5 - A lesson in Geyserite

This week was a relatively quiet week. I did lots of reading through the leadership book as well as reading up on water acidity, sinter architecture compared to temperature, and sinter dependant on how far from the vent it is found. These were all in prep for our trip to Rotorua.

Kathy took me and two honours students to see her samples of Geyserite also in prep for Rotorua. She has an amazing collection of Geyserite from low-temperature pools to high temperature pools. I particularly like the samples that came from the geyser itself, which Kathy says is incredibly hard to get.

I spent this time absorbing the language that was being used, mentally tucking away words to go and look up later. The rocks were a mixture of stunning textures, colours and weights. Some were incredibly brittle, almost like tissue paper.

Part of Kathys incredible collection

Learning to use an eye lens. Apparently the trick is to relax the eyes in order to focus (and avoid the furrow).

A Network fabric rock. This one is relatively modern

Another network fabric rock. This one is from the Jurassic period, found in Patagonia

This rock shows 2 different volcanic eruptions over time and ow this effects the rock samples. The white strip on the bottom, and the white strip further up are Ash deposits.

My ponderings this week have largely been around how to better get involved in the 'doing' side of my placement. I have engaged in some conversation with other staff members at the university, and upon returning in October I am excited for the activities ahead!

In the leadership book they are gearing up towards helping us to empower others. It is important that a leader is not the only person driving an initiative. They talk about Envisioning the future, and I really liked how they said that you need to pull on the past, present and future in order to make change.

  • Reflect on your past
  • Attend to the present
  • Prospect the future
  • Express your passion

I really liked this as I am a believer that our past makes us who we are, and even our mistakes (large or small) are there to help us improve our futures. So I've been considering how my past mistakes/achievements can help better me as a person, as a leader, and as a teacher. I've then been considering the journey that our Science department has been on for the last few years and just how far we have come and where we would like to go. What of our past are we going to use to drive us, how will we use that in the present, and how will that mould the future of our department.