This year’s Bristol Radical History Festival focused on the persistent threats of racism, xenophobia and, of course, our radical collective resistance to it across Ireland and Britain, reports LYNNE WALSH
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Magma: hot stuff, coming through
A better understanding of the movement of magma at plate boundaries could help predict volcanic eruptions more accurately, write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT
Scientist of the University of Iceland take measurements and samples standing on the ridge in front of the active part of the eruptive fissure of an active volcano in Grindavik on Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula, December 19, 2023
A maverick’s self-inflicted snake bites could unlock breakthrough treatments – but they also reveal deeper tensions between noble scientific curiosity and cold corporate callousness, write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT
The FBU is demanding 52 weeks of full pay for women firefighters, highlighting the unique health risks they face — and the continuing need to recruit and retain more women if policies like this are still not in place, writes SEONA HART
Israel continues to operate with impunity in what seems to be a brutal and protracted experiment, while much of the world looks on, says RAMZY BAROUD
A new report by Amnesty International pulls no punches in highlighting the Labour government’s human rights violations of those on benefits, says Dr DYLAN MURPHY
With Reform UK surging and Labour determined not to offer anything different from the status quo, a clear opportunity opens for the left, argues CLAUDIA WEBBE
A recent Immigration Summit heard from Lord Alf Dubs, who fled the Nazis to Britain as a child. JAYDEE SEAFORTH reports on his message that we need to increase public empathy with desperate people seeking asylum
VOLCANOES are among the world's most hazardous natural phenomena, with the potential to cause massive destruction and significant loss of life when they erupt.
Mount Vesuvius, Mount St Helens, Mount Pinatubo and Eyjafjallajokull are some of the most famous examples, but active volcanoes are widespread across the globe. As of 2015, 8 per cent of the world’s population lived within 100km of a volcano that has had at least one significant eruption in recorded history.
Although monitoring efforts have improved since the days of Pompeii, many volcanoes remain understudied; meaning there is a lack of specific measurements available to help us predict the risk of an eruption.
The exact sequence of events leading up to a volcanic eruption is difficult to predict. However, any eruption is always preceded by the movement of magma (molten rock) through the Earth’s crust beneath the volcano. Monitoring a volcano focuses on trying to identify this movement and its speed.
There are different ways of doing this. As magma moves through the crust, it triggers earthquakes in the brittle rock around it. These earthquakes are often small and may not cause the ground above to shake, but seismic instruments placed near the volcano are able to record them.
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