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Open Day bigger and better than ever
 
More than 6,000 second-level students from schools throughout the country attended Open Day in early December. Moving the event from Saturday to a weekday proved a resounding success with a significant increase in numbers and broader representation of schools.
Pictured: Enda Fallon explains the principles of Health & Safety Systems to students from St. Flannan's College, Ennis, while Lydia Burke and Lisa Dillon from Glenamaddy Community School, check out samples at the Environmental Science stand.
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NUI Galway expertise sought in Chile
 Dr. Bob Kennedy of the Environmental Change Institute (ECI) and Martin Ryan Institute (MRI), is to journey to Chile to take part in a multinational expert study of the effects of coastal eutrophication (nutrient enrichment).
Fish pen mariculture is a very large industry in Chile, but at present there is very little control of the environmental standards maintained by fish farmers. Little is known of the effects that fish farming are having on the Chilean marine environment. However, preliminary qualitative studies and anecdotal evidence gathered by local people indicate that some areas are being seriously polluted. This has led the Chilean government to fund a pilot study into coastal eutrophication. The study will bring together world leaders in the field of coastal pollution monitoring and Dr Kennedy has been invited to join the cruise because of his expertise in the field of sediment profile imagery (SPI).
Originally constructed in the MRI under a grant awarded to Professor Brendan Keegan of the Benthos Research Group, NUI Galway's SPI camera is now the most advanced in the world. This is thanks to development work carried out by Dr Kennedy as part of two projects he works on with Professor Keegan in the ECI funded under the Higher Education Authority's PRTLI Cycle II programme. The camera is set apart from its peers by its professional quality digital SLR camera, allowing the storage of up to 1200 high quality images.
SPI is a rapid reconnaissance technique for mapping habitat quality on the soft seafloor. The technique uses an inverted periscope that slices vertically through surface sediments to photograph the upper 15-20cm in profile. This surface layer is very biologically and chemically active. Burrowing animals play a vital role in processing organic material that arrives from the water column by mixing sediments with the overlying water, a process termed bioturbation. SPI allows the quantification of the visible effects of bioturbation, and the production of maps of benthic (bottom) habitat quality.
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Honouring two distinctive individuals
Johnny Ward who is known to thousands of NUI Galway's students and graduates throughout the years, was conferred in October with an Honorary M.A. degree. His shop on University Road has been a landmark for generations of students. An Honorary M.Sc. degree was conferred on Frank Gaffney for his valuable commitment to the University and the Department of Physics. The daily recording of the weather in Galway was begun in the University in the 19th century and for the last 40 years, this work has been done by Frank Gaffney. The weather station, or Stevenson Screen, located on campus, provides daily readings, which are sent to the Meteorological Service and contribute to the comprehensive national database now being maintained by the Service.
 
Pictured are John Ward with the President and Frank Gaffney with the Registrar, Professor Jim Browne.
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New Geological Guide to Galway published
The rich geological heritage of Galway has been brought to life in a new publication entitled "Galway in Stone - A Geological Walk in the Heart of Galway", which has been compiled by Dr. Martin Feely of the Department of Geology, NUI Galway. The book deals mainly with the geology and use of natural stone in the buildings of the City.
The geological elements of the book include an introduction to the classification of rocks and a simple illustrated description of Galway's bedrock geology. The volume takes the reader on a geological walk, with accompanying fold out map around Galway's inner city, to view the fascinating range of local and imported building stones that display textures, structures and fossils.
Pictured are from left, Dr. Martin Feely, Department of Geology: Mayor of Galway, Cllr. Val Hanly, who launched the book; and Dr. Pat Morgan, Dean of Science, NUI Galway.
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