i-Geology: Review of 1st Semester 2013

2013 has arrived and our Geology students are on their best form. They are motivated, and were totally refreshed after 4 months long semester break. With our best form, the Curtin Geology Club & Curtin Sarawak AAPG Student Chapter has received a new fresh breath of hope and changes to better. The geology club has been an idle club for the past two years and now it is up to us to rejuvenate the club with much activities and give it a new look to promote our club to a newer heights. So, the previous committees of 2012 gathered all the Geology students to have a meeting to select the committees of 2013 where lecturers and students votes are valued and considered upon the selection of this committees. After an hour to two of polling, the selection was so that Marni Amalina Mansor is voted as the President of Curtin Geology Club & Curtin Sarawak AAPG Student Chapter. Other committee members were chosen to aid her in running the club.

Board of Committees Curtin Geology Club & Curtin Sarawak AAPG Student Chapter 2013:

President : Marni Amalina Mansor

Vice President I : Mohd Rasyid Zainol Abidin

Vice President II : Premendran Manokaran

Secretary : Ching Siu Ru

Vice Secretary : Nur Faridah Yaakob

Treasurer : Harshinee Nyanasegeram

Vice Treasurer : Gan Ying Bein

PR. Officer : Sally Jane

Head of Project Manager : Shantha Kumaran Manogaran

Editor of i-Geology : Himeraj Ashogan

Assistant Editor : Tai Kui Tong

After the committee members were selected, the meeting proceeded by diverting the attention to the Geology students as well as the lecturers on the type of activities they expect from the current Geology Club committees. Here deep thoughts were looked into and activities listed below were selected as this semesters must organise club activities.

a) Hill Challenge 1: Canada Hill Challenge
b) Foundation Engineering Awareness Campaign
c) Collaboration with Curtin Environmental Club on Earth Day
d) Talk : Cave, Caverns, Crystals and Complexity
e) Hill Challenge 2: Mulu Expedition

This listing of activities marked the ending of the meeting where it was ended with a nice refreshment sponsored by the Geology Club.

On the following week, an Annual General Meeting was organised by Marni Amalina Mansor as the President of Curtin Geology Club to interact with the current club committees and as well as to inform the standings of our club financially and our capabilities in doing the activities in that semester. The discussion heads on to discussing the few changes that the committee members thought it is necessary for the club to progress ahead for this semester. The few of the many changes that we brought by the discussion was to introduce a club T-Shirt and to open the selling of the T-Shirt to the club members as well as the non-members. Besides that, the club registration too was opened to the whole Curtin students who wishes to learn more about Geology. A result from that, our club funding rose up dramatically and became a stable club in Curtin with people coming from different programmes and backgrounds just to learn Geology out of their own interest.

Our first activity was held on the 13th of April, which was the Hill Challenge 1 : Canada Hill. This activity was to promote a good understanding between our club members. Here a lot of mingling could be seen where the club committees were tirelessly aiding to a closer bonding in the group. We finally achieved that agenda by the end of the challenge. Moreover, this hill challenge was also aimed at students from a different programme who wonders how geology fieldtrips looks like. So yea, this small challenge gave them a new light on how proper fieldtrips that geology students often go look like.

Hill Challenge 1: Canada Hill Hiking

Our proceeding activities are aimed to teach students of different programmes on Geology. This is to expose the students that Geology is not as easy as it sounds but nevertheless interesting. So, a booth was set up in business school on Foundation Engineering Awareness Campaign to expose the foundation students on Geology. To teach them to choose geology out of interest and not as a last resort. So a few 2nd year students were chosen to deliver speech to these foundation students on what to expect in Geology. They were given speech on how a geology students think where here we brought a few rock samples from the laboratory to demonstrate to the students on how a geology student work and think. It was such a delightful scene to see some of the foundation students eager to know more about geology.

Engineering Awareness Day

Besides Foundation Engineering Awareness Campaign, we have also collaborated with Curtin Environmental Club to host the Earth Day. Here, the Curtin Geology Club set up another booth with a lots of displays from the laboratory as well as from the Malaysian Nature Society where here Mr. Musa Musbah to be thanked to bring the MNS to Curtin Sarawak on Earth Day. Geology club gained an enormous popularity from the public due to its eloquent students who were ready to explain the details of the displays and to entertain any by-passers who comes to the booth and as well Mr Musa for explaining the details of MNS samples using a polarising microscope. The event was ended with a vegetarian refreshment organised by the Curtin Environmental Club.

Curtin Geology Booth during Earth Day

Rocks and Minerals Display

Our second last activity to end the semester was the Cave, Caverns, Crystal and Complexity talk by our very own lecturer Dr. Dominique Dodge-Wan. It was an hour plus long talk compromising about the different types of caves, the crystal that were formed from this caves and how complex this caves affects our daily life. This too was aimed in the visualisation on the type of lectures that a geology student undergoes every day in a semester. Many found it interesting and it nevertheless attracted quite a number of participants into understanding Geology in a new limelight. This event too was ended with a refreshment sponsored by Curtin Geology Club.

Academic Talk: Caves, Caverns, Crystal and Complexity

Semester 1 2013 was ended with the 2^nd Hill Challenge which is Mulu Expedition, held on 29^th June to 2^nd of July at Mulu National Park includes long boat ride, visit to 5 different types of caves in Mulu which is the Deer Cave, Lang Cave, Clearwater Cave, Wind Cave and Lady Cave and last but not least to challenge the Pinnacles which is a limestone covered hill with an elevation of 40-90 degree. 8km trekking was covered first in order to reach the camp where the Pinnacles hiking challenge begins. The purpose of the event which are to enhance awareness in preserving nature heritage and practice active and healthy lifestyle is successfully attained.