Davos Expectations, Abuse at President's Club Event, Paxton Mammoths and Man

Wicker Woolly Mammoth Paxton Pits Nature Reserve

Everyone is waiting for the business and politics leaders meeting to kick off at Davos, with President Macron looking to Steal Chancellor Merkel's post as leader of the EU and President Trump looking to make an impact later in the week. Prime Minister Theresa May will also be there. 

The main news in the UK was the sexism and abuse at the Presidents Club all-male event with hired-in women as hostesses(?) which fell foul of an undercover female reporter exposing the abuse by some. It dominated Prime Minister's Question Time (or at least the time in parliament afterwards) where all the women MPs on both sides of the house were unanimous in their condemnation. Later on Radio 4, all the male journalists affirmed that they would not attend any all male events. Which begs the question about attendance at stag dos and hen nights and whether behavior and mysogeny at  those is likely to change over time.

Whilst the weather was absolutely abysmal today, with torrential rain interspersing a generally wet and grey day, I had a fun afternoon with the Friends of Paxton Pits Nature Reserve. Forty-five people turned out for my talk on Mammoths and Man, which was well received, with great questions afterwards. They have beautiful examples of proboscidean fossils on display: a meter long tusk from a female woolly mammoth, a lower jaw with two large molars in situ, which might be mammoth or possibly even straight-tusked elephant, and a lovely vertebra with a long spur that could well have come from the shoulder region to allow attachment of strong muscles to bear the weight of the head and the long tusks. Picked up S on the way for support and he helped with the sale of my book and generally chatting to people after the talk.

In the growing gloom as we left, managed to photograph the large walk-in wicker woolly mammoth outside the education centre at Paxton Pits.