A scientist from Douglas (Isle of Man) who is helping explore and visualise the underwater landscape of the Southern North Sea is hoping that the same technology could help historians firm up dates when the island was populated. Simon Fitch is in the second year of a PhD in geoarchaeology at Birmingham University. He is part of a team of archaeologists, geologists and engineers investigating the large plain where hunter-gatherers roamed up to 10,000 years ago, before the inundation by rising ocean levels in the last post-glacial period. With a first degree in geology and a master’s in landscape archaeology, Simon has played a pivotal role in the North Sea exploration, reviewing and analysing key data. He hopes that the same techniques could be used to discover how his home island first became inhabited.

Source: Isle of Man Online (23 February 2004)