Fracking doesn't just open up rocks, it divides all kinds of communities across Scotland. In January 2015 the Scottish Government announced a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing taking place in Scotland, putting in place ban on fracking shale rock for oil and gas, while they further consider the implications of fracking. Lots of us have heard the back and forth about whether we should or should not entertain fracking as an answer to our energy requirements in Scotland but how much of that is based strictly upon science? In this Brainwaves Pennie Latin explores the science of hydraulic fracturing as a method of extracting oil and gas from the carboniferous shale reserves of Scotland's Midland Valley and picks apart how a detailed understanding and analysis of Scotland's specific geology and landscape helps us to understand both what potential reserves of oil and gas there might be under our feet but also what are the possible implications of mining those reserves through fracking.