Dear Ascers,
I’m writing to announce the winners of Fresh Science 2010 and to invite you and your colleagues to meet them tomorrow, Monday, as they talk about their discoveries over a drink at the pub: Duke of Kent, 293 La Trobe Street, Melbourne, 7pm Monday 7 June.
This is a public event, anyone’s invited.
Science performer Chris Krishna-Pillay will challenge them to describe their work in less than a minute, in rhyme, reason or verse.
You’ll also hear about predicting bushfires, accurate clocks, waste munching bugs, quantum dots, wealth from waste, monitoring health using silk, a potential cancer agent from lizards and more.
Thank you to those who nominated early-career scientists for Fresh Science. We had over 130 nominations this year – a tough job for the judging committee. I’ve listed this year’s Fresh Scientists below.
Also, the United Nations has declared 2010 as the International Year of Biodiversity and 2011 as the Year of Chemistry. The organisers of both Years in Australia are keen to talk with anyone who wants to be part of the Years. Details below.
And our next media training course for scientists is on Wednesday 14 July 2010 in Melbourne.
Kind regards,
Niall Byrne,
Creative Director
Science in Public
In this bulletin:
1. Fresh Science at the Pub: Monday 7 June
2. Fresh Scientists 2010
3. 2010: Biodiversity Year
4. 2011: Year of Chemistry
5. Media training courses
6. About us
1. Fresh Science at the Duke: Monday 7 June Tasty weeds, bright black holes, Antarctic ice and reversing shoulder joints Join us to hear the latest science from 16 of Australia’s top young scientists as they talk about their discoveries over a drink at a pub in Melbourne on Monday night, 7 June. Science performer Chris Krishna-Pillay will challenge them to describe their work in less than a minute, in rhyme, reason or verse. You’ll also hear about predicting bushfires, accurate clocks, waste munching bugs, quantum dots, wealth from waste, monitoring health using silk, a potential cancer agent from lizards and more. Monday 7 June, 7pm Upstairs at the Duke of Kent, 293 La Trobe Street, Melbourne (between Queen & Elizabeth St) The science is free, all meals and drinks at bar price RSVP for general numbers to AJ Epstein, aj@freshscience.org, (03) 9398 1416 More information: www.freshscience.org 2. Fresh Scientists 2010 Look out for their stories on TV, radio and in the newspapers Congratulations to this year’s Fresh Scientists. Their stories will be released to the media both over Fresh Science (next week) and in the weeks following. They are:
· Peter Domachuk, School of Physics, University of Sydney
· Naomi McSweeney, School of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Western Australia
· Andrew Dowdy, Bureau of Meteorology
· Julien Ridoux, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, The University of Melbourne
· Bridget Murphy, School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney
· Dave Ackland, Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Melbourne
· Colin Scholes, CRC for Greenhouse Gas Technologies
· Bianca van Lierop, School of Chemistry, Monash University
· Jason Du, CRC for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment
· David Floyd, Anglo-Australian Observatory /The University of Melbourne
· Nasrin Ghouchi Eskandar, Ian Wark Research Institute, University of South Australia
· Rylie Green, Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, University of New South Wales
· Jennifer Firn, CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems
· Natalia Galin, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Science, University of Tasmania
· Andrew Ward, South Australian Research and Development Institute
· Jacek Jasieniak, CSIRO Molecular and Health Technologies
3. 2010: Biodiversity Year
The United Nations has declared 2010 as the International Year of Biodiversity.
The Council of Australian Museum Directors (CAMD) is coordinating a national program with the support of the Commonwealth government’s Science Connections program. They’re working with museums and community organisations across the country.
“Australia supports almost 10 per cent of the diversity of life on Earth,” says Richard Marles, Parliamentary Secretary for Innovation and Industry.
“This project is about getting Australians involved in biodiversity.” A total of $300,000 has now been allocated through the Council of Australasian Museum Directors (CAMD) to projects in support and celebration of the International Year of Biodiversity.
If you are involved in running an event for the year, I encourage you to submit the details to: www.biodiversity2010.org.au. You may also want to look at the seed grants that are available.
We’re writing a regular bulletin about the Year. Please let me know if you would like to receive a copy by email.
4. 2011: Year of Chemistry
The International Year of Chemistry 2011 is a worldwide celebration of the achievements of chemistry and its contributions to the well-being of humankind.
2011 is the 100th anniversary of the Nobel Prize awarded to Madame Marie Curie-an opportunity to celebrate the contributions of women to science. It is also the 100th anniversary of the founding of the International Association of Chemical Societies.
The theme is: “Chemistry-our life, our future”.
The goals are to increase the public appreciation of chemistry in meeting world needs, to encourage interest in chemistry among young people, and to generate enthusiasm for the creative future of chemistry.
International celebrations: www.chemistry2011.org
Australia is starting to plan. If you are considering running and event, or are interested in what else might be on the go, contact Roger Stapleford, CEO of RACI, the Royal Australian Chemical Institute, roger.stapleford@raci.org.au
5. Media training courses
Each month we run a media training course in Melbourne for scientists and anyone who needs to communicate complex and technical ideas via the media. Three working journalists join us over the course of the day to talk about what they are seeking in a news story. They will also to conduct practice interviews. Previous participants tell us that after the course they feel more prepared not just for media interviews, but also for presentations to stakeholders, customers and the public.
Our next courses are:
· Wednesday 14 July 2010
· Wednesday 11 August 2010
· Wednesday 15 September 2010
· Wednesday 13 October 2010
· Wednesday 17 November 2010
Each course runs from 9.30am to 5pm at The Clare Café in Carlton.
The cost is $650 + GST per person and includes morning tea, coffee and lunch.
More details at www.scienceinpublic.com.au/blog/training
6. About us
Science in Public helps science organisations move their research out of the lab and into the public space, usually through the media but also via public events. We can assist with any aspect of science communication, starting with a communication plan or audit, through to delivery of complete programs.
For more information about us and our projects, please visit our website here or contact either myself or Sarah Brooker on (03) 9398 1416, sarah@scienceinpublic.com.au, niall@scienceinpublic.com.au _________________________
Kind regards,
Niall Byrne
Science in Public
26 Railway Street South, Altona Vic 3018
ph +61 (3) 9398 1416 or 0417 131 977
Full contact details at www.scienceinpublic.com/blog
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