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These vibrant signs of life in ASC are just what we need, leading into a National AGM to be held in Sydney on 16 December, and our National Conference at ANU in Canberra from 7 to 10 February.

Nearly 50 people turned up to an event organised by vice-president Rob Morrison, at the new Science Exchange (re-vamped Stock Exchange) in downtown Adelaide which has become the headquarters of the Royal Institution, Australia (RiAus). Not only did they learn about “The Science of Wind Instruments”, but they began planning an AGM for 14 December and activities for the next couple of years. Many stayed well beyond the proposed ending time playing science board games and making full use of the very fine bar. An appropriate outcome for all Rob’s hard work.

ASC boy makes good! Wilson da Silva’s magazine Cosmos was adjudged Magazine of the Year and won six other awards, including Best Consumer Magazine and Best Publisher, at the annual Bell Awards for Publishing Excellence of the magazine industry association, Publishers Australia. This is the second time in its five-year history the publication has won Magazine of the Year and Best Publisher. It was hailed for  its connection with its readers, and its “product extensions”.

A story by deputy editor John Pickrell has won an earth journalism award linked to the forthcoming UN climate change conference in Copenhagen, and is in the running for a global public award. You can read the story and, if you like it, vote for it before 9 December by clicking here.

The local ASC branches have been active, with events happening in most states over the past month. Two that come to mind are a particularly poignant session staged by the Victorian branch (at a new venue) on keeping the human impact in mind when communicating the science of bushfires, and the Stem Cells in the Pub session which the ACT-ASC organised in association with the Australian Society for Stem Cell Research.

See you at the ASC AGM (16 December) and the ASC Conference 2010 (7 – 10 February).

Tim Thwaites
National President

The 2010 program is a little different.  This year we will be emphasizing science reporting and include a new academic/research component.  The 2010 conference also hosts the third of our hugely popular Hot Air symposia looking at communicating climate change issues to the public.

ASC President, Tim Thwaites said, “The ASC conference 2010 reflects the ‘coming of age’ of science communication as a serious area of study and employment.”

The sessions over the three days reflect the following themes:

• The Challenges and Future of Communicating Science;
• Reporting and Communicating Complex Issues to a Lay Audience; and
• The Use of Social Media and the Arts in Communicating Science.

This year’s conference will actively include a social media component both in the program and in communicating to the ASC membership in web-based discussions before and after.  Not forgetting a strong program of social events for more informal discussions in Canberra’s finest cafes and restaurants.

For more information, see the ASC Conference 2010 website.

Not a member?  Not a problem.  Join today for immediate conference discounts, access to the members-only mailing lists and the opportunity to post news, jobs, tips and comments to the new ASC website (www.asc.asn.au) and all National Conference social media.

Interested in presenting?  The second Call For Papers is open for keen ASCers willing to speak to a topical issue in science communication.  Find out more about submissions here.

At this special Conference you will be able to:

* Immerse yourself in the online forum to accompany conference registration
* Get to grips with contemporary social media challenges first-hand in the new social media strand
* Take a front-row seat at the debate over the National Science Communication Strategy
* Join the third and final Hot Air Symposium on best practice in climate change communication
* Get involved in a network of over 350 Australian science communication professionals and the international science community.

Find out more at the 2010 ASC National Conference website for more information.  See you in Canberra!

The ASC 2010 National Conference Team
events [at] asc.asn.au

Whether the story is about promises of groundbreaking cures, allegations of scientific fraud or warnings of ethical dilemmas, stem cell research makes headlines and sparks debate.

How does the media shape the public’s perceptions of stem cells and scientists? Is the promise of stem cells over-hyped?

Who is responsible for keeping the story straight?

Stem Cells at the Pub

Date: Sunday 22 November

Time: 7pm for 7.30pm start

Venue: Canberra Labor Club, Civic, 16 Petrie Plaza

Panel features:

• Prof Alan Trounson (California Institute of Regenerative Medicine)
• Leigh Dayton (The Australian)
• Simon Grose (Science Media)
• Rebecca Skinner (Communication Officer, Australian Stem Cell Centre)
• Assoc Prof Edna Hardeman (University of Sydney)

This event is free and open to the public.

Seats are limited so rsvp to 0402710943 or asccanberra ‘at’ gmail.com.

Presented by the Australasian Society for Stem Cell Research and the Australian Science Communicators.

More links: Alan Trounson’s profile on ABC, Australian Stem Cell Centre, About Science Media.

Sunita has been teaching high school science and maths for about 5 years, before coming to Perth to do a Masters of Science Communication and Education.  Her talk is entitled: ‘The Role of Excursion in School Science’.

Sunita will be talking about what formal and informal learning is and how  informal learning from excursions help students in learning science.  She has looked at how the excursion helps in the progress in students’ learning,
attitudes towards science learning and social outcomes, and the teacher’s role in facilitating learning outside the school and what are the constraints faced while implementing this.

Andrew Mills will be taking a detailed look at the communication between GPs and Alternative Medicine Specialists. Specifically the values and attitudes of GPs (General Practitioners), Complementary Medicine Therapists and
patients and the impacts of acceptance of complementary and alternative  medicine.

__________________

THE IMPORTANT DETAILS

WHO: COMM7402 Literature Review Students: Sunita Pradhan and Andrew Mills

WHEN: Friday October 23, 2009 at 4pm

WHERE: The University of Western Australia, Crawley campus Centre for Learning Technology; Ground floor Physics building, near Fairway entrance #1. Enter via ramp between Physics and Geology, go down stairs to basement.

__________________

COMING UP

The schedule of upcoming seminars and events can also be found on the UWA Science Communication blog: http://uwasciencecomm.blogspot.com

(Please note that some events later in the semester are still tentative but will be finalised closer to the event date)

__________________

Stephanie Watts
On behalf of the Science Communication Seminar Coordinators
Email: uwasciencecomm [at] gmail.com
http://uwasciencecomm.blogspot.com

Dr Tim Berra

recipient of Fulbright Senior Specialist Grant, presents:

Charles Darwin: The Concise Story of an Extraordinary Man

Tuesday, 6 October at 4pm

at Flinders University South Lecture 3, Information Science & Technology Building (car park 15)

Meet Tim Berra after the lecture during a book signing.  All welcome.

RSVP by Friday 2 October

Register online at: www.flinders.edu.au/lectures

He is a three-time recipient of Fulbright Fellowships to Australia in 1969, 1979 and 2009. He is a former editor of The Ohio Journal of Science, was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. He was the ichthyological book review editor of Copeia, the journal of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists and a member of the Board of Governors of the Society.

He is Research Associate at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory in Darwin, Australia. Over the last 40 years he has spent over eight years doing fieldwork in Australia and is the author of over 75 scientific papers and six books.

His latest book, Charles Darwin: The Concise Story of an Extraordinary Man, covers the life of Darwin from birth to death, his family, friends, books, and significance to Western thought, and is presented to Adelaide on the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of On The Origin of Species.

Join our panel of speakers to find out discuss research can better inform policy from the perspective of policy and practice, and the role of science communicators in this process.

Speakers include: Dr Lorrae van Kerkhoff, Visiting Fellow, ANU National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health. Dr van Kerkhoff has research interests in the role of research in informing policy, particularly in low-income countries and fragile states, and in institutional arrangements that foster better integration between research and policy and practice, particularly in public health and sustainable development.

Mr Allen Kearns, Theme Leader for Sustainable Cities and Coasts in CSIRO’s Climate Adaptation Flagship. Mr Kearns is an environmental scientist with international experience and practical expertise in the social, economic and ecological consequences of urban and industrial developments.

When: 5.45pm for a 6pm start. Thursday 24 September

Where: Conference Room, CSIRO Corporate – Limestone Ave, Canberra (next to the war memorial)

Entry by gold coin donation. Nibblies provided, drinks available at a small cost.

The event will be recorded and the audio file put on this website shortly after.

Contact Jo if you have any questions: ph 0410 996 158, joanna.savill [at] csiro.au

Join us for an evening of fun science and general trivia with Quizmaster Dr Rob Bell from Channel 10’s SCOPE TV program.

Assemble a crack team (n = 6) of the keenest scientific minds or come alone and join a team on the night.

7 categories including space, geography, medicine, scientists and their achievements, physics, and ecology.

Date: 24 September 2009

Time: 6.30 pm for 7.00 pm start

Venue: Tara Room, The Irish Club, 175 Elizabeth Street, Brisbane

Cover charge: $10 non-members, $7 members, $5 students.

Nibbles will be provided. Meals can be purchased before the trivia starts at 7 pm, and drinks can be purchased at the bar – our extensive studies have shown ethyl alcohol to be a potent social catalyst.

You can also signup to be an ASC member on night.

To register your team email Lynelle Ross on l.ross [at] smp.uq.edu.au.