Science In Public
Science writers, communicators, media, training, and public relations
One hundred and fifty years ago Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species, revealing his theory of evolution. It was a revolutionary idea that underpins all of modern biology.
His great, great grandson Chris Darwin lives in Australia and has the following comments.
[Read more…] about Chris Darwin on the 150th anniversary of evolution
Welcome to my November bulletin for the International Year of Astronomy in Australia. This month sees a particularly interesting mix of events, from a “Dance Your PhD” workshop (to be videoed for the web), to a symposium on Indigenous Astronomy and a talk on the Antikythera mechanism, the most sophisticated instrument we know of from the ancient world.
Researchers at the University of New South Wales have improved the aerodynamics of aircraft by putting rows of tiny synthetic jets along the wings of aeroplanes —much like the suck and blow jets octopuses use to move through the water.
In this bulletin for the Evolution Festival there are some spectacular activities to mark the 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species, the book that brought Darwin’s theory of evolution to the public.
[Read more…] about Evolution in November—Superhuman, genes and The Origin’s birthday
2008 Fellow Amanda Barnard has won the 2009 Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Scientist of the Year for her work on modelling and predicting the shape, structure and stability of nanoparticles under different environmental conditions.
The AUD$50,000 prize is one of the Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science.
Amanda Barnard hopes to predict which nanoparticles will work most […]
The winners of the 2010 L’ORÉAL-UNESCO Awards were announced on 14 October 2009.
Nearly a billion people use John O’Sullivan’s invention every day. When you use a WiFi network—at home, in the office or at the airport—you are using patented technology born of the work of John and his CSIRO colleagues.
They created a technology that made the wireless LAN fast and robust. And their solution came from John’s efforts to hear the faint radio whispers of exploding black holes. [Read more…] about 2009 Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science
John O’SullivanNearly a billion people use John O’Sullivan’s invention every day. When you use a WiFi network—at home, in the office or at the airport—you are using patented technology born of the work of John and his CSIRO colleagues. [Read more…] about How astronomy freed the computer from its chains: 2009 Prime Minister’s Prize for Science
Michael CowleyWhy do we get fat? What’s the link between obesity, diabetes and hypertension? Can we break the link? These are critical questions for Australia’s long-term health, and Michael Cowley may have the answers. [Read more…] about Breaking the link between fat and diabetes: 2009 Science Minister’s Prize for Life Scientist of the Year
Every new technology brings opportunities and threats. Nanotechnology is no exception. It has the potential to create new materials that will dramatically improve drug delivery, medical diagnostics, clean and efficient energy, computing and more. But nanoparticles—materials made small, just a few millionths of a millimetre in size—could also have significant health and environmental impacts. [Read more…] about Testing new technologies in the computer not the real world: 2009 Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Scientist of the Year