Science prizes: Now open for nomination

Science stakeholder bulletins

Here is an update on several major science prizes that close over the next few weeks.

L’Oréal Australia For Women in Science Fellowships nominations will close at midnight on 3 May. We’re looking for the three best early-career female researchers Australia has to offer.

Nominations for The Prime Minister’s Science Prizes are open for another month. There are five prizes – the main prize worth $300,000, then two early-career and two science teaching awards with prizes of $50,000 each. They close Friday 21 May.

Nominations for the 2010 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes close on Friday 7 May. They recognise brilliance in science research, innovation, communication and teaching.

Fresh Science nominations have now closed; this year we received more than 130 nominations. The 16 winners will be selected by the end of April.

The Australian Institute of Physics is offering a host of Physics prizes. See below for more information.In this bulletin:

1. Science Prizes

2. Media training courses

3. Stories of Australian Astronomy 2010: to be published in May

4. About us

1. Science Prizes

L’Oréal Australia For Women in Science Fellowships

Each year three $20,000 L’Oréal Australia For Women in Science Fellowships are awarded to early-career female researchers for scientific excellence. The Fellowships are open to scientists no more than five years past their PhD, excluding periods of maternity leave. These are one of the few fellowships which allow part of the funding to be spent on child care.

In 2009, the recipients were exploring our roots in Africa, looking for dark energy, and revealing what really controls our genes.

2010 nominations close Monday 3 May.

For more information, see www.scienceinpublic.com/loreal/

Prime Minister’s Science Prizes

The Prime Minister’s Science Prizes are now open for nomination. The Australian Government awards five prizes annually for outstanding scientific achievements and excellence in science teaching.

The prizes are:

  • The $300,000 Prime Minister’s Prize for Science,
  • The $50,000 Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Scientist of the Year
  • The $50,000 Science Minister’s Prize for Life Scientist of the Year
  • The $50,000 Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Primary Schools
  • The $50,000 Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Secondary Schools

Nominations close Friday 21 May.

For more information, https://grants.innovation.gov.au/SciencePrize/Pages/Home.aspx and for expressions of interest contact: pmprize@innovation.gov.au

Fresh Science

Fresh Science nominations have now closed. The 16 winners will be notified by the end of the month.

Fresh Science 2010 will be held 7-10 June 2010 at Melbourne Museum.

Meet this year’s winners and hear the latest discoveries at:

  • Fresh Science at the Pub, 7 pm, Monday 7 June. The Duke of Kent Hotel, 293 La Trobe Street.

For more information, give Sarah or myself a call on (03) 9398 1416 or email us at niall@freshscience.org / sarah@freshscience.org

More information at www.freshscience.org

The Australian Museum Eureka Prizes

The Eureka Prizes reward excellence in the fields of:

  • Research & innovation
  • Science leadership
  • School science
  • Science journalism & communication

Nominations close Friday 7 May.

For more information, www.eureka.australianmuseum.net.au/

Australian Institute of Physics prizes

The AIP has a range of science prizes focusing on physics.

Prizes include:

  • The AIP Women in Physics Lecturer
  • The Bragg Gold Medal for Excellence in Physics
  • The AIP Award for Outstanding Service to Physics in Australia

For more information, see www.aip.org.au/content/medals

2. 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 12 May 2010
  • 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

3. Stories of Australian Astronomy 2010: to be published in May

We are publishing a magazine of Astronomy stories, highlighting Australia’s rich history of achievement and current research in astronomy. Submissions for stories have now closed. If you are interested in advertising, however, please give me a call as we are finalising space at the moment.

The storybook is funded by the Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research. It will be sent to journalists in Australia and overseas, Members of Parliament, Australian consulates overseas, and to all organisations that are featured.

In April we will open submission for a collection of Australian science stories with international connections. You can read about past, present and future story collections at www.scienceinpublic.com.au/stories

4. 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