Beer science; wildflower power; and a sea cucumber future for Groote Eylandt
Dozens of Science Week stories around Northern Territory:
- Why won’t your beer hold its head? – Winnellie
- From mining manganese to farming sea cucumbers, First Nations enterprise secures community’s future ─ Groote Eylandt
- Flower power: what is Australia’s most amazing wildflower?
- Make your own shark – Brinkin
More on these highlights below, with MORE TO COME.
National Science Week in the Northern Territory is coordinated by Inspired NT. Visit their website: inspirednt.net.
For general National Science Week media enquiries, contact scienceweek@scienceinpublic.com.au.
Why won’t your beer hold its head? – Winnellie
Making or breaking the perfect beer head is all about physics and chemistry. Don’t Lose Your Head is a lively, interactive presentation revealing what makes – or destroys – the perfect head, and why it matters.
Hosted by the Darwin and NT Homebrewers, the session uses live demonstrations to break down the roles of ingredients, cleanliness and technique, with the audience helping investigate why foam forms and why it vanishes too soon.
Saturday 22 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/dont-lose-your-head-science-of-beer-foam/winnellie
Media enquiries: Matt Elvey, Darwin and NT Homebrewers, contact@ntbrewers.org
A future for Groote Eylandt after mining – Alyangula
Groote Eylandt is the largest island in the Gulf of Carpentaria. Its economy relies heavily on manganese mining… which is ending. How do you create a secure future for an island in the middle of nowhere?
Marine biology, Anindilyakwa culture and aquaculture are coming together through an aquaculture enterprise to create jobs and protect the ocean. It’s a project of the Groote Holdings Aboriginal Corporation and the Anindilyakwa community.
Sea cucumber (“trepang” in Anindilyakwa language) is the core product sold to the lucrative Chinese market where it is a culinary delicacy and is used in Chinese medicine. Dried sea cucumber is lightweight, high-value and non-perishable: important for a product that has to be shipped via a 5-day barge ride to Darwin and then exported.
The enterprise puts an ecosystem to work to raise sea cucumbers in a way that cares for Sea Country. Droppings from seaweed-eating rabbitfish provide food for sea cucumbers. The rabbitfish also remove the seaweed scum that blocks the sunlight sea cucumbers need and provide a locally grown food source for the 2,100 people who live across the archipelago. Blacklip oysters help clean the system to the extent that the effluent water from the facility is cleaner than the water that enters it.
The enterprise now produces oysters, fish for local consumption, and edible, as well as sea cucumber.
Students from local Alyangula, Angurugu and Umbakumba schools will visit the Groote Aqua facility for four days of hands-on marine science, aquaculture, microscopes, water testing and community activities exploring how science and Indigenous knowledge can build a sustainable blue economy on Groote Eylandt.
On the fourth day, the site will open to the wider community, giving everyone the chance to experience marine science in action and see the enterprise that will support lives and livelihoods after mining.
Saturday 29 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/from-knowledge-to-independence-science-for-grootes-blue-future/alyangula
Media enquiries: Valentin Thepot, Groote Aqua Aboriginal Corporation aquaculture manager, vthepot@grooteaqua.com.au or 0460 012 284.
Val and aquaculture team members and Indigenous GHAC board members are available for media interviews.
What do you think is Australia’s most amazing wildflower? – online
ABC Science wants Australians to discover our hidden “flower power”, the kind you find in botanical gardens rather than hippie communes.
With the help of experts, ABC Science has selected ten flowering plants from across the country.
Not just another banksia or waratah, but blooms from the unsung understory that also do something unbelievable. These ten wildflowers are more than just a pretty face; each one hides a surprising superpower. The public will decide which is the most amazing.
Voting to decide Australia’s most amazing wildflower will start just before National Science Week in August, with the winning bloom announced on Friday August 21 in a live broadcast on Radio National.
Wednesday 5 August – Friday 21 August. To find out more and vote, go to www.abc.net.au/wildflowers.
For interviews with Dr Ann Jones, contact Rob Caulley, ABC Publicity, Caulley.Rob@abc.net.au.
Make your own shark – Brinkin, NT
Curious young scientists can learn how sharks adapt to different habitats, then invent their own – choosing body shape, diet and features to help it survive – and build a 3D model out of Play-Doh to take home.
The hands-on workshop at Charles Darwin University’s Casuarina Open Day starts with a multimedia introduction to shark species and how they’re specially adapted to where they live and what they eat. It’s open to everyone, including students and families.
Saturday 8 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/design-your-own-shark/brinkin
Media enquiries: Emily Taljaard, emily.taljaard@students.cdu.edu.au
Workshop leader Emily Taljaard available for media interviews.
