2010 Features

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  Record Participation in Science Week 2010

  Discover Science and Engineering (DSE) has announced a record participation in Science Week 2010 as over 115,000 people attended events across the country. Science Week Ireland 2010 was also one of the most successful Science Weeks to date with over 505 events taking place throughout the week, a 12% increase from 449 events in 2009.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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  Science Snaps Winners!

  The winners of a national science photography competition, Science Snaps, were announced following the conclusion of Science Week 2010. Science Snaps is a national photographic competition hosted by Discover Science and Engineering and the Tyndall National Institute, Cork, which takes place every year in the run up to Science Week. The competition was open to junior and senior cycle secondary school students, as well as the general public. The theme for this year’s competition was “The Wonder of Small Science”, which is inspired by the revolutionary science of nanotechnology.

  First prize in the General Public category went to Bernard Dunne, from Naas, Co Kildare, for his photograph ‘Science Leap’. Bernard won a Canon EOS 500D.

  
  
  
  
  
  
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  Space Brains

  To mark the launch of Science Week 2010, running from the 7th until the 14th of November, Discover Science and Engineering (DSE) has launched “Space Brains”, a free app available for the iPod Touch or iPhone. Space Brains supports this year’s theme for Science Week which is “Our place in Space”. Space Brains is the ultimate free app for anyone who wants to find out more about space, whether it’s what year man first stepped on the moon or how many planets there are in the solar system. With a variety of difficulty levels, players will be amazed at how much they already know and can learn about the galaxy and space exploration.

  
  
  
  
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  Brian Eno’s APOLLO with NASA footage performed by BJ Cole and Icebreaker premieres in Ireland at The National Concert Hall

  On Tuesday 9 November 2010, 8pm pioneering ensemble Icebreaker and formidable pedal steel guitarist BJ Cole bring their critically acclaimed performance of Brian Eno’s album APOLLO: ATMOSPHERES AND SOUNDTRACKS with NASA footage to The National Concert Hall. This unique event, performed for the very first time in Ireland at The National Concert Hall is also one of the key events of Science Week Ireland 2010.

  
  
  
  
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  A Space Education

  Ruth McAvinia talks about her time on the Space Studies Program at the International Space University in Strasbourg earlier this year.

  As a child I always watched space-related programmes on television – from Sir Patrick Moore narrating the Giotto mission to Halley’s Comet, to the sad losses of Challenger and Columbia, to science fiction – but space sciences had seemed to me as remote as Outer Space itself. It all changed in summer 2010 when I spent two months studying at the International Space University in Strasbourg. I had only found out about the course by chance through a Tweet from Enterprise Ireland, but when I was subsequently given funding from the European Space Agency, it proved to be a very lucky break.

  
  
  
  
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  Armagh Planetarium

  Why not make a trip to Armagh Planetarium for science week? We aim to inspire and inform our visitors by providing a unique experience which is quite simply ‘out of this world’. In the Planetarium’s amazing Digital Theatre you can relax and discover ‘Our Place in Space’, take a tour of the night sky or even discover some of the myths behind the star constellations. Each show is a memorable experience and one that you will treasure.

  After all that excitement, you can explore the stunning exhibition areas using the interactive displays to learn more about the cosmos. Take a trip into our Mars room, view the 3D shows or touch the largest meteorite on display in Ireland which at an amazing 4.6 billion years old, is the oldest thing you’ll ever touch. See our scale models of probes such as Viking and satellites such as the International Space Station and the Hubble Space Telescope. We also run science workshops where you can volunteer to participate in activities such as electricity and magnetism or you can even build and launch your own rocket.

  
  
  
  
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  Science Week Offers

  Did you know that there are some interesting special offers that you can avail of for your school during Science Week?

  yTeach
  yTeach.ie is designed to aid teachers in delivering the Irish curriculum for maths and science. It is easy to navigate for teachers who are not familiar with technology but allows creativity for those who are. Teachers can combine their favourite lesson materials such as PowerPoint presentations, Excel and Word documents and Web addresses with the resources from the site in a playlist or an assignment for students to access at any time.

  Astronomy Ireland Shop
  Astronomy Ireland Shop is offering every School, Library and Community Group in the country, heavily discounted telescopes with the intent to encourage these groups to set up their own Astronomy Club and encourage children and communities to think about Our Place in Space and start a hobby that will stay with them for many years.

  
  
  
  
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  The Lovely Weather Art Project

  Climate change is the issue of our times. The oceans are warming, glaciers are disappearing and the natural world is in sharp decline. Donegal County Council Public Art Office/Regional Cultural Centre in partnership with Leonardo/Olats has established a unique and ambitious initiative entitled ‘Lovely Weather – Art and Climate Change’ which fundamentally seeks to determine and present the role artists have to play in the Climate Change debate. Following an international competition five artists/scientists were selected to work in each of the five electoral areas of County Donegal, to explore on the ground, the effects of climate change and its modifications throughout the county.

  
  
  
  
  
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  Astronomy Ireland

  Astronomy Ireland is holding a host of activities for Science Week 2010, all over Ireland! There will be something for everyone, regardless of age and experience.

  Astronomy Ireland is one of the most popular science clubs in Ireland and aims to promote science and technology to the general public through the medium of astronomy. The organisation was founded in 1990 and is currently celebrating its 20th anniversary. In recent years, Astronomy Ireland has turned towards the country’s youth to develop a science culture in Ireland, and it believes strongly in the “smart economy”. The population of Ireland has proven time and time again, both at home an internationally, that a strong knowledge of science and technology is one of our most valuable resources, and one that will hugely strengthen our economy and make Ireland a world leader in science.

  
  
  
  
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  World Space Week

  World Space Week is the largest public space event on Earth. It is celebrated in over 55 nations every October 4th–10th. CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory is the Irish national coordinator for World Space Week 2010. As this year’s Science Week, which takes place in Ireland from the 7th–14th November, has a Space theme, we know some of you budding astronomers and Space enthusiasts will be getting excited about many events happening over the coming months!

  The theme for World Space Week 2010 is “Mysteries of the Cosmos”. Throughout history, humans have looked to the heavens and wondered about the universe and our place within it. Today, we are learning much about our universe, but with each answer comes more questions. Not only do the questions deal with the nature of the galaxies and stars, but the nature of life itself. This year, World Space Week is a time to probe what we know, what it means, and what we have yet to learn about the mysteries of the cosmos.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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  Web of Stars

  CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory, Cork offers schools the opportunity to take part in a unique educational project that involves a direct link to astronomers at Chabot Space & Science Center, CA, USA. Web of Stars engages students in a captivating astronomy lesson that takes advantage of the eight-hour time difference between Cork and the San Francisco Bay Area. Students take part in a live video link where astronomers at Chabot involve students in night sky observations, the capturing of real-time astronomical images and a discussion based on the information held in these images. The workshops are DPS certified.

  
  
  
  
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  First Fridays at the Blackrock Castle Observatory

  CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory’s First Fridays at the Castle is a series of free events held on the first Friday of every month, in association with the Cork Science Café and the Cork Astronomy Club. It features lectures and discussions by visiting scientists, guided stargazing in Blackrock Castle’s courtyard and workshop activities for children.

  Running from 1st October, the evenings will start at 6pm with family-friendly space age workshops and craft activities. At 7pm, it’s the Cork Science Café followed by lectures from visiting speakers. Topics range from archaeoastronomy to nanotechnology.

  
  
  
  
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  Farming from Space

  Many of us are familiar with Google Earth, looking down on any location and seeing where you live, spotting your house or farm. But, perhaps few realise that these images are taken from space by satellite.

  We see satellite images every day on weather forecasts. These images come from geostationary satellites that are always orbiting over the same point on the equator, whereas the satellites we use in Teagasc are orbiting much closer to earth in a polar orbit, flying overhead every few days or so.

  
  
  
  
  
  
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  Sun Worshipper

  How do you describe someone who checks his computer first thing every morning to see what the weather is like – not in Malaga, the Canaries or Tenerife – but, the Sun. Strange? Weird? Odd? No, not really. As Science Spin journalist Seán Duke reports, this is just part of the daily work routine for Ireland’s leading academic ‘Sun Worshipper’, TCD astrophysicist, Peter Gallagher.

  
  
  
  
  
  
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  Space Set for Liftoff

  Studying science or engineering at college, and worried about job prospects in Ireland when you graduate? If so, then you could certainly do worse than consider a career in Ireland’s rapidly growing and exciting space industry sector, writes Seán Duke.