Queensland
National Science Week in Queensland
We welcome you to the Queensland page for National Science Week!
In 2009, the 9-day festival calendar (and 10-day ScienceWeek Pavilion at the Ekka in the week prior) attracted participation from over 250,000 people across more than 100 events.
These events were spread throughout the State and this year, we aim to encourage many more of our scientific, biotech, information technology and engineering communities to open their doors and “ignite the imagination” of the public by demonstrating their science, engineering and technology achievements.
The following excerpts from events during 2009 National Science Week shows the breadth of fascinating experiences that were open to children and adults alike around Queensland. 2010 promises to be even better!!
mellifera
- a new-media project built around an online, interactive world demonstrated the innovative possibilities when science, technology and art collide – and helped to launch National Science Week 2009 in Queensland. |
 |
The Chief Scientist for Australia, Professor Penny D Sackett and the QLD Chief Scientist, Professor Peter Andrews addressed a combined science and arts audience of around 200 attending the launch at the Queensland University of Technology on 18th August, 2009. See and hear more from Professor Penny Sackett and Professor Peter Andrews in this clip.
New media artists Dr Andrew Burrell and Dr Trish Adams were inspired by early scientific understanding of honey bee behaviour when designing Mellifera as an online interactive environment in Second Life. A series of interfaces link the virtual and real worlds, allowing audiences to influence outcomes.
According to Dr Adams merging real and virtual worlds allowed the artists to create new environments where physical and digital objects could co-exist and interact in real time.
“Bees communicate, their hives are complex systems, they are essential to healthy life cycles…and they may be dying out,” she said. “What better metaphor could we have found to communicate subtle messages within our art?”
Queensland Chief Scientist Prof Peter Andrews said that, like art, science has the capacity to change our world and how we interact with it.
“The real beauty of science – and what this exhibition illustrates well – is how curiosity-based research can lead to applications and outcomes in vastly different fields,” he said.
See and hear more from the artists in this clip.
return to top
Ignite Your Imagination
ScienceWeek Pavilion at the ‘Ekka’ - the Royal Queensland Agricultural Show.
Over 100,000 visitors came to the ScienceWeek Pavilion to see, touch and ask about science and technology from a range of organisations. Hands-on, interactive displays that educate and entertain children and adults of all ages were again a hallmark of this Pavilion.
|
Dinosaurs - Did you know Australia had some of the world’s largest dinosaurs?
Australia's Dinosaur Trail in Queensland's Outback is an exciting new adventure highlighting the world-class fossil discoveries in the towns of Winton, Hughenden and Richmond. A journey along the Dinosaur Trail offers visitors a range of unique experiences not offered anywhere else in Australia.
Richmond is the geographical centre of where the Cretaceous Inland Sea once was, and the fossils that are found prolifically around Richmond are the remains of animals that lived and died in the sea.
Lark Quarry Dinosaur Trackway (110km from Winton, unsealed road) has the world's only fossilised footprints of a dinosaur stampede!
For more information, lookup www.kronosauruskorner.com.au
|
 |
| See a video of an Ekka display - how icky sticky chewing gum is removed from pavements! |
return to top
Science for Life
|
Group discussion at Toowoomba North Primary School |
The Mater Medical Research Institute (MMRI) sent two teams of scientists to visit Catholic Education, Education Queensland and Independent primary and secondary schools between 27th and 29th July.
The scientists, including MMRI apoptosis cell death team leader, Dr Nigel Waterhouse, put together lesson plans on topics such as immunology, microbiology, genetics and the Australian science industry. |
Also under the Science for Life banner, The Queensland Museum South Bank hosted a huge program of presentations and interactive events during National Science Week including hands-on laboratories; Body Zone, Earth Space and Action Stations! in the Sciencentre; a Technology Trail through the Museum; a wide variety of public lectures and SCINEMA – the Australian Festival of Science Film – a partnership between the CSIRO and COSMOS Magazine.
return to top
BrainBreak!
BrainBreak! is our concept for harnessing the ingenuity and joy of discovery within all organizations with science, technology, engineering, maths or design elements in their work to participate in a low-key way in National Science Week.
The Co-coordinating committee sends each organization that registers for a BrainBreak! a pack comprising a fun science quiz and ScienceWeek collateral.
Organizations are free to choose any format for a simple celebratory or awareness-raising event for staff, students, clients and/or the general public.
How Do You Sign up to participate?
To register for a BrainBreak! pack contact qnswcc@gmail.com by close of business 3 August 2010.
The Hear and Say Centre in Brisbane celebrated it’s BrainBreak! for the second year in a row with a simple morning tea for staff and visitors. Dimity Dornan AM, Managing Director and Founder, Hear and Say Centre shown below (left) answering quiz questions with staff!
QLD Committee Contacts
If you are looking for a way to promote culture change in Australia to value science, technology, engineering, maths and design then join the Queensland Coordinating Committee! Contact:
Chair - Doreen Awabdy
d.awabdy@uq.edu.au
return to top