Published by Kate at August 23, 2009 6:23 pm under Story
By Jon Lomberg
Jon Lomberg imagines a future where humans have colonised Mars.
A few centuries from now, Mars might be a bustling frontier. If our species can survive there, it will spread slowly, pushed by the spirit of scientific inquiry, or the urge to explore. Landing sites will turn into bases and eventually into communities.
Mars
Mars has as much dry surface area as the Earth. Even aided by satellites, it will take a very long time to explore the planet. Meanwhile, all the unmanned landers and rovers from earlier missions will still be where they were centuries before, buried in sand perhaps.
On Saturday August 15, Live Futures 2020 brought scientists, designers and innovators together at the UNSW COFA Campus in Sydney. The theme was “futures” and Dr Saul Griffith, who encompasses all of these professions, called in via Skype to discuss the future of energy.
It was a tremendously thought-provoking presentation; and I captured some of the highlights below…
Published by Kate at August 21, 2009 2:01 pm under Story
By Kate Hennessy
After a fortuitous encounter at the Eureka Awards dinner on Tuesday, Professor Bryan M. Gaensler leapt on a brilliant opportunity. But first: watch this.
Physics professor Gaensler had a tutorial scheduled the next day about the challenges of portraying science and astronomy in film. He planned to use 1996 movie ‘Contact‘ (starring Jodie Foster) as his primary example.
Over dinner, however, Gaensler discovered that the gentleman to his left was none other than ’space artist’ Jon Lomberg.
From 1995-1997 Lomberg worked on the Warner Brothers film as Astronomical Visual Consultant. He designed and story-boarded many of the film’s astronomical animation sequences, including the famed three-minute zoom out from Earth that opens the movie (here again on QuietTube) – the very sequence Gaensler planned to show students the next day.
Sensibly, Gaensler’s first question to Lomberg was “What are you doing at noon tomorrow?”
Scrumping. Verb: The art of finding free food in the street, mostly from large fruit trees that overhang people’s yards or are in public places.
Surely, also, the delicate first cousin of dumpster diving: the art of retrieving perfectly edible food from dumpsters.*
Scrumping is just one of the 100 social “experiments” listed on www.livelocal.org.au – a website that aims to help people re-connect with their immediate environment – and exist more sustainably – by living locally.
Video extraordinaire Amanda Hoh visited the ‘InsideOut: Growing Communities‘ installationat LiveFutures 2020 last Saturday and talked to researcher Natalie Rowland about the project and how it ties in with Live Local.
Myself and my partner were, in fact, two of the people “interviewed” in the Botanicals room on the future of our native seedlings.
Come along to Ultimo Library to learn how to use our Science and Environment Databases. Sessions also available earlier in August at Customs House Library and Surry Hills Library – details below.
When: Monday 24th of August: 11am-12pm
Where: Ultimo Library, Crn Bulwarra Rd and William Henry Street St, Ultimo
Tickets: Free but booking essential – call (02) 9298 3110 or email library[at]cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au
Sessions available at other libraries
When: 18th of August:10:30am-12:30pm
Where: Customs House, 31 Alfred Street, Circular Quay
Tickets: Free but booking essential – call (02) 9265 9292 or email library[at]cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au
When: 18th of August: 2pm-4pm
Where: Surry Hills Library, 405 Crown Street, Surry Hills
Tickets: Free but booking essential – call (02) 9265 9292 or email library[at]cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au
Climate models form the basis of predicting future climate change. But can we believe them? Leading climatologist Professor Matthew England will outline the main components of climate models, how they interact, and what physics they are based on.
Professor Matthew England, co-Director of the UNSW Climate Change Research Centre and an Australian Research Council Federation Fellow. Professor England led the 2007 Bali Climate Declaration by Scientists; is co-chair of the CLIVAR Southern Ocean panel and a member of the CLIVAR Working Group on Ocean Model Development. He is an expert in the ocean’s role in regional climate variability and global climate change.
When: Sunday 23rd August; 2pm – 3pm
Where: Coles Theatre – Powerhouse Museum, 500 Harris St, Ultimo
Cost: Free with entry to Powerhouse Museum – Adult $10, child $5 more information available here: http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/visit/hours&charges.asp
How do humans make decisions? Come and learn about the science behind understanding and predicting human choice behaviour in an engaging and interactive presentation.
Presented by Dr. David Pihlens, Deputy Director (Academic) at the Centre for Study of Choice at the UTS. Having completed an award winning PhD, Dr. Pihlens’ expertise lies in the area of Choice Modelling and its application to the study of human decision-making behaviour. Dr. Pihlens’ research entails designing highly sophisticated experiments, based on econometrics, mathematics, statistics, marketing and psychology, to study consumer and corporate decision-making behaviour. This research can be applied to a variety of studies ranging from climate change to mobile phone technology.
When: Tuesday 25th August, 6pm – 7pm
Where:UTS City Campus, Building 2 Level 4, Room 13 (CB02.04.13)
Tickets: Free but booking essential – Register your details here online or call (02) 9514 7950 or email events[at]uts.edu.au
From certainty to fallibility: an epic tale from the history of mathematics
Presented by Matthew Connell, Principal Curator, Science Technology and Industry, Powerhouse Museum.
For 2000 years, the geometry of Euclid’s Elements was regarded as the pinnacle of human reasoning and the most reliable branch of knowledge. The Sydney hyperbolic crochet coral reef demonstrates a new geometry which, when discovered 200 years ago, led to a great philosophical crisis. How can the shapes seen rendered by crochet have brought the mathematical world to its knees?
Matthew Connell will discuss the crisis started by the discovery of non-Euclidean geometries and how attempts to resolve it led to conception of the defining technology of our age. The Syndey hyperbolic crochet coral reef is on display from 21-30 August.
When: Wednesday 26 August; 12:30pm – 1:30pm
Where: Target Theatre – Powerhouse Museum, 500 Harris St, Ultimo
Cost: Free with entry to Powerhouse Museum – Adult $10, child $5 more information available here: http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/visit/hours&charges.asp
Come along to learn and taste the science behind producing great coffee at home.
There are major points in the processing of coffee which have a direct impact on how coffee can taste in the cup. We will take you on a journey from growing the bean to drinking the finished product….. come and see all the barista’s secrets exposed!
The only walk you’ll need to take to get your morning coffee will be into your own kitchen!
Coffee and snacks included in the ticket price.
When: Saturday 29th August 2009: 11am-12pm or 1pm-2pm
Where: Lush Bucket Cafe, 623 Harris St, Ultimo
Times: 11.00am and 1.00pm
Cost: $10 per person includes coffee tasting and snacks. Bookings essential as places are limited: 0412 562 339
