News

Who’s taking part this November?

It’s a good few months since the last I’m a Scientist in June earlier this year, and the time has come to run another event! From November 14th-25th we are running a smaller I’m a Scientist event with 2 zones. It’s sponsored by the Science & Technology Facilities Council, so the 10 scientists taking part all work with the STFC in different ways, such as using STFC facilities, working for the STFC or receiving STFC funding for their research. The STFC is one of the 7 Research Councils in the UK, and they address research topics from particle physics to global security. They’re looking at topics as fundamental as the birth of the universe to the solar system we live in, understanding how the heavy elements are formed in the violent explosions of stars, and if it’s possible to complete the ‘Standard Model’ (including the search for the elusive Higgs … Continue reading

Posted on October 24, 2011 by in News | Comments Off on Who’s taking part this November?

What Stephen Curry did with his prize money… Iā€™m a Scientist – the Film!

Have your students ever wondered what scientists are really like? During I’m a Scientist questions around this theme are very common: Can I be a scientist like you? Is being a scientist like the stereotypical one who wears a white lab coat and huge glasses with crazy hair? What makes a good scientist? After winning the Imaging Zone in June 2010, Stephen Curry (aka the GingerNinja) decided to make a film about science, addressing this question: what are scientistsĀ really like? Made with teenage school students in mind, the film is a wonderfully insightful and funny teaching resource to show your students about being a scientist and the world of science. After his win Stephen said “I am convinced that most scientists are, like myself, pretty ordinary people who just happen to be exceedingly curious. I hope in these conversations to break apart the stereotypical image that all scientists are super-intelligent … Continue reading

Posted on September 21, 2011 by in News, Winner report | Tagged | Comments Off on What Stephen Curry did with his prize money… Iā€™m a Scientist – the Film!

Congratulations to the June student winners

We would like to congratulate the following students who have been named as the student winners in their zones of the June 2011 event. The moderators thought they all asked good questions and really engaged with the event. Zone Student winner School Brain Caitlin Stiles Loreto Grammar School Calcium Bridget Warren St Mary Redcliffe and Temple School Chromium Aisha Ali Birchfield Independant Girls School Cobalt Katie Feather Great Marlow School Copper Kye Clark Dover Grammar School for Boys Ecology Melissa Tucker Kingsmead Commuity School Energy Generation Hussein Shariff Buxton School Evolution Andrew Wood Tiffin School Forensic Science Michael White Saltash.net Community School Genes Hannah Darby John Hanson Community School Healthy Ageing Sam Andrews Bryn Celynnog Iron Rosamund Needham Toftwood School Manganese Sian Jackson The Warwick School Marine Science Catherine Lam Shaftesbury School Microbiology Hannah Grimes Churston Ferrers Grammar School Nickel Maggie Byrne Amberfield School Phosphorus Sophie Michel East Bergholt High … Continue reading

Posted on August 12, 2011 by in News | Comments Off on Congratulations to the June student winners

Congratulations to the winning scientists!

Thank you all of you, it’s been an absolute blast! After two weeks of intense debate, stimulating chats and thought-provoking questions, I’m a Scientist, Get me out of Here! draws to an end. The five scientists in each zone have battled it out for your votes. The scientists have been eliminated one by one, to reveal the winner in each zone. So, congratulations to the following scientists: Brain Suzi Gage University of Bristol Calcium Drew Rae University of York Chromium Tom Crick UWIC Cobalt Jen Gupta University of Manchester Copper Emily Robinson University of Manchester Ecology Zara Gladman University of Glasgow Energy Generation Suze Kundu UCL Evolution Sam Tazzyman UCL Forensic Science Anna Williams Cranfield University Genes Jim Caryl University of Leeds Healthy Ageing Amy Reeve Newcastle University – Centre for Brain Ageing and Vitality Iron Evan Keane Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, Bonn, Germany Manganese Wei Xun Imperial … Continue reading

Posted on June 24, 2011 by andyhowells in News | 11s Comments

Who’s taking part in June?

We have now chosen the scientists and schools for Iā€™m a Scientist, Get me out of Here! in June. Zones This June is our biggest ever event, with 23 ā€˜zonesā€™. 12 are general and named after elements, containing a broad range of scientists and research areas. 11 are themed zones, with themes from Microbiology to Energy Generation, Ecology and Marine and Underwater Science. Due to popular demand we are repeating some themed zones from previous years – Sports Science, Genes, Brain, Forensic Science and Evolution. We’re particularly excited about the Healthy Ageing zone sponsored by RCUK’s Lifelong Health and Wellbeing programme, and the Quantum zone which is sponsored by theĀ Institute of Physics. Schools There’s a big variety in the schools taking part, with students involvedĀ from Singapore and Hungary to the Isle of Skye. We hope that, as in previous years, classes at these schools areĀ goingĀ to have a greatĀ experience taking part. … Continue reading

Posted on June 3, 2011 by andyhowells in News | Comments Off on Who’s taking part in June?

Students: Help us choose the scientists to take part in June

I’m a Scientist, Get me out of Here! is like the X Factor, for scientists, on the computer. And YOU are the judges. Teenagers like you talk to real live scientists and then pick which ones should get a prize of Ā£500 to communicate science. Teenagers also have a say in which scientists get to take part. Each scientist who wants to compete has written a one-sentence description of their work. We want to know if you think they should be included. You can rate them here:Ā http://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/528779/I-m-a-Scientist-Rate-the-Scientists-June-2011 Who do YOU think should be included?

Posted on April 27, 2011 by in News | Comments Off on Students: Help us choose the scientists to take part in June

What Joseph Cook did with his prize money…

I decided toĀ donate my prize money to a science organisation in the developing world. I spoke to Alejandra Palermo, International Projects Manager at the Royal Society of Chemistry, who suggested donating the money to the Ghana Chemical Society (GCS).Ā  The Ghana Chemical Society is a professional association with membershipĀ of chemists, biochemists, pharmacists, chemical engineers and technicians.Ā  It organises annual workshops, seminars and conferencesĀ on issues of national and international significance. ItĀ also collaborates and advises government, industry and society. They will use the money to support a conference in Ghana, the theme of which will be ā€œActions and Innovations to meet the Millennium Development Goals on Water and Sanitationā€.Ā  This willĀ follow on from a similar event held in 2010, on the theme ā€œSafe Water and Good Sanitation for all: The role of chemistry, industry and societyā€.Ā  The Millennium Development Goals are targets set out by the United Nations to combat poverty, hunger, … Continue reading

Posted on April 11, 2011 by in News, Winner report | Tagged | Comments Off on What Joseph Cook did with his prize money…

What Joe Devlin did with his prize money…

The prize money for winning the Brain Zone (March 2010) went towards attending the Society for Neuroscience meeting in San Diego.Ā  This is a massive meeting where 30,000 neuroscientists from all over the world get together to share their research and discuss new developments and ideas.Ā  My PhD student, Keith Duncan, gave a talk entitled “Chronometric TMS shows hemispheric asymmetries in the time course of ventral occipito-temporal processing consistent for both visual words and objects.”Ā  Needless to say, the title alone brought the audience in droves and the feedback was great.Ā  In fact, the whole process helped to land Keith a new position when he finished his PhD in September and he is now doing a postdoctoral research fellowship at the prestigious Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging (London).Ā  So in addition to help publicizing some of our most recent work, the award directly contributed to furthering Keith’s academic career and … Continue reading

Posted on April 11, 2011 by in News, Winner report | Tagged | 4s Comments

Congratulations to the March event student winners!

We would like to congratulate the following winning students from the March 2011 event. The moderators thought they all asked good questions and really engaged with the event. The students winners of Iā€™m a Scientist, Get me out of Here! are: Name School Zone Andrew Wood Tiffin School Argon Benjamin Case Mangotsfield Secondary School Chlorine Erin Ibbetson Broadoak Mathematics & Computing College Forensic Science Samuel Porter The Kings School, Devon Potassium Ahmad Dehghani West Thames College Space Calvin Mallion Chafford Hundred Campus Stem Cell Research Well done to all the students above! They have now received their student winners certificates and WHSmith vouchers. We would also like to thank all the other students who participated. Everyone contributed to the brilliant chats and thought provoking questions, which made this yearā€™sĀ Iā€™m a Scientist, Get me out of Here! one of the most exciting and fun events yet.

Posted on April 7, 2011 by in News | Comments Off on Congratulations to the March event student winners!

Congratulations to the winning scientists!

Thank you all of you, it’s been an absolute blast! After two weeks of intense debate, stimulating chats and thought-provoking questions, I’m a Scientist, Get me out of Here! draws to an end. The five scientists in each zone have battled it out for your votes. The scientists have been eliminated one by one, to reveal the winner in each zone. So, congratulations to the following scientists: Argon Julian Rayner Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute Chlorine Murray Collins Institute of Zoology – London School of Economics Forensic Science Mark Hill AND Jamie Pringle Forensic Collision Investigation & Reconstruction Unit, Sussex Police/Keele University Potassium David Pyle University of Oxford Space Adam Tuff The University of York Stem Cell Research James Chan Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology, Imperial College London The winning scientists all receive Ā£500 to spend on science communication, and we can’t wait to see their wonderful ideas put into practice! Thank … Continue reading

Posted on March 25, 2011 by in News | 8s Comments