Going Back to School (by sarah)

I have been applying for and organising stuff so that I can go back and study - this morning I got a congratulations email from UWE so it looks like I am going 🙂 It is a Post Graduate Certificate in Practical Science Communication. The course itself I have been looking at for the last few years but wasn't really in a position to attempt it - I am nervous about my pervious attempt to go back but feel it is different this time. For a start it is not me going back it is me moving forward and combining the skill sets I have into one area - Science Communication.

I have craft, art, writing, stage skills and so on not too mention a certain degree in geology, I am desperate to show the world the wonder of science and after a week working at the science festival I am even more convinced that the world needs science communicators. The general public are still frightened of many aspects of science, child are still being told they are not the right gender/class/religion to become a scientist. Scientist who have spent their entire time in accademia often fail to realise that they are not portraying information in an easily accessible way even when they are trying to do out reach which doesn't help with it seeming a scary thing.

I am aware that scientists and academics in general tend to get annoyed with what they see as the masses being encouraged to think that science isn't hard that every body can do it - but that is the point a lot of people could do it if they had been caught early enough and in fact I know many people who have retrained into science later in life. People need to see that science is accessible but to become a 'scientist' takes hard work. Also there is still alot of 'science is boring' going around not too mention the confusion over memorising 'facts' and what what science actually is. It is still regarded by many as a dead subject with no room for thinking and innovation - those within science know that this couldn't be further from the truth which is one of the reasons I think this sort of work is important.

I loved doing Science Show Off last year and that raised another communication issue - scientists tend to be specialists these days but really they do need to have some idea of what is going on in different fields - something one day maybe relavent to what they are trying to work out. Not really sure I want to go down the government and policy route to be honest - I want to do public facing, activities for kids, stuff in museums etc... maybe even more festivals though they would have to get behind the general craft and writing workshops/performances I do.

The course should help me with the science journalism I've been wanting to do and just so much more.

The course is part time and done in intense blocks which works much better for me - so I am hopeful.

Excited/Scared 🙂

Oh What A Soggy Day (by sarah)

This evening I went to cubs with Alaric - they were doing archery at the campsite in Cranham. I wondered around at first finding the late comers but soon ended up instructing the archery like the good ol' days back at Thriftwood (though not as the archery leader as my qualification must be well expired). It started raining and got heavier and heavier but it was good fun. I did however miss the chance to photograph Jeany as I was showing her how to do it instead!

It was great fun and I have really missed stuff like this. I took photos of the campsite before the session began 🙂

Mary loved exploring though was a bit grumpy we weren't having a campfire.

Jean and Mary helped put the kit away which was really sweet. We were all drenched by the end of it 🙂

The Cheltenham Science Festival Highlights (by sarah)

The Science festival was amazing - I just picked out the photos here that aren't going into their own write up about a specific event etc.... It was crazy and mad and informative and showed me just how valuable science communication is!

There was the normal fun circus stuff - lovingly science themed 🙂

This rather elegant dude reminds me of someone? 😉

Mary loved exploring.

Ok so mainly it was running off but excited running off.

She did grudgingly come back when I started counting.

I found a random hospital trolly outside one of the venues!

I found a BBC dude with random props wondering around a little lost so I photographed him and then found him the place he needed to be 🙂

I found a ferret!

I don't think it was with the festival but was someone walking their pet - it was funny because one of the suggestions Al had given me for getting more people to fill in the highly important research questionaire was that I should find a ferret!

Unfortunately I just missed him filling the bag with stuff from the hydrant can - but oooo random stuff at a festival - really?

Once more aliens seemed to have taken up residence on the roof of the town hall!

Thursday the kids came and joined me after school - they all loved the explosions bit run by the BBC.

When we first arrived Mary was over awed and just kept saying WOW! and Ooooo 🙂

Jean and her friends found the racing car simulator 🙂

She rather liked it even if she did keep crashing!

Dad found an old sports car with gears and things inside it 🙂

See cogs!

It was rather a nice car

The kids made LED torches 🙂

They were all just so excited 🙂 Mum found knitting and Al and Andy found robots - it was brilliant 🙂

Science, Knitting and Dr Who! (by sarah)

Yesterday was amazing, I came up with a solution to Matt Smiths retirement from Dr Who - it was simple really Alaric's cubs think he is an incarnation of the Dr anyway! I think we should petition the BBC 😉

Then I turned up as a last minute recruit to the Cheltenham Science Festival - I'm doing impact research - basically walking around with shiny tech asking questions for Warick University. The team are lovely - if anyone is about - come over and say hello!

Then I met a lady from Surrey University who is using knitting to explain chemistry - similar to my knitted molecules she is crowd sourcing knitting to create a giant models of minerals 🙂

She is giving out the patterns 🙂 And I am going to be knitting up all my blue wool for the project! I am also hoping to catch the lovely Lizzy Burns who's molecular jewellery and glass ware I had on display in March for Science and Engineering week 🙂

Then to cap it all I found a welcome to UWE email in my in box - it is still stuff about processing applications but it made my day 🙂

For the knit wits out there it is The Perovskite Project and they are looking for more knitters 🙂

June’s and July’sTo-Dos (by sarah)

I am sunburnt (I was wearing factor 50!) and am tired and exhillerated! I had a fantastic weekend running craft workshops at Wychwood Festival, as a family we also took part in many of the activities and listened to an interesting aray of music and learnt new skills. I belly danced everyday of the festival and went back tonight to the classes I was doing before medical stuff hijacked me at the beginning of the year.

May was a great month with me working on children's books etc... but June... well June and July are my FiMos - Finishing Months. I plan to finish projects!

And what alot of projects I have :/ Once again they seem to have multiplied! On top of that there is more art stuff and craft stuff and festivals and poetry to do and I may also have just been roped in as of this afternoon to do stuff at the Cheltenham Science Festival 🙂 Which is exciting!

Oh and just to be extra geeky I also signed up todo treki knitting on Ravelry 🙂

The summer tends to be quiet intense for me - there is also a trip to be in the Hanwell carnival and another to see Neil Gaiman and Claire Armistead at the Royal Society of Literature this month.

So here we go!