What's On at UWA

The residential camp is held annually in July for students from Years 9 to 11. It is held in Perth and includes visits to The University of Western Australia and other locations of scientific interest around the city.

The camp provides participants with a hands-on experience of science, engineering, medicine and technology. There is an emphasis on fields relevant to Indigenous communities in Western Australia, including sustainability, health, ecology, conservation, infrastructure, water, energy and mineral resources.

School students attending the camp will be engaged through the interweaving of cultural themes with participation from Indigenous scientists, engineers and health professionals demonstrating the relevance and importance of science and technology to Indigenous people. A careers forum and information session on selecting school subjects is held as part of the camp to encourage students to aspire towards university entrance. Current Indigenous Students will also assist as supervisors, acting as positive role models for students.

This camp is supported by Woodside and the Australian Government, Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education through the Aspire UWA Indigenous Program.

A public lecture by Professor Carlos M. Duarte, Director, The UWA Oceans Institute.

In this lecture, Professor Duarte will develop a case for the existence of a long relationship, at the deepest possible level, between humans and the ocean and submit that the depth of this relationship can be best understood as a close evolutionary connection between humans and the ocean.

This lecture is part of the ‘Ocean Solutions for Humanity’s Grand Challenges’ lecture series, presented by UWA’s Institute of Advanced Studies and The UWA Oceans Institute. This series of lectures will explore the ways in which safe and sustainable uses of our oceans can open a pathway of wealth and well-being through what is, in effect, our last frontier.

Cost: Free, RSVP your attendance to [email protected].

This event is still going ahead, this event entry is a duplicate in the calendar and has therefore been cancelled. Apologies for any confusion.

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Event to be confirmed - contact us for further details.

‘A day in the life of a UWA Chemistry Student’ gives year 10 and 11 students the opportunity to explore the different areas of chemistry currently available at UWA and to participate in a range of fun activities which will help to explain the wonderful world of chemistry!

Students will have the opportunity to speak with UWA staff and current students to find out more about life as a UWA student, what the campus has to offer, UWA's new course structure, study pathways and career options.

Join us in an afternoon of information and debate about one of agriculture's hottest current topics: Prominent industry leaders will discuss foreign ownership of Australian agricultural land and agri-business, its challenges, opportunities and its potential impacts on farming families and agricultural industries. For program details and speakers click on the link below.

This talk will present the theories and curatorial decisions behind a recent exhibition by Donna Franklin as a part of her PhD research at Edith Cowan University. The exhibition included works of local, national, and international interdisciplinary artists. The artworks selected for the exhibition will be discussed in relation to Franklin’s interest in the communicative role the arts plays: In particular as a site of interrogation into aspects of “systemic colonisation” and the “life world” concerning future cultural engagement with non-human life (Habermas, 1970). Creatures of the Future Garden as an exhibition aimed to engender the development of gallery spaces that facilitate multiple uses: As a site of conservation, wilderness and education (Gessert). Franklin is seeking audience opinion regarding the exhibition and workshop presentations with the intention of generating further interest in animal welfare, the environment, science and arts, in as many diverse contexts as possible. This puts into practice Franklin’s passion for generating real-time experiences with non-human life, and hands-on education, as strategies to explore the natural world and examine biotech futures. Exhibiting Artists: Dr Trish Adams, Tarsh Bates, Donna Franklin, George Gessert, Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg, Kirsten Hudson, Svenja Kratz, Angela Singer, The Made Generation: Gary & Susie Cass, Jesse Brown, Nicholas Lozanovski, Sasha Whittle.

Franklin is currently a PhD candidate (Philosophy) and academic in Cultural History and Theory at The School of Communication and Contemporary Arts, Edith Cowan University. Her various research projects investigate the role art/science collaboration has in generating public awareness and debate raised by developing biotechnologies or investigates ecology environment. She has a particular interest in creating artworks that explore an engagement with the non-human, such as fungi, plants and animals. During her Master of Arts, she was awarded an artist residency at SymbioticA: Centre for Excellence in Biological Arts, UWA. She has collaborated with scientists and artists to produce artworks and conduct art/science workshops for festivals, galleries and schools. Selected exhibitions include: Animals People: A shared environment POP Gallery Brisbane 2011, Signs of Change Form Gallery 2010, SuperHuman RMIT Melbourne 2009, Biotech revisited EAF 2008, Skin to Skin FAC08. Techno Threads Science Gallery Dublin 2008, ARS Electronica Festival 07, Mycologia Mundaring Arts Centre 2007, Second Skin ENTRY06 Vitra Design Museum Germany and Taiwan 2007, BEAPworks06 Australia, Hatched 05 PICA, BEAP04.

The course is designed for people with knowledge of basic statistics who want to learn more about regression and analysis of variance (ANOVA).

The course is hosted by the Centre for Applied Statistics and we offer discounted rate fees to UWA Graduate Research Students.

Fee information is available on our website cas.maths.uwa.edu.au. Please register online.

The 3MT competition challenges research students to give a dynamic and engaging presentation about their research and its significance in a way that can be understood by everybody. The audience will select the "People's Choice" winner.

The Annual Lecture is the highlight of the year for the UWA Historical Society and Convocation and we are delighted to welcome Winthrop Professor Cheryl Praeger to the podium to reflect upon her years on Campus and subsequent experiences and achievements.

Mathematician Cheryl Praeger has served the University of Western Australia as Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, and Professor since 1976. She leads a flourishing research group in pure mathematics and is in the top one per cent of highly cited mathematicians in the world.

Attendance is free.

The course is designed for people with knowledge of basic statistics who want to learn more about how to analyse binary or survival data.

The course is hosted by the Centre for Applied Statistics and we offer discounted rate fees to UWA Graduate Research Students.

Fee information is available on our website http://www.cas.maths.uwa.edu.au/courses. Please register online.

Investigation Awards event at The University of Western Australia on Tuesday the 27th of July from 9am to 2:40pm.

The PICSE Science Investigation Awards (SIA) are an opportunity for Year 8, 9 and 10 students to investigate a topic and hypothesis of their OWN CHOICE to find out answers with a hands-on and fun approach to science. Winning investigations receive cash prizes of up to $500.

Simply pick a topic that interests you, pose a hypothesis, carry out experiments and work towards answering your question using scientific methodology (it’s really like Myth Busters!).

You then present your findings as a poster (presentation board) and report. These are entered into the awards at your school. The top three investigations from each year group entered from your school will then be selected to attend the PICSE UWA Science Investigation Awards at UWA. These investigations will then be judged by scientists and industry representatives.

The Science Investigation Awards are open to any student in years 8, 9 and 10 from any school in the Great Southern and Perth Metropolitan areas of Western Australia. Schools need to contact PICSE UWA and submit their Expression of Interest details (see website).

Teachers can also get involved by attending the Science Investigation Awards Teacher PD.

Artemis Kitsios is currently a Masters candidate with SymbioticA, School of Anatomy, Physiology and Human Biology, and the School of Environmental Systems Engineering UWA. She will speak about her interdisciplinary research project – Ecosystem complexities: an interdisciplinary study of stress, resilience and change. This project examines the complexities of aquatic ecology, with particular attention to resilience and the role of the human. The project aims to examine, simulate, and visualise ecosystem processes that are not easily translated into human scale perception/comprehension and hence establish greater understanding of the fragility and importance of aquatic ecologies

Artemis Kitsios studied environmental engineering at UWA (2001 - 2004), visual art at the Central Institute of Technology (2007 – 2010) and before beginning the Masters in Biological Arts, completed the Art and Life Manipulation course with SymbioticA (2009). She has worked in water resource management, ecology and conservation locally and internationally for the last 10 years and has exhibited artworks in Perth, Melbourne and Barcelona.

The Western Australian Marine Science Institution welcomes you to the first of a series of free seminars on past, current and planned research in the Kimberley.

1st Speaker: Dr Barry Wilson (Murex Consultants), Patterns of life on Kimberley shores

The major controls of palaeographic development of the North West Shelf, including the Kimberley, have been climatic and sea level change and tectonism. The history of these events, especially those of the Quaternary, superimposed on the regional geology, has determined the range of habitats, the biological connectivity between them and adjacent regions, and the evolutionary development of the marine fauna. In this presentation, the contemporary marine fauna of the Kimberley is discussed in these historical biogeographic terms.

2nd Speaker: Dr James Gilmour (AIMS), Two decades of research on the Kimberly’s oceanic reef systems: dynamics and connectivity of coral assemblages in a changing world

This talk summarises almost twenty years of research by AIMS on the oceanic reefs of north-western Australia, focusing on the Scott Reef system. Scott Reef is unique in being far from the influence of many human activities responsible for the degradation of coral reefs globally, but for a catastrophic mass bleaching event in 1998. The 80% reduction in coral cover that followed provided an opportunity to quantify the rates and processes of recovery following a massive climatic disturbance. The recovery of the reef after 12 years is explained in the context of its connectivity to other reef systems and the underlying demography of its coral assemblages.

Afternoon tea (provided) and networking opportunities will follow the presentations.

RSVPs are essential please, for catering purposes.

General public and media welcome to attend.

RSVP & more info: Sue Lim [email protected]

www.wamsi.org.au

You may have seen Jurassic Park, where dinosaurs were from insects, but how much time travelling is really possible with ancient DNA? Join us for the first public lecture in Scitech's Lecturesaurus series with expert Dr Mike Bunce from Murdoch University.

Mike will tell us about his groundbreaking research extracting DNA from extinct birds. From the fossilised poo of the twelve foot moa bird of New Zealand, to eggshell fragments from the massive Madagascan elephant bird, ancient DNA can reveal more about what these creatures ate, how they evolved and how they became extinct.

This lecture is part of a series of public lectures in which local scientists will provide insight into some of the fascinating research in the world of palaeontology and extinct animals. The lecture series coincides with Scitech’s current feature exhibition Explore-a-saurus, and each lecture will include time before and after the lectures to step back in time and walk amongst the dinosaurs.

Time: Doors open 6.00pm, lecture 6.30-7.30pm Location: Lotterywest Science Theatre, Scitech Cost: $5 per person, or free to Scitrekker members. The fee includes time in Scitech’s Explore-a-saurus exhibition which will be open before and after the lecture (6pm-8pm). Bookings are essential by following the link.

SPICE Events are designed to expose high school science teachers to exciting new science by increasing interaction between teachers and researchers at UWA. They provide the opportunity for teachers to engage in current research and learn new ideas for the classroom, and usually contain a range of activities including hands-on lab sessions, field trips or presentations showcasing cutting-edge research. We expect the heightened engagement and interaction between teachers and tertiary scientists to have a significant impact upon the enthusiasm of teachers for science.

See website for dates and further details.

The De Laeter Youth Lecture is organized annually by the WA Branch of the Australian Institute of Physics. It is named in honour of the late Emeritus Professor John De Laeter. Not only was Professor De Laeter one of Western Australia's most noted scientists, but he also had an enormous impact on education is Western Australia. A minor planet was named after Professor De Laeter in recognition of his research in astrophysics and, in 1992, he was awarded the Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for his contributions to science, education and industry. He received a Eureka Prize in 2005, and a Clunies Ross Science and Technology Award in 2006.

Paul Sharp is founder of Two Hands Project and works on issues of plastic pollution, particularly in the marine environment. Two Hands Project is a collaborative approach to dealing with plastic pollution: take 30 Minutes and Two Hands to clean up yOUR world anytime, anywhere.

Two Hands embodies the spirit of the huge national/international clean up days but asks what you can do with your two hands in 30 minutes, at a location near you, on any day of the year. We are taking it all back to grass roots, looking at what you can do to care for the place(s) that are near to you or important to you, anytime that you want. Whether you’re doing this to improve the health of our oceans, reduce the risk to wildlife or to simply clean up unsightly trash in one of your favorite parks or beaches, what you can do with your own Two Hands is easy.

Sharp will be talking about his recent experiences in the North Pacific, where he was part of the 5 Gyres/Algalita Marine Research Foundation Tsunami Debris Expedition.

twohandsproject.org

Artist Talk with Vivienne Glance Playwright and actor Vivienne Glance has been fascinated by science for many years, but incorporating science into creative works presents particular challenges. Her main interest is how science is depicted in performance which has been the topic of her recently completed PhD research. Vivienne will talk about the dramaturgy behind science plays, why she thinks it is important that artists tackle science and technology in their work, why audiences seem to love it or hate it, and the delights and challenges scientific themes present to playwrights. Her latest play The Cat in the Box is an absurd comedy with a dose of quantum mechanics. The play premieres at the Blue Room Theatre on 2nd August. For more details please visit www.blueroom.org.au. Hosted by John Aitken. Presented by Stages WA in association with the AWG.

Cost: Free – all welcome

The 2012 Joseph Gentilli Lecture by Naomi Oreskes, Professor of History and Science Studies University of California & 2012 UWA Institute of Advanced Studies Professor-at-Large.

This event has reached capacity, no more registrations can be taken.

Glowing plants, drug-delivering artificial cells, smell-changing bacteria, propelling mouse tissues… Today, new kinds of biological designs are increasingly gaining public awareness and shifting biological imagination towards new horizons. Next to scientists and engineers, do-it-yourself biologists are claiming crucial roles as the hackers, artists, designers, cultural theorists, and entrepreneurs of the biophilic era. As Synthetic Biology is becoming the go-to-discipline to those who are interested in the biochemical design space, engineering principles become the driving force behind designed biologies.

But what do we mean by “design” when we talk about biological design?

In this two-part talk, Orkan Telhan will trace the long history of biological design rather quickly through a series of designed and commercialized biological artifacts and offer a more discursive view on the evolution of the biologically designable beyond specific disciplinary agendas. Secondly, Telhan will reflect on the outcomes of his research residency at SymbioticA and briefly discuss his current project on “Biosynthesis and the Futures of Sandalwood.”

Current SymbioticA resident Orkan Telhan is an interdisciplinary artist, designer and researcher whose investigations focus on the design of interrogative objects, interfaces, and media, engaging with critical issues in social, cultural, and environmental responsibility. Telhan is Assistant Professor of Fine Arts - Emerging Design Practices at University of Pennsylvania, School of Design. Telhan is working towards his PhD in Design and Computation at MIT School of Architecture and Planning. He was part of the Sociable Media Group at the MIT Media Laboratory. He studied Media Arts at the State University of New York at Buffalo and theories of media and representation, visual studies and graphic design at Bilkent University, Ankara. Telhan's individual and collaborative work has been exhibited in a number of venues including Ars Electronica, ISEA, LABoral, Archilab, Architectural Association, Architectural League/ NYC, and the MIT Museum.

National Science Week is an annual celebration of science in Australia, an opportunity to join together to enjoy and explore the wonders and benefits of science. The Faculties of Science at The University of Western Australia will be hosting a number of special events for schools and for the community.