Public Engagement Small Award Winners Successful applicants in Round 99B (Autumn 1999) 1. Professor J C Brown, University of Glasgow, Department of Physics and Astronomy, The Kelvin Building, Glasgow, G12 8QQ. Telephone: 0141 3305182 Fax: 0141 3305183 Email: [email protected] £2,600 THE MAGIC OF THE COSMOS: A pilot scheme, to be run by two young astronomers, will present a suite of science "magic" shows using magic effects to illustrate and help explain remarkable phenomena in the cosmos. Subject areas to be explored will include relativity, quantum mechanics, optics, high-energy astrophysics and cosmology. The shows for schools, science festivals and roadshows will be designed to be memorable, intriguing and amusing for the audience. 2. Professor C E Gough, School of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Birmingham, Edgebaston, Birmingham B15 2TT. Telephone: 0121 4144669 Fax: 0121 4144719 Email: [email protected] £5,000 PROJECTS FOR THE MILLENNIUM ‘FROM QUARKS TO THE COSMOS EXHIBITION’: To develop high quality presentation materials illustrating various topics in particle physics and astrophysics for inclusion in the Science Funfair 2000 "From Quarks to the Cosmos" – this is to be held in Birmingham and is expected to reach 25,000 young people. It is hoped that scientific and communication ideas from the event will assist the local lottery-funded science centre, Discovery Centre at Birmingham Millennium Point, to include such topics in science presentations. 3. Professor M G Green, Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX. Telephone: 01784 443454 Fax: 01784 472794 Email: [email protected] £3459 MEASURING THE MUON LIFETIME: An exhibit will be constructed to demonstrate the existence of the muon particle and measure its lifetime. The apparatus required is quite simple. It will be available for general audiences as part of the national Particle Physics Exhibits Project (PPEP) resources, and can be used in the Masterclasses held by the particle physics community each spring. 4. Mr D Hollomby, The Alsop High School, Queens Drive, Liverpool L4 6SH. Telephone: 0151 2256981 Fax: 0151 5211044 Email: [email protected] £3,000 LIVERPOOL CHILDREN’S ASTRONOMY WEBSITE: A World Wide Web site on astronomy for primary and secondary school children developed by year 6 and 7 students. The site will encourage other schools to contribute projects and will be linked to the National Grid for Learning. An end of year magazine displaying the some of the best projects will be sent to local libraries, schools and students families. 5. Dr T R Mason, Armagh Planetarium, College Hill, Armagh BT61 9DB. Telephone: 02837 524725 Fax: 02837 526187 Email: [email protected] £4,000 YOUR PLACE IN SPACE: A contribution to Armagh Planetarium to construct an exhibit of the Solar System at several different scales. This will be aimed at giving school children and the public an awareness of the scale of the Solar System and the larger universe. 6. Dr R Massey, Royal Observatory Greenwich, Greenwich, London SE10 9NF. Telephone: 020 8312 6735 Fax: 020 83126734 Email: [email protected] £4971 UPGRADE OF 28-INCH TELESCOPE: To upgrade the 28 inch aperture refracting telescope in use at the Royal Observatory Greenwich (ROG) to make it more accessible to its public audiences. The enhanced telescope will be usable during daylight hours as well as at night, and user groups will include school parties, GCSE students and general public. 7. Dr J. McFall, Bristol University, HH Wills Physics Laboratory, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TL. Tel 0117 928 8772 Fax 0117 925 5624 email [email protected] £5150 BABAR MAGIC CUBES: further production of the ‘magic’ cubes describing the BaBar particle physics project and its science. These were extremely popular, fascinating students, journalists and science-inclined general public, and demand has been so high that the project team will make a fresh supply, especially for use at educational meetings and the research community’s Masterclasses. 8. Mrs M McGlynn, Head Teacher, St Francis Primary School, 430 Old Rutherglen Road, Glasgow G5 0PA. Telephone: 0141 429 3687 £300 SCIENCE IN OUR COMMUNITY: A contribution towards shared educational resources for a network of three Glasgow schools that are encouraging their pupils with an interest in astronomy. The schools are in an area of regeneration, which is close to a new Science Park. 9. Mr S Naylor, Institute of Education, Manchester Metropolitan University, 799 Wilmslow Road, Manchester M20 2RR. Telephone: 0161 2472306 Fax: 0161 2476392 Email: [email protected] £5,000 CONCISE Project (Concept Cartoons In Science Education): To develop high quality presentation materials illustrating various topics in particle physics and astrophysics for inclusion in the Science Funfair 2000 "From Quarks to the cosmos". 10. Dr J Pillinger, Planetary Sciences Research Institute, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA. Telephone: 01908 655049 Fax: 01908 655910 Email: [email protected] £9,650 BEAGLE 2 AND YOU: A project to provide an upgraded World Wide Web site and a stand-alone screen display to promote the Beagle2 mission to Mars. This is a lander which will look for signs of life on Mars, and is due to be part of the European Space Agency’s ‘Mars Express’ mission, set for launch in 2003. The current project will design, compile and implement dedicated web pages providing information on the mission and its science. Also, to translate this information from the web pages into stand-alone on-screen display material. The Website is at http://beagle2.open.ac.uk. 11. Mr B Porter, Physico Theatre, 15 Townsend Street, Haslingten, Rossendale, Lancashire BB4 5DF. Telephone: 01706 215463 Fax: 01706 215463 Email: [email protected] £6,237 Over the Moon: To produce a video version of the theatrical play "Over the Moon" which promotes current basic knowledge of the universe, specifically illustrating achievements in space and sustaining the memories of the 1999 eclipse. 12. Dr Paul Roche, Education Manager, National Space Science Centre, Mansion House, 41 Guildhall Lane, Leicester LE1 5FQ. Telephone: 0116 2530811 Fax: 0116 2616800 Email: [email protected] £5,000 THE REMOTE CHALLENGER LEARNING CENTRE: Purchase of equipment to run mobile Challenger Learning Centre activities around the UK. The first Challenger Learning Centre outside the USA was opened recently at Leicester by David Blunkett. The Centres commemorate the crew of the Challenger Shuttle, and involve children or adults working in teams during simulated space missions. The ‘remote’ version is an outreach extension of this, which has mobile equipment that will be used in schools, science festivals, conferences, summer schools, etc. 13. Dr P J Sellin, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey GU2 5XH. Telephone: 01483 876814 Fax: 01483 876781 Email: [email protected] £750 LIFTOFF! THE STUDENT PAYLOAD COMPETITION: School children will be given first hand experience of the principles behind rocket launching and an insight into the science of space flight. The project team will run a rocket launch competition for 13-15 year olds and develop an educational science programme based around a rocket project. This will include producing classroom resources for teachers, worksheets for student teachers, and a lecture for schools, cumulating in a launch day competition. 14. Dr C E Skilling, National Association of the Education of Sick Children, 18 Victoria Pack Square, Bethnal Green, London E2 9PF. Telephone: 0181 9808523 Fax: 0181 9803447 Email: [email protected] £3,000 ICE COLONY ALPHA - AUDIO MATHS PROJECT "SPACEBOX": To provide help with science studies for children who are regularly away from school because of serious illness or medical conditions. The project team will distribute astronomy kits, developed in an earlier pilot scheme, to these children while in hospital or home and provide them with personal support via telephone, fax and Electronic Mail. 15. Mrs S Talbot, Arnold Schools Limited, Highfield House, Whittingham Lane, Haighton, Preston PR2 5SL. Telephone/Fax: 01772 652102. £540 EUREKA 2000: A two day event aimed at junior school children that will involve hands on displays, science theatre and competition promoting solar system and space science. On the 18th March there will be a major exhibition at Arnold School and open to the whole local community. 16. Dr P M Watkins, School of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Birmingham, Edgebaston, Birmingham B15 2TT. Telephone: 0121 4144625 Fax: 0121 4146709 Email: [email protected] £5,500 VIDEO OF THE ATLAS EXPERIMENT: To contribute towards the production of a professional quality video of the ATLAS experiment (one of the main experiments at the coming Large Hadron Collider at CERN). The UK version of this international production will be available to the 200 or so UK schools participating in the Particle Physics Masterclasses and to all UK Particle Physics groups. STFC Small Awards Scheme Winners 2000A STFC Small Awards Scheme Mrs JL Patching, Swinton Comprehensive School, East Avenue, Rotherham, S64 8JW Tel: 01709 570586 Email: [email protected] £500 STIMULATING AN INTEREST IN ASTRONOMY A contribution to the cost of hiring a stardome at an inner city school, principally to foster an interest in Astronomy in pupils from a cluster of Primary schools, but also to be extended to secondary school pupils to encourage older pupils to consider taking science degrees. The stardome will also be used to brief and update involved teachers. Dr NA Hutton, School of Education, University of Sunderland, Gray Road, Sunderland, SR2 8JB Tel: 0191 515 2379 Email: [email protected] £600 COMSET CONTINUATION (SPACE) COMSET was a Millennium Award project, run by The Royal Society and British Association, to increase the understanding of scientific and technological issues by developing three university/community linked programmes in Sunderland.