Art. Science. Optics. A Collider Café event in Vancouver (Canada) on January 23, 2019

January 16, 2019 Maryse de la Giroday Science in Society, Technology and Engineering

The Curiosity Collider folks have decided to ring in the new year with an event focused on optics. Here’s more from their January 15, 2019 announcement (received via email), FROM CONTEMPORARY ART TO SCIENCE ILLUSTRATION, IS “SEEING” REALLY “BELIEVING”? OR IS THERE MORE TO IT THAN THERE SEEMS? HOW CAN WE EXPLORE THE POSSIBILITIES THROUGH ART AND SCIENCE? OUR #COLLIDERCAFE IS A SPACE FOR ARTISTS, SCIENTISTS, MAKERS, AND ANYONE INTERESTED IN ART+SCIENCE. MEET, DISCOVER, CONNECT,…

Cellulose and natural nanofibres

January 15, 2019 Maryse de la Giroday Science in Society, Technology and Engineering

Specifically, the researchers are describing these as cellulose nanofibrils. On the left of the image, the seed look mores like an egg waiting to be fried for breakfast but the image on the right is definitely fibrous-looking, Through contact with water, the seed of Neopallasia pectinata from the family of composite plants forms a slimy sheath. The white cellulose fibres anchor it to the seed surface. Courtesy: Kiel University (CAU) A December 18, 2018 news…

Why not monetize your DNA for 2019?

January 14, 2019 Maryse de la Giroday Science in Society, Technology and Engineering

I’m not a big fan of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) companies that promise to tell you about your ancestors and, depending on the kit, predisposition to certain health issues as per their reports about your genetic code. (I regularly pray no one in my family has decided to pay one of these companies to analyze their spit.) During Christmas season 2018, the DNA companies (23andMe and Ancestry) advertised special prices so you could gift someone in…

Congratulations Keefer

January 12, 2019 Dan Gillis Communication, Education and Outreach, Science in Society, Technology and Engineering

Huge congratulations to Keefer Rourke, who has been named recipient of the Co-op Student of the Year 2018 – Ian Pavlinic Memorial Award for Innovation. Keefer was nominated by Dr. Jason Ernst and Rachel Cheng of Left, where he spent the past eight months working on the RightMesh platform. During this time, Keefer was alsoContinue reading "Congratulations Keefer"

How the technology of writing shaped Roman thought

January 11, 2019 Maryse de la Giroday Science in Society, Technology and Engineering

I have two bits about the Romans: the first is noted in the head for this posting and the second is about a chance to experience a Roman style classroom. Empire of Letters This January 8, 2019 news item on phys.org announces a book about how the technology of writing influenced how ancient Romans saw the world and provides a counterpoint to the notion that the ancient world (in Europe) was relentlessly oral in nature,…

Wireless Mobile Mesh Interns

January 11, 2019 Dan Gillis Communication, Education and Outreach, Science in Society, Technology and Engineering

I am happy to announce that Xuan Luo, MASc student at the University of British Columbia, is the newest Mitacs Accelerate intern for the Wireless Mobile Mesh Network research program. Xuan will be working on Objective 4.2 – Evaluation of Micropayment Channels Performance Limits, and the Effect on Network Performance Evaluation of Micropayment Channels PerformanceContinue reading "Wireless Mobile Mesh Interns"

Terahertz imagers at your fingertips

January 10, 2019 Maryse de la Giroday Science in Society, Technology and Engineering

It seems to me that I stumbled across quite a few carbon nanotube (CNT) stories in 2018. This one comes courtesy of Japan (from a June 28, 2018 news item on Nanowerk), Researchers at Tokyo Tech have developed flexible terahertz imagers based on chemically “tunable” carbon nanotube materials. The findings expand the scope of terahertz applications to include wrap-around, wearable technologies as well as large-area photonic devices. Here’s a peek at an imager, Figure 1.…

Call for abstracts: Seventh annual conference on governance of emerging technologies & science (GETS)

January 9, 2019 Maryse de la Giroday Science in Society, Technology and Engineering

The conference itself will be held from May 22 – 24, 2019 at Arizona State University (ASU) and the deadline for abstracts is January 31, 2019. Here’s the news straight from the January 8, 2019 email announcement, The Seventh Annual Conference on Governance of Emerging Technologies & Science (GETS) May 22-24, 2019 / ASU / Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law111 E. Taylor St., Phoenix, AZ The conference will consist of plenary and session presentations…

Celebrate the 150th anniversary and International Year of the Periodic Table of Elements in 2019

January 8, 2019 Maryse de la Giroday Science in Society, Technology and Engineering

The 150th anniversary of the Periodic Table of Elements has occasioned its own International Year as declared by the United Nations (UN) and, hopefully, a revival of the ‘elements cupcake’ craze which seems to have had its heyday in 2011/12. (I wrote about the cupcakes here in a March 21, 2012 posting ‘Periodic table of cupcakes, a new subculture?‘) As for IYPT 2019, let’s get started with Mark Lorch’s (professor of Science, Communication, and Chemistry…

A Living Wage

January 8, 2019 Dan Gillis Communication, Education and Outreach, Science in Society, Technology and Engineering

Despite the fact that the current Ontario Government cancelled the minimum wage increase that was intended to come into effect on January 1, the reality is that the planned $15/hr wage – although an improvement – was still not enough to meet the current living wage in Guelph. For those curious, the Guelph Wellington Poverty EliminationContinue reading "A Living Wage"

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