Author Archives: Stephen

Artful History

Posted on 28 April 2011 by Stephen

“There have been times in the history of man when the earth seems suddenly to have grown warmer… I don’t put that forward as a scientific proposition, but the fact remains that three or four times in history man has … Continue reading →

Posted in Art history, Civilisation, Kenneth Clark, Science & Media, TV review, Wow | Comments Off on Artful History

Rings of Saturn

Posted on 22 April 2011 by Stephen

It has been a beautifully clear and sunny day – perfect weather for a barbecue. We dined and chatted with our guests as the afternoon turned to dusk and then the stars began to wink in the night sky. After … Continue reading →

Posted in Astronomy, Saturn, science | Comments Off on Rings of Saturn

Writing Science

Posted on 18 April 2011 by Stephen

Writing about science. It’s important. And not just because you could win some dosh from the Wellcome Trust. I tried to explain why (and a little bit about how) in a guest post on Grrlscientist’s blog today.

Posted in communication, science, Science & Media, Writing | Comments Off on Writing Science

Sun Spot

Posted on 17 April 2011 by Stephen

I have been working my way around the solar system with my telescope. The moon was easy to spot. And Jupiter and Saturn were not so very difficult to find, though they proved to be beyond my photographic capabilities. Over the … Continue reading →

Posted in Astronomy, Photography, science, Sun, Sunspot | Comments Off on Sun Spot

Numb or Numbered?

Posted on 14 April 2011 by Stephen

It just doesn’t add up: why do so many people, including scientists, get stuck on the maths problem? The subject is on my mind because it was raised at a departmental meeting last week where I tried to argue that … Continue reading →

Posted in Hard-core, Mathematics, Maths, School, science | Comments Off on Numb or Numbered?

Movement and Music

Posted on 9 April 2011 by Stephen

What the hell is Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey about? I’m sure I don’t know. I’m really, really sure I don’t know. At least, I think I am.

Posted in 2001 cinema science-fiction kubrick, Cinema, Music | Comments Off on Movement and Music

Winging It

Posted on 29 March 2011 by Stephen

A short film about flying. And about the wing on the plane that I was in. Yes – the wing. I flew this morning and enjoyed a little bit of engineering magic.

Posted in flight, Fun, magic, plane, Tech, technology, wing | Comments Off on Winging It

Moon Boon

Posted on 21 March 2011 by Stephen

It cannot have escaped your attention this past weekend that the Earth was treated to a supermoon. The correct terminology for this felicitous event is a perigee syzygy, but the reasons for the interesting nomenclature need not detain us. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Astronomy, Blogging, History of Science, Moon, Open Laboratory, science | Comments Off on Moon Boon

Don’t submit. Submit.

Posted on 18 March 2011 by Stephen

We came. We chanted. We lobbied. We petitioned.

Posted in funding, science, Science & Politics, Science Is Vital | Comments Off on Don’t submit. Submit.

You may not be interested in this but this is interested in you

Posted on 11 March 2011 by Stephen

I was banging on last week about how scientists should use words rather than guns during public engagement. Words are safer — and often more effective. But they are not completely safe. In fact, they can sometimes be rather dangerous, … Continue reading →

Posted in Libel Reform, Lobby, Parliament, Science & Politics, Sense about Science | Comments Off on You may not be interested in this but this is interested in you