A list of all SciBar events in reverse chronological order

2nd July 2018 – The Size of Space

Just How Do Astronomers Measure Distances? William Stewart, who is a founder member of South Cheshire Astronomical Society, will give this talk, in which he will explain how astronomers (from the ancients to modern man) measure distances within and beyond… continue reading
4th June 2018 – The Manchester Egyptian Mummy Project

What can Ancient Egyptian Mummies do for Modern Medicine? Professor Rosalie David will lead this discussion – this is her resumé of what she will be saying: “In 1973, the Manchester Egyptian Mummy Project was inaugurated at The University of Manchester… continue reading
14th May (NB not 7th) 2018 – Seeing the Invisible

Observing the Dark Side of the Universe Professor Sarah Bridle (Professor of Astrophysics, Manchester University, School of Physics and Astronomy) will talk about dark matter and dark energy. These appear to form the vast bulk of the universe, but we… continue reading
9th April 2018 – Bitcoin: a Personal Perspective on Database Technology

Note the date of this talk – it’s the second Monday because April 2nd is Easter Monday. This talk will be led by SciBarian Adrian Fisher, who valiantly answered Chris Grice’s plea at February’s meeting for a speaker for April.… continue reading
5th March 2018 – Small Modular Nuclear Reactors

This discussion will be led by Emma Vernon, of the N(ational) N(uclear) L(aboratory). In Emma’s words: “The UK has expressed an interest in the potential deployment of Small Modular Reactor technology as a means to help address the energy trilemma… continue reading
5th February 2018 – Gene Editing

The Brave New World of CRISPR Gene Editing The session will be led by Professor Matthew Cobb, professor of Zoology at the University of Manchester. Over the last five years, biology and medicine have been shaken by the discovery of… continue reading
8th January 2018 – Cryptography: past, present and future

UPDATE (Feb 2018): Alan described a way of creating passwords which are (probably) more secure than those most people currently use. Here is a link to a paper Alan wrote last year describing the method: Passwwords. Note that depending on your… continue reading
4th December 2017 – DNA in Medicine

The promises, challenges and everyday application of DNA in Medicine Dr Jamie Ellingford will be talking about the latest technology and software available to generate and analyse big DNA datasets, and discuss the promises, challenges and everyday applications of these… continue reading
6th November 2017 – On The Face Of It

Surfaces and Interfaces in Chemistry, Physics and Medicine Dr Andrew Thomas of the School of Materials, Photon Science Institute, The University of Manchester will be presenting this topic. Every solid or liquid has a surface. We probably take this for granted, but… continue reading
4th September 2017 – Building Biological Batteries

This topic will be presented by Nick Fowler, a Biophysics PhD student at the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology. In Nick’s own words: “Nature has had billions of years to evolve the various life processes that constitute life. As a result, these… continue reading
3rd July 2017 – Laboratory Support in Poisoning

Laboratory Support in Poisoning – a Clinical Toxicologist’s View Dr Ian D Watson MSc PhD FRCPath FACB FIBMS DipMedTech CSci EurSpLM MCMI Retired Consultant Clinical Biochemist Dr Watson will give a presentation on ‘Laboratory Support in Poisoning’. This will cover an historical perspective, the… continue reading
21st June 2017 – Lymm Dam Geology Walk

Leader Fred Owen gathered a group of SciBarians at the Lymm Dam car park for a briefing on the geological history of the area. He explained that Lymm is situated in the centre of the northern part of the Cheshire… continue reading