How do we know where we are?

Wednesday, 6th May 2015 – “How do we know where we are?” – Prof Matthew Nolan

At the Aughton & Ormskirk U3A Science Group

Matthew (Alan’s nephew) is Chair of Neural Circuits and Computation, University of Edinburgh Centre for Integrative Physiology, whose research is interested in the mechanisms used within the brain to mediate cognitive processes and guide learned behaviours!

Matthew gave an extremely interesting talk about how neurons interconnect and the mechanisms involved. He described some of the research methods his team uses to identify exactly which neurons are involved in the brain’s ability to keep track of location. Unusually, the talk was right at the cutting edge of scientific research yet it was delivered at a level that we could easily follow and enjoy.

The Science of Cleaning

Wednesday, 5th November 2014 – “It’s a dirty old world we live in” – the Science of Cleaning, by Patsy Colvin. As an ex Head of Chemistry at a local school, Patsy brought her vast experience of chemistry to bear on the problem of cleaning. Why are some stains harder to remove than others? Why do we need so many different types of cleaning solution? Why can’t there be a universal cleaner?

Well, Patsy did a very good job of enlightening us: we heard about surfactants, solvents, chelators, saponifiers and builders and how these various components of the cleaning process work on different types of stain. We learnt about soils and stains, anions and cations, hydrophilic and hydrophobic solvents, and hopefully we left with a better understanding of how to read the labels on cleaning products!

Perception

Wednesday 3rd September 2014 – “Perception” by Sylvia Dillon: Making sense of what we see – an introduction to Visual Perception and the neuro-physiological processes whereby a person becomes aware and interprets external stimuli.

Sylvia talked about how photons of light are processed – at first by the eye, then the brain, then how the individual perceives the world they live in. Covering physics, biology and psychology, she gave examples showing how perception is an active process and how early life experience, especially as a toddler influences the development of perception.

Chemical elements part 1

Wednesday, 4th June 2014 – “Chemical Elements – Part 1″ – a joint effort by 6 of our members, each talking for 10 to 15 minutes about their chosen element. The line-up was:

Patsy Colvin setting the scene with a brief definition of an element, a bit of atomic theory and a tour around the periodic table, then on with the show, starring your very own…

Edmund Moynihan talking about Iron.  A whizz through the history of iron taking in Soviet Art, the Romans, the industrial revolution, geology with a bit of biology to finish with.
Beryl Yates talking about Copper.  Its history, its geology complete with samples to show: what more could you ask for!
Chris Procter talking about Phosphorus.  From its discovery to its critical importance in biology and agriculture, everything you wanted to know.
Peter Croughan talking about Noble Gases  Six elements at once, not so unreactive as you might think with much curious chemistry and many important technological applications
John Parsons talking about Chlorine  A much maligned element, critical to modern hygiene.  The world of Domestos revealed
Tony Edwards talking about Platinum  Not just for jewelry, important in many areas of technology especially the glass industry.  We learned some metallurgy from an expert.

Each of these has a story, and each of the presenters took a different tack. We heared some fascinating things about the discovery, chemistry, physical properties, uses and economic importance of each of these elements; and with seven of our own presenters, no one fell asleep!

FutureLearn

FutureLearn is an offshoot of The Open University providing online courses in a wide range of subjects, many of a scientific nature. The aim is to connect learners from all over the globe with high quality educators, and with each other. Courses are delivered one step at a time, and are accessible on mobile, tablet and desktop, so you can fit learning around your life, rather than your life around learning.

 

Courses are typically from 2 to 8 weeks long and expect you to do between 1 and 4 hours work per week.

The list of courses currently running or soon to be run is here.

Consciousness

Tuesday, 1st June: Dr Stephen Doyle gave us an entertaining and fascinating talk in 2009 about laser eye surgery. He returned on Tuesday 1st June to give another very well received talk entitled “Consciousness – How are we here?” based on a Philosophy of Mind course he attended at Oxford University. The quality of his visuals and his engaging manner made the subject come alive.

For those particularly interested in the topic, he recommends the following reading: “The feeling of what Happens” – Antonio Damasio “The Man who mistook his wife for a hat etc” – Oliver Sacks “Deep Simplicity” – John Gribbin

Stephen Doyle had some problems running his “Slime Mould Video”.  Below you can see what you missed!