Category: Science Group

Our January 16^th meeting was mainly dedicated to medical developments since the Middle Ages and included an introduction by John Tedstone who talked about a recent visit to the medical history section at the very busy Science Museum in London.

Next was me to talk about a famous early Doctor/Surgeon John of Arderne

John of Arderne (1307–1392) born in Newark, was a pioneering English surgeon often regarded as the father of English surgery. He honed his skills as a surgeon supporting John ‘o Gaunt in the 100 years war in France and more formally at Montpellier University.

He developed effective treatments for anal fistulas, created early anaesthetic mixtures using hemlock, henbane, and opium, and wrote influential surgical texts. His work blended practical skill with ethical guidance, shaping medieval medical practice.

There is a Wetherspoons pub in Newark which is named after him.

Science Group Visit Friday May 15^th.

Our Science awayday is a visit to the Thackray Museum of Medicine in Leeds. It is housed in a beautiful building adjacent to St James’s University Hospital.

The Thackray is the UK’s largest independent medical museum. Two floors of exhibitions span galleries on the history of public health, medical innovation, the theatre, response to crises and living with disabilities (and so much more), and various events, activities and workshops bring it all to life, including one called “POO!”. A real highlight is “Disease Street”, a smelly, grimy depiction of what life used to be like in the slums of Leeds.

Preference for this visit is given to members of the science group; it will then be open to all u3a members. Details are in the February Newsletter.

Finally, we considered ‘small’ inventions since about 1850 and each group member has a chosen invention to research and prepare for a ‘3-minute talk’. Our next meeting is on Friday February 20^th 10am to 11.45am

David Rose

For our final meeting of 2025 Bob McEwen had prepared a very interesting and varied quiz. Some of the questions were about the topics we covered this year, and some were based on the fiendish format of ‘Only Connect’

Another round was to add missing vowels to complete the names of well-known scientists.

e.g. L_ _ _S   P_ ST_ _ R     (Louis Pasteur) The one that defeated everybody was:

DL VL CBYRN     Can you do it?      (Answer at the end of this article)

Following a break for tea/coffee and mince pies we moved on to assembling models of woodland insects and members of the spider family.

The templates were donated by Greenwood an initiative to enable Nottinghamshire’s communities to create, enhance and enjoy woodlands and other accessible green spaces in a sustainable way and Miner2Major whose nature projects focus on the landscape, habitats, species and trails of Sherwood Forest which locally includes Moor Pond Woods in Papplewick. All to the benefit of native wildlife and habitats.

Thanks to everyone for their contributions this year as we look forward to 2026.

January 16^th Meeting 10am at JGC

Seating is out for the annual Pantomime so we will be at the back of the hall.

John Tedstone will be sharing his recent visit to the medical history section at the London Science Museum, and I have a presentation about what is on offer at the Thackray Museum of Medicine in Leeds which is the venue for our science visit on Friday May 15^th.

Finally, you will have the opportunity to select an invention which is the theme for our ‘5-minute talks’.

And the mystery scientist is ADA LOVELACE BYRON

David Rose

In part one we shared a presentation about medical advances during the 1950s.

It is a time when many of us were growing up, and the decade marked major progress in individual medical interventions and in public health.

To summarise some key advances.

Jonas Salk’s injectable polio vaccine and Albert Sabin’s oral version dramatically reduced the disease. Advances in heart surgery introduced artificial valves, pacemakers, and routine open-heart procedures. Dialysis programs began, while vaccines curbed the Asian flu. New antibiotics and tranquilizers emerged, alongside recognition of the cancer risks linked to smoking.

We also shared a celebration of two significant birthdays of David Wormall and Lynda Jackson 1955 and 1935 babies. But which was which?

After the break using small cardboard and bigger plastic ‘jet propelled’ model planes group members carried out a practical investigation into how aeroplane wings and angle of launch affect flight path and distance.

Our next meeting is on Friday 19^th December

Bob McEwen is the Quiz Master for our end of term quiz, and in the Blue Peter tradition you will be making something to take home afterwards.

David Rose

At our meeting in October, group member Dr Jolanta Adamczewska gave a presentation about lubricants with a specific focus on petrochemicals.

She explained that petrochemicals are chemical products derived primarily from oil, petroleum and, to a lesser extent, from natural gas.

Petrochemicals are predominantly organic compounds, meaning they are composed mainly of carbon (C) and hydrogen (H) atoms. The simplest petrochemicals are hydrocarbons, which can be classified into three main categories based on their structural features.

Jolanta demonstrated the structure using atomic models first starting with

Methane (CH4): The simplest alkane, consisting of one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms in a tetrahedral geometry.

She then explained how Lubricants are made for combustion engines and how the resulting lubricant undergoes rigorous testing for properties like viscosity, thermal stability, and cleanliness before marketing. This production process ensures that the lubricant can effectively reduce friction, prevent wear, and operate reliably under demanding engine conditions.

Much of the testing is done using actual engines that are removed from production model cars- not all science investigations only use test tubes!

She concluded with a reference to electric powered vehicles and how the motor lubricants are different from those in petrol and diesel vehicles basically because they are not subject to explosions and high temperatures in the engine cylinders.

After the break we considered some significant medical advances since 2015.

Our next meeting is 21^st November at JGC, and we are also meeting on 19^th December.

David Rose