Category: Science Group

Our February meeting was led by Ian and Ann Murray who had  completed lots of in depth research into the topic of Black Holes and beyond.

The resulting PowerPoint presentation was outstanding with descriptive diagrams, explanations and linkages that made this complex area of physics more accessible.

Below is my attempt at a summary.

 This is a Black Hole Sagittarius A* (at the centre of our Galaxy) which was discovered in 1974 and photographed in 2017.

‘Black holes, wormholes, and the event horizon are intriguing concepts in theoretical physics, largely explored by brilliant minds like Einstein, Hawking, Susskind, and Maldacena. A black hole is a region in space where gravity is so strong that even light cannot escape it, leading to an event horizon—the boundary beyond which nothing can return. Theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking made significant contributions, famously predicting that black holes can emit radiation, now known as Hawking radiation. Leonard Susskind and Juan Maldacena furthered our understanding of black holes through their work on string theory and the holographic principle, which states that all the information within a volume of space can be described by the information on its boundary.

Wormholes, theoretically predicted by Einstein’s general relativity, are hypothetical tunnels connecting distant parts of the universe, potentially allowing for faster-than-light travel ‘

Our thanks are extended to Ann and Ian for their preparation and presentation.

Next Month: March 21^st

I am away on the u3a Melrose trip and Bob McEwen and John Tedstone are kindly leading the session this month which includes a presentation by John on an interesting group called ‘The Lunar Society’

David Rose

At the January meeting we welcomed a very enthusiastic guest speaker David Wheeler.

David presented a very interesting and comprehensive talk about the progress of the soon to be opened Rolls Royce Hucknall Flight Test Museum.

He began with a brief history of the Hucknall site which began in 1920’s as an RAF station and in 1934 became home to the Rolls Royce Flight Test Establishment where prototype piston and then jet engines were secretly built and flown.

The new museum is dedicated to giving the public an opportunity to have a unique insight into Hucknall’s secret aviation history.

Many residents of Hucknall from the late 1930s to 1971 will probably have fond memories of the almost constant background noise booming out from the test beds.

For more information: look at their website for opening dates and details of volunteering opportunities at the museum: huflighttestmuseum.co.uk

Next Meeting

Friday 21^st February 10am JGC

We have a presentation by Ian and Anne Murray who have completed lots of research into Black Holes which are regions of space-time where gravity is so strong that no matter or electromagnetic energy (e.g. light) can escape it.

I will also be telling you about our ‘science away day’ visit on Friday 16^th May.

The coach and mystery venue are booked and details will be sent to members before our February meeting.

There may be time for some of the 5 min talks which will also feature as a significant part of the March meeting so it’s best to ‘Be Prepared’.

David Rose

We had an interesting and varied final session of 2024.

We started with our series of ‘5 minute talks’. Group members each have a scientist from different eras and from different disciplines. The talks were to highlight the significant contribution they have made.

Our thanks to:

Anne Sibley for                   Gertrude B Elion

Bob McEwen for                  Barry Marshall 

Val Kelly for                       Howard Flor

Christine Faithfull for           Alfred Wegener

Lynda Jackson for               Elizabeth Friedman

Bob Gow for                       Wilder Penfield

Tony Whilde for                  Willem Rontgen

David Vincent for                William Perkin

William Perkin discovered the dye for the colour purple and David recalled his unrealised teenage ambition to own a purple mohair jumper – known locally as ‘Hairy Marys’.

After the break we held a science and trivia quiz won by Bob Gow, Anne and Ian Murray.

17^th January – Meeting 10am to 11.45ish JGC

We have a guest speaker, David Wheeler from the Hucknall Flight Test Museum which is based on the Rolls Royce site.

Following the talk, if time permits, we will continue with the 5 minute talks

 

Happy New Year to All

Science

At our November meeting Chris Garner gave a very interesting illustrated talk about working in the oil industry.

Chris has operated in many locations across the world and his talk had a focus on his experience whilst working for the American company Marathon extracting from an oil field in Gabon Africa.

He explained how the crude oil is extracted from underwater shale deposits and the difference between oil rigs and oil platforms.

The photograph shows Chris with some of his colleagues on board the platform.

After the break members were selected at random to start the 5 minute talks about their chosen scientist.

Liz Attenborough, John Berrill and Helen Rose were randomly selected to talk about Rosalind Franklin, Evangelista Torricelli and Archimedes who is seen below.

December 20th Meeting

We will continue with some of the 5 minute talks together with a mini festive activity and a science based Quingo quiz with prizes and mince pies.

David Rose

Our next meeting is on 15^th November at 10am to 11.50am.

Part 1 

Chris Garner has a presentation about the oil industry with a particular reference to his time spent on oil rigs in different parts of the world.

Part 2

We begin our 5-minute talks about our chosen scientists.

Terry Hill has volunteered to start the process after which the next speaker will be selected at random so like all good boy and girl scouts its best to ‘Be Prepared’

David Rose