Teaching Astronomy to Children

Posted on June 7, 2017September 8, 2022

Within New Zealand, June provides the perfect opportunity for astronomers to get out into the community and spark the astronomy bug in children. Not only are we currently in winter, experiencing sunset really early — 6pm in some parts of the country and earlier in the far south — but it is also the Maori New Year, or Matariki as it is called, a time of the year that is marked by the dawn rising of the Pleiades Cluster.

Every year, I get asked by at least one of the local scout groups to introduce the kids to some of the concepts behind astronomy. This month's show of Conversations in Science was all about some of the tactics that I use to explain eclipses, seasons, and our place in the galaxy.

Scientists and the Pursuit of Knowledge

Posted on May 3, 2017December 16, 2022

Genetics is about much more than DNA

Posted on March 8, 2017December 16, 2022

Regular listeners of Conversations in Science will know that I have a wide breadth of knowledge within the realm of science. Let’s face it, I’m a science geek. However, there are some areas of science where I’m just as much in the dark as those around me. That’s when it’s time to bring in an expert. On this month’s show, I did exactly that.

It was such a pleasure to invite Dan Koboldt to join Jessie and me as we talked about the field of genetics and the genome project. I did have to rein in Jessie’s bizarre questions (something the two of us still laugh about), but I had no idea that the field had progressed to the point it had. It’s not often that I’m left speechless, but Dan succeeded.

Take a listen as Dan explains what a geneticist really does and how our understanding of the human genome had led to amazing advancements in cancer research.

Global Warming — Fake Science or Real?

Posted on February 8, 2017December 16, 2022

I used to host a regular podcast called Conversations in Science. The show ended in 2018, but I keep the posts around, because the topics seem to have more importance to today's society than ever before. The last episode of Conversations in Science was a requested topic and given the current escalation of the news about climate change and global warming, I can understand why.

Is all this hoopla about global warming really fake science (alternative facts) or is it real and something we should be worried about? Simple answer: it's all real, but the issues and solutions are far from simple.