National Science Week - lighting the Bunsen burner under scientific passions

055/11

National Science Week starts this weekend, promising to light the Bunsen burner under the scientific passions of thousands of school kids and visitors from around the ACT and around Australia.

Today I joined students from Majura Primary School at the CSIRO Discovery Centre to officially launch National Science Week in the ACT.

Australia has a proud record of producing scientists who have made a great and positive difference to the lives of millions around the globe. For example Dr Fiona Wood who will take part in a number of Science Week events in Canberra pioneered non-scar burn healing and synthetic skin. Her work came to prominence in the aftermath of the Bali Bombings.

Canberra has a unique place in Australian scientific life as home to the Tidbinbilla Tracking Station which transmitted the first messages from the moon landing in 1969 and as home to the nation’s peak scientific research body the CSIRO.

But Australia is in the grip of a skills shortage in science and we need to address this if we are to benefit from the research that will help us cope with challenges such as global warming, bacterial resistance to drugs and peak oil.

That’s why the ACT Labor Government is pleased to be the major sponsor of National Science Week in the ACT, and to support the CSIRO in providing so many great opportunities for Canberrans of all ages – especially students – to get into science in fun and hands-on ways.

Now in its 13th year, National Science Week will run from 13 to 21 August. It will feature about 1,000 events across the country with more than 90 to be held in Canberra. The program covers everything from the family Science Spectacular at CSIRO Discovery Centre, touring the pathology unit at the Canberra Hospital to learning about the science of glassblowing at the Canberra Glassworks.

National Science Week events in the ACT alone are expected to attract around 25,000 visitors.

The National Science Week Program can be found at http://www.scienceweek.gov.au.