Science and Society

Podcast: Higgs, I think we have it!

EPISODE 35: This week’s podcast looks at how the news out of CERN about the discovery of a Higgs-like boson was received by the world. How did the media do in describing what the Higgs Boson actually is and did what’s the future for the Large Hadron Collider. We hear from an experimental physicist about […]

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We have a new particle – and it looks Higgsy

Scientists this evening confirmed they have discovered a particle fitting the description of the Higgs Boson, the so-called ‘god particle’ that is seen as key to expanding our knowledge of particle physics and the make-up of the universe. Confirmation that the Higgs Boson-like particle had been discovered in experiments carried out at the Large Hadron […]

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Episode 34: Digital Earth 2.0

On the Sciblogs podcast this week we look at the progress made on Digital Earth initiatives like Google Earth – what’s in store for the next generation of Earth visualisation and simulation platforms? We talk to Sciblogger Ken Perrott about new data from the 2011 Australian census that shows more Aussies are ditching religion and […]

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Episode 33: Sweet and sour

A bumper edition this week of the Sciblogs podcast owing to the huge amount of interesting science news around the traps. I kick off with my Science Media Centre colleagues John Kerr and Dacia Herbulock analysing what’s come out of the Rio20+ summit in Brazil – what have the world’s nation’s agreed on and is […]

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Finch report: Shift away from journal subscriptions

The UK Government-commissioned Finch Report, which looks at the state of scientific publishing, has called for a shift towards open access publishing which should be underwritten by public money to avoid destroying the well-established and powerful science publishing industry. The report has just been published and coverage is filtering out from the UK. The Working […]

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Episode 32: Staring at the Sun

The Sciblogs podcast this week is a special edition focussing on the Transit of Venus celebrations that took place in Gisborne last week. First there was the observation of the transit, which we were fortunate to have great weather for, then the business end of the proceedings with the Transit of Venus forum, where 300 […]

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Timescapes – bliss for nature geeks

There’s a long and healthy tradition of non-verbal, observational films that mesmerize audiences with breathtaking cinematography and fascinating glimpses of the world around us that remind us how much we take that world for granted. Seminal to the genre are three films – Baraka, Koyannisqatsi and Powaqqatsi – painstakingly put together documentaries that have no […]

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Crime scene science (infographic)

Interested in how blood splatter patterns are analysed – and what they mean? Want to know what happens in an autopsy? it’s all here in this fascinating infographic on the science of crime scene investigations – its like CSI without having to watch the lame TV shows… (Click to enlarge) Source: eLocalLawyers.com

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Transit of Venus: A sight for sore eyes

Those of us in Gisborne yesterday were among the lucky few in New Zealand who got to observe the Transit of Venus yesterday. It was a very special day out at Tolaga Bay where the locals treated us to amazing hospitality. Here are some photos… Look carefully at about 5o’clock on the image of the […]

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Transit of Venus: Live from Gisborne

I’m in Gisborne and all set to observe the Transit of Venus tomorrow and take part in the Transit of Venus forum that is taking place on Thursday and Friday. Why Gisborne? Mainly for cultural rather than scientific reasons – Tolaga Bay was where Captain Cook came ashore in 1769 and apparently had the first […]

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