Demystifying the science process one beer at a time with Adelaide’s Science in the Pub
SCIENCE talk is not only happening in labs and lecture theatres, but also the local pub.
On the first Friday of the month, hordes of people congregate at the Brunswick Hotel for Science in the Pub, where scientific ideas and theories are discussed over beers.
Conservation genetics PhD student Nick Gellie has been running the program since the group’s original leaders Andy Flies and Emily Johnston moved to Tasmania.
The group, now in its second year, hosts three expert panellists to help audiences develop an evidence-based opinion on the topic.
Subject matter ranges from paleantology and infectious diseases to cancer and the science of sleep. The latter topics can attract crowds of up to 120 people.
“We are trying to demystify the science process,” Gellie, 46, says.
“In a pub it’s less confronting and it seems to work pretty well.
“Ultimately, myself and a lot of my colleagues are funded from public funds and so are accountable in that respect, and it helps people understand the practical applications of that science pursuit.”
Gellie, who has been a fisherman, grave digger and groundsman “among other things” over the course of his life, says Adelaide is full of incredible researchers.
“It’s so important for academics to converse with audiences outside of their normal reach,” he says.
“And if people can engage with that and see what’s happening in a contemporary setting, it makes people get enthusiastic.”
Science in the Pub’s next topic is ‘What’s technology got to do with it?’. The Brunswick Hotel, 207 Gilbert St, Friday, August 7, 6pm-7.30pm. Free. RSVP at scienceinthepubadelaide.org.au
Source: News Limited, 4th August 2015
Originally published as: Demystifying the science process one beer at a time with Adelaide’s Science in the Pub
