| Status: | Active, open to new members |
| Convenor: | |
| When: | Monthly on Thursday afternoons 2:00 pm-4:00 pm 1st Thursday of the Month |
| Venue: | St Michaels Church Undercroft |
Support Group: 2
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Science in the News
Aims of the Group
To Discuss and Learn about Developments in Science:-
- Items of Scientific News from newspapers, television, etc.
- Special Subjects of Interest through Talks or Recorded programmes
- Outside Trips to Local Industries or Museums.
The following list will give you a flavour of the topics we have covered since our inception:-
| *Plate Tectonics | *Wind Energy | *Xray Crystallography |
| *Climate Change | *Gravity Waves | *DNA |
| *Sperm Whales and Basking Sharks | *Evolution | *Fracking |
| *Parkinson's Disease | *Nuclear Power | *Dendrology |
| *Irrigation | *Sizewell Power Stations | *Mycology |
Picture of the Month
Here we normally feature a graphic image of relevance to a recent news item.
This photo shows the new style of power line pylons being installed as part of the National Grid update program. This was discussed in some detail by the group earlier in 2024.
Recent Meetings
At our latest meeting held on 4th April , we were given two excellent presentations by members of the group. Mike Lloyd gave an in-depth review on the science of Dementia. In this he held the group's attention through what is a complex subject. The presentation was extremely detailed but the slides gave a clear update on current understanding on this ever-growing and debilitating disease.
Following this and our customary tea-break, we were given a joint presentation on a local problem - that of the spread of Ragwort in the countryside. Jane Newbold and Graham Jackson, both retired scientists, described the problems and benefits of allowing this plant to spread locally. It is very much a topic which generates strong arguments supporting either action. If you look at the Picture of the Month on this page you will see the easily recognisable flowers grown by this plant.
Diary of future activities:
Early in April we have been pleased to receive an invitation to visit the East Suffolk Community. College in Lowestoft, particularly to be briefed on their work in ship simulation and education of mariners. This is particularly relevant at this time following the devastating collision of a very large container ship with the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, USA.
Our next meeting is scheduled for 2nd May and will feature a completely different topic. We plan the first of a two-meeting programme looking at Energy, particularly in our area. This first meeting will feature George Fisher who is planning on giving us an update on the issues surrounding bringing locally generated solar and wind power into the National Grid for its nation-wide distribution.
At the following meeting, scheduled for 6th June, Jan Oakley will describe the selection, procurement and installation of private power in a new build house in Beccles. This will include solar and ground based extraction power sources.
As we have stressed in the past, SITN is intended to be a discussion group NOT a lecture group. Any presentations and indeed external visits are designed to provoke internal discussion either at the time or indeed later in following meetings. We also need, indeed we base all our planning on input from the group. So please let Jane and Derek have any ideas or topics you would like to see discussed.
We are interested in any scientific news item you have come across which you could share. This will help us to explore new topics which may be of interest to the group. Please would you bring these along to the meeting. Thank you.
