Grab a drink and maybe some nibbles to join us for our first virtual IOW Cafe Scientifique presentation, between 7pm and 8.15 pm on Monday 18th May.

Click the zoom link at 7pm and join by browser. You don’t need an account.

New technologies to measure coastal hazards
Jenny Brown (National Oceanography Centre) will be presenting on “New technologies to measure coastal hazards”.

Defending the coast from flooding is a challenging job, especially with the uncertainty of climate change and rising sea level. To improve how our coastal defence schemes are designed, we need to be able to observe the sea as it crashes against sea walls.

A new prototype instrument to measure the volume and speed of waves as they spray, shoot and slop over a sea wall has been engineered at the National Oceanography Centre in collaboration with HR Wallingford.

The specialist information from this system and computer modelling has allowed Jenny and her team to understand hazardous wave events at a local study site near Liverpool to improve flood forecasting.

To find out more, take a look at the 4 min research clip or watch the short clips collected during field deployments in winter 2018/201.

How the talk will work
The format for the evening will be as follows:

• Five minutes to run through online controls
• 15 minutes presentation
• Ten minutes discussion
• 15 minutes presentation
• 15-30 minutes discussion.

To ensure everyone can connect, please follow the instructions below to help those with limited home bandwidth:

• When joining, mute microphone and turn off camera.
• Jenny will screen sharing her presentation.
• If you have a question or comment, use the chat facility (look for the speech bubble icon) or unmute your microphone so she can see who’s waiting in the discussion sessions.
• Please remember to mute microphones again once you have spoken.

Join the talk
See you 7pm on the 18th May. Click the zoom link at 7pm and join by browser.

The next talk will be given by Dr. Sarah Duddigan a Research Fellow in the Geography and Environmental Department at Reading University on Monday 9th march from 7pm

She will be talking about ‘ Soils’. The subject of soils and the current problems of soil degradation tend to be masked by the emphasis on climate change. Soil health is another looming problem for the planet.

Sarah’s talk will cover how soils are formed, the biodiversity of soils and the contemporary problems with soils

The Regency Suite is above the Conservative Club in Shanklin in Palmerston Road just off the High Street.

The nearest car parks are in Landguard Road and Orchardleigh Road, both only two or three minutes walk to the Conservative Club. Parking is free after 6pm.

As we have to pay a rent for the facilities, we have to ask for a donation of at least £3 on the door to make sure we cover all our expenses. i.e. the rent, cost of speakers’ travel expenses and a meal, plus overnight accommodation if needed.

Dr Robin Wilson is a freelance academic and data scientist with a PhD in satellite imaging and complex systems simulation.  

On Monday 10th February at 7pm he will be talking about ‘Monitoring the environment from space’

“Hundreds of satellites orbit the Earth every day, collecting data that is used for monitoring almost all aspects of the environment.

“This talk will introduce to you the world of satellite imaging, take you beyond the ‘pretty pictures’ to the scientific data behind them, and show you how the data can be applied to monitor plant growth, air pollution and more.”

The Regency Suite is above the Conservative Club in Shanklin in Palmerston Road just off the High Street.

The nearest car parks are in Landguard Road and Orchardleigh Road, both only two or three minutes walk to the Conservative Club. Parking is free after 6pm.

As we have to pay a rent for the facilities, we have to ask for a donation of at least £3 on the door to make sure we cover all our expenses. i.e. the rent, cost of speakers’ travel expenses and a meal, plus overnight accommodation if needed.

Professor Adam Amara from the Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation at Portsmouth will be talking about Dark Energy on Monday 20th January 2020 from 7pm

The subject has grown exponentially in the last three decades with thousands  of solar systems now known.

Besides the obvious desire to find another earth-like planet, the discoveries have raised many intriguing questions – such as why do many of the solar systems appear to have large gaseous planets near their suns.

Come and find out about the latest developments in this field of science.

The Regency Suite is above the Conservative Club in Shanklin in Palmerston Road just off the High Street.

The nearest car parks are in Landguard Road and Orchardleigh Road, both only two or three minutes walk to the Conservative Club. Parking is free after 6pm.

As we have to pay a rent for the facilities, we have to ask for a donation of at least £3 on the door to make sure we cover all our expenses. i.e. the rent, cost of speakers’ travel expenses and a meal, plus overnight accommodation if needed.

Update: Meeting postponed until 2020. More details to follow.

Dr Dominic Papineau, who is in the Nanotechnology Department at University College London, will be talking about the first micro organisms to be found on earth.

He led an International team of scientists who have discovered in Canada and Greenland the first trace elements of micro organisms that push the date for life on earth back further than three billion years ago.

They suggest that life started in the volcanoes (black smokers) under the ocean using iron for energy.

Where and when
The Regency Suite is above the Conservative Club in Shanklin in Palmerston Road just off the High Street.

The nearest car parks are in Landguard Road and Orchardleigh Road, both only two or three minutes walk to the Conservative Club. Parking is free after 6pm.

As we have to pay a rent for the facilities, we have to ask for a donation of at least £3 on the door to make sure we cover all our expenses. i.e. the rent, cost of speakers’ travel expenses and a meal, plus overnight accommodation if needed.

On Monday 23rd September from 7pm at Shanklin Conservative Club, Professor Adam Amara from the Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation at Portsmouth will be talking about Dark Energy.

The Institute has been part of a three year project studying Dark Energy. Matter made up of atoms and smaller particles makes up only 4% of the Universe. Where is all the other matter? Come and find out more about our puzzling Universe.

Where and when
The Regency Suite is above the Conservative Club in Shanklin in Palmerston Road just off the High Street.

The nearest car parks are in Landguard Road and Orchardleigh Road, both only two or three minutes walk to the Conservative Club. Parking is free after 6pm.

As we have to pay a rent for the facilities, we have to ask for a donation of at least £3 on the door to make sure we cover all our expenses. i.e. the rent, cost of speakers’ travel expenses and a meal, plus overnight accommodation if needed.

On Monday 11th March at 7pm Dr Stephen Prior from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Faculty at Southampton University will be talking about ‘Drones and other Unmanned Air Vehicles’

This talk was recommended by a member of the Isle of Wight branch of the Institute of Engineering and Technology.

The Regency Suite is above the Conservative Club in Shanklin in Palmerston Road just off the High Street.

The nearest car parks are in Landguard Road and Orchardleigh Road, both only two or three minutes walk to the Conservative Club. Parking is free after 6pm.

As we have to pay a rent for the facilities, we have to ask for a donation of at least £3 on the door to make sure we cover all our expenses. i.e. the rent, cost of speakers’ travel expenses and a meal, plus overnight accommodation if needed.

On Monday 11th February at 7pm Professor John Greenman from the Faculty of Health Sciences at Hull University will be talking about Tumour Immunology. (John has parents living in Southampton whom he regularly visits and enjoys talking to Cafe Scis).

John has extensive experience of developing lab on a chip technology for analysing tumour biopsies. His immunobiology group works closely with clinicians, chemists and engineers.

The majority of his research work has focused on tumours of the head and neck region, identifying novel markers of progression or treatment response.

The Regency Suite is above the Conservative Club in Shanklin in Palmerston Road just off the High Street.

The nearest car parks are in Landguard Road and Orchardleigh Road, both only two or three minutes walk to the Conservative Club. Parking is free after 6pm.

As we have to pay a rent for the facilities, we have to ask for a donation of at least £3 on the door to make sure we cover all our expenses. i.e. the rent, cost of speakers’ travel expenses and a meal, plus overnight accommodation if needed.