British Science Week 2021 Webinars

Drodzy Członkowie i Sympatycy STP, 

Z okazji trwającego w dniach 5-14 marc​a British Science Week, pragniemy Was zaprosić na dwa wydarzenia: 

  • 11-ego Marca o godzinie 19.00 – na wykład poprowadzony przez Dr G. C Barker: „The coronavirus data deluge. Coping with complexity, confounding and causality„. 
  • 14-tego Marca o godzinie 16.00. Będzie to pokaz naukowy poprowadzony przez Dr Andrew (Zbyszek) Szydło zatytułowany „As if by magic”. Spectacular Chemistry Demonstration 

Oba spotkania odbędą się w języku angielskim. Poniżej sylwetki prelegentów, informacje o spotkaniach oraz dane do podłączenia na platformie Zoom.  

The coronavirus data deluge
Coping with complexity, confounding and causality

In an interview, in 1999, Stephen Hawking said that he thought the 21st century would be the “century of complexity”. It is not easy to say what he meant but 20 years later everyone is aware of ongoing change – complex events such as the financial crash, global warming, genomics (and meta genomics) and viral spread in social networks stand out, but are difficult to grasp, and seem to support Hawking’s suggestion.

One property of complex events is a massive increase in the amount of data that appears to be relevant – “data deluge”. As a consequence, it is clear that complex events make it very difficult to connect causes and effects in a simple way – which adds to a feeling of insecurity and erodes trust.

The 2020 pandemic has generated unprecedented amounts of data which, in turn, has driven myriad decisions that affect everyone – but the role and impact of complexity has not always been visible.  We will examine some of the complexities involved, in counting cases and in developing responses, and review how these have been communicated.

In the face of complexity, we all evaluate evidence differently – by combining a subset of the available information with some of our own, already established, values. Although we could all say that our decisions are following the science it is more difficult to ensure that the science is the only thing that they follow.

GCB is a happily retired research scientist who has previously worked on many projects centred on food safety modelling, risk assessment, preparedness and decision support. This research involved statistical analyses, probabilistic models, Bayesian networks and artificial intelligence and benefitted from collaborations with colleagues from across the world. Initially GCB completed a Ph.D in theoretical physics, specifically quantum mechanics, before moving onto computer simulations of materials and then a career in food safety, risk and behaviours. Fascination with quantum physics never declines and retirement “seems to lead into the heart of an immense entanglement”.

Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/97866566020?pwd=bVFGUm42RXB0SUN0bE44NkdUOXEwQT09 

Meeting ID: 978 6656 6020 ; Passcode: Science

As if by magic
Spectacular Chemistry Demonstration 

In this engaging and explosive lecture, Andrew Szydło will capture your imagination. Using demonstrations to illustrate key points, Andrew will bring to life some of the most important historical and comtemporary experiments that have shaped, not only the study of chemistry, but our day-to-day lives.

Dr Zbigniew A. Szydło also known as Andrew Szydło. He is a chemist, academic and teacher, and has taught at Highgate School since 1975. He was born in 1949 in London to Polish parents, and attended Latymer Upper School, and then Imperial College London (entrance scholarship) and University College London.  He holds MSc, PhD, DIC, ACGI, CChem and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of ChemistryAn expert on the history of alchemy, Szydło is the author of the standard work on the Polish alchemist, Michael Sendivogius. The thesis of his book ”Water that does not wet hands”: The Alchemy of Michael Sendivogius, which argues that Sendivogius’ role in the discovery of oxygen has not received proper attention, has won widespread acceptance within the academic community. He is the author of numerous articles, both popular and scholarly, on chemical education and the history of chemistry.  He is an internationally acknowledged teacher of chemistry and frequently gives public lectures in the United Kingdom, Mauritius, Namibia and Poland.  He has also appeared in six educational television serials and has given several lectures for families with children at the Royal Institution of Great Britain, in London. He also appeared at TEDx Newcastle in October 2018.  Many of his lectures are available on YouTube. In September 2020 Dr Andrew Szydlo won The 2020 Silver Pearson National Teaching Award for Lifetime Achievement sponsored by Department for Education.

Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/92621297968?pwd=VFIzQkk3YTZ4VVVncjVDOWh1M2NPdz09 

Meeting ID: 926 2129 7968 ; Passcode: Science