Written by SNWA Wednesday, 23 April 2008 15:33
MANY scientists are working on great projects, but have few opportunities to share their work with the public or their peers.
March was a great time for doing this. A month-long series of events under the banner "Brilliant Science WA" were arranged to showcase how our scientists are working hard at developing solutions to the big issues that affect our lives.
A Science at Parliament breakfast was held at Parliament House, hosted by veteran TV journalist Jeff McMullen, to allow leading WA scientists to inform State politicians about current research affecting their policy areas.
A panel of four scientists led the discussion, including questions and answers from the audience of State parliamentarians, who were also encouraged to speak more informally with scientists after the breakfast.
Edith Cowan University Professor Ralph Martins was one of 30 scientists invited to speak about his internationally renowned research into Alzheimer's disease.
Forty of the top environmental scientists were invited to a Gubernatorial science forum on the topic "Adapting to Climate Change". Speakers included Dr Ray Wills, chief executive officer of the WA Sustainable Energy Association and Mr Kevin Goss, chief executive officer of the Future Farm Industries Cooperative Research Centre.
A highlight for me was when the Governor of Western Australia, His Excellency Dr Ken Michael, AC, invited 120 of the State's top scientists to Government House for a garden party as a culminating event for Brilliant Science WA.
I found that many of the scientists in the audience had never met before, and so new allegiances were formed that could become important collaborations of the future.
I was also thrilled to have the support of the Governor, himself an engineer, who appreciates the magnitude of the effects of climate change on everything from road and bridge building to farming practices.
In the coming months, I will continue to fly the flag for WA science to a broader audience by joining a series of overseas delegations that will highlight WA's attractions as an education hub, trade centre and minerals and energy exporter.
In the coming week, I will accompany Premier Alan Carpenter on a mission to Russia before travelling to South Africa to promote WA as a major education hub for tertiary science, and then to Israel to look at how they have tackled sustainable agriculture in a dry climate similar to that of Western Australia.
It's a great opportunity for me to tell the world what WA has to offer and why it is a place for scientific minds to thrive.
Professor Lyn Beazley
Chief Scientist of Western Australia
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and for a considerable number of years on, that is more or less where it stayed.
As far as Western Australia was concerned radio astronomy research was largely left to a couple of amateur radio astronomers.
When ever we questioned authorities for a reason for this lack of interest in W.A. we were told that the reasons were logistical and financial.
For 60 years N.S.W. received many millions of dollars for Radio Astronomy research, on the other hand W.A received virtually nothing.
The governments, in keeping with sound scientific practice, issued grants for radio astronomy research to the states, using
the inverse square law.
The grants monies were issued thus, " Inversely Proportional the the Square of the Distance from Canberra."
With out regular commonwealth grants ( which we are entitled to) Western Australia will not move forward in this science.
It must remembered, that any potential radio astronomer in W.A for many years now
has invariably been forced to move to the eastern states, to further their career.
Are we going to continue to repeat this?