Science Week is always an exciting week for iCRAG and this year has been no different! Following the success of “Choosing our Future” in 2020, this year’s theme is “Creating our Future” which aligns perfectly with the research that is being undertaken at iCRAG. Together, we can work together to create a sustainable future for our society.
Over the course of the week, iCRAG has been and will continue to be involved in a number of different events across the country. This began on Monday with the launch of Grounded – Explore your World. Grounded is a transition year module that has been developed by iCRAG researchers. It is focussed on introducing students to geographical information systems and addressing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals through projects located in the students’ local areas. Also on Monday, iCRAG Communications Manager Dr Fergus McAuliffe returned to the screens on the new series of 10 Things to Know About on RTE One television.
Tuesday saw the announcement of this year’s winners for the National Crystal Growing Competition. Run jointly by iCRAG and fellow SFI research centre SSPC, the competition challenges students to grow their own perfect crystals which are then judged by experts. Well done to all that took part. The judges had a hard time judging your excellent entries!
On Wednesday, the pre-recorded workshop on Minecrafting our Future will be released as part of Louth Science Festival. This workshop is a collaboration between iCRAG and AMBER and challenges students to build a battery using Minecraft. It also features interviews with scientists from each centre to link the activity directly to the real life research that is being undertaken across Ireland.
A special panel on Women in Science will take place on Thursday at 11am, run by the Rediscovery Centre. This panel features women in science from across Ireland, and includes iCRAG’s Education and Public Engagement Officer Elspeth Sinclair. It will discuss the panellists career journeys and guidance for young women entering science among many other exciting topics. You can book your place free of charge here.
Last but not least, iCRAG is taking part in the Let’s Talk Science Festival with a workshop on a geological murder mystery. A body has been discovered, and the police suspect foul play. It is up to you to use your forensic geology skills to catch the killer! Join this workshop at 11:30 on the 12th, you can register for free here.
As always, iCRAG will also have a strong presence on social media where we’ll be sharing facts and interesting information about our research along the “Creating our Future” theme, so keep your eyes peeled. iCRAG is looking forward to taking part in the SFI Science Week 2021, for more information about all of the events ongoing over Science Week across the country, check out the SFI website here.