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| So you're into sci fi? But what about sci fact? Sometimes fact is stranger than fiction... Each month our very own Voyager Science Queen* will bring you interesting, quirky and downright bizarre tasty morsels from the world of science. And its all completely, totally, 100% true!
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Science Page December 2009From Geek to Great: The Scientists in Popular Culture When I was a wee girlie, I fell in love with a strange old man on the tellie. He has wild hair, wilder eyebrows, but he spoke - with passion and an American twang - about the joys and mysteries of science. This man was Professor Julius Sumner Miller, and the show was 'Why is it so?'. I used to love his quirky exclamations, such as "Hands us who think *this* will happen? Hands up who doesn't care?" He made science exciting. I was lucky. I grew up with the Professor, and the mad monks of 'The Curiosity Show', Rob Morrison and Deane Hutton. However, the traditions of exciting science is still going strong. There is Doctor Karl Kruszelnicki, who probably needs no introduction. He started off on ABC Radio, but soon invaded all forms of media, including cyberspace. He holds the Julius Sumner Miller Fellow at the University of Sydney, and I am certain the good Professor would approve. Then there are the 'MYTHBUSTERS'. It might surprise you to note that this show was (and is) conceived and made by an Australian production company, Beyond Television Productions. Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman are the main hosts of this show, but I have a mad crush on Grant, and just about every science geek I know loves Kari. The thing about these shows, in the tradition of Professor Julius Sumner Miller, is the enthusiasm these people have. Especially for blowing things up in spectacular ways. Abigail "Abby" Sciuto from 'NCIS' isn't a real person. However, Abby's character is played Pauley Perrette, who is a real scientist. She had started on her Master's degree in Criminal Science, when she was caught up in playing Abby. Now, why am I bringing all this up? Well, I see these people - and Isaac Asimov- as my colleagues in the genre of popularising science. I have been writing this science page for (wait for it...) TEN YEARS! Yay me! This gig has lasted longer than my first marriage. So, to all my readers, have a happy and safe holiday season. |
| *The Voyager Science Queen is also known as Lynne Lumsden Green So, who is this woman who attempts to entertain us with Science? Lynne Lumsden Green lives on the Sunshine Coast of Queensland, and attends the University of the Sunshine Coast. Ever the perpetual student, she is adding a B.A. in Creative Writing to her B.SC. in Zoology (Jennifer Fallon is her role model). As one of the founding members of Scriber Space, the site for USC creative writers, she hopes to create a writing community as lively and as close as the Voyager writing community. She spends her non-study hours volunteering for writing-related events, writing, reading, and – oh yes – looking after her family. She is still passionately interested in anything and everything, and enjoys the opportunity to share this passion via the Science Page. Terry Pratchett, Isaac Asimov, Neil Gaiman, and all the Voyager authors are her favourite people on the planet...and one of her goals is to meet all of those authors, well, at least those authors still in the land of the living. Recently, her own writing efforts have been meeting with better success. She is putting this down to her excellent lecturers and persistence, and to the fact that you can eat chocolate while typing. Read previous Sci-Facts: The Nobel Prize Winners Looking for more scientific oddities? Have you checked out Dr Steven Juan's website? He is, quite literally, the wizard of odds! |
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