The Microscopic world takes over for Super Science Saturday
Three Sir William Dunn School of Pathology groups participated in the event ‘Super Science Saturday: Micro world’ on Saturday 24th November at Oxford’s Museum of Natural History. Over 3000 people attended the four-hour event, where 14 stalls covering a range of bacterial-related topics occupied most of the ground floor of the museum.
The outreach activity aimed to bring science that couldn’t normally be seen closer to children and their families, so the labs of Professor Conrad Nieduszynski, Professor Christoph Tang and Dr Eva Gluenz designed activities focused on their respective areas of study: DNA, bacteria and microscopes, and parasites. Attendees at the event assembled DNA jigsaw puzzles, built their own bacteria or parasite or looked at specimens down a microscope. This family-focused event was part of the ‘Bacterial World’ exhibition at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, which runs from October 2018 to May 2019.
“Super Science Saturday was a great success,” said Carly Smith-Huggins, Education Officer at the Museum of Natural History. “It’s great to bring researchers into the Museum to chat with visitors about what they do. Having such an array of activities gives a great sense of how much excellent work goes on within the University and this event helps everyone involved to understand how this research is relevant to everyday life”.
“It was great fun to be a part of this event which reached such a wide range of Oxfordshire families. I hope the children enjoyed their day as much as we did”, said Ana Wallis, a PhD student in the Nieduszynski lab.
“It was a fantastic opportunity to speak to the wider audience about my passion – Parasites, as well as network with colleagues from other departments of the University of Oxford to organise the activity”, said Andreia Albuquerque-Wendt, post-doctoral fellow in the Gluenz lab.
Researchers from the Dunn School are involved in a wide range of outreach activities on a regular basis.
Written by Heather Jeffery (@HeatherMJeffery)
For more information on the Museum of Natural History visit: https://www.oumnh.ox.ac.uk
Find out more information about the Bacterial World exhibition here.
