Frontier Science. A citizen science experiment
Posted by Science Oxford on June 23, 2011 | comments
On 31 March 2011 Science Oxford Live hosted an event looking at possible future directions for physics research. This is the official report which was written by Jo Lewis, who works for the funders, STFC.
Introduction
Science Oxford received an STFC Small Award to run a season of events in Spring 2011 called ‘Frontiers’, which would showcase the broad range of research that is funded by STFC, especially that carried out at nearby Rutherford Appleton Laboratory.
The first event of the season was ‘Frontier Science’, an interactive participatory public event, designed and run by a member of the STFC Futures Programme, who seek out technologies and research that will help to solve the global challenges that are steering much of UK science.
Aims
• Provide an opportunity for members of the public to experience Futures Programme analysis
• To inform the public on how STFC is engaging in the Global Challenges
• To inform the public about what STFC does
• To allow people to find out about how decisions are made on future scientific research
• To try out a new type of event which allows members of the public to engage with science topics in a way which could feed into STFC’s Futures Programme or other work
What we did
Members of the audience were seated around tables in groups, each table had a laptop connected to the internet. Each table was tasked with one of RCUK’s Global Challenges and the groups had to research which technologies are out there, and to come up with their own ideas for technologies, which can help to tackle these challenges.
GLOBAL CHALLENGE TOPICS:
The five global challenges were considered too broad, so we came up with some specific research areas within each topic.
ENERGY Generating energy from the person
ENVIRONMENT Plastic Island – technology to get rid of it
HEALTHCARE Technology you can wear
SECURITY Anti pirate technology
FOOD SECURITY A high tech sustainable kitchen for the future
An A1 poster was produced for each topic, with space for the groups to stick their Post-It notes, or draw pictures and ideas. These were displayed near each table.
Experts were on hand to help out – or could be contacted by phone if they couldn’t be there in person
Format
Introduction to STFC Global Challenges (10 min)
• What is STFC, why do we need ‘global challenges’?
Task 1 (20 min):
• Find and choose 5 top technology ideas for your Global Challenge (in groups)
• ‘Hint cards’ with ideas for particular websites and reports were made available
Task 2 (15 min):
• Brainstorm ideas for other technologies to solve this problem, or other applications
• Use big sheets to draw anything you need to
• Outline idea on a Post-It and stick it to your poster
• Identify 3 new ideas
Task 3 (20 min):
• Take a look at other groups’ posters
• Take some Post-Its with you
• If you have another idea to solve their challenge, write it on a Post-It and stick it to their poster
• Also try to think for other uses for their technology and put any new ideas on post-its on the relevant poster for the challenge it could help solve
Closing remarks – (5 min)
What happened
10 members of the public attended. 8 were individuals, 2 were a mother and son (aged approx 14) who decided to sit in different groups. The ages were very spread out and included students, early and mid-career, and pensioners.
They spontaneously sat in small groups of 2-3 around the tables. Four global challenges were then randomly assigned to those groups. The small number meant that the ‘Food security’ challenge was not used.
Wine and juice were provided throughout the evening.
All audience members were engaged. The experts ended up joining groups and assisting as well as advising. No one phoned an expert.
All sections ran over time, so the whole session was about 100 minutes. However, no one was looking at watches and most stayed on after the end to carry on discussing and to ask more questions.
What worked
There were high energy levels in the room, and a real atmosphere of creativity and idea generation. This was helped by the active involvement of the organisers – moving around the room, demonstrating things at posters.
The posters encouraged people to get up and also to look at others’ ideas.
The feedback worked effectively. It was designed to ease them in, so Task 1 was fed back by the facilitator, Task 2 was an individual from each group feeding back from their table, and Task 3 was more of a facilitated discussion involving both facilitators in turn with the public adding any comments or thoughts.
What we learnt
There is enormous scope for creativity within a group of non-specialists.
The event highlighted the advantage of sharing across the disciplines to cross-fertilise ideas. The Futures Team acknowledged that with specialists for each of the Global Challenges they probably don’t share ideas across those challenges very much at present.
The range of generations added an unusual and positive dynamic to the discussions
What we would do differently next time
The first task (researching on the internet) was difficult to do well in a short amount of time. Some didn’t know what to look for, others had ideas they already brought with them, such as things they had read in the newspaper. Some groups used the internet quite considerably, while others preferred to just have ideas. One group suggested that newspaper headlines or titles of reports would have helped them to do this better.
‘Anti-pirate technology’ was the least successful. The topic itself did not lend itself so easily to creative ideas. Maybe it needs something more specific, or some more information on what the issues are and what they should be looking for.
This event could work very successfully with school students. Key Stage 3 (11-14 year olds) would need considerably more steering for the research part, but would probably be quite creative with coming up with their own solutions; GCSE students (14-16) could do well at all sections, but may be less willing to vocalize their ideas to the whole group; A Level students could be encouraged to greatly improve their internet searching skills as well as being creative with applying knowledge to coming up with creative innovative solutions.
Any future event, for any audience, must have ways of recording the outcomes and feeding them into the Futures Programme.
What we will do next
STFC Futures Programme intend to feed the ideas produced in this session into discussions with scientists and engineers.
We would like to repeat this event with some changes, e.g. a different audience such as work experience students; school groups; similar public audiences again; or with the public again but looking at different topics
We will publish the results of this event on the STFC website and other relevant dissemination sites.
What the groups came up with – the results and ideas
Environment global challenge – ‘Garbage island’
Cutting edge technologies:
• Floating plastic island
• Salter sink
• 200km trawler nets
• Oil recovery booms
New ideas:
• Unmanned wind powered dinghy trawlers with trawl nets
• All plastic is to be soluble in sea water by law
• All plastic has embedded dense materials to make it sink OR bubbles to make it float to the surface OR magnetic material embedded – to allow easy collection
Other groups:
• Floating solar powered plastic-melting oven (different group)
Healthcare global challenge – ‘Technology you can wear’
Cutting edge technologies:
• Wearable vital signs monitoring EPG, epilepsy. Non-invasive; wireless
• ‘My skin’ – treats diabetic patients and ulcers
• Use mobile phone for ECG. Vital vest in New Jersey
• A wrist band medical alert for neighbours, giving your personal status
• Smart clothing alerts – by NASA – uses a wrist band
New ideas:
• Photosynthesis hat
• Using recycled materials for prosthetic arms
• Necklace with an alarm, flashing light, mobile indicator – hands free GPS
• Wrist band – has an alarm. A kinetic energy wristwatch
• (on belt) Stem Cell repair kit
• (on belt) portable imager for detecting sprains, breaks and tumours
• Systems have an adapter to attach to an exercise bike to recharge devices
• While walking, they generate power
Other groups:
• Negative energy collected by prosthetics (other group)
• Terahertz powered limbs (other group)
• Magnetised clothing and nanotechnology that can MRI scan you at any time
• Optical blood analysis in vivo on the wrist
Security global challenge – ‘Anti-pirate technology’
Cutting edge technologies:
• Electro-optical sensor system from forward looking infra red to protect naval vessels
• Submarine cable to prevent terrorism
• Using terahertz to detect explosives and chemicals
New ideas:
• Global satellite system to detect pirates
• A device to damage a ship’s propulsion systems without hurting anyone on board
• Detection network on the coast
• Laser detection system
From other groups:
• Vibration monitor
• Using ultra sound to knock out the engines
• Sounds to control guidance
• Directional ‘mosquito’ deterrent
• Rapidly inflating rubber skirts at sea level (like airbags) – flips the pirate boat over, or stops them boarding
• Downward angled, or underwater cables along ship’s side, mounted 1-2 meters away. Pirates can’t get close enough to board
Energy global challenge – ‘People power: generating energy from the person’
Cutting edge technologies
• Vibration of snoring powers alarm clock
• Negative energy captures prosthetics (powers them)
• Nanogenerator in clothes to collect kinetic energy
• Pedal power cinema at Wood festival
• Wind up devices, e.g. radio/ torch
New ideas:
• Trains with treadmills – highest generating trains get priority in rush hour
• Capture vibration from noise, (speech) – sound energy becomes electrical energy and charges battery
• Link nanogenerating clothes to your facebook page – people will see who has produced the most Watts in a day. (comment – “what’s up with you – been in a coma all day?!”)
• Liposuction takes the fat and converts it to energy to power cars
Other groups:
• GPS chip in kids powered by movement – for tracking missing toddlers
• Energy from disposable nappies – poo power!
• Photosynthesis hat with plants in fashionable colours and seasonal plants
• All fitness centres and gyms have generators on rowing machines
What do you think?