Difference between revisions of "Team:Sydney Australia/Outreach"

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We wholeheartedly support the importance that iGEM places on the need to provide information to the public with regards to synthetic biology and its applications.

We understand the importance of informing students about synthetic biology and its use in ensuring a sustainable future.

We understand that a strong understanding of the ethical considerations of each application has to be instilled to avoid misuse of the technology.

We also believe that without training our students, we cannot train a new generations of researchers which can carry the research forward.

Furthermore, by increasing public awareness, we can teach communities about the benefits and dangers of synthetic biology to tackle the epidemic of pseudoscience used to oppose all synthetic biology research. It is the scientists' responsibility to maintain a bridge between science and the public to ensure that groundbreaking research is supported and only unethical research is opposed.

Hence, as part of our outreach program, we tried to engage as many members of communities across multiple demographics on different platforms. From the ABC Radio, Rotary presentations, school workshops, and presentations in the park we attempted to inform the community in order to maintain mutual understanding and trust between the science community. You can find more information below.

School and educational events

Compass Presentation: 6th of May

[http://sydney.edu.au/compass/events/index.shtml Compass] is an organisation that assists underprivileged school students by providing tutoring sessions and trips to Sydney University to inspire and encourage the students. On the students in year 6 attended the [http://sydney.edu.au/compass/programs/discover/index.shtml "Discover Uni Day"] at Sydney. The iGEM had a stall which the students visited and learnt about microbes and genetic engineering. Activities included looking at agar plates and posters, and using light microscopes to look at bacteria, along with general discussion about microbes and genetic engineering.

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Alexandria Park Community School Outreach: 22nd of July

[http://www.alexparkcs-c.schools.nsw.edu.au/ APCS] is a public school in the inner suburbs of Sydney, and Matt's previous school. We conducted two workshops at the school for year 10 and 12 school students. In the morning session, we talked to year 12 biology students about university, biology, genetics and cloning. We also talked about the ethics behind making GMOs. The students were greatly intrigued, asked questions, and were highly engaged in the content. All this was done over delicious scones, jam and coffee thanks to Mr Peter Miller, the students' very generous biology teacher.

Following, we conducted our workshop for year 10 science. We began by giving a talk about synthetic biology, the use of cloning to generate GMOs and also explaining the process of Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) in the context of forensic analysis of a crime scene. Using all that knowledge, we explained what we are trying to do in our project. We also ensured to highlight the ethics behind the use of synthetic biology, where it should only be used in appropriate projects such as making good quality pharmaceuticals products. We have provided links to these worksheets in the hope they can assist future iGEM teams in school specific outreach activities.

At the end of the session, we received a heartwarming applause form the students and the teachers were really thankful and impressed by our workshop. But at the end of the day, the enthusiasm of the students in listening to us, answering challenging questions and participating in the activities was what really made us leave the school with big smiles on our faces.

Workshop Presentation

Year 12 Information

Activity 1: Merlock Holmes and the Mystery of the Stolen Pen

Activity 2: Cloning

Kambala School: 21st of August

LIZZIE TO ADD

Australian National Science Week: 15th - 23rd of August

Science in the Swamp: 15th of August

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Australian Museum Science Festival - JAMS Stall: 11th - 20th of August

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Presentations

Rotary talks

We participated in giving talks to various Rotary clubs to communicate with communities across Sydney and different demographics, most prominently with no to little science background and passed the stage of tertiary education. At every talk, we were posed with many questions ranging from the previous applications of synthetic biology to how we use various techniques such as cloning to create our genetically modified bacteria. We were also asked about patents which we found to be the hardest question. Maybe next time we should include a lawyer in our team!

Clubs we spoke to were Kings Cross Rotary (4th of May), Rose Bay Rotary (26th of May), Ku-ring-Gai Rotary (6th July), North Sydney Sunrise Rotary (14th of July), and Randwick Rotary (14th of July).

The best response was received from a member of the Kings Cross Rotary club - "only 50 years ago we just found the structure of the DNA, and now not only we know so much other than the structure, but that we are creating new organisms." This really gets you thinking and gives you a very enlightening perspective.

You can download the presentation here, we hope this will be useful for future iGEM teams.

MATHS SOCIETY ???

Media

[http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/scienceshow/syd-uni-designer-genomes-in-world-competition/6525626 ABC Science Show Radio Interview]: 6th of June

Two of our members, Gaia and Harry, decided to enlist in the frightening journey of radio interview. They spoke to Robyn Williams, renowned scientists and radio presenter of the famous nationwide popular science radio show, [http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/scienceshow/ ABC Science Show with Robyn Williams], run by the national broadcaster [http://www.abc.net.au/ Australian Broadcasting Corporation]. They talked about designing genes, cloning and use of synthetic biology in manufacturing vital compounds difficult to make using traditional chemical synthesis methods. To listen to this enlightening interview, click below..

Listen to our interview by downloading it here.

St George and Sutherland Shire Leader: 29th of July

One of our members Mark was interviewed by the prestigious paper St George and Sutherland Shire Leader. The article was featured news and received many hits. You can read the article [http://www.theleader.com.au/story/3238189/synthetic-biology-offers-medical-hope-and-a-sutherland-aspiring-scientist-is-looking-for-answers/ here].

Wentworth Courier

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