BEACH EXCURSION TO MULLALOO

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1 ISSN RSWA Proceedings April 2008 ATTENTION LIBRARIANS: This publication should be catalogued under "Proceedings of the Royal Society of Western Australia" The Royal Society of Western Australia BEACH EXCURSION TO MULLALOO 1-4 pm, Sunday 27th April 2008 Due to school holidays following the Easter period, the Royal Society of Western Australia is organising an excursion in lieu of the Ordinary Meeting. The event, entitled Beach Excursion to Mullaloo, is to be run by Vic Semeniuk and colleagues, and will involve examining the landforms, sedimentology, vegetation and sands of the Mullaloo Beach area, from the swash zone, the bubble sand zone, the flotsamand-jetsam zone, to the foredunes and dunes, with explanation of the origin of lamination and cross-lamination, shell lags, bubbles of air in sand, the activities in the high tide to storm zone, grain-size partitioning, and foredune formation. This will be followed by an examination in the nearby limestone cliffs of the Pleistocene equivalents of the sediments of the beaches and dunes. Meeting place for the excursion will be the car park along Oceanside Promenade, 200m north of the West View Bvd junction, at 1 pm. Bring sturdy footwear, a hat, and if possible, a hand lens. RSVP not essential but preferable. If transport is required, contact RSWA via rswa@iinet.net.au before Sunday 20th April. Royal Society of Western Australia Disclaimer. -The Royal Society works to maintain up-to-date information from reliable sources; however, no liability is accepted for any errors or omissions or the results of any actions based upon this information. Links to other websites - the RSWA does not necessarily endorse the views expressed on these websites, nor does it guarantee the accuracy or of any information presented there. It should also be noted that other sites linked from the Proceedings may use cookies that track visitors. Safety - safety is an important concern in all indoor and outdoor activities. When attending an RSWA function or excursion, the RSWA cannot anticipate the limitations of every participant or alert you to every hazard. As such, you are required to assume responsibility for own safety at all times. Members, guests and visitors welcome This issue of the RSWA Proceedings was edited by Margaret Brocx <rswa@iinet.net.au> 1

2 A VISION FOR SCIENCE IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA Possibilities and potential Professor Lyn Beazley On Monday 17 th March 2008, as part of its Ordinary monthly meeting, The Royal Society of Western Australia was pleased to have had the opportunity to hear Western Australia s Chief Scientist Professor Lyn Beazley outline her vision and ideas for science in Western Australia, in a presentation entitled A vision for Science in Western Australia possibilities and potential. About 65 people, comprising RSWA members, invited guests, and the general public attended the public lecture at Scitech, West Perth. After welcoming addresses by Sarah Bugg of Scitech, and RSWA President Phil O Brien, Lyn commenced her presentation. In discussing Science in Western Australia, Lyn outlined her role as Chief Scientist, described the various organisational bodies involved in science currently under the auspices of the State Government, outlined the function and members of the Science Council, listed the current priorities in science research in Western Australia, pointed out the need for promoting science in education (since science student numbers are dropping), and highlighted problem of the dearth of women in the sciences. In this context, she provided a thorough overview of how the State Government is encouraging, promoting and utilising science in our technological society. As WA s Chief Scientist, Lyn is a facilitator, advocate, and advisor to the Government, and reports directly to the Premier. She also chairs the Premier s Science and Innovation Council. In the first instance, Lyn described the State Government investment in Science in 2007 though its Indian Ocean Climate Initiative, Western Australian Marine Science Institution, Neurotrauma Research Program, and the Premier s Science Awards. In 2008, the State 2 Government investment in Science continues with a new round of Premier s Science Awards and with progressing the Square Kilometre Array. Lyn moved on to discussing the aspect of women in Science. Women graduating in Science were in low numbers compared to Veterinary Science, Pharmacy, MBA, Law and Dentistry. Only 34% of science graduates were women. With Engineering/Technology it was even worse, and numbers are still falling. While this may be a national trend, the Western Australian statistics are worse than those of the Eastern States. Lyn outlined a range of activities ands groups that were attempting to address this issue (e.g., though Women in Science Networking). Science Priorities for Western Australia include focus on the effects of 1. Climate Change, and 2. the Enhanced Future for Minerals (which involves developing the next generation of mining and processing systems and ensure sustainable operations in WA, e.g., Science for Sustainable Development, which would be resource boom facilitated and supported by scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians, and would involve, for instance, investigating hydrometallurgical processes, maximising the returns from Australia s mineral resources, and minimising the environmental impacts, as carried out at the Parker Centre CRC. Further investigation of gold are another example: at the CSIRO

3 studies undertaken are showing that the crystalline structure of gold indicates it formed deep at high temperatures, and that geological processes and weathering brought it to surface such information will inform exploration. 3. Protected Biodiversity, i.e., to understand WA s unique biota and protect biodiversity in the marine and terrestrial environments through survey work the WA Herbarium, the WA Museum, Perth Zoo, the Department of Environment and Conservation. 4. Healthier Society, i.e., develop a healthier Western Australian community including coping with the health impacts of climate change. 5. Adaptive Agriculture (to ensure the long term sustainability of WA agriculture in the context of climate change and international competitiveness). 6. Secure Water (to ensure a sustainable supply of water and its appropriate use in WA to adapt to climate change and population pressures; this currently involves investigations into desalination projects, and applications of nanotechnology to water treatment). 7. Secure, Cleaner Energy (develop alternative energy options and cleaner energy supplies for WA, such as wave power, sunlight, and geothermal energy, and finding CO 2 sequestration sites). 8. World Class Radio-astronomy (to position WA as the premier location for radio astronomy research in Australia s bid to secure the site for the Square Kilometre Array, which is the single biggest science project in 21 st century, and involves a consortium of 20 countries, with an initial expenditure of $2 billion). 9. Enabling Sciences (to advance blue sky research and frontier technologies and thus enhance fundamental sciences and ICT capacity in WA). Lyn ended her presentation with an emphasis on the unique opportunities for science that exist in Western Australia. Her talk was followed by question time where there was a focus on ecological issues, and water. After the presentation the audience adjourned to the common room for refreshments. Audience at Lyn Beazley s presentation Lyn Beazley and Phil O Brien at question time Audience in thought at question time Members and guests socialising after the function 3

4 The International Year of Astronomy 2009 As part of a National initiative, next year, the Royal Society of WA will be including events that promote the science of Astronomy as part of the UNESCO endorsed International Year of Astronomy (IYA 2009). IYA 2009 is to be a worldwide, public celebration of astronomy to mark the 400th anniversary of Galileo turning a telescope to the sky. The initiative is being coordinated by the International Astronomical Union, however, almost all activities will be organised at the level of a country or region. Australia is one of 63 countries participating. 2. Use astronomy to encourage people, particularly young people, to engage with the natural world and deepen their understanding of it through education. 3. Promote understanding of how science is undertaken, using astronomy as an example. 4. Promote appreciation of the scientific and technological skills that enable discovery in astronomy, skills that are in themselves driven by the scientific challenges. More information about IYA internationally can be found at Each country has a national node for Physics Around the Country coordinating the activities within that country. This month in Victoria they re suspending the The Australian National Node is the Anglo- laws of physics, in Sydney they re exploring a Australian Observatory and CSIRO Australia model of the brain, and we ll be considering the Telescope National Facility. An advisory group role of physics in higher education. Also in this has been convened to help guide the AIP bulletin: three symposiums in Sydney, development of activities for the year. Greece and Korea, plus some innovative assistance for physics teachers. IYA2009 in Australia has four goals: 1. Raise awareness of Australia's For more information on physics events visit contributions, strengths and role in and click on physics astronomy. events or on your state branch. RSWA Events Calendar 2008 This space will be updated each month in order to provide RSWA members and guests with a calendar of up-coming events which will include ordinary monthly meeting, and special events such as Public Forums, Symposia, and excursions. Watch this space! Date Time Venue Event April 27tg 1-4 pm Mullaloo Beach Beach Excursion to Mullaloo May 19th 7 pm Scitech Forum/debate: "Fire, forests, bushland" - various speakers June 16th 7 pm Kings Park Neville Marchant -Western Australian taxonomy and Herbaria July 21st 7 pm Murdoch University AGM August 20th 7 pm Murdoch University Science Week Events Bunbury Karratha September TBA Post-graduate Symposium October 20th 7 pm TBA Forum: "Bioscience in the future" - various speakers November 17th 7 pm TBA Forum: "Isotope Science in WA - uses, benefits, problems, and the future" - various speakers December TBA TBA Xmas Function TBA 4

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