The groups meet simultaneously on the second to last Tuesday of every month at  7pm in Dublin and across the UK (including London, Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Reading and Nottingham).

The Dublin meetings take place upstairs in Against the Grain on Wexford Street, and the next meet-up is on Tuesday 23 August.

MathsJam also runs an annual conference, which takes place this year on the weekend of 12-13 November at Wychwood Park near Crewe in England.

The weekly science podcast Scibernia has an interview with the Dublin MathsJam organiser, Andrew Doran Sherlock (the interview starts around 5:40 into the podcast).

For more details of MathsJam events in Dublin and elsewhere, check out the @MathsJam twitter feed or the Dublin MathsJam’s Facebook page. The MathsJam website also gives details of how to set up a MathsJam group in your own town or city.

And the best film in the Biology category of the competition shows a rat being dissected. Don’t panic though – it’s not a real rat but a Plasticine one.

SciCast helps and encourages young people to make and share videos about science experiments. It aims to get school students, teachers, parents and science communicators all making short, entertaining films about practical science.

The annual competition is open to students in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. A group of Transition Year students from St Joseph’s College in Lucan, Co Dublin, reached the 2008 finals in the physics category – read more about their video on the school’s website.

Online resources

The SciCast website also has plenty of great resources to help budding film-makers in their projects.

Its  “film school” and handbook will help you on your way, with advice about how to  plan your film, what equipment you will need, how to organise your team, and what sorts of things seem to work most reliably.

View the winning entries about rockets and rats.

Learn more

Visit the Engineers Week website

To get involved in Engineers Week contact Caitríona Geraghty on 01-6651307 or at cgeraghty[at]steps[dot]ie

The Nano Ice Cream van will be dishing out ice cream frozen with liquid nitrogen at -196C, producing an incredibly smooth nanoparticle ice cream.

It’s just one of the many events across the country celebrating Nanoweek, which runs from 30 November to 4 December.

The workshops, lectures and fun events will look at the latest advances in nanotechnology, or how to control matter on an atomic and molecular scale.

Events for schools

During Nanoweek, nanoscience researchers will be visiting schools in Cork, Limerick, Galway and Dublin.

You will have the opportunity to ask them about their areas of research and what it’s like to work in this exciting new field of science and technology.

There will also be lesson plans and worksheets linked to the current school curriculum.

Major role

Nanotechnology will have a significant effect on society and people’s everyday lives.

It can be used to develop smaller and more powerful electronic devices, materials with completely new properties, better medical diagnostics and targeted drugs.

Nanotechnology will also be a key sector in the economy in years to come, and a key area for science jobs. Already around 600 researchers in Ireland are involved in nanoscience.

Learn more

Find out about Nanoweek events near you

The winners were announced on Saturday 14 November at the opening of Discovery 2009 in Cork City Hall.  The challenge was organised by the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre for Science Week Ireland 2009.
To enter the competition students had to compose and video a rap on this year’s Science Week theme: “Celebrating Creativity and Innovation”.
Check out the winning entries:

17-and over winner: David Jackson a first-year UCC biochemistry student, with “Genesis Lab Rat Rap Irish Hip Hop”

17-and over: Sean Hassett, Robin Flynn and Conor Conway, of Presentation College Headford, Co Galway with “Spectrometry Rap”

Under-17 winner: Karimah Gambo, St Joseph’s College, Lucan, Co Dublin, for “Science Raps Challenge” rap

Under-17 runner-up: Chloe Murphy, St Vincent’s Secondary School, Cork, for her “Electronics”

Or check out John Chase throwing down the Science Raps Challenge to start it all:

Children will enjoy a mix of science and fun activities based around a Halloween theme. These include making spooky fridge magnets, discovering how to make making gooey slime, carving pumpkin lanterns, creating masks, and taking part in some classic Halloween games.

The one-day camps are suitable for children aged 7 to 12 and will run from 28-30 October.

The Lifetime Lab is located in the old City Waterworks buildings on the Lee Road. The site is fully wheelchair accessible and has:

• A visitor centre with interactive environmental exhibits
• A steam centre with the original boilers and huge steam engines that were used to pump water to supply the city of Cork
• A schools centre
• A coffee dock and a picnic area
• A children’s playground

Learn more

Visit the Lifetime Lab’s website

Make your own sordid scars and sticky worm balls, and play scientific games in a haunted house at Planet-Science.com

The aim of the week is to create a positive awareness and spark enthusiasm about the engineering profession. Plenty of events are already being planned across the country to celebrate the world of engineering.

Engineers Week 2009 was a tremendous success, with over 19,000 people of all ages taking part. This was largely due to the dedication and enthusiasm of the 80 organisations and partners who hosted events during the week.

STEPS to engineering

Engineers Week is organised by STEPS to engineering, which encourages primary and post-primary students to explore the world of science and engineering.

STEPS to engineering is a key element of the Discover Science and Engineering programme, and is managed by Engineers Ireland.

Learn more

Get details of events and resources for organisers on EngineersWeek.ie

For information on how to get involved with Engineers Week 2010, phone 01 6651307 or email cgeraghty[at]steps[dot]ie

Visit the Steps to engineering website

The interactive show explores the changing shapes and colours of bubbles, fantastic bubble structures and experiments with soap films.

You can literally get your hands wet, step inside bubbles, learn about the physics of foam and take part in workshops and experiments in the “Lather Lab”.

Learn more

“Bubble” runs until 25 September – the show is suitable for all ages and admission is free. For more information, visit ScienceGallery.com

The exhibition, based on the popular TV show, opens on 15 August 2009 at the Ambassador Theatre in Dublin. Visitors try to solve any of three hypothetical crimes using scientific methods, investigating the crime scene then piecing together the evidence in two simulated laboratories.

You also get the chance to examine bullet casings, match DNA to potential suspects and identify the source of a single strand of hair.

Science and forensics

The exhibition was originally developed by the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History and the National Science Foundation for US science museums. This is only the second time it has come to Europe, having made its European debut in Vienna.

The show gives an insight into the science of DNA and fingerprint analysis, forensic anthropology and toxicology. You have a chance to formulate a hypothesis, then validate your findings based on scientific evidence.

Video clips of cast members and their real-life counterparts guide visitors through the investigation process, as the list of potential suspects narrows down and the evidence mounts up.

Learn more

Get a sneak preview of the Dublin show

Watch a video of the Science Week lecture by Dr Sheila Willis, Director of the Forensic Science Laboratory in Ireland

Find out about careers in forensic science in Ireland

Read about the “CSI effect“, where popular TV shows such as “CSI” and “Waking the Dead” have raised crime victims’ and jury members’ real-world expectations of forensic science and DNA testing