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Leader in Integrated ICT Hardware & Systems

Outreach

2015

Thesis in 3 Final

Thesis in 3 FinalThe final of the Thesis in 3 competition took place in the Sugar Club in Dublin ahead of Science Week and delivered an exciting evening of talks. Sponsered by Science Foundation Ireland, the competition involves postgraduate students talking about their research in a total of three minutes, using only three slides! 

IPIC and Tyndall postgraduate student Niamh Kavanagh made it through the UCC Doctoral Showcase to secure a place in the final, where she gave a talk on fibre optic technology and the limitations of the internet. Against tough competition from 22 speakers, Niamh gave 2nd in the competition and received great praise from the judges - well done Niamh!

 

 

Mallow Science Festival

Mallow Science FestivalMaths Week began in busy style with Mallow Science Festival taking place in the GAA Pavilion in Mallow, Cork. With attendance of over 1000 people over the afternoon, the event was a great opportunity to showcase the variety of demos and interactive workshops from Tyndall National Institute.

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MakerDojo kicks off! 

MakerDojoAgainst the background of the StartUp Weekend, the MakerDojo project was offically launched in Tyndall National Institute. MakerDojo is a unique project, funded by SFI Discover, which caters for young people who want to learn about science and technology in a creative and hands-on way. Monthly workshops are offered onsite in Tyndall, with various contributors including our own researchers, plus makers from Forma Biolabs and Designer Dojo. By bringing together local Cork makers, MakerDojo encourages young people to get involved in this growing culture and learn how to make their own unique tech projects.

 

The project was launched by Dr Simon Elliott, project manager, Dr Karen McCarthy and Carol Farrell, outreach executive for Science Foundation Ireland.

School groups are also invited to get involved, with dedicated school workshops available. For more information, check the MakerDojo website and subscribe for monthly updates on workshops!

MakerDojo

 

Culture Night 

Culture NightFor the first time, Tyndall National Institute was proud to join in the annual Culture Night celebrations in Cork. On Friday September 18th, over 250 members of the public came through the doors of the Tyndall and took part in a host of workshops featuring our electronics and photonics kits. By bringing people directly into our lab and facilities, we were able to show how the culture of science is rooted in creativity and innovation as much as logic and reasoning.

 

Culture Night

We also provided interactive tours of our lab facilites, creating a fun and enjoyable atmosphere for families and individuals alike. Great feedback was received and we look forward to joining in the night's activities again next year!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fota Wildlife Park & Mad Scientist Weekend

Fota Wildlife Park & Mad Scientist WeekendThe Mad Scientist weekend, organised by Fota Wildlife Park, proved once again to be a success with children and families, despite a rainy Sunday! Tyndall National Institute once again participated in the event, and displayed a selection of interactive demos ranging from the power of magnets to sending laser messages down optical fibre!

 

After a great weekend interacting with budding scientists, our Tyndall volunteers even found time to visit the animals! Thanks again to all our volunteers - Shane Duggan, Joveria Baig, Natalia Canasestrada, Amandeep Kaur, Prasanna Ramaswamy, Yan Zhao, Beth Massey, Long Pham, Will Daly and Louise McGrath.

 

 

 

Public Engagement at the Royal Society

Royal Society TalkAs part of the Boole200 year celebrations, Dr Emanuele Pelucchi, a research in quantum physics, delivered a unique Cafe Scientifique talk, entitled How maths and logic gave us monitors.The talk, which illustrated the journey from the George Boole's original work on logic and problem solving, to its application in electronics and the next great leap into quantum computing.


In order to describe the tricky world of quantum mechanics, Dr Karen McCarthy colloborated with Dr Pelucchi to develop a series of props and posters, including a unique 4-bit adder, which is a digital circuit which can calcuate addition and utilised in many computers. This fanastic prop was made by postgraduate student Prasanna Rawaswamy and Stefano Facchin, and proved to be a really great addition to the talk (no pun intended!).

4 Bit Adder

Science Fair Season

Science FairWith the summer holidays beckoning, many primary schools take part in fun, interactive events such as Science Fairs

In Cork city, researchers from Tyndall National Institute were once again delighted to judge the local science fair in St Fin Barres National School. The whole school took part in the event, with Dr Karen McCarthy leading the judging team of Cormac Ryan, Ludovic Caro and Joveria Baig. Whilst choosing a winner is never easy, it was a day of fun learning!

Meanwhile in Dunmanway, the West Cork Education Centre organised the first West Cork science fair, which attracted 7 different school and 180 students. Students prepared short science projects, and were also able to look around at the different exhibits from Tyndall National Institute, IPIC and other SFI funded groups such as the APC, Lifetime Lab and Blackrock Castle Observatory

.West Cork Science Fair

West Cork Science Fair

UCC Doctoral Showcase

UCC Doctoral ShowcaseThe 26th May was the date for the final of the UCC Doctoral Showcase, where different doctoral students present their core in short snippets designed to entertain and engage with the audience. Four students from Tyndall National Institute took part in this year's competition, where they talked about topics as diverse as James Bond, Skype and lasers!

Competitors included : 

  • Niamh Kavangh  (The Internet is Not Limitless – The End is in Sight!)

  • Shane Duggan (Putting it Lightly; Photons in Circuits)

  • Joveria Baig (Fed up of Slow and Pricey Internet; Lasers to the Rescue)

  • Moises Jezzini (The Challenges of Designing Very Fast Electrical Connections)

Well done to all who took part! The videos from the event will be available online here

 

Tech Week #techweekirl

Tech Week27th April marked the beginning of Tech Week, which is a nationwide festival celebrating technology and its role in all our lives. In Tyndall National Institute, we have celebrated Tech Week through a number of different activities, including a laser workshop with 2nd level students from Colaiste an Chroi Naofa Carraignavar, plus a primary school workshop with students Clondrohid National School, Macroom. 

 

For more information on current Tech Week activities, follow #techweekirl and @TechWeek.

 

 

Irish Science Teachers Association Conference 

Irish Science Teachers Association ConferenceTyndall National Institute, along with IPIC, displayed an outreach exhibition at the recent ISTA conference which was held in UCC during 27th-29th March. The aim of the exhibition was to highlight to science teachers the range of outreach activities in which Tyndall National Institute and IPIC are involved.

 

 

 

UCC Science For All Final 

UCC Science for All FinalAfter the success of our 2014 science communication workshop, Tyndall continued to be involved in developing the next generation of science speakers through the annual UCC Science For All competition. This competition encourages postgraduate students to speak about their research using simple, non-technical language, and has been running for 11 years. 

This year, the final took place on 25th March, with 5 excellent speakers, including IPIC postgraduate Prasanna Ramaswamy who spoke about using lasers to increase your internet speed. The event was attended by +80 people, with feedback overwhelmingly positive. The eventual winner was Ian O'Neill, a postgraduate student from the Department of Microbiology, UCC.

 

Tyndall Transition Year Program 2015

TY 20159th-13th February saw 16 TY students from around Ireland, spend a week in the Tyndall National Institute. Here they participated in a number of different workshops and career talks to demonstrate the full scope of activity taking place onsite. With students from Galway, Monaghan and Cork, the week proven to be a fun and interactive experience for all.

The week begun with the legendary "Sand to Silicon" workshop hosted by Richard Murphy and Alan Blake, where the basis of silicon chip fabrication was introduced, coupled with a visit to the Fab cleanroom facility.

 

Following on from this, to tie in with Engineers Week, Tyndall staff spoke with the students on the evolution of their careers after receiving their engineering degree, and the benefits of choosing such a wide-ranging degree.

Karen Twomey TY

The students also participated in a sound and wave workshop with Fatima Gunning and her student Niamh Kavanagh, followed by a tour of the Electron Microscope facilities with Michael Schmidt. Leader of the Solar Citizen project, Donagh O'Mahony also introduced the students to his solar project and the advantages of solar energy, whilst David Corkery described the importance of developing ideas and inventions for commercial value.

However one of the key highlights of the week involved the students presenting individually on scientific topics which interested them - with topics ranging from quantum mechanics to the end of the universe to immortal jellyfish, it was clear that the next generation is excited and innovative!

TY Group 2015

 

I WISH Women in Science Showcase

I wishOn Feburary 12th, the I Wish event took place in Cork City Hall. A partnership between Cork Chamber, it@cork, Cork City Council and Cork County Council, UCC and CIT, this event was designed to inspire and encourage young women to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM).


The Tyndall National Institute has been committed to the promotion of STEM career and subject choices through the SFI Smart Futures program. At the I Wish event, a number of researchers met with students curious about pursuing a career in the ICT sector. The overall experience was fun and engaging, with lots of great questions, in particular for IPIC researcher Dr Fatima Gunning who participated on a role model panel.

 

 

VEX IQ Robotics Primary School Competition

VEX LogoFor the 1st time, the VEX IQ robotics competition was held in CIT for primary schools. Engineering can be used to tackle many societial issues, in both the local and global community. For this year's VEX challenges, students learned about high-rise structures and exploring the impact of engineering on our lives.

A number of IPIC researchers took part in this exciting final, as judges of the various categories. IPIC is Tyndall's largest research centre, specialising in photonics and light-based technology. Tyndall volunteers oversaw judging in the various categories, including the engineering notebook, presentation skills and the pit battles. Other event partners included the Lifetime Lab and Fota Wildlife Park.

irishexaminer article

 

 

Famelab Munster Final 2015

FamelabFamelab is an international science communication competition, where, armed only with their wits and a few props, the newest voices from the world of science and engineering across the country will deliver short 3-minute pieces on bizarre and quirky science concepts – expect to hear anything from how your bacteria can talk to you to how superfast fibre optic broadband will put an end to buffering. 

For the 2nd year in a row, the Tyndall National Institute has organised the Munster final, in association with the British Council. Nationally, Famelab Ireland is delivered in partnership by the British Council Ireland, Newstalk 106-108 FM, Science Gallery, CPL Group, Tyndall National Institute and the Midlands Science Festival. 13 competitiors took to the stage of the Triskel Christchurch on January 26th of an evening of fantastic talks, with local comedy improv troupe Snatch providing some comic relief!

 

With 2 competitiors from the Tyndall itself, plus 2 more competitiors from it's largest research centre, IPIC, the event recieved huge support from the Tyndall community. Kevin Motherway, from the EPA was the eventual winner, who will go on to represent Munster in the Famelab Ireland final.

Tyndall speakers included : 

  • Niamh Kavanagh - Faster Broadband, Less Buffering
  • Brian Murray - The Elusive Ether
  • John Carey - The Self-Heating Jumper
  • Shane Duggan - The Weather in Space

 

Tyndall School Tours - Sand to Silicon

Sand to SiliconThe Tyndall National Institute is a unique and exciting building, and appeals to all ages. A number of different schools have visited Tyndall on tours, where they have taken part in our "Sand to Silicon" workshop. Here they can learn about the journey from a grain of sand to the technology driven microchip which has changed all our lives!

 

Researcher Richard Murphy has amassed a toolkit of all bits and pieces illustrating the Sand to Silicon journey, plus coupled with an opportunity to dress up in the Fab cleanroom suits, it provides a fun and educational experience for students for all ages.

Sand to Silicon Suits

 

 

BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition 2015

BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition 2015Tyndall National Institute was proud to once again partner with Intel to appear at the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition 2015 at the RDS. The world-famous exhibition, which is now in its 51st year, has 550 student projects, and welcomes up to 50,000 visitors over the 3 days. The Tyndall team presented on the Intel stand, alongside TCD’s nanotechnology centre CRANN, and CIT’s Nimbus Centre. The Intel stand is one of the largest exhibitor stand present at BTYSTE and has a longstanding reputation as a key sponsor of the event.

On display from Tyndall where  two main projects which emerged during 2014 – the CitySense project, where a multidisciplinary team developed a digital tracking device, containing an environmental sensor and GPS tracking device. These unique sensors were mounted onto 20 Cyclone Courier bikes during the 2014 Web Summit, and measured carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, smoke particulates, and temperature levels around Dublin City. For BTYSTE, we displayed these sensors in action, plus one of the City Sense bikes.

Another project on display will be the Citizen Solar Scientist project, which was funded through the SFI Discover call in 2014. Spearheaded by Donagh O’Mahony, this project involved the distribution of solar panels and Arduino logging devices to schools in the Cork region, in an attempt to find Cork’s sunniest school. For BTYSE, we displayed the panels, and encouraged students to try and light up our stand as bright as possible!

BTYSTE SOLAR

IPIC (Irish Photonic Integration Centre) where also present on the Science Foundation Ireland stand alongside the 7 national research centres, where they hosted exclusive Photonics Explorer workshops for students.

2014

 

Science Communication Workshop

Simon Elliott at Tyndall Science Communication workshopTyndall National Institute, in colloboration with the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, University College Cork, delivered a unique science communication workshop to improve engagement and communication between researchers and the general public. The workshop provided a training springboard for researchers interested in getting involved in the variety of science communication events available in 2015, including Famelab and Science For All.

Speakers on the day included International Famelab 2013 winner Fergus McAuliffe and Famelab Ireland runner-up Ruairi Robertson who both delivered fantastic talks discussing the traps of science communication and how to successfully condense your work into a short time.

 

 

Science Week 2014 - The Power of Science

Tyndall National Institute at Discovery 2014Tyndall National Institute once again participated in a range of activites as part of Science Week 2014, which ran from 10th-14th November. This year the theme of "The Power of Science" echoed throughout our activities, highlighting the range of STEM disciplines based in Tyndall National Institute. Our annual stand at the Discovery Science Festival, Cork once again received great attention, with thousands joining in our experiments over the 4 days.

Tyndall also took part in the SFI STEM Careers Roadshow, which took place in UCC. +100 students attended the event, where there were a number of talented speakers, offering career and subject advice for interested students.

A highlight of the week was the Tyndall National Institute open evening, which was organised in colloboration with Tyndall's largest research centre, IPIC (Irish Photonic Integration Centre). +35 people attended the event, where a number of interactive demonstrations and short topical talks took place. Feedback on the event was overwhelmingly positive, and in particular the striking architecture of the Tyndall National Institute was commended.

IPIC Open evening at Tyndall National Institute

 

Waking up Rosetta! global celebration

Waking Up RosettaTyndall joins worldwide celebration of Rosetta space mission!

Monday 20 January, 2014 Tyndall National Institute, in association with the CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory and the European Space Education Resource Office (ESERO Ireland), joined people all around the world to take part in the European Space Agency’s Wake Up Rosetta event.

Two live demonstrations and presentations were shared to approx. 100 students with Dr Donagh O Mahoney, Tyndall National Institute and Carl Jackson, SensL Founding Director. SensL, a Tyndall spin-out is a sensor component manufacturer currently involved in sensor testing for future ESA spacecraft missions.

In a live video link to researchers at Tyndall National Institute’s 100 students experienced the working labs in real-time and asked  questions to researcher Finbarr Waldron and his team about their work on reliability testing with ESTEC (ESA's Test Centre located in The Netherlands).

 

Transition Year Program 2014

The 2014 Tyndall National Institute Transition Year Work Experience Programme kicked-off on January 27th, 2014.  The science and engineering based programme comprise workshops, lab tours, career talks and hands-on experience with our scientists and engineers at Tyndall.  The programme offers students a unique opportunity to advance their practical knowledge in areas such as electronics and the science of light in a high-tech environment where the science principles they are currently studying are used to Engineer state-of-the-art products.