An evening at the Royal Institute...

Yesterday evening I went to the Royal Institute of Great Britain for a join event between the Royal Institute (RI), Institute of Physics (IOP)and the TDA.
The event was aimed at people thinking of becoming a physics teacher as a possibly career. (This was partly the reason for me attending the event, but more I just wanted to have a look around the RI.)

The RI is located in one the most exclusive parts of London, Mayfair. The impressive building is surrounded by some of the most expensive designer shops known to the Capitalist World.



The evening was made up of two parts, formal talks from the IOP, TDA and RI. I apologise for all the acronyms. The lecture theatre was more like a theatre that would be found it the West End of London. Then there was a "networking" session ie meeting teachers, people who run PGCE course etc, however this took place in what was the labs for Michael Faraday and alike. As a physics geek, I found this very interesting being surrounded with so much scientific history, maybe even more than the talks about teaching.

This event confirmed my feeling and thought about teaching after I completed my school placement.

Now for a bit of Art?

Once I got to London I decided to venture to the Tate Britain, a galley with a good mix of modern and classical art. Now, I did an A level in Art and Photography and they nearly went to Uni to study one.

Well in the main galley I was welcomed by a Harrier fighter jet hanging from the roof.

So the Summer begins...

My summer break really started yesterday, as once I was home from Aber, I start working on the following Monday... so for the past three weeks I been subjected to 6:30 am wake ups and commuting to the school.

I was taking part in the SAS training scheme from the government, and no, it wasn't the secret air service but the student associate scheme. The schemes aim is to encourage physics and maths students to consider a possible career in teaching after graduation. So I spend three weeks working at a local grammar school within the science department.

The experience gained for my time at the school was invaluable, not only did I get a insight in the education system from the teachers viewpoint,something I never really got to see as a pupil. One of the challenging parts, was thinking of ways to explain aspects of physics so the pupils could understand. This came important in the second week due to staff absences, I was placed in physics classes with a cover teacher, but I did most of the teaching. However, some of the pupils questions showed they had a real interest in the subject, therefore showed a real enthusiasm for the subject, whic made in worth while and enjoyable.

So, after spending the time in the school, teaching it a very possible career after I graduation, even if that is still 3 years away.

I would definitely recommend anyone to take part in the scheme, even if you haven't thought about teaching as career...plus you get paid £600 :)

No rant today...

As I posted on Friday, the library has claimed that I had overdue books and a fine greater than £10...

Well, this morning at 8:45 am, I got an apology and confirmation that I didn't have overdue books.

I was impressed at the speed of the reply, normally I am waiting several working days before getting a reply, and that's if get get a reply.

On a geeky/techy note, found this article on New Scientist interesting,

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn19065-innovation-microsofts-kinect-isnt-just-for-games.html

New photographs up on Flickr...

Due to working at a local school and before moving back from Aber to home for the summer, I have neglected my flickr account.

So, finally today I upload some "new" photos to it, enjoy.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eosgreg/

Hopefully over the summer I will go through the 10s of gigabytes of photographs dating back 2005! And upload and edit my flickr account.

Libraries...

Today, I checked my university email. I found to my surprise an email claiming I had a fine over £10 to pay on an outstanding book.

So I checked Voyager, (this is the computer system at Aberystwyth University use to manage the library resources, as with most computer systems it is unreliable). However, it worked and showed what I expect... no outstanding books on my account. As a physics student, I have only ever taken one book out of the library, in two years of being at university.

So, I emailed the people I think should know, see if I get a reply... if that happens.

The other thing, the email wasn't sent to me, but it was in my inbox?? How can this happen??

On a random note, does South Africa also sounds like bees in the background?

Rant over.

New Summer...new blog idea

For the past two years over the summer period I think to myself "hmmm starting a blog would be a good idea"

However I always lose interest, maybe lack of effort, or a rubbish idea, for example last years one... I was to take and post a photograph everyday for a year... Well one year later and it failed.

The year before...failed.

But this time it will be better, third time lucky and all.

So enjoy... the random rants for a cynical scientist looking at the world and commenting.