Week In Geek: 7-13 May 2012

M@
By M@ Last edited 142 months ago
Week In Geek: 7-13 May 2012


London events for people with curious minds.

Wednesday 9 May

MASSIVE TELESCOPES: And why we need them. Carolin Crawford is at the Museum of London for today's Gresham lecture. FREE, 1pm

EXTREME COSMOLOGY: Three things guaranteed to bring in the popular science fans: black holes, event horizons and string theory. Harvard's Andrew Strominger is at the Royal Society to talk about all three. FREE, 6.30pm

CLIMATE CHANGE: 20 years after the Rio summit, Carbon Shift at the Tabernacle, Notting Hill considers climate change from many angles, with talks, films, poetry and music. £17, 6.30pm

QUIZ: Time for another Thinking Bob geek quiz. Test your facts at Ye Olde Cock Tavern on Fleet Street. £4, 7pm

Thursday 10 May

DIRTY OLD RIVER: Skive off of work early to hear (at Wellcome Collection) about the history of the Thames and its effects on public health. FREE, 3pm

HERE COMES THE SUN: Tonight's Gresham lecture (Barnard's Hall) looks at the violent sun, and how changes in its output can affect society and technology. FREE, 6pm

SPACE ODDITY: We often depict time and space in two dimensions, a limitation of the computer screen and printed page. Does this over-simplify reality? Patricia Fara is at the Royal Institution (if we're reading the time and space coordinates correctly) to expand on the theme. £10/£7, 7pm

GOING FOR GOLD: Martin Polley is at The Gallery in Clerkenwell to discuss London's first Olympics, teasingly dated as 1866. Having read his book, and seen the surrounding exhibition, this one's very much recommended. £8/£6, 7pm

WE'RE HEADING FOR VENUS: Andrea Wulf is at the Queen's House, Greenwich to discuss the world's first true scientific collaboration between nations, when astronomers sailed the world on a mission to measure the transit of Venus. £5, 7pm

BIRD IS THE WORD: Join Dave Hone in the Clapham Picturehouse bar for a Cafe Scientifique about the dinosaur origins of birds. FREE, 7pm

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS: Why is competition such a huge part of the human psyche, and what happens in the brain when practice makes perfect? A sporting theme at Wellcome Collection tonight. FREE, 7pm

Friday 11 May

COSMIC FISTICUFFS: Today's history of science talk at the Royal Society focuses (pun intended) on a squabble among 17th Century astronomers over who made the best telescopes. FREE, 1pm

IMPERIAL FESTIVAL: Tonight and all day tomorrow, Imperial College flaunts its considerable scientific acumen with an open weekend. Talks, events, entertainment and a pop-up pub called the Haemo Globe Inn...it's all previewed here. FREE, various times

Saturday 12 May

SCI-FI: The London Science Fiction and Fantasy group meet in the Mad Hatter pub, Southwark. All welcome. FREE, 5pm

Last Updated 07 May 2012