Dogs

I'm a scientist, (don't!) get me out of here!

Julie Julie Julie!

How awesome was Heather's guest post about her black dog syndrome research in shelters?

There's something extra fun about hearing about the latest research, straight from the researchers own fingers (well, mouth seemed wrong seeing she typed it?!).

I'm keeping myself busy this week, organising everything ahead of the Working Dog Alliance's website going live (any day now, annnnny daaaaaay!). I'll be sure to put a link up on Facebook and Twitter when it does go live, or you can keep an eye out over at www.workingdogalliance.com.au. Here's a sneaky peek:

There will be some exciting reveals about the first Australian working dog industry conference (4-5 November in Sydney if you want to come over?) once the website is up - fun times!

Australia's National Science Week 2013 just wrapped up - there were so many things happening and going on - YAY SCIENCE! You should take a look over the website. Being a fan of citizen science, I think you'll really like Explore the Sea Floor - it's like Google Maps for the ocean floor all around Australia and you can help identify everything you see as a citizen scientist.

Totally amazing!

I'm getting my competitive scientist metaphorical lab coat on next week for Australia's I'm a Scientist, Get me out of here! Which is kind of a weird title, because I quite like being a scientist and think I'd like to stay here, actually.

It's a science engagement activity with school children aged 10-18, who chat online with a bunch of scientists from different areas and ask questions, then get to vote us out one by one in an idol-style competition.

The winning scientist will receive $1000 to use for science outreach - if I win, I'm thinking of a global citizen science project that students everywhere can participate in - of course, it will also involve DOGS! Only students from the registered schools can vote, so don't bother trying to stack the odds my way...

I'm in a Zone with mixed scientific disciplines (there's also a Brain Zone and a Micro Zone in my competition). So I'm up against a wine chemist, an explosive chemist, a computer architect and an instrument scientist who builds bits for telescopes - it's going to be fun! I'm the only female scientist in my zone, so that's interesting - I think I also feel a little bit extra competitive, just because of that! So wish me luck!

Here's a neat 60 sec video about #IAS from the UK version:

I hope you had a fabulous birthday and look forward to hearing about your Summer break - what have you been up to?

Mia

Further reading:

Laursen S., Liston C., Thiry H. & Graf J. (2007). What Good Is a Scientist in the Classroom? Participant Outcomes and Program Design Features for a Short-Duration Science Outreach Intervention in K-12 Classrooms, Cell Biology Education, 6 (1) 49-64. DOI: 10.1187/cbe.06-05-0165

Ecklund E.H., James S.A., Lincoln A.E. & Amaral L.A.N. (2012). How Academic Biologists and Physicists View Science Outreach, PLoS ONE, 7 (5) e36240. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0036240

Aalbers C.J., Groen J.L. & Sivapalaratnam S. (2010). More outreach for young scientists, Nature, 467 (7314) 401-401. DOI: 10.1038/467401a

© 2013 Mia Cobb

- 2014: A Great Year For Canine Science
Hi Julie, Hope your festive season was fun and full of laughter. Happy new year to you! I've decided that 2014 is THE year for canine science! It's been a fairly long time since we compared notes on what we're doing at...

- Dogged In December - Wait, December?!!
Hi Julie,Photo by Mel Travis | What About Charlie? goodness me, what happened? I was at the amazing Working Dog Conference 2013, then launching the Global Poo Power! Challenge, I blinked and suddenly it's mid-December already? Huh?!...

- Poo Power! Global Challenge
Hey Julie,it's not every week I get to issue an invitation to the entire world, but that's exactly what I'm doing today! MiaStudents invited to compete in global dog poo competition: Poo Power! Global Challenge launches Monday 25 November...

- Real Scientists Tweet
Hi Julie, I hope you have an awesome time at Science Online Teen tomorrow! I hope you get asked lots of questions about your presentation, Dogs: Science in Your Living Room. It's so true that dogs make for a sensational gateway to scientific...

- You Are Science. Citizen Science.
What a big eye you have! Oh, you're doing science!Mia! You are 1,000% right. Your rightness is statistically significant. Citizen Science is awesome. To keep with the awesomeness of Citizen Science, here are a few more Citizen Science websites...

Dogs