Newcastle University

The Big Bang North East event took place at Newcastle University on Wednesday 3rd July. This is an annual event which invites schools on to campus to showcase their own science projects and also to take part in science and engineering activities provided by a wide spectrum of science professionals. This year it also served as a great warm up to the British Science Festival which will take place in Newcastle Upon Tyne from the 7th - 12th September.

There was no shortage of CBE representation as Tom Smulders along with his team were demonstrating why 'Wrinkly Fingers' might be advantageous. You have probably all noticed your fingers becoming wrinkled when you've been in the bath. However have you ever wondered why this happens? One theory suggests that these wrinkles may help you to grip things in wet conditions. This probably came in very handy for our ancestors when they had to climb trees or hold on to food in the rain. Dr Smulders published a paper in support of this theory last year in the journal Biology Letters and has been collecting more data ever since. 

There were a number of workshops that school groups could book on to during the day and these included 'Animal Senses' designed by Dr Sally Williamson and PhD student Daniel Reed. This session gave children a chance to meet some rather unusual pets including giant snails and a tarantula and discover how they and others experience their environment.    

But if you couldn't make it to the Big Bang this year there is no need to panic as both these activities will be running again as part of the young people's programme at the British Science Festival, 7th - 12th September. Keep your eyes and ears open and look out for more details coming soon.