Page 4 - Eureka! Spring 2010

The sweet taste

of...science

In the community ICafé has become a mainstay on the hot cup of fair-trade Brett Stevens, Associate Professor with the School of
By Kristelle Lapointe
n the past two years, the Science
coffee at the Wild
Oat Café on Bank
Faculty of Science events calendar.
Carleton’s Science Café is a series
Street. The Science
of bi-weekly talks organized by the
Café’s lectures and
discussions are ac-
Faculty of Science that provide op-
portunities for researchers to discuss
the spring 2009 with his presentation on Games from
their wide variety of topics, ranging
with the Ottawa community relevant
the Math Classroom.
issues facing our society. Dean George cessible to everyone and because of Mathematics and Statistics, captivated onlookers in
from the reasons we age, to the size of
Iwama introduced the outreach initia- the universe, to the mating habits of ma because of its feel and location—
tive during the 2007-2008 academic the moose, they attract audiences of its warm atmosphere creates a unique
year and the accessible format has all ages. connection between the audience and
proven to be very popular. Ottawa residents have been very the speakers. And while many onlook-
“What is great about the concept of receptive to the initiative. As word of ers first come in for the delicious
the science cafés”, explains Root Gore- mouth travels, people are turning up vegan dishes and pastries offered at
lick, Assistant Professor in the Depart- in increasing numbers for a chance the Wild Oat, they walk away with a
ment of Biology and co-organizer, “is to ask questions of the researchers true appreciation of science, and will
that they are completely decentralized. in an intimate setting, Gorelick says. often come back for more.
They can spring up anywhere, even “The positive interaction with the The Science Café schedule runs
without the sponsoring of academia.” researchers,” adds Sue Bertram, As- until the end of May 2010. It will be
The first science cafés started in sistant Dean (Recruitment and Reten- back in its bi-weekly format, in the
France in the mid-nineteen nineties tion) and Science Café co-organizer fall 2010.
and quickly caught in England and “makes the audience members more
North America. While audiences have comfortable with science.” The venue For more information, or to watch
been known to enjoy a glass of wine plays a big role in the Science Café’s vodcasts of previous presentations,
in France, or a pint of beer in Eng- success, explains Bertram. The Wild please visit http://www.carleton.ca/
land, in Ottawa they enjoy a piping Oat was selected by Dean George Iwa- science/cafe/index.html.

Former Carleton University Professor continues to teach in retirement.

By Kristelle Lapointe ment experienced when approaching a
coastal zone and observing the age rela-
hrough geological excursions and tionships shown by a complex succession
Tpublic lectures, geoheritage expert of rocks for the first time.
Allan Donaldson continues to spread the As a member of the Canadian
word that geology is an extremely im- National Committee for Geoparks,
portant science. Donaldson, who started Donaldson hopes that the Committee’s
leading geological field trips for the gen- recently submitted Saint John geopark
eral public in the Ottawa and Gatineau proposal, presently being considered
area in 1998 after retiring from his teach- by the World Geoparks Committee in
ing position in the Department of Earth Malaysia, will be accepted as the first
Sciences at Carleton University, believes World Geopark in North America. Such
that “people should know more about designation would identify this section
the origin and history of their planet”. Allan Donaldson identifies rock specimens for onlook- of land as an internationally recognized
He seems to be successful in this endea- ers during Almonte’s local Geoheritage Day in the fall geological heritage site. This would
vour, as Almonte’s 2009 local Geoher- of 2009. greatly enhance Canadian geocultural
itage Day, organized by volunteers and tourism. Soon after the meeting in Ma-
advertized only locally, attracted over a be spending his retirement? In the past laysia, Donaldson will present a paper
hundred people who came to find out few years, his interest in geoheritage has at the Annual Meeting of the Geologi-
about plans for Metcalfe Geoheritage taken him all-over the world on cruise cal Association of Canada in Calgary,
Park, an outdoor display of rocks to be ships, giving sea-day lectures about the promoting the creation of more modest
officially opened later this year. geology of places to be subsequently outdoor geological displays across
What better way is there, for this pas- visited. As he explains it, there really isn’t Canada, on the scale of the Metcalfe
sionate teacher of all things geological, to anything to match the feeling of wonder- Geoheritage Park, in Almonte.

4 Spring 2010