New Test could predict success of IVF treatmentWhere better to read this big-headline IVF story from home-grown Rotunda Researchers than at the Irish Examiner's overhauled website?  (They've revamped their old search, archive, and overall layout so it's much better). Quick summary: Certain genes (more than 200 actually) appeared to differentiate potentially successful and unsuccessful IVF patients."More than 200 genes were differentially expressed in patients who went on to achieve an IVF pregnancy and those who did not."However, the number of patients involved seems quite low, and the study's leaders were quick to point out that the work is in it's "infancy.""Five samples came from women who went on to achieve IVF pregnancies, three were from women who failed to get pregnant after treatment, and three were from sub-fertile women who conceived spontaneously."  The findings were announced at the annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology.  If you want to see what's going on inside your brain and Mindball doesn't cut it:Prof John Lowry at NUI Maynooth has developed in-brain sensors.  It doesn't measure alpha and theta waves like Mindball's headband does, but actually measures the chemical levels, in your brain, live.  For now, the device is rats-only, so don't go shaving your head.  Full article form Claire O'Connell at the Irish Times. Did workplace equality halve Ireland's birthrate? Are statistics better in Technicolor?The Beeb has a great video walkthrough of the OECD Factbook eXplorer.  If it looks complicated, just watch the video to see some ways you can use it.   Or imagine a statistics lesson explaine

Science Gallery is happy to welcome another science themed group to the gallery! If you haven't heard of Green Drinks, come along to check out the group that already inhabits 448 cities around the world. Green Drinks is a simple idea that's gone global- once a month people with an interest in green issues get together to chat, share ideas and raise a glass to a brighter future. Sounds like our kind of people! See below for more details.Dublin Green Drinks is on the first Tuesday of every month.  You can hear about future events by joining the mailing list on www.leafliving.com or by emailing info@leafliving.com. Fantastic NEW Venue! Exciting Speakers! Free Soft Drinks! Free Vegetarian & Vegan Snacks! Free Entry and More at the next Green Drinks! Date:  Tuesday 7th July
Venue: The Science Gallery map, Trinity College, Pearse Street, Dublin 2
Admission: FREE
Time: Come along any time from 18:00 (guest speaker at 19:00 to 19:20)
Free stuff and discounts: The Science Gallery is offering us a discount on all drinks (pints from €3.60!) and is creating a special Green Drink! Rockstar have kindly offered free energy drinks and The Green Drinks team is working on providing some vegetarian and vegan snacks too.
RSVP: RSVP on Facebook here or by email to info@leafliving.com to make sure we have enough for everyone Science plays a hugely important part in climate change.  It brought us the combustion engine, it proved the link between our actions and global warming and it is also creating the technologies for solutions to the problem (e.g. scientists are investigating plans to reverse global warming by using giant mirrors to reflect the sun and growing algae in the sea to absorb carbon dioxide).
We’re therefore delighted to have been invited to have the next Green Drinks at the stunning Science Gallery  “where ideas meet and opinions collide

Here's something I just came across from The Times. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article6610938.ece  Apparently 1 in 7 Britons believes in creation by God rather than Evolution, and 1 in 5 Londoners hasn't heard of Charles Darwin. The positive note comes from the broad idea that science and faith need not be in conflict (ignore it and it might go away, that's what I say!).  (And yes, I do see the irony in my blog post title!)

Another call for artists/scientists who are working in sustainable energy technologies... good luck! AV Festival 10 Announcement and Call for Artists: Residency at NaREC (New and Renewable Energy Centre)
AV Festival, in partnership with Inspire Northumberland, seek to appoint an artist in residence at NaREC, the centre of excellence for new and renewable energy technologies in North East England, based in Blyth, Northumberland.

The residency will provide an opportunity for an artist to carry out new research and share ideas in response to one or more areas of sustainable energy technolology undertaken by NaREC, which are: Marine Renewables, Offshore Wind, Advanced Photovoltaics, Low Carbon/Distributed energy and Electrical Networks. The fee for the residency is £10,000.

The residency is open to any professional artist working within or outside the UK, and can be worked flexibly between September - February 2010 as part of AV Festival 10. The artist will be invited to give a public presentation about the residency as part of AV Festival 10 which has the theme of energy. The festival dates are 5 - 14 March 2010, and it will take place across Newcastle, Gateshead, Middlesbrough and Sunderland.

Deadline for proposals: 9am, 22 July 2009
Shortlisting: 24 July 2009
Interviews: 5 August 2009

The residency brief can be downloaded at: http://www.avfestival.co.uk/news/opportunities/av-festival-10-announcement-and-call-for-artists

AV Festival forms part of North East England's world-class festival's and events programme.

Ed Young over at Not Exactly Rocket Science has an Infectious-themed post: From Spanish to swine - how H1N1 kicked off a 91-year pandemic era The swine flu pandemic (S-OIV) currently sweeping the world is the result of an influenza H1N1 virus that made the leap from pigs to humans. But this jump is just the latest leg of a journey that has taken over 90 years and shows no signs of finishing. Today's pandemic is a fourth-generation descendant of the 1918 flu virus that infected around a third of the world's population.Read more...         Photo by  y

Don't miss the FIRST event in the new series Leviathan: Science Cabaret where Leviathan and Science Gallery are hooking up to bring controversial scientific topics to the stage where they can be debated and discussed with the same bit of style seen at previous Leviathan events at The Button Factory. Get your tickets now at www.sciencegallery.com to avoid disappointment on the night. More details below- see you there! Is Religion Infectious? The Spread and Future of Religion This Wednesday 1st July Leviathan: Political Cabaret presents a special discussion and debate at the Science Gallery. Starting at 8pm and hosted by BBC’s William Crawley, stand up artist Abie Philbin Bowman will perform some comedy. This will be followed by a discussion with two of Ireland’s leading scientists, Dr William Reville and David McConnell, on how religion spreads. Finally we have a classic Leviathan style debate with Michael Kelly, Deputy Editor of the Irish Catholic, Dr Peter Rollins, author of “How (not) to speak of God”, Gerard Rory, Scientologist and Mick Nugent, Chair of Atheists Ireland.  

Here's a link to a great series of articles in the journal Nature about the role of science journalism. http://tinyurl.com/sciencejournalism  

  The last time the International Association of Art Critics (AICA) held it's annual congress in Dublin was in 1953, shortly after it's founding in 1950.  Now the congress will return to Dublin from the 25th-31st October 2009 to address "The relations between Art and Science: complicity, criticality, knowledge" (details).  The Congress aims to address the many contemporary theories and approaches within art and science from a fresh and independent critical perspective. With the dearth of new terminology, corporate funding, government initiatives, new venues both real and virtual, the question is not whether art can be science or vice-versa, but how has the production of knowledge benefited from these avenues of cultural research and investigation?
If you'd like to submit a paper, there's an open call until August 15.  Registration is only 150EUR for members, and the itinerary looks jam-packed with great events.  Queries about the programme should be directed to Ciaran Bennett at cbbrillig@gmail.com, and for info on registration, accommodation, and social activities, call the AICA Ireland branch at 1-648-6130 or aica2009@abbey.ie.
 

You may be interested in this:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/reith/
Genetics and Morality 23 Jun 09
Tue, 23 Jun 09
Duration: 44 mins
In the third Reith Lecture, Professor Michael Sandel http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Sandel considers how we should use our ever-increasing scientific knowledge. New genetic technologies hold great promise for treating and curing disease, but how far we should go in using them to manipulate muscles, moods and gender? The third Reith Lecture was recorded before a live audience at the Centre for Life in Newcastle.

(Thanks to Andrew for sending me this one).

 Oldest Musical Instruments FoundThe oldest musical instruments are a set of intricate and well preserved 35,000 year old flutes found recently in Germany.  Perhaps most interesting is the notion that social and artistic endeavours may have given modern humans an edge over Neanderthals.  The team of archaeologists wrote: "Music could have contributed to the maintenance of larger social networks, and thereby perhaps have helped facilitate the demographic and territorial expansion of modern humans relative to a culturally more conservative and demographically more isolated Neanderthal populations." Or perhaps Neanderthals couldn't stand the sound of Little Homo Sapiens practicing Planxty tunes day and night on their prehistoric tin whistles.  Speaking of teenagers--
  Polystyrene Smells Like Teen Spirit... When It's Decomposing A Student from Taiwan has won top prize at the Intel International Science & Engineering Fair for finding a bacteria in beetles that can decompose Expanded Polystyrene (aka, styrofoam).   Remember when your teacher told you that styrofoam cups wouldn't decompose for a million billion years?  Luckily it seems teenagers like proving their teachers wrong on this point.  Last year, a Canadian student isolated a bacteria that can decompose plastic bags in three months.  Now, they may have solved the global problem of unrecyclable waste, but can they borrow the car tonight? So long as they know which side to ask from...   Speak Into My Generous EarIt's pretty tough being a researcher in Italy, what with bumming cigarette