Great National Science Week health stories up for grabs now around Australia
- The Vagina Bible author on menstruation, menopause, and medical mythology – Kensington, NSW
- Sleeping with cancer - Westmead, NSW
- Phage therapy: an alternative to antibiotics? - Westmead, NSW
- Follow the journey of food from lips to lavatory in a giant inflatable Poo Palace – Newcastle, NSW
- Design and 3D print pills: ask a pharmacist how and why – Woolloongabba, QLD
- Giant Sugar Mountain: See how much sugar you will consume in your lifetime – Melbourne, VIC
More on these below and visit ScienceWeek.net.au/events to find more stories in your area.
Scientists, experts, performers and event organisers are available for interview throughout National Science Week.
Direct contact details for each event are below or contact Tanya Ha on tanya@scienceinpublic.com.au or 0404 083 863.
Media centre here. Images for media here.
Individual event details and media contacts
The Vagina Bible author on menstruation, menopause, and medical mythology – Kensington, NSW
“It’s a vagina, not a piña colada.”
Canadian-American gynaecologist Dr Jennifer Gunter’s 2019 book The Vagina Bible became a New York Times best seller. Then she followed it up with The Menopause Manifesto:
“If we applied that same tone to erectile dysfunction, we’d expect textbooks to declare that the penis is worn out. In medicine, men get to age with gentle euphemisms and women get exiled to Not Hotsville.”
Over half the world’s population have had a period or could be having a period right now – so why do menstruation and menopause remain such medical mysteries?
Jen Gunter is in Australia for National Science Week to demystify female anatomy and women’s health.
She will debunk misinformation, discuss why women are sidelined by the medical profession, and outline the steps we need to take to put women’s bodies and healthcare in the spotlight. She’s in conversation with cancer researcher and STEMMinist Book Club founder Caroline Ford at the UNSW Centre for Ideas.
Thursday 15 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/jennifer-gunter-menstruation-menopause-and-medical-mythology/kensington
Media enquiries: Todd Eichorn, t.eichorn@unsw.edu.au or 02 9348 2482.
Sleeping with cancer - Westmead, NSW
Cancer patients have enough to deal with without sleep apnoea. Learn about the biology of how cancer impacts rest and how patients can improve their sleep quality with Associate Professor Kristina Kairaitis.
Kristina leads the Sleep & Cancer Group at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research, the first group in Australia to investigate why disturbed sleep may be relevant in cancer.
Thursday 15 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/westmead-institute-for-medical-research-science-week-2024/westmead
Media enquiries: Kylie Ironside, kylie.ironside@wimr.org.au or 0413 611 959.
Phage therapy: an alternative to antibiotics? - Westmead, NSW
Phage therapy has recently emerged as a viable alternative to antibiotics. First discovered in the early 20th century, it harnesses the superpower of phages which are viruses that specifically target and eliminate bacteria and have an evolved capability to infect and destroy targeted bacteria while remaining harmless to humans.
Learn more about this treatment, which is already delivering lifesaving results, from Adjunct Professor Ruby Lin, who has more than 25 years of experience in life sciences, biotechnology and translational research.
Ruby will discuss phage bioprospecting, biobanking, and phage therapy in the era of precision medicine.
Thursday 15 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/westmead-institute-for-medical-research-science-week-2024/westmead
Media enquiries: Kylie Ironside, kylie.ironside@wimr.org.au or 0413 611 959.
Step inside the Poo Palace – Newcastle, NSW
Experience the journey that food goes on, and ask the experts about digestion, farts and faeces, gut health and good bacteria.
The Poo Palace is a giant inflatable re-creation of the digestive system where children take a sensory adventure through the gastrointestinal tract, from lips to lavatory.
The Poo Palace is made up of 4 modules that mimic the journey food takes along the digestive tract (mouth, stomach, small intestine, large intestine).
Children learn first-hand how food moves through the body, and through live experiments with researchers from the Hunter Medical Research Institute.
Saturday 17 - Sunday 18 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/the-poo-palace/newcastle
Media enquiries: Tracy McKelligott, tracy.mckelligott@hmri.org.au or 0415 499 409.
Design and 3D print pills: ask a pharmacist how and why – Woolloongabba, QLD
Ask pharmacist and 3D printing researcher Dr Jared Miles why 3D printed pharmaceuticals should be brought to the clinic. And design and print your own tablets.
Customisable colour, flavour, texture, and even braille or symbols play an important role in medication usage. For example, polypills with multiple active ingredients could reduce the mix-ups that often occur when people take several different drugs daily.
Following a talk from Jared, participants will take part in a workshop demonstration of 3D printing tablets facilitated by University of Queensland researchers, with the opportunity to design and print their own.
Friday 16 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/from-pixels-to-pills-why-we-should-be-3d-printing-medicines/woolloongabba/
Media enquiries: Liam Krueger, l.krueger@uq.edu.au
Scientists available for media interviews.
Giant Sugar Mountain: See how much sugar you will consume in your lifetime – Melbourne, VIC
Sugar is taking over The Atrium in Federation Square! See a massive mountain made entirely of bags of sugar, to show just how much sugar the average person consumes throughout their lifetime.
Come along and learn more about hidden sugars in your food and visualise what your lifetime sugar intake could potentially be. Track the path of sugar from the first sip of a sugar sweetened beverage to its journey throughout your body. What does it do once it's inside your body? How can too much sugar cause health problems?
This interactive science education pop-up offers sickly-sweet insights into the harms of sugar and a guide to healthier food choices, without missing out on the yummy stuff.
Saturday 24 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/the-sweet-truth-whats-sugar-doing-to-my-body/melbourne/
Media enquiries: Sarah Hanieh, shanieh@unimelb.edu.au or 0408 306 061.
Dr Sarah Hanieh is available for media interviews.
About National Science Week
National Science Week is Australia’s annual opportunity to meet scientists, discuss hot topics, do science and celebrate its cultural and economic impact on society – from art to astrophysics, chemistry to climate change, and forensics to future food.
First held in 1997, National Science Week has become one of Australia’s largest festivals. Last year about 2.7 million people participated in more than 1,860 events and activities.
The festival is proudly supported by the Australian Government, CSIRO, the Australian Science Teachers Association, and the ABC.
In 2024 it runs from Saturday 10 to Sunday 18 August. Event details can be found at www.scienceweek.net.au.
