Natural History Museum London Out of Hours

Last week I was lucky enough to spend some time in the Natural History Museum in London with no-one else around. It's one of my favourite places to visit in the UK and even better it is completely FREE.

If you do want to take a look around I would recommend going early in the morning to avoid the crowds. I would also recommend taking a look online and time your visit so you can attend one of  the special sessions such as NATURE LIVE which run daily. At these short talks you can hear from the researchers and curators who work behind the exhibitions on display with the collections.

There is so much more to the museum than dinosaurs but it wouldn't be right to feature a blog post without  a picture of Dippy.

Speaking of collections, you wouldn't believe it from the empty looking main hall in the photograph below but there are over 70 MILLION specimens held in the museum. 70 MILLION. Can you get your head round a number that big? I can't. These range from giant squid to tiny specimens on microscopic slides. 

I had a spare 30 minutes to take the 'spirit tour' at the museum which was fantastic but be warned it can be a bit gruesome (see the photo of the partially digested squid head found in a sperm whales stomach below - I would love to have one of those on my mantelpiece). I learnt a lot more about the museum from the trail and the guide was able to answer questions about the specimens and collections. The tours run daily and give a peek into some of the specimens in the museum. The giant squid was impressive but seeing some of the original specimens Darwin collected on the Beagle voyage was very special. 

I also learnt that the museum uses flesh eating beetles to clean the bones of specimens and I saw a jar of sperm whale eyes. It would be a great visit for a Halloween trip.

Beyond the exhibitions that make you go WOW, OOH and EWW. The museum is also an active research institute partnering with universities around the globe to answer some of the big scientific questions from understanding complex ecosystems to investigating the fundamental geological processes that shape our planet and solar system. These questions are being answered through use of the museum collections, expertise and resources. 

Darwin watching over the main hall.


The Earth Hall. Unfortunately the escalators weren't working so I couldn't travel through the Earth.

A partially digested head from a Sperm Whale's stomach of course.
 

Disco rocks are found on the first floor of the museum.

This was my favourite exhibition in the museum which is the Images of Nature gallery. There are some beautiful drawings, paintings and visualisations of nature.

I was visiting the museum for Universities Week 2014 so there were lots of pop-up exhibitions going on including a volcano on the lawn.  

A view of  of the main hall from above

At the very top of the hall is a section of trunk from the giant sequoia tree. It's HUGE and this tree was over 1300 years old when it was felled. 

The museum is far to big to get round in one day. I've been a number of times and still haven't seen most of the building. I'm glad I wandered up to the top of the hall to see this ceiling though.

I really enjoyed  the 'Treasures' exhibition too and you can explore that online. It's a small exhibition but each of the exhibits in this collection are of mind-blowingly huge significance. This includes a first edition book of Darwin's On the Origin of Species published in 1859 and the oldest UK lion skull since the extinction of wild cave lions. I didn't even know these were a thing.

If you walk through the doors of the Natural History Museum I think it's impossible to walk out again without saying 'Wow, I never knew that'.

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(mostly) FREE stuff to do in Aberdeen this week (April 10-17th) !

• A talk about Fungi (TONIGHT) 7.30 pm Zoology Lecture Theatre Tillydrone Avenue ABERDEEN

This talk introduces the diversity of the kingdom of the fungi and explains how these extraordinary organisms are functioning all around us.By turn fascinating or feared; hopefully you will leave thinking the fungi more friend than foe.

• Simon Singh is here this weekend for an event with Aberdeen Skeptics in the Pub and British Science Association (but unfortunately this event is sold out already)

• Visit the Mission Possible Exhibition at Satrosphere (EVERYDAY!)

You might normally associate biology with how your heart works, or with the creepy crawlies found at the bottom of your garden but this exhibition explains how biology is related to our everyday lives through agriculture, biotechnology, our food and our well-being. There's a picture of a Highland cow too so it must be good.

• CafeMED Monday 6pm is All about how we use blood donations (where do they go?) FREE 6pm Suttie Centre 

It's 100 years sience the first blood transfusion. With over two million blood donations in the UK last year alone, we'll discuss what happens to donated blood and the pros and cons of transfusion. With Professor Mark Vickers and Dr Henry Watson. Cafe MED is a short talk followed by a Q&A there are refreshments available.

Booking for the May Festival 2014 is now open. Get tickets now for things like BRIGHT CLUB 2014 (where researchers do comedy) and check out all the MAY-HEM events coming up! 

Not interested in a talk? Why not visit Aberdeen Maritime Museum, the Cruickshank Botanic Gardens or Duthie Park (all COMPLETELY FREE)! 

Seen any other interesting events that I haven't mentioned? Email me!

Interested in keeping up to date? Subscribe to this blog here by entering your email in the box on the right of the screen! 

Things to do in Aberdeen at the beginning of April

Looking for something new in Aberdeen this April?... Here's a round up of exciting goings on that you might want to check out... 

Friday 4th April - Engineering in the Ancient World: Building the Parthenon 

New Kings 10 7.30 pm- Free Tickets here

A FREE (whoop) talk about engineering in history on a Friday night. No prior knowledge of subjects required. 

7th -11th April - Easter Science Club 

Satrosphere Science Centre

Various workshops, fun and games with science for kids of all ages. More info here.

Saturday 12th April - The Simpsons and their Mathematical Secrets with author Simon Singh 

Cineworld at the beach, 4pm. Small charge for this event - tickets ESSENTIAL!!

A talk followed by a Q&A. Suitable for adults and teenagers. Book signing will be taking place after the event in the Cineworld bar. Event organised by Aberdeen Skeptics in the Pub and British Science Association Branch in Aberdeen. 

Not interested in a talk? Why not visit Aberdeen Maritime Museum, the Cruickshank Botanic Gardens or Duthie Park (all COMPLETELY FREE)! 

Seen any other interesting events that I haven't mentioned? Email me!

Interested in keeping up to date? Subscribe to this blog here by entering your email in the box on the right of the screen! 

National Science and Engineering Week - Recap

I had a fantastic time during National Science and Engineering Week in Aberdeen. There were far too many events for me to review individually. But I did manage to record some of them and I will link to those as soon as I am able to get them online.

I thought I would do a little re-cap of some of the new things I learnt during the week...

• I got to chat about a topic very close to my heart, with Chris Peters from the fantastic Sense about Science team - empowering everyone to challenge scientific claims by ASKING FOR EVIDENCE at Aberdeen Skeptics in the Pub.

• Lucy Hawking made me remember just how much I love talks, stories and images related to SPACE EXPLORATION, imagination and the understanding of where we came from (there's a great blog post about this event here)

• Once again the importance of evidence based medicine was discussed at CafeMED when speakers shared their current research into finding cures and robust methods of diagnosis for Parkinson's disease

• I finally understood (with the help of a rubber band) why there are Northern Lights, at Cafe Scientifique Inverness . I also learnt that we might not understand as much as we do about the Northern Lights if it wasn't for the Norweigan scientist Kristian Birkeland who developed a method of fixing nitrogen from air for fertiliser production and used the money from that to carry out his research into the Northern Lights (there's several blog posts worth of material from this one talk!) 

I found out how shark immune systems are similar to our own and how their immune systems can be used to generate cures for human disease (like cancer) at Cafe Scientifique Aberdeen with the fantastic Helen Dooley.  

• I learnt how time was decided and rolled out across the UK (and finally how it reached Aberdeen) at the final Discovery Gallery talk in Aberdeen. 

• Could too much fat be bad for your brain (and memory) as you get older? The talks at Bring Your Own Brain got me thinking....

On Saturday, I had an amazing time talking to people; scientists who had volunteered their time and visitors to Satrosphere Science Centre for the Discovery Day.

Unfortunately, I had too much fun during the week and started to feel a bit ill so I have spent the weekend recovering.

If you missed NSEW 2014 don't worry, there are plenty more events taking place in Aberdeen in April! 

I will also update this page with links to further pictures, summaries, podcasts and videos when they appear online! 

Free COOL stuff in Aberdeen this week!

Looking for something new and FREE to do this week in Aberdeen? 

Tuesday 18th Feb - Cafe Controversial 'buy one throw one out' Satrosphere Science Centre 7pm, just turn up! 

A short, informal talk about how we solve the problems of food waste - is it all the fault of supermarkets? Talk (30mins ish) followed by a lengthier Q&A with coffee (and awesome cakes and tray bakes available to buy). No prior knowledge of subjects required. 

Wednesday 19th Feb - Cafe Scientifique 'What the Frack?' Waterstones, Union Street 7pm, just turn up!

A short, informal talk (30mins ish) followed by a lengthier Q&A with tea and coffee available to buy. No prior knowledge of subjects required. There should be an interesting discussion at this one!

Thursday 20th Feb - Aberdeen Skeptics in the Pub 'Why women want fake looking breasts' The Bar Below, Belmont Cinema, 7.45 pm, just turn up!

A straight talking short talk (45mins) followed by a Q&A with alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks available. Suitable for an over 18s audience due to adult themes. Plenty of people come on their own to these events so don't feel uncomfortable about just turning up!

At the weekend.. Why not visit the Aberdeen Maritime Museum for an exhibition on astronomy (FREE), or the Cruickshank Botanic Gardens or Duthie Park (yes, all FREE)! 

Monday 24th Feb - Cafe MED launch event - Men and Cancer

6pm, Suttie Centre Cafe Foresterhill Health Campus

Hear from researchers and clinicians in the same place to discuss the past, future and present of dealing with male cancer and how those affected and their families cope. 

Short, informal talks (15 mins each) followed by a lengthier Q&A with coffee and tea available to buy. No prior knowledge of subjects required. 

Seen any others that I haven't mentioned? Email me!

Location:Aberdeen,United Kingdom

The 16th Century Observatory on the island of Hven/Ven

If you ever find yourself near Copenhagen then I would recommend you cancel your plans, hop on a ferry, and take a trip to the tiny, beautiful island of Ven to vist Tycho Brahe's 16th Century observatory.

This island situated between Sweden and Denmark was the home of Tycho Brahe. A 16th century astronomer and jack of all trades (including alchemist and horoscope writer for the King of Denmark).



 He built what is believed to be the very first research institute and brought together over a hundred researchers from across Europe during the lifespan of the observatory. He is credited with recording extremely accurate measurements of the stars and planets as he tried to make sense of the origin of the earth and the universe. This is all before the invention of the telescope.

The museum is situated in the grounds of his castle, Uraniborg (no longer standing) and features a reconstruction of his underground observatory, Stjärneborg. I got very excited. The observatory still has the original plinths for the instruments Tycho and his researchers used to measure the stars. These have been there since the 16th Century, that's almost 500 YEARS. The instruments are reconstructed to scale and feature some 80s style lighting which makes it feel like a underground science discovery disco.

Climbing underground into the observatory you find yourself in an enclosed rocky space. The observatory features a slightly old school, but interesting, visual presentation about Tycho, his research assistants and discoveries. The shows run every 15 minutes and you need to book a time to visit the observatory at the main museum desk as there is only limited space.

The top of the reconstructed underground observatory.

One of the reconstructed measuring instruments on the original 16th Century plinth in the underground observatory of Tycho Brahe.

Another of the reconstructed measuring instruments on the original 16th Century plinth in the underground observatory of Tycho Brahe.

I felt like a real 16th Century scientist but with no castle. The presentation read short entries from Tycho's diaries which, although might sound boring, were really fascinating to hear.

Tycho lived on the island of Ven as he was granted it by the King in 1574, which was nice of him. Clearly those were the days to have been a scientist. Although from this descriptor in the gardens many scientists in the 1500s had the same trust issues as scientists today when it comes to sharing their research findings.

The gardens in the museum are beautiful and contain information about medicinal plants that Tycho grew. 

The reconstructed gardens of the Tycho Brahe Museum. You can just make out the underground observatory to the back of this picture. 

The information in the museum is well worth a read and painted Tycho as a rather formidable character who governed the people of the island (there was quite a bit of falling out as he ruled over the island's inhabitants, farmers and introduced that they had to work for him as well as farming). 

Of most interest to me was the information in the museum about the close relationship between Tycho and his sister, Sophie Brahe. I'd heard of Tycho's achievements but not of the involvement of his sister in his observations. Tycho respected his sister greatly and called her his ""learned sister". He viewed her as someone he could have an intelligent conversation with about his work.  Too often the contributors to great scientific discoveries and observations are not documented with one (usually a man) given the fame, fortune and in this case an island but it was great to see the museum documenting this relationship. 

The former All Saints Church which contains the Tycho Brahe Museum.

Me and Tycho.

The ferry to Ven leaves from Nyhaven in Copenhagen daily (more info here) . I would recommend hiring a bike on the island (make sure you get off the ferry sharpish and head up the hill - otherwise you will end up at the back of a very long queue)!

The museums ordinary opening hours for 2014

3 May – 30 June 10:00 – 16:00

1 July – 31 August 10:00 – 18:00

1 September – 29 September 10:00 – 16:00

Also weekends in April and October 10:00 – 16:00

It costs 60 SEK for an adult, 40 SEK for a student and is free if you are lucky enough to be under 15.  

The island is called Ven in Swedish and Hven in Danish. It is now Swedish, but was Danish.