Paul Noble competed in an incredible five Paralympic Games with his first appearance at the 1984 games in New York. Paul will be talking about his journey and the commitment required to make it to the top level of Paralympic sport.
Paul Noble
Paul was born in Fife and was diagnosed with Osteogenesis Imperfecta. Several broken limbs in his school years resulted in successive periods in plaster and swimming was an important part of his rehabilitation.
He soon became involved in competitive side of the sport representing the Scotland junior and senior teams in the early 1980’s. His first Great Britain appearance was at the 1984 Paralympic Games in New York where he returned with two relay medals. Paul went on to represent Great Britain at a further four Paralympic Games, winning medals in each of them, a total of 15 in all. His most successful Paralympics were in Seoul in 1988 and Barcelona in 1992.
Paul’s last international was for Scotland at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester and in that year he was awarded the MBE for Services to Disability Sport. He is currently Trustee of Disability Sport Fife and a qualified accountant.
Paul regularly provides commentary for the International Paralympic Committee and has commentated on the Paralympic Games, most recently for the Tokyo Games in 2021.
In this session we’re asking the question: does every movement matter? We will learn about what movement and exercise does for our bodies, how much we should try and move each day and look at examples of how to add more movement into our daily routines.
Dr Gemma Ryde – University of Glasgow
Dr Gemma Ryde is a Lecturer at the University of Glasgow in the Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences. She is also the board of the International Society of Physical Activity and Health. In her early career she was a fitness instructor and personal trainer whilst completing her undergraduate degree in Sport and Exercise Science from Heriot Watt University. She then spent several years in community health promotion before completing her PhD at the University of Queensland in Australia. She now works to combine her community background and academic skills to see how we can get more people moving and active in their daily lives.
What happens to your body if you go into space? What will people look like if they grow up on Mars? How do astronauts go to the toilet?
Find out all of this and more in Lauren Church’s introduction to your body in space. Lauren is a space medicine researcher, so have your questions ready!
Lauren will take you through the human body, top to toe, talking about all the changes that happen when you go into space. She will discuss how space affects your brain, why you aren’t allowed to talk “upside down” in space, and how astronauts keep fit while living on the International Space Station. We will discuss why things taste different in space, why your ears pop on a plane, and everything you need to know about astronauts living in space. One day humans will live on another planet, but will they look like us?
This event is part of the David Elder series of lectures, supported by the University of Strathclyde.
Lauren Church – King’s College London
Lauren Church is a final year medical student at King’s College London. She holds a Master’s in Space Physiology and Health and has done research projects working with the European Space Agency (ESA), Roscosmos and NASA. She is currently working with ESA and the University of Antwerp in Belgium investigating what happens to astronauts’ brains in space.
Join us for a Q&A session with Scotland’s National Clinical Director, Professor Jason Leitch, to answer your questions about coronavirus (COVID-19) and human health. Find out what it’s like to manage a pandemic and communicate complex health information in a way that everyone can understand.
Jason Leitch CBE – National Clinical Director
Jason has worked for the Scottish Government since 2007 and in January 2015 was appointed as The National Clinical Director in the Health and Social Care Directorate. He is a Scottish Government Director and a member of the Health and Social Care Management Board. He is one of the senior team responsible for the NHS in Scotland. He has provided advice and communications on managing the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in Scotland since 2020.
Cody Sol is a professional ice-hockey player from Canada, who plays in defence for Glasgow Clan. He talked with Patrick from Glasgow Science Centre about what it’s like to be an elite level ice hockey player, and how training, sleep and diet can help you to perform better.
Our alien friend Paxi, the European Space Agency’s Education’s mascot, went to visit American astronaut Mark Vande Hei on board the International Space Station (ISS). Vande Hei tells Paxi about how astronauts exercise in weightlessness, an important aspect of living on the ISS.
Antibiotics are medicines used to prevent and treat bacterial infections. Sometimes, bacteria can change to be able to survive an antibiotic attack. One common cause for this is people using antibiotics when they have a viral infection. It can also happen if you don’t take all of the antibiotics a doctor prescribes – you’ll kill the weaker bacteria but the strongest will survive and re-grow! When this happens, we talk about the bacteria as being “antibiotic resistant”. It is only the bacteria that is resistant – not the people or animals they infect.
Explore antibiotic-resistant bacteria with this downloadable resource. With thanks to the University of Dundee, Wellcome Centre for Anti-Infectives Research (WCAIR) for sharing the resource.
Biofilms are communities of microbes that live on a variety of both natural and manmade surfaces. You have probably encountered biofilms before – the dental plaque that forms on your teeth and causes cavities is an example of one. So is the film that you scrub off your toilet bowl!
Find out more about biofilms and their role in disease, plus make a biofilm wall! With thanks to the University of Dundee, Wellcome Centre for Anti-Infectives Research (WCAIR) for sharing this downloadable resource.
Infectious diseases are caused by tiny living things like bacteria, viruses and parasites. In this activity, a number of infectious diseases need to be placed onto a map to show where they are most common.
With thanks to the University of Dundee, Wellcome Centre for Anti-Infectives Research (WCAIR) for sharing this resource.
Many microbes are too small to see without using a microscope. But when microbes have access to enough food, they can make more copies of themselves. Eventually the number of microbes increases, and the microbes form groups called “colonies” that are visible to the naked eye. In this activity you can grow your own microbe colonies and discover the importance of washing our hands!
With thanks to the University of Dundee, Wellcome Centre for Anti-Infectives Research (WCAIR) for sharing this resource.
In this episode from the Food Fight podcast, presenters Matt Eastland and Lukxmi Balathasan are focusing on the microbiome. How does it affect our gut health and what is its impact on our overall wellbeing? They are joined by The Gut Stuff founder Lisa Macfarlane, who built the UK’s first e-commerce online shop for gut health and Anthony Finbow, CEO of Eagle Genomics, which develops solutions for complex microbiome and genomics data for industry clients.
The Food Fight from EIT Food examines the biggest challenges facing the food system, and meets the innovations and entrepreneurs looking to solve them.
More to explore – for further information on the human microbiome and gut health, visit Food Unfolded.
This Food Fight podcast was recorded live at EIT Food’s Venture Summit in Lisbon. Matt Eastland and Annick Verween host a panel discussing what the food sector is doing to reduce sugar consumption, in response to growing health concerns.
The Food Fight is a series of podcasts examining the biggest challenges facing the food system, and meets the innovations and entrepreneurs looking to solve them.
Find out more in the accompanying Food Unfolded blog post.
Meet Hannah Baugh, a registered nutritionist who helps people understand the importance of a healthy diet. Find out what being a nutritionist involves and how to work towards a career in this role.
Legionnaires’ disease is a rare but potentially fatal lung disease. Learn more about the disease with this fun animated video from the University of St. Andrews.
Produced by staff and students at the University of St Andrews as part of the series ‘Thing of the Week’ and adapted for Glasgow Science Centre.
Follow @StAndEngaged on Facebook and Twitter for a new fun video every week.
Bdelloid rotifers are microscopic organisms. Most are slightly too small to be seen by the naked eye, but this animated video from the University of St. Andrews gives you the perspective on these creatures from a rotifer themself!
Produced by staff and students at the University of St Andrews as part of the series ‘Thing of the Week’ and adapted for Glasgow Science Centre.
Follow @StAndEngaged on Facebook and Twitter for a new fun video every week.
When we think of Salmonella, we associate it with food poisoning. It’s actually one of the few bacteria to be named after a human being! This animated video discusses the importance of hygiene and why we must always wash our hands before eating food. Brought to you by the University of St. Andrews.
When most of us think of E. coli, we associated it with food poisoning, but find out more about E. coli strains how they can also do us good, in this animated video from the University of St. Andrews.
Produced by staff and students at the University of St Andrews as part of the series ‘Thing of the Week’ and adapted for Glasgow Science Centre.
Follow @StAndEngaged on Facebook and Twitter for a new fun video every week.
Toxoplasma is a little-known, mysterious parasite that is incredibly adaptable and can spread around most mammals – particularly cats – but can it affect humans? Learn more about the parasite and the research that goes on in Glasgow to find out more about it.
Combining art, literature, and science, the parasitology comics co-produced with scientists at the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, each tell a different story about the disease, the parasite, and the scientific methods used to learn more about these microscopic foes. Jamie Hall and Edward Ross turned scientific inquiry and narrative into an engaging piece of art.
Sleeping sickness is an almost always fatal disease that impacts people living in some of the poorest countries in the world. Work is ongoing to try and discover more about this danger so that we can help those living with the threat of sleeping sickness. This short graphic novel from the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology at the University of Glasgow helps us to understand the severity of the disease and how science is helping us to reduce the danger.
The Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology at the University of Glasgow, house and research parasites from all over the World to try and learn more about them so that we can try to reduce the danger they pose to humans. This short comic helps us to understand the work that goes on and the way that parasites work.
Malaria has been a problem for us since the beginning of human history. This short comic from the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology at the University of Glasgow, describes how infection occurs, and the ongoing research into the disease that is helping a growing number of people.
People living in poverty are more likely to be exposed to potentially dangerous, worm-like parasites seeking out a human host. This graphic novel from the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology at the University of Glasgow, explores how people might become infected and the potential dangers that follow.
However, lots of work is being done by scientists to educate and empower people living in poverty to tackle these risks. Take a few minutes and have a read!
Vaccines have been centre-stage in the news over the past couple of years and this has highlighted many issues, with about 10% of the population choosing not to have the COVID-19 vaccination. Let’s explore what a vaccine is, what vaccines young people are offered and why, with these resources form SSERC.
Your immune system is amazing! Find out more about how your body fights illnesses and threats with this video provided by Aberdeen Science Centre, with thanks to the University of Aberdeen.
How much exercise do we need to stay healthy? Matthew Campbell is a Research Scientist in the Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellbeing at The University of Sunderland. In this video, he explores how much exercise we need to stay healthy and also tells us about his research and how he became a scientist.
With Thanks to The University of Sunderland and Life Science Centre.
The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow brings you two educational resources discussing the importance of hygiene in medicine, surgery, and everyday life!
Glasgow is the birthplace of the Antiseptic Principle, which was established by Joseph Lister at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary in the 1860s. Before this time, germs were a medical myth that were scoffed at by physicians and surgeons alike- if it couldn’t be seen by the naked eye, it didn’t exist! A lot of work was required for the science of micro-organisms to be accepted by the medical world.
Watch our live session with Digital Heritage and Engagement Officer, Kirsty Earley, as she gives more insight into our journey with germs, from the 1800s to present day! Click here.
Sabah will demonstrate what happens when you try to mix water and oil. Next, Sabah adds some soap to show how it enables the oil and water to mix better and describes how this can be used to keep your hands clean and free from germs. If you want to try at home, you’ll need permission and supervision of an adult, a flat surface, a shallow bowl, some water, some soap or washing up liquid, some pepper, a towel, and some cooking oil.
Meet Dr Daniel Streicker, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Biodiversity Animal Health & Comparative Medicine at the University of Glasgow. He shows us how we can vaccinate bats against known viruses, using the animals’ behaviour to spread the vaccine. He also explains how machine learning algorithms can be used to assess the risk to humans of newly detected viruses, potentially warning us of the spillover events that are the prerequisite to pandemics.
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need to take preventative measures to stop animal-borne disease. Could it be time to use the powerful tools at our disposal?
Copyright Royal Society Stock footage provided by stockfootage and Videvo, downloaded from www.videvo.net Bat field footage shot by Carlos Tello
There are many misleading claims about vaccines on the internet, with many stating vaccines endanger health instead of protect it. How do you separate fact from myth?
This animation from Kurzgesagt explains what our immune system does, how vaccines work and examines the risks of side effects.
Your immune system is your guardian. Viruses are the enemy of the body and to combat them we have a very sophisticated immune system.
In this animated video, Kurzgesagt explains the “innate” and “adaptive” immune system. Find out how cells talk to one another and recognise friend from foe and how rapidly viruses can mutate.
