Professor Colin Pillinger of Beagle 2 Fame to Visit Bolton |
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15th November 2007 Professor Colin Pillinger, Professor of Planetary Sciences at the Open University and a Fellow of The Royal Society, will deliver two lectures at the Bolton Technical Innovation Centre in Minerva Road. Prof. Pillinger is best known for his leadership of the ‘Beagle 2 Project’, which landed a spacecraft on Mars two years ago. Whilst Beagle 2 was lost on Mars, the project attracted considerable media attention at the time for Prof. Pillinger and his team. On the evening of Thursday 29th November at 7.30 p.m., Prof. Pillinger will deliver a lecture entitled ‘50 Years and More of Space Exploration (Space is a Funny Place)’ to a mixed audience of adults and older children. At 10.30 a.m. the following morning (30th November) Prof. Pillinger will give a talk to Bolton’s older secondary school and sixth form college students on ‘Beagle 2 and Beyond’. Admission to both lectures is free but by ticket only. These lectures are being sponsored by the Institute of Physics. Dr Brian Iddon, who is Chairman of Bolton TIC said, “If these lectures are the success that I believe they will be, I plan to bring more big-name scientists and engineers to Bolton TIC, especially to benefit the education of our young people. Prof. Pillinger’s visit inaugurates a sort of ‘Faraday Lectures in the North’ series of lectures for young people and members of the general public. I am sure that people will be interested to meet the people who are making the news in science and engineering. I have promises from a number of organisations to sponsor these visits. Not many towns or cities can boast a facility like Bolton TIC.” Paul Abbott, who is the General Manager of the TIC and whose idea the project was, said, “This centre exists to allow young people to learn and to apply their learning in creative ways. We are delighted that Prof. Pillinger is able to give us the benefit of his exceptional expertise through these talks.” Tickets for the talks can be obtained from Bolton TIC - telephone 01204 372204.
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| Editors' notes |
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1. Representatives of the media are invited to attend, by application please. 2. Bolton Technical Innovation Centre (TIC) was built and equipped with funding from the NW Development Agency. It is a unique centre which offers facilities beyond the reach of schools including selective laser sintering, several computer-controlled machines, laser cutters, 3D visualisation including a virtual 3D planetarium, 3D scanning and printing, a suite of haptic arms, a flight simulator and up-to-date open source IT. 3. Bolton TIC is home to the Bolton Astronomical Society, the Bolton Model Aircraft Society, the Bolton Wireless Club and the Bolton Space Programme. 4. For further information, please contact Bolton TIC on 01204 372204 |