The Royal Society of Tasmania

The advancement of knowledge

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The RST @ CONASTA

The RST had a successful outing at the annual science education conference of Australian Science Teachers Association hosted at Wrest Point by the Science Teachers Association of Tasmania, getting to know and show teachers the great work the RST puts forward. Thanks to the hard work of council members and Jeannie-Marie Leroi from UTas.

Launceston Lecture Series – Dr Mark Dewsbury – Sustainable Housing: Challenges facing zero energy homes in southern Australia, 1.15 pm Sun Aug 27

What is a zero energy home? In the current national and global building materials supply

chain, are we considering carbon emissions adequately? And what about water? In this presentation Mark will discuss aspects of envelope design, thermal mass and airtightness that must be considered on the pathway to zero. How should we be making our homes such that they require minimal energy for heating or cooling, provide adequate indoor air quality and passively minimise the occurrence of condensation and mould?

Mark is passionate about sustainability and has been involved in the sustainable design of commercial and residential buildings for more than 20 years. His research collaborations have included industry, state government, federal government and CSIRO. His research focuses on methods of building to improve the thermal performance of Australian buildings and has incorporated empirical validation, testing and calibration building simulation programs. Most recently, his research has included the use of timber as thermal mass and condensation risks in contemporary building systems.

Before Dr Dewsbury’s lecture Zac Corbett will report on his attendance at The 2017 London International Youth Science Forum.

Zac is a year 12 student at St. Brendan-Shaw College, Devonport where he is studying Chemistry, Biology, Computer Science and Mathematics Methods. He hopes to study at a tertiary level in the STEM field specializing in Chemistry, and one day to work researching and developing more sustainable, environmentally friendly fuels which will help us to eliminate emissions from our vehicles. 

Meeting Room, QVMAG at Inveresk
RSVP by Thu Aug 24: bookings@qvmag.tas.gov.au Small fee for non-members

Launceston Lecture Series – Sarah Lloyd – Acellullar Slime Moulds – the most remarkable organisms, 1.30 pm Sun Jul 23

A study of slime moulds (myxomycetes) in Northern Tasmania has found over 10% of the world’s known species including at least one that is new to science.

Slime moulds are ephemeral, unpredictable and intriguing. Their life cycle includes two mobile feeding stages that creep and flow through soil and decaying vegetation devouring bacteria, algae and fungi; and an exquisitely beautiful spore-bearing stage that rarely exceeds 2 mm high. During a seven-year study of acellular slime moulds in the forest surrounding her home, Sarah has amassed more than 1400 collections representing over 10% of the world’s known species including at least one – Alwisia lloydiae – that is new to science.

Sarah Lloyd is a prominent Tasmanian naturalist, writer and photographer whose passion for natural history began in early childhood with a love of birds. Since moving to the wet eucalypt forest at Black Sugarloaf near Birralee in 1988 she has contributed to various bird and fungi monitoring projects and written several popular books on natural history, most recently “The Feathered Tribes of Van Diemen’s Land.” Since 2010 Sarah has been studying acellular slime moulds.

Meeting Room, QVMAG at Inveresk
RSVP by Thu Jul 20: bookings@qvmag.tas.gov.au Small fee for non-members