26 February 2007

Budding Scientists to visit University

Photo Opportunity: 2.30 pm on Monday, 26 February in the Wellcome Trust Biocentre

On Monday 26 February 2007, thirty Primary 6 pupils from St Josephs Primary School will be visiting the College of Life Sciences at the University of Dundee to learn about their research activities and why scientists work at night.

The visit was organised after 10-year-old Fergus Davidson, a pupil from the class, wrote to University Principal Sir Alan Langlands to ask why the lights were always on at night in the Wellcome Trust Biocentre building, part of the Life Sciences complex on Hawkhill.

Fergus’s letter read:

Dear Sir Alan,
I am writing to tell you that I am worried that the Wellcome Trust building has all its lights on all the time. Every time I go past all the lights are on. For example I was walking home one night two weeks ago from the cinema (I had just watched "An Inconvenient Truth" - a film about the effects of global warming) and even at that time of night, all the lights were on, yet there did not seem to be anyone working. This must be harmful to the environment. Please can you tell the Wellcome Trust people to switch off their lights when they leave?

Yours sincerely
Fergus Davidson
Age 10 (pupil of St. Joseph's Primary School)

Sir Alan replied noting Fergus’s concern and explaining that staff at the building often work late into the night as they carry out their research. He added that he would pass on a reminder to staff to turn off any unnecessary lighting.

The invitation was also extended to Fergus and his class to come and visit the building and see the work that is done there. During their visit the class will meet with Professor Peter Downes, Head of the College of Life Sciences, who’ll give the visitors an overview of the research activities of the scientists and explain why it’s not possible to carry out experiments during the normal 9-5 working hours. The pupils will also hear about the University’s energy efficiency policy and how the University is able to generate its own electricity.

Dressed in lab coats, protective gloves and safety specs, the children will visit the laboratories of Dr Neil Perkins and Professor Carol MacKintosh where they will learn how genes are the instructions that make our bodies grow and make us look different. They’ll be shown dividing cells down a microscope, extract DNA from washing-up liquid and be taken to important communal areas in all laboratories including the cold room, the dark room and tissue culture suite.

Professor Downes said "Scientists come from all over the world to work at the University of Dundee and they want to make the most of the opportunities for world class research they find here. Experiments can often run for several days and requires attention at all hours of the day and night so it’s not uncommon to find staff throughout the research complex even in the small hours."

The University is involved in a major energy efficiency drive including, the introduction of incentives for staff to save energy, an energy improvements projects programme and an energy awareness campaign.

As part of the campaign pupils from St Josephs Primary School will be invited to design energy or environment poster encourage to staff to save energy and recycle waste. The best of the posters will be replicated and distributed around the notice boards of the University Campus.

The University which is one of only 11 Universities in the UK to be energy accredited currently generates its own electricity from a Combined Heat and Power Plant. The recovered heat results in a plant efficiency of 75%, which compares favourably to the average efficiency of a conventional power station at only 35-40%.

For media enquiries contact:

Anna Day
Press Office
University of Dundee
Nethergate Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384768
E-MAIL: a.c.day@dundee.ac.uk