Our next events: [teachers] free workshop, not-free ‘Intro to Arduino’ miniCPD, [kids] free magic show

Our diary of events is as follows, everything is taking place at QMUL (Mile End Campus). Details and tickets below.

  • Saturday 21 November (1-5pm) £30/60
    Introduction to Arduino, with Nicola Plant – a ‘miniCPD’ session on programming using an Arduino with simple electronics
  • Wednesday 25 November (5-6.30pm) FREE
    Sorting Unplugged, a free workshop with Paul Curzon
  • Saturday 28 November (1-5pm) £30/60
    Introduction to Arduino, with Nicola Plant – a ‘miniCPD’ session on programming using an Arduino with simple electronics – note that this session is identical to the one on the 21st, we’re running it twice
  • Wednesday 2 December (5-7pm) FREE
    The IET Christmas Children’s Lecture on ‘The Magic of Christmas Computer Science‘ with Paul Curzon and Peter McOwan

More details and tickets
Events for Computing teachers in London

Introduction to Arduino – Aimed at teachers of pupils at KS3 and above our miniCPD session will introduce you to programming using an Arduino with simple electronics. There are two identical sessions on Saturday 21 and Saturday 28 November, from 1-5pm, both capped at 15 guests.
[Tickets for 21 Nov session] [Tickets for 28 Nov session] £30 (London teachers) / £60 for teachers outside London

Sorting Unplugged‘ – demonstrating some practical and powerful ways to teach basic sort algorithms using unplugged methods, Wednesday 25 November 2015, from 5pm.
[Get a free ticket for this workshop]

Aimed at secondary school children and young people

The Magic of Christmas Computer Science‘ – a magic show powered by hidden computer science. Profs Paul Curzon and Peter McOwan present the IET’s Christmas children’s lecture
[Get a free ticket for this magic show]

Live in London? Have or care for children? Do they like magic, & free talks @QMUL abt computer science? Abracadabra!

Peter McOwan and Paul Curzon, both of QMUL and cs4fn fame, will be delivering the IET’s Christmas children’s lecture in The Great Hall of the People’s Palace at Queen Mary University of London on Wednesday 2 December. It’s completely free and doors will open at 5pm with the lecture starting at 5.30pm. There will be mince pies too.

magic of christmas computer science

FREE tickets for the ‘The Magic of Christmas Computer Science’, a magic show powered by hidden computer science, are available from Eventbrite and you can find out more information about the event and the speakers below. Please share this event flyer with others who might be interested.

About this event

Experience some amazing magic tricks and sneak behind the scenes to explore the maths and computing behind them.

Mathematics and computer science are behind today’s technological wizardry… Let Professors Peter McOwan & Paul Curzon, both scientists and magicians, be your guides to the secret world where science meets conjuring…

This special one-off Christmas event – co-hosted by the School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science at Queen Mary, and The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) – will be a fun-filled evening full of surprises.

The evening is aimed at secondary school aged students, but with surprises to be unveiled for both adults and young people alike. All are welcome so if you have a curious mind, book your (free) tickets below quickly as places are vanishing fast!

About the Speakers

Professor Peter McOwan QMUL Vice-Principal (Public Engagement and Student Enterprise) and Professor Paul Curzon.

Peter McOwan and Paul Curzon are Professors of Computer Science in the School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science at Queen Mary College University of london. As researchers and academics they apply their ‘magic’ to everything from robotics and artificial intelligence to the software of medical devices. Their infectious enthusiasm for exploring the endless possibilities of computer science has led them both to be elected as National Teaching Fellows. They work closely with the ‘Computing at Schools’ network, Peter was a founding member.  Paul also runs ‘Teaching London Computing’, which creates inspiring activities for teachers to use in class.

The speakers also run ‘Computer Science for Fun’, a magazine about the fun side of computing. They have been giving linked computing magic shows for over 10 years.

magic of christmas pdf front cover
Programme

17:00     Registration
17:15     Seating
17:30     Start of Lecture
18:30     Reception
19:15     Close

Reasons to attend

Bring your children, grandchildren, nephews or nieces to show them what a career in Science and Engineering has to offer.

Additional information

There will be a reception and mince pies and some light refreshments for everyone after the lecture. All are welcome.

Information above adapted from IET and QMUL pages advertising the event

Turing lecture – free livestream on Monday 24 February, 6.30pm GMT

“Beyond silicon: cognition and much, much more” Monday 24 February, 18:30 GMT

The IET / BCS Turing lecture 2014 is being given in four cities this year (London, Cardiff, Manchester, Edinburgh). The London talk (at the Royal Institution) is fully booked but the IET will be hosting a free livestream of the talk as it’s given on the Monday evening.

Visit the IET’s Turing Lecture webcast site to see if your computer setup will let you view the stream.

More information at the BCS’s website on Beyond silicon: cognition and much, much more, and on the speaker – Bernard S Meyerson. The Turing lecture is given in honour of Alan Turing, an important figure in the history of computer science.

Free resource from cs4fn
We have a free PDF / web-based version of ‘The Alan Turing Issue‘ of cs4fn magazine (issue 14) for schools.

“…2012, marks one hundred years since the birth of Alan Turing. You may not have heard of him before, but he is one of the most important scientists of the last century. He worked on maths, logic, code-breaking and most importantly, he came up with some of the fundamental ideas that make computers work. He was one of the very first computer scientists.

In this issue we’ll explore Turing’s world-changing life and ideas, and we’ll check out the latest research in subjects he cared about. You’ll read about computers made from chocolate, the best ways to keep a secret and an animal that can survive being chopped into almost 300 pieces. It’s a pretty amazing world out there, made all the more amazing by Alan Turing’s work.”