‘Science Spotlight’ 4/12 Dr. Magnus Pyke

Dr. Magnus Alfred Pyke OBE(1908-1992)
Was educated at St paul’s school, London. Then moving to canada studing agriculture at McGill university Montreal, then returning to the University collage London. In 1930 he was the chief chemist at the bemax factory, were he helped develop the use of vitamins in diet. During World War 2 he joined the scientific advisers division of the ministry of food. In an effort to cope with the problem of blood donation outstripping local storage for blood transfusion, Pyke unsuccessfully proposed using access human blood to make black pudding! After the war ended he became secretary of the British association for the advancement of science. He lectured around the world and wrote several books about food science and technology. However, it was in later life he came to public notice when he started presenting science based television programmes such as ‘Don’t ask me’ and ‘Don’t just sit there’ his enthusiasm and ability to explain the subject make him a household name.


© Arfon Jones 2010. All images are copyrighted throughout the world.

An evening with The Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre

Like many I first discovered this comedy pairing on YouTube. A pair of sock puppets with Ping-Pong balls for eyes tackling serious, sometimes topical themes in the form of skits and songs.
Written and performed by comedian and comic book writer/ artist Kev F Sutherland, the show was nominated Best Show at the Leicester Comedy Festival Awards in March and won the Edinburgh Festival Insider Comedy Award in 2009. Having watched all their great videos on YouTube image my joy when I discovered that they were performing live in my neck of the woods!

So, on Saturday 20 March 2010 Beth and I embarked on Harlech to see the Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre LIVE! After a lovely stroll around Harlech (spotting several posters along the way)We enjoyed the breathtaking view from the castle and enjoyed a fantastic meal. As the sun started to set on Cardigan Bay we made our way to the theatre.

Comic magician Ali Cook supported the Socks. His sleight of hand has made him one of the pioneers of the alternative magic scene. Having written and starred in several television series and sell-out shows in Edinburgh and the West End we knew this was going to be good... we were not disappointed! A fantastic mix of comedy and amazing magic tricks!

Then came the Socks, who gave a hilarious lecture on the history of films, ranging from Westerns to Horror and thanks to quick costume changes a reenactment of Star Wars! They tackled the issue of Swine Flu and delivered a tribute to Michael Jackson! The show was an amazingly funny, a brilliantly original one-man show that didn’t disappoint. A fantastic night out I highly recommend.
Check out their site for tour dates!


© Arfon Jones 2010. All images are copyrighted throughout the world.

‘Science Spotlight’ 3/12 Wilf Lunn

Wilfred Makepeace Lunn
Born in 1942, first started writing and making miniature bicycles out of firewood wire when he was teaching lip-reading + religious knowledge at ‘Odsal House School for the Deaf’ in Yorkshire. He constructed miniature cycles one of which was small enough to be housed inside a bottle! The bikes would perform other functions aside from transportation including catching worms and removing creases from tents! During an exhibition of his work he was invited to demonstrate his inventions on the television show ‘Late Night Line Up’ and later ‘Vision On’ the award winning BBC series designed for deaf children. Lunn became a household name appearing on countless other programmes demonstrating his strange and wondrous inventions including the self blowing flag, a pipe stabiliser for smokers with false teeth, the exploding milk bottle protector, the anti molest trouser zip and the clockwork running fast food for fat dogs.

© Arfon Jones 2010. All images are copyrighted throughout the world.

‘How to Survive A Zombie Apocalypse’

Following on from their sell out show at the August Festival Fringe in Edinburgh ‘How To Survive A Zombie Apocalypse’ is now touring the UK, introduced by leading expert in zombology, Dr Dale Seslick, the seminars teach you all you need to know about zombie survival.I was recently invited to capture the good Dr's likeness for their web site!Click here for more information and tour dates!
© Arfon Jones 2010. All images are copyrighted throughout the world.

‘Science Spotlight’ 2/12 Sir Patrick Moore

Sir Patrick Alfred Caldwell-Moore
Was born in 1923 developed an interest in astronomy at the age of six elected to the British Astronomical association at eleven. Having served as a navigator in the RAF during the Second World War he was elected a fellow of the Royal Astronomical society in 1945. He constructed a homemade relocating telescope in his garden and began observations of the moon. Establishing himself as a specialist in lunar observation. In 1959, the Russians used his charts to correlate the first lunik 3 pictures of the far side of the moon, his lunar maps were used in the NASSA Apollo missions. Despite writing 70 books on astronomy he is known to many as the presenter of the monthly BBC series ‘The Sky At Night’ which he presented all but one since 1957 earning him a place in the ‘Guinness book of Records’ as the longest serving television presenter. The series has been attributed as a major factor in the encouragement of amateurs perusing the subject of astronomy and in 2001, Moore was appointed knight bachelor “For services to the popularisation of science and broadcasting”. In the same year, he was appointed an honorary fellow of the royal society.

© Arfon Jones 2010. All images are copyrighted throughout the world.

'Science Spotlight' 1/12 Professor Heinz Wolff

I thought I would create a regular feature for this blog page. A feature I hope will be of interest to all. Each month I shall produce a fact file entitled ‘Science Spotlight’; that will feature someone of scientific interest. Presented in a simplistic style, reminiscent of traditional children’s education books and comics. They will provide a brief biography of that person.

Professor Heinz Siegried Wolff was born in 1928 and qualified in physiology and physics in 1954. Subsequently, whilst with the medical research council, he chose to work on the interface between engineering and the biological sciences, calling himself a bioengineer, thus giving a name to the new discipline. He became head of the divisions of bioengineering at the national institute for medical research and subsequently at the clinical research centre. Moving to Brunel University in 1983, he founded the Brunel institute for bioengineering, the only organisation in the United Kingdom to work on the instrumentation problems of conducting biological research in the weightless environment of a spacecraft. The institute holds contacts for work in space research, medical instrumentation and technology for the improvement of the quality of life for the elderly. In 1992 he was recipient of the Edinburgh medal, awarded in recognition of an outstanding contribution by a scientist to society. The professor is well known to a whole generation as a television personality, presenting scientific and engineering “entertainment”. Programmes such as ‘The Great Egg Race’, known to have started many young people on careers in science and technology.

Information source: the Brunel University
© Arfon Jones 2010. All images are copyrighted throughout the world.

Operation Bath Duck Update: Scout Duck: 006

The Operation Bath Duck experiment is going very well. I have Scout Ducks reporting back from all over the planet! Scout Duck:006 reported back from Huddersfield in West Yorkshire and is in the company of inventor, artist and visionary Wilf Lunn! Known to thousands for demonstrating his fantastic creations on such shows as Vision On, Jigsaw, Eureka and Fantastic Facts. Before working in television Wilf first started making miniature bicycles when he taught lip-reading & religious knowledge at Odsal House School For the Deaf It was during an exhibition of his bicycles he was invited to appear on television. Growing up in the 1980’s I adored Wilf’s work and I was mesmerised by the wonderful inventions that he demonstrated in his workshop. His invention for helping dog’s lose weight in the form of walking dog food still remains fresh in my subconscious to this very day! So, it was to my absolute delight that Scout Duck:006 found its way to Huddersfield and become a part of Wilf’s version of how man evolved! ladies and gentlemen of the World Wide Web I give you ‘Evolution Duck’ By Wilf Lunn! To find out more about Wilf and his brilliant creations visit his Official Web Site he also writes a Colum for the Huddersfield Daily Examiner. Oh, and be sure to order his fantastic book WILF LUNN - "MY BEST CELLAR" (autobiography up to the age of eleven & other stuff)
For a detailed account of the project please read 'Operation Bath Duck'
© Arfon Jones 2010. All images are copyrighted throughout the world.