Aughton and Ormskirk U3A has much to be proud of in its 15 years of existence. To this end, a party was arranged on 19 May where speeches, nibbles, and meeting and chatting to fellow members were much enjoyed and appreciated by those who attended. See Let’s Celebrate. The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service was on display in… Read More »
In a year when Britain celebrates a Royal Wedding, our U3A has two Anniversaries to celebrate, one with a royal connection. It’s 15 years since the founding of the Aughton & Ormskirk U3A. And 10 years ago this U3A won the Queens Award for Voluntary Service. And just 5 years ago, we were commemorating the 10th birthday with… Read More »
Wednesday 2nd May 2018 How has the UK climate changed in the last 15,000 years? Professor Jim Marshall from Earth, Ocean and Ecological Sciences Department at Liverpool University explained how lake sediments preserve chemical and biological records of environmental change and help us identify abrupt changes in the UK climate since the last ice age which mirror similar… Read More »
Wednesday 4th April 2018 On the 4th April one of our own members, Professor Bill Hale, told us all about Martin Mere (the lake not the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust Centre). The talk covered the science and engineering, over nearly 15,000 years, of how the lake was created in the first place and why it is trying very… Read More »
Wednesday 7th March 2018 The speaker for our March meeting was Julia Bate who has worked as a hospital and local pharmacist, in pharmaceutical primary care giving prescribing advice to GPs, and has run clinics for chronic disease management and medication reviews. Her talk covered how a pharmacist can influence prescribing in relation to safety, efficiency and cost effectiveness. … Read More »
Wednesday 7th February 2018 On the 7th February we had an audience of over 100 (a record for a science group meeting) for a lecture by Rory Phillips from the Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, entitled “Graphene – Unexpected Science in a Pencil Line”. Rory was a last minute stand in for his colleague, Aravind Vijayaraghavan, who was… Read More »
The French Conversation Tuesday group prepared for the Festive Season with some fancy face decorations!
Some photos from early in 2016:
Wednesday 6th December 2017 – Christmas Cheer Event Puzzles, odd one out quiz, who am I and what am I games, a table full of strange objects to identify – all part of the Christmas Cheer entertainment event, helped along of course by mulled wine, Christmas cake, stollen, mince pies. Lots of fun was had by all. No… Read More »
Wednesday 1st November – The Cleaning up of the Mersey Basin, 1980 – 2005 – David Moore This span of time covers the period from when the Mersey was regarded as one of the most polluted rivers in Europe with virtually no aquatic life to when there are now over 40 different species of breeding fish resident in… Read More »
English Medieval Cathedrals in the North and Midlands Speakers: Peter Goodrich, Peter Gateley and Peter Hatfield English medieval cathedrals are widely admired both at home and abroad as both architectural masterpieces and touchstones of English History. Their stylistic diversity is remarkable reflecting their longevity and origins. Some cathedrals are descendants of former abbeys, others purpose built as cathedrals,… Read More »
Wednesday 4th October – “Special Earth” – the Scientific case – Edmund Moynihan Edmund prepared a version of this talk for Southport Astronomical Society, so we were delighted to receive a preview. His Special Earth presentation covered: The Solar System Recent discoveries about exo-planets, etc The history of astro-biology Mars as a case study The special characteristics of… Read More »
Wednesday 6th September – “The Digital Revolution” – Dave Sutton Dave Sutton is a major contributor to an initiative called “Southport 2030” aimed at helping Southport and Sefton prepare for the future as it is likely to be in 2030. This is the date when the “4th Industrial Revolution” is likely to be widely acknowledged by its effects… Read More »
Wednesday 5th July 2017 – COACH VISIT to the Lion Salt Works and the Anderton Boat Lift We had a very successful visit to two local heritage attractions in the summer
The Philharmonic Concerts Group enjoyed a special occasion on 31st May this year, marking 50 years since The Beatles’ “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” revolutionised popular music. The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra teamed up with the well known Bootleg Beatles to recreate all the tracks on the famous album, plus a few more for good measure.
Wednesday 7th June 2017 – Martin Mere Wetlands Centre – Eileen Seabright We were privileged to have one of our members, Eileen Seabright, a volunteer educational adviser at Martin Mere, come along to tell us about some of the history of the Mere, and the work of the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust that goes on there. The wetlands… Read More »
Wednesday 3rd May 2017 – Connected Health Cities – Debbie Parkinson (Debbie Parkinson is the Patient and Public Involvement Lead for the Innovation Agency North West Coast) The Connected Health Cities pilot project in this area is being delivered by the Innovation Agency North West Coast, which is the Academic Health Science Network (AHSN) for the area. It… Read More »
Wednesday 5th April 2017 – The Genetics of Cancer – Ann Parker Ann was a leading contributor to the “Understanding Tomorrow’s World” discussion group led by Jack Brettle last year, and particularly the Genome topic and the genetic mechanisms involved in the development of cancer. Ann’s talk highlighted some of the research and developments in cancer therapies arising from… Read More »
ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE ………… for the Art Appreciation group This year’s winter art tour provided a range of unique experiences for members of Aughton & Ormskirk U3A. Our first stop was the wonderful Wightwick Manor, a Victorian mansion, built for the Mander family whose fortune came from the manufacture of a popular brand of paint. … Read More »
Wednesday 1st March 2017 – 50 Shades of Grey: The Fascinating World of Radiology – Professor Gill Baynes Gill Baynes of Lancaster U3A gave a fascinating talk about the difficulties of interpreting medical x-rays and problems in deciding treatments based on medical scans and diagnostics. Interspersed with scans of all types, this was a humorous overview of the various… Read More »
Wednesday 1st February 2017 – Britain’s Industrial Decline – Edmund Moynihan Edmund, like many U3A members, had worked for some failed major British companies e.g. in textiles and polymers. Drawing on his experience with these companies, and his interest in historical developments in science and engineering, Edmund espoused his view of what actually happened and why. His talk… Read More »
Members of the Ballroom Dancing Group enjoyed their 2016 Christmas party at the Ministry Centre Christ Church
This was a first for the group and a Comedy Farce in classic Brian Rix style, set in a large house in a remote village: a clinic that offers sanctuary, rest and relaxation therapy to celebs, but has seen better days with just two celebrities. Meanwhile in the same village there is an old folks home. Absolute chaos then… Read More »
Wednesday, 7th December 2016 – Christmas Cheer 2016 The Science Group finished off a very successful and enjoyable year with mulled wine, mince pies, Christmas cake and stollen, and some lighthearted Science thrown in for good luck! After a warming glass of Patsy’s extra special mulled wine, Marguerita got the afternoon off to a convivial start with a “Piecing the Puzzle”… Read More »
Wednesday, 2nd November 2016 – The Physics behind Global Warming – John Bradshaw Dr. John Bradshaw is a Chartered Physicist, a Member of the Institute of Physics and a Member of Mawdesley U3A. His talk concentrated on the Physics behind Global Warming, rather than the social and political implications. Using his background as a physicist at Pilkington’s, he explained some of the… Read More »
Wednesday, 5th October 2016 – The Greening of Birkdale Beach – Phil Smith Phil is an expert on the ecology of the Sefton Coast, and has previously given us a beautifully illustrated talk about dragonflies. He was due to give a talk about the protected Natterjack Toad, until his computer “had a meltdown” as he put it. Instead, Phil gave… Read More »
If you have ideas for Computer Courses or Workshops you would like us to run, please let us know. Also, If you are already familiar with computing, why not join us to help with tuition? The reward is in giving a bit of your knowledge to someone else by passing on a very useful skill. The Getting Started… Read More »
Wednesday, 7th September 2016 – Chemistry, Colour, Paper and Cloth – Marguerita McBride Our colourful world is amazing and yet it took lots of experimentation through hundreds of years to develop techniques for colouring paper, cloth and, more recently, to have coloured plastics, even coloured bubbles. Modern techniques and materials have allowed for an explosion of colour. Dyes,… Read More »
The July 2016 visit coincided with Vasily Petrenko’s 40th birthday, his 10th Anniversary with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and the 10th visit of the Philharmonic Concerts group to the Summer Nights’ concert. Group Leader, Ann Robinson, assembled her members for this photograph before the coach left for Liverpool.
Topic “Oh Dear! What can the ‘Machair’ be? Steve Halliwell using his excellent photographic skills took us on a journey exploring the threatened Machair habitat in Hebridean Islands and the flora of the area. The Gaelic word ‘machair’ means an extensive, low-lying fertile plain. Machair is a type of grassland associated with calcareous sand (mainly made of shell)… Read More »
Wednesday, 6th July 2016 – The Development of the Road Racing Bike since 1945 – Bill Soens Bill really does know a lot about how bikes have changed over the years, being not only a keen rider but having run his own bike shop called Eddie Soens, of Boaler St, Liverpool, where he hand built over 800 bikes over… Read More »
This is a repeat of the very successful course run in autumn 2012. Chemistry is Magic is from 09:45 to 11:45am at the Scout & Guide HQ on Wednesdays as follows: April 13th/20th/ 27th / May 4th/ 11th/18th 2016. If you missed out on Chemistry at school, but would like to know more, this course is for you. The course… Read More »
Wednesday, 1st June 2016 – Defying Dementia: from Compound to Clinic – Dr Penny Foulds Dr Foulds, an Honorary Researcher at Lancaster University, gave a most interesting and useful talk about their efforts to develop a new treatment for dementia.
Topic: “Visit to Garden at 79 Crabtree Lane, Burscough” Gardens 79 Crabtree Lane The gardens were specially opened for U3A members, sadly the weather was not kind for the visit but those who attended thought the gardens were excellent. The visit lasted over two hours with our host Peter Curl taking time to explain various aspects of the… Read More »
January 2015 Tour to London: January 2014 Tour to Edinburgh: The tour based in Edinburgh, stayed at the Hilton Grosvenor on a half board basis. The programme included a special access visit to Sir Walter Scott’s Gothic fantasy country home Abbotsford, the January exhibition of Turner watercolours at the National Gallery, Holyrood Palace, the Queen’s Gallery, the… Read More »
The May ride took us from the Scout hut in Aughton out to the Pinewoods at Freshfield. The ride was planned and led by Ian Thomas and covered a distance of 25 miles. There was yet again another good turn out and the weather stayed fine. The June ride will take place on Friday 24th June and will… Read More »
This visit is for anyone interested in horses whether you ride or not. Following on from our enjoyable visit to the Merseyside Mounted Police there is now a visit to Lancashire Mounted Police on Tuesday 7th June 2016 , Lancaster Road, Preston, PR1 2SA We meet outside the stables at 10.45a.m Please contact Margaret to reserve a place… Read More »
Wednesday, 4th May 2016 – Lunacy about the Moon – Edmund Moynihan “Ex Luna Scientia” (“Knowledge from the Moon”): this motto from Apollo 13 summarises Edmund’s presentation, in which he examined what we know scientifically about the Moon, and some of the crazy ideas about our only natural satellite. Besides the basic science of the Moon, Edmund talked about The work… Read More »
We had a wonderful visit and were very grateful to our guide, Kate (head groom), who is an expert in her field. Kate has been with the force for twelve years and the horses have become her “family”. One can tell at a glance that the horses love Kate as much as she loves them.
Topic: “A Long Drive to Lhasa Tibet exploring Alpine Plants” The speaker Peter Cordall took us on a botanical journey across Tibet to Lhasa in which we explored the culture and also the alpine plants of the region. The Tibet Plateau being home to the world’s largest distribution of Alpine plants. Peter’s talk was a rare glimpse of… Read More »
Wednesday, 6th April 2016 – the Internet of Things (IoT) – by Alan Nolan We had hoped to have a speaker from another local U3A to talk about the “Internet of Things” but he had to withdraw. We then hoped to have someone involved in the burgeoning IoT movement in Liverpool to come and speak but didn’t manage to get him either. In the… Read More »
Topic: “Gresgarth Hall Gardens Through the Seasons” The speaker Steve Halliwell provided a packed meeting with an exciting and informative journey month by month around Gresgarth Hall Gardens. Using hundreds of excellent quality photographs he gave a comprehensive explanation of the changing colours, shapes and textures of the gardens. Steve held his audience enthralled by the shear beauty… Read More »
Wednesday, 2 March 2016 – Radioactivity (or how to love the atom) – by Jack Brettle Jack gave a highly informative and entertaining talk about Radioactivity. He explained just what radiation is, the different types of radiation, and where it comes from. We encounter it in many forms not only in reactors and bombs, but also in medical instruments such… Read More »
“Online Today” was an Awareness Session being hosted by our U3A on Tuesday, 22 March with help from RNIB and Action for Blind People. Technology can make life easier if you have hearing or sight problems, but knowing where to start isn’t always easy. This session, led by Andrew Coleman, Assistive Technology Support Officer with Action for Blind People, took… Read More »
Click on individual photos to enlarge
Wednesday, 3 February 2016 – The Development of the Mersey Chemical Industry – Paul Davies One of our own members, Paul was a senior manager in the Health and Safety Executive. Since retiring he has taken a great interest in the Chemical Industry on Merseyside. He illustrated his talk with nuggets of information that only a keen researcher would… Read More »
Group Members’ recent paintings. Click (or tap) on any picture to start a slideshow of (larger scale) images.
Wednesday, 6 January 2016 – Science in Art – Patsy Colvin Although Science and Art seem to be diametrically opposed, with the advent of new techniques science can be used to study paintings and gain insight into the methods used in the past by artists. These techniques can also be used to detect forgeries or show that suspect paintings… Read More »
The U3A is very much about sharing knowledge among members, and what better example than in the Digital Keyboard Music group.
We had our annual Christmas Cheer event on Wednesday, 2 December 2015, and it was a real feast. The Menu: mulled wine reception a 15 minute talk by Chris Procter on mistletoe a 5-minute quiz by Jack Brettle a Periodic Table Treasure Hunt – with prizes mince pies and cake, stollen, tea and coffee Edmund Moynihan (about the Star of Bethlehem) a… Read More »
A ‘Head to Head’ conversation between Tony Crimlisk and Eric Midwinter, collaborators on the latest musical ‘Bob Cratchitt – retired’.
Wednesday, 4 November 2015 – Mobile Phones and Sunbeds Are you worried by what you see written in the press about the danger of radiation from mobile phones, or mobile phone masts? Are you less worried about the possible dangers from sunbeds? Those who attended the talk by Professor Peter Cole will have been reassured about one of these, and… Read More »
Wednesday, 7th October 2015 – Space Weather and the Earth’s Magnetic Shield – Prof. John Shaw The Earth’s magnetic field shields the Earth from the solar wind and high energy particles that are released from the sun during solar storms. Is the magnetic shield constant or does it change, can it collapse completely? What do we know about the behaviour… Read More »
Wednesday, 2nd September 2015 – Himalayan Medicine – Dr John Winter John Winter is the author of “Aiming High, Overland to the Himalayas” Aiming High – Overland to the Himalayasand a local member. He travelled to Everest, Annapurna and Indrasan in the nineteen seventies as a newly qualified medic to help with the treatment of climbers suffering from altitude sickness.… Read More »
Wednesday, 1st July 2015 – Predators in Liverpool Bay – Mathew Clough Mathew Clough is Director of the Liverpool Bay Marine Life Trust, and came along to tell us about the seals, cetaceans and sharks on our own doorstep. Liverpool Bay is often forgotten in regard to its marine life and there is an image of it being polluted. Hard… Read More »
Wednesday, 3rd June 2015 – Solar Eclipses – Phillip Pendred Last year Phillip talked to us about ‘Time’, or the measurement of time to be precise, illustrating his talk with some wonderful slides. This year he gave us a very instructive talk about Solar Eclipses – how they come about, why they last for varying lengths of time, why they don’t… Read More »
Wednesday, 6th May 2015 – “How do we know where we are?” – Prof Matthew Nolan Matthew (Alan’s nephew) is Chair of Neural Circuits and Computation, University of Edinburgh Centre for Integrative Physiology, whose research is interested in the mechanisms used within the brain to mediate cognitive processes and guide learned behaviours! Matthew gave an extremely interesting talk about how… Read More »
Wednesday, 1st April 2015 – Forensic Geology – Dr Maggie Williams Dr Williams, from the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of Liverpool, gave us an insight into the science of Forensic Geology and how it is applied in the investigation of crime scenes.
Wednesday, 4th March 2015 – Lovey Dovey – Graham Cawdell, Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist at Whiston Hospital. Graham came along to tell us about breeding, egg laying, incubation, feeding, nurturing and fledging in birds. Many of these things vary greatly from one species to another, and there seems to be an almost limitless number of combinations, each designed to ensure the continuity of that species… Read More »
Wednesday, 4th February 2015 – Chemical Elements part 2 – this was a joint effort by 6 of our members, each talking for 10 minutes on their chosen element. It was the second session on chemical elements, the first one being last June. February’s line-up was: Frank Wood – Silicon John Appleton – Lead Ann Parker – Hydrogen Allan Yates – Polonium Bill Hale – Iridium Sue Watkinson –… Read More »
Wednesday, 7th January 2015 – It’s a Materials World! by Jack Brettle What is your view of history? What do historians think drives the development of human society? Is it economic, political, religious or sociological forces? Jack Brettle posed these questions, but suggested that historians have got it all wrong and that human development is down to new materials technologies!… Read More »
Wednesday, 3rd December 2014 – “Christmas Cheer”: Christmas Menu Mulled wine ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Reindeer – by Chris Procter. How do reindeer survive and thrive in the harsh conditions of the Arctic, and why do their antlers grow so fast? Chris will have all the answers. Christmas Baking and Christmas Drinks – what is the common denominator? Yeast! Jack claims to… Read More »
Wednesday, 5th November 2014 – “It’s a dirty old world we live in” – the Science of Cleaning, by Patsy Colvin. As an ex Head of Chemistry at a local school, Patsy brought her vast experience of chemistry to bear on the problem of cleaning. Why are some stains harder to remove than others? Why do we need so many… Read More »
Wednesday, 1st October 2014 – “Questioning Style and Memory”. Dr Joyce Humphries, from Edge Hill University Psychology Department, returned to talk about the findings from the study earlier this year in which quite a number of our members participated. It was fascinating to hear the background to the study, and Joyce took us through a potted history of… Read More »
Thursday, 11th September 2014 – visit to Springfields Nuclear Fuel Manufacturing site, organised by Jack Brettle. A fascinating tour of the nuclear fuel plant near Preston, the visit gave us an insight into the complex and highly technical aspects of manufacturing fuel rods for various British nuclear power stations. Precision is important, as you might imagine, but the… Read More »
Wednesday 3rd September 2014 – “Perception” by Sylvia Dillon: Making sense of what we see – an introduction to Visual Perception and the neuro-physiological processes whereby a person becomes aware and interprets external stimuli. Sylvia talked about how photons of light are processed – at first by the eye, then the brain, then how the individual perceives the… Read More »
Wednesday June 25th2014. The Science Group visited the Hack Green Secret Nuclear bunker followed by lunch at Bridgemere Garden Centre and some time to have a wander around there. The general opinion was that the visit was very successful, with many people being quite surprised, and even a little shocked, by the degree of preparedness (or lack of) in the… Read More »
Wednesday, 2nd July 2014 – The History of Communications over the past 100 years, with particular reference to the changes made during the lifetimes of our members, by Mike Briggs. Mike started out as a ship’s Radio Officer in the Merchant Navy, before moving into the world of Microwave Transmissions systems for both TV and data. The talk covered evolution of human verbal communications early… Read More »
Wednesday, 4th June 2014 – “Chemical Elements – Part 1″ – a joint effort by 6 of our members, each talking for 10 to 15 minutes about their chosen element. The line-up was: Patsy Colvin setting the scene with a brief definition of an element, a bit of atomic theory and a tour around the periodic table, then on with the show, starring your very… Read More »
Wednesday, 7th May 2014 – “Time” – by Philip Pendred, who talked to us last year about Comets. This time, his talk concerned the way time was measured with particular regard to Astronomy (Solar time etc.); sundials; the equation of time and its derivation; the importance of timekeeping with reference to finding longitude; precession of the Equinoxes and the calendar and its adjustments. I… Read More »
Wednesday, 2nd April 2014 – “Spectroscopy, gemstones and minerals”. Keith Snell, leader of the U3A Geology group, gave a very interesting talk about the use of Spectroscopy in the analysis of minerals and in the gems trade. Illustrated with some very colourful slides, and pieces of his own home-made equipment, Keith’s talk was laced with personal anecdotes of his… Read More »
Wednesday, 5th March 2014 – Following on from our highly successful talk about Forensics in February, our own Marguerita McBride will talk about Chemical Analysis. It’s a complex world we live in – physically (as well as politically, socially, financially, culturally, and so on!) – and there are many processes used in analysis of the chemical, physical and biological properties… Read More »
Wednesday 5th February 2014 – The Use of Forensics in Criminal Investigations. Stuart Kirby, who retired from the police service with the rank of Detective Chief Superintendent, and who now lectures in Criminology at Lancaster University, came along to tell us about the use of Forensics in criminal investigations. Popular television programmes such as CSI and Silent Witness have stirred interest in… Read More »