The Olympics come to Birmingham

As part of the University of Birmingham’s celebration of the Olympics coming to the UK in 2012, over 1600 students aged between 11 and 12 years old will be at the starting blocks for this year’s Christmas Science lectures.

The marathon lectures running over two days will carry the theme of the Olympics. The Animal Olympics lecture on Monday 12th December will focus on the differences between animals and humans when it comes to endurance, speed and strength and how the evolution of animals has given them an advantage over humans. Students will help demonstrate the differences between humans and animals in interactive experiments. Jeremy Pritchard, a senior lecturer Biology and Head of Education and Susannah Thorpe, a lecturer on Locomotor Ecology and Biomechanics from the School of Biosciences will be delivering the lectures.

The Science of the Olympics lecture on Tuesday 13th will show students how elite athletes prepare for the Olympics and what the training schedules of some of our best known athletes will be like in the run up to the games. Students will demonstrate principles in the science of nutrition, sports psychology and the science of exercise. Victoria Burns from the UK’s top rated School of Sport and Exercise Science will be delivering the interactive lectures to over 800 students during the day.

Mohammed Ansar from the University’s Outreach Office, who is organising the lectures said, ‘Schools have a huge interest in the Olympics and many are sharing the value and ethos of the Olympics and it is important that the university supports them in this endeavour. This is just the starting line of activities that we will be hosting over the next 12 months and we are hoping to bring as many students from local schools and members of the wider community with us to the finishing line in 12 months time.’

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12th December lectures- Animal Olympics
10.00am 12pm and 1.30pm
Vaughan jefferys Lecture Theatre, School of Education
13th December- Science of the Olympics
10.00am 12pm and 1.30pm
Howarth 101
School of Chemistry