Since 2016, Norwich Science Festival, which this year runs from 14-21 February, has inspired, excited and entertained. The aim is to encourage careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). And as today is International Day of Women and Girls in Science, we are proud to bring you one local woman's story of how her contribution made a difference to science.

As of December 2024, women make up only 27.6% of the UK's core STEM workforce. Yet women have long played an important, but often unacknowledged, role in advancing science. Alice Grace Cook, born in 1877 in Stowmarket, is one such remarkable lady. She had a passion for astronomy. More remarkable, is that she taught fellow amateur, JP Manning Prentice observing and astronomy. Prentice went on to become a key member of Sir Bernard Lovell's team of (professional) scientists. Their work together led to advances in radio astronomy, and Lovell building Jodrell Bank - in its day, the largest radio telescope on earth.

In a letter to Dennis Jack Fulcher from 1951, Cook describes her life pursuing astronomy. It demonstrates what is possible with passion and determination.

Stargazing was something Cook was brought up with. Her grandmother possessed astronomy books and a small telescope which her mother used frequently. It was not until 1909 that Cook's interest in astronomy was really aroused. She attended six Cambridge Extension Lectures in Stowmarket, delivered by Joseph Alfred Hardcastle, an accomplished lecturer in astronomy.

At the close of the first lecture, Hardcastle invited students to join him for a tutorial. Cook writes that his "method of teaching was to encourage his students to make their own discoveries in the sky". And that is what Cook did over the remaining years of her life.

Cook's astronomical achievements and publication list is astonishing. In 1916, she was one of the first women to be elected a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Her early work with Hardcastle included making diagrams for his students, assisting his search for clusters and nebulae, plotting the finds on a star map and showing how they were situated in regard to the Milky Way. Cook searched for comets, spotting Miner's comet and Halley's Comet. She even had her own observatory built and reported her observations of sunspots, the Moon, telescopic comets and Saturn.

Cook also spent time in her deck chair outdoors observing the night sky, and was rewarded with sightings of meteors, aurorae and zodiacal light, and the strange light clouds; solar and lunar haloes, and the Gegenschein. In 1920, Cook was appointed the Meteor Director at the British Astronomical Association and held the post until 1923, when it was taken over by Manning Prentice, the Suffolk solicitor she had taught.

Her most notable achievement was on 8 June 1918, when she went out to search for slow moving bright meteors. "Almost at once, I spotted a strange star, twinkling violently and changing colours rapidly," she wrote. "I was the first astronomer in England to make the earliest observation of Nova Aquilae."

Towards the end of her life, Cook became a founding member of the Ipswich and District Astronomical Society, the pre-curser to The Orwell Astronomical Society.

The purpose of Norwich Science Festival is to explain, excite and encourage children, young people and adults to have a lifelong interest in science. But more importantly, through access to researchers, scientists and practitioners, to inspire and demonstrate the breadth of science - from astronomy to geology, from the microscopic to the macroscopic, from biology to psychology, from physics to chemistry and beyond.

As the life of Alice Grace Cook demonstrates, even a 100 years ago and without the opportunities that exist in the modern world, with passion and determination, anyone with an interest in science can have a profound impact on the world.

Who knows, maybe one day that someone will be you.

Alice Grace Cook's original letter to Dennis Jack Fulcher is held by the Suffolk Archives (www.suffolkarchives.co.uk).

With a thematic issue on a vital topic - the rise child poverty, ending on a hopeful note. You will find sharp analyses on the effect of poverty on children's lives, with a spotlight on the communities that are on the front line of deprivation, with personal stories and shared solutions. Click on the image to gain access to it, or find us on Substack.

Journalism by the people, for the people.

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In his latest newsletter, "By Hagbard's Beard," Bobby Campbell explains how he wrestled with a particular question with his Tales of Illuminatus! comic book adaptations: Does Hagbard Celine have a beard or is he clean shaven? I'll let you follow the link for Bobby's solution!

Lots of other interesting news and bits at the link, don't forget to click through Bobby's links! For example, Bobby is working on his plans for a Maybe Day event on July 23 in Berkeley, California: "I've been scouting venues and bugging the locals. Speaking it into existence one step at a time :)))"

Their names sound like a chemistry exam: USS Antimony, USS Calcium, USS Hydrogen — three concrete barges that spent World War II doing exactly one important thing in the Pacific: making ice cream. Roughly 500 gallons per shift, about five tons a day, from freezers that ran at ten gallons every seven minutes, according to Wikipedia. — Read the rest

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Four Cambridge math students in the 1930s wanted to know if you could fill a square with smaller squares, each a different size. They solved it by pretending the squares were electrical resistors. Brooks, Smith, Stone, and Tutte — who published as "Blanche Descartes," a shared pen name — transformed the geometry problem into a circuit diagram, then applied Kirchhoff's laws to find solutions, according to Wikipedia. — Read the rest

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This looping animation by Robert Samuel Hanson is only a few seconds long. A goose tries to interact with a fire extinguisher. The goose and the extinguisher share the same beak (or handle), depending on how you look at it.

The simple black-and-white illustration style makes the whole thing feel timeless and surreal, letting the strange visual logic speak for itself. — Read the rest

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In 1874, an astronomer named James Nasmyth built his own telescope, observed the moon, and then created and photographed detailed plaster models of its surface. You can see one of those photographs here. Without context, you'd think it was taken from orbit. — Read the rest

The post How James Nasmyth created stunningly realistic moon models in 1874 appeared first on Boing Boing.

TL;DR: Upgrade your listening setup with these JBL Tune Buds 2 True Wireless Noise Cancelling Earbuds, now only $39.99.

Are you in the market for some new earbuds? These JBL Tune Buds 2 True Wireless Noise Canceling Earbuds offer killer sound, all-day comfort, and an impressive 48 hours of battery life — and right now you can bring them home for just $39.99. — Read the rest

The post Upgrade your listening with JBL noise-canceling earbuds, now just $40 appeared first on Boing Boing.

TL;DR: Get modern, AI-powered Office 2024 apps for Mac or PC for a one-time $99.97 — faster performance, smarter tools, and lifetime access without subscriptions.

There are two types of people: People who don't mind paying monthly subscriptions. And people who absolutely do not. — Read the rest

The post This MS Office 2024 sale is the tech version of getting your life together appeared first on Boing Boing.

Manhole covers are round for a mix of safety, engineering, and practical reasons. A circular cover can't fall through its opening, regardless of rotation, making it safer for workers and pedestrians. The shape also matches the circular shafts below, which handle pressure from surrounding soil and traffic better than angular alternatives. — Read the rest

The post A manhole cover may have been the first object launched into space appeared first on Boing Boing.

On "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" last week, James Taylor told the story of how he came to record the song "You've Got a Friend," written by Carole King. It's his only #1 hit.

Taylor met King in 1969, when King was already a tremendously successful songwriter, and he was only 21 years old, with one album under his belt. — Read the rest

The post James Taylor tells a heartwarming story intertwining two of the most iconic songs of the 70s appeared first on Boing Boing.

Tom the Dancing Bug: Super-Fun-Pak Comix, feat. Mickey Mouse and his nameless dog

-Please join the team that makes it possible for your friendly neighborhood comic strip Tom the Dancing Bug to exist in this hostile Trumpverse! JOIN US FOR 2026 IN THE INNER HIVE, and be the first kid on your block to get each week's Tom the Dancing Bug comic - before it's published anywhere. — Read the rest

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Late Tuesday, the FAA ordered every aircraft out of the sky over El Paso — commercial flights, cargo, private planes, medevac helicopters, police — for 10 days, citing "national defense" and threatening to shoot down anything that flew. No one in city government, Congress, or airport operations got advance warning, El Paso Matters reported. — Read the rest

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Winter is not yet over by a long shot, and these knitted goose gloves might put you in a right frame of mind for the rest of the cold season. They're inexpensive and you can find them all over (Etsy, Amazon) in white or black. — Read the rest

The post Goose gloves appeared first on Boing Boing.

As readers might know, I am 11 and I have autism. It took my parents five years to get my autism diagnosis, and they ended up going to a private organisation for my assessment. Once I got the diagnosis, there was still no extra help that the NHS or local councils could give me or my parents.

Today, average waiting times for an autism assessment on the NHS is 3-5 years which does not help families or their children and, in the meantime while waiting, they do not receive any help.

I would like to introduce a new charity that was set up in 2024 called Thrive Autism. I have become an ambassador for them, and I am so happy to be doing this role and promoting the services they offer.

Thrive Autism's purpose is to help people aged 0-25 with autism and their families. They are helping people in the Norfolk and Waveney area. Their long-term goal is to have a facility that will hold therapy, recreation and training to help families and their young people.

In the meantime, they are offering therapy sessions, rest and relaxation breaks, coffee and cake session for parents and carers and an opportunity to get an autism assessment quicker.

I think this charity will be a big help to families across Norfolk and Waveney. I want to help spread the word about this charity and what they offer.

If anyone wants to know more about this charity or requires any help from them then please visit their website.

Thank you for reading this, and I look forward to writing my next article.

With a thematic issue on a vital topic - the rise child poverty, ending on a hopeful note. You will find sharp analyses on the effect of poverty on children's lives, with a spotlight on the communities that are on the front line of deprivation, with personal stories and shared solutions. Click on the image to gain access to it, or find us on Substack.

Journalism by the people, for the people.

The post Highlighting a new autism charity in Norfolk first appeared on East Anglia Bylines.

If I'm being brutally honest, I never really got the appeal of mechanical keyboards. There was always someone in the office who made a godawful racket hammering on their keyboard and then waxed lyrical about the merits of various switches. I'd mostly just dismissed them as cranks. I'm in love with my old Microsoft 4000 ergonomic keyboard. What use could I have a mechanical keyboard festooned with lights?

The good folks at Epomaker want me to see the error of my ways and have sent me a couple of devices to review. Today I'm trying out the TH87 and it is surprisingly lovely!

Here's a quick video showing some of the effects.

Is this necessary? No! But it is jolly good fun. Probably a bit distracting - especially if you're in a dark space or a crowded office - but rather pleasing nevertheless. Switching between the effects means remembering the correct key combo - there's no way to do it programatically, you just have to cycle through them all.

The TH87 comes with a USB-C to A cable. Personally, I'd've preferred straight C-C, but this does the job. Flick the switch at the back to USB mode, plug it in, and Linux instantly detected it. No drivers to configure.

Rather cheekily, lsusb shows it as 05ac:0250 Apple, Inc. Aluminium Keyboard (ISO) - there's another switch for changing between Mac and PC mode. That doesn't change how the keyboard presents itself; just the keycodes it sends.

Oddly, there was this warning in dmesg:

apple 0003:05AC:0250.0010: Fn key not found (Apple Wireless Keyboard clone?), disabling Fn key handling

However, the function keys worked and I was able to control screen brightness etc using Fn and the F1-12 keys.

There's also a Bluetooth option. Again, Linux use was a breeze - although you'll have to remember what the pairing combo is and which device it is paired to.

There's also a 2.4GHz option. Hidden under one of the feet is a little USB-A receiver. Again, pairing is simple - just plug it in and flick the switch.

As expected, it also plays well with Android. The Bluetooth connection worked as did USB-OTG. Of course, quite why you'd want a giant heavy keyboard paired to your tiny phone is an exercise left to the reader.

So let's talk about noise. This keyboard is noisier than some of my other typing surfaces, but not aggressively so. Apparently it is "pre-lubricated" and has some noise suppression. The travel on the switches is excellent, they aren't stiff, and the whole contraption is sturdy.

It was easy to remove the caps with the enclosed tool. I didn't bother trying to extract a switch because I'm afraid of buggering it up.

Battery life is excellent - as you'd expect from a 10,000 mAh unit. It recommends charging by attaching to a computer and warns a regular charger might damage it. But, frankly, it seemed to cope just fine.

There's no software for customising the colours or functionality. Apparently lots of mechanical keyboards run an Open Source firmware - but this appears to be proprietary. There is some question about whether Epomaker comply with the GPL when it comes to the QMK source. They appear to have some source code available but it is hard to tell whether it exists for this specific model. I've contacted them for clarification.

There's a lot of technobabble on the website. Apparently it uses "5-Layer Sound Optimizing Design with PORON Sandwich Foam, IXPE Switch Pad, Sound Enhancement Pad, EPDM Switch Socket Pad, and Silicone Bottom". I've no ideas what it means, but it appears important to some people.

There's no number-pad, which is a bit of a shame. However the keyboard has a proper UK layout and is reasonably compact. Although at 1Kg it is almost as heavy as my laptop!

I have no internal benchmark for something like this. It's around £60 from AliExpress or £80 on Amazon UK depending on whether you have pleased The Algorithm. That seems pretty reasonable for a hefty keyboard with lots of customisability.

If you want ALL THE LIGHTS and value the ability to hot-swap various keys and switches, I think this is a nifty bit of kit.

Though "leet" never made word of the year (Merriam-Webster selected "woot" instead), it was the language of a generation, said to be destroying their literacy. Now it's a charming memory of a time when the internet was cool rather than a vile and infested wasteland of brain rot and resurgent fascism. — Read the rest

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• Revenue generation - aiming to infuse colour and fun into the network while generating essential income
• Customer clarity - carrying out essential planning to ensure no customer is ever confused or misdirected
• Accessibility - embedded at every stage of planning and delivery, so no customer is disadvantaged