Australian
Institute of Physics - Tasmanian Branch
Free
public lecture - All welcome
Astronomers
behaving badly
Dr Fred Watson
(Astronomer-in-Charge, Anglo-Australian
Observatory)
8PM, Tuesday, 13th August, 2002
Physics Theatre 1
University of Tasmania, Sandy Bay
ABSTRACT:
Today's picture of the Universe as a complex, energetic and stunningly
beautiful place has not been arrived at without much controversy. Over the
years, the conduct of astronomers in dispute with one another has often been
bizarre and sometimes hilarious. In this entertaining and informative talk,
Fred Watson presents examples of astronomers behaving badly from 1566 to 2002.
Dr Fred Watson is a renowned public presenter of science, including being a frequent ABC Science Program presenter. He
comes from a long line of Freds, but is the first one in the family to have become an astronomer. Born and raised in England's north-country, he was educated in Scotland, gaining his doctorate at the University of Edinburgh. He has worked at both of Britain's Royal Observatories, and at their overseas telescopes in Hawaii and the Canary Islands.
In Australia during the 1980s, Fred helped to pioneer the use of fibre optics in astronomy, a technique that has today assumed world-wide importance. He is now Astronomer-in-Charge of the Anglo-Australian Observatory at Coonabarabran in north-western NSW, and also holds adjunct professorial appointments in the University of Southern Queensland and the Queensland University of Technology.
Fred's work centres around large-scale star and galaxy surveys, but he is also interested in global virtual observatories, dark-sky preservation, and the developing field of astrobiology. He writes and broadcasts frequently on astronomical topics, both in Australia and the UK.
Fred shares a tranquil hillside property in the foothills of the Warrumbungle Mountains with his wife, Trish, their two sons, six chooks and lots of music.
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