Cardiff physicist wins science's 'Pop Idol'
Dr Mark Lewney, a physicist from Cardiff in the UK, has become the new face of UK science after winning 'FameLab', described by its organisers as the 'Pop Idol' of the scientific world. Dr Lewney's presentation on the physics of music, complete with electric guitar solos, went down well with the audience and judges at the Cheltenham Science Festival, where the final was held on 11 June. Indeed, one judge described his performance as 'gob-smackingly amazing'. Having picked up a first prize cheque for 2,000 GBP (3,000 euro), Dr Lewney will now enter discussions with UK broadcasters Channel 4 on a potential career as a television science presenter. He will also be performing at a series of live science events, including next year's Cheltenham Science Festival. 'FameLab has proven a fantastic way of road-testing talent,' said Hamish Mykura, head of history, science and religion at Channel 4. 'The reaction of the audience in the final spoke volumes and they loved Mark. He left the opposition behind. It is exactly the kind of talent that works on TV.' Kathy Sykes, director of the Cheltenham Science Festival, added: 'I have been overwhelmed by the level of interest in FameLab; hundreds of people entered, revealing a thriving community of talented scientists in the UK committed to communicating. A whole new generation of communicators has been unearthed and we're looking at ways of encouraging them to keep on talking about science.' FameLab was open to anyone over 18 years old and working in science. This included science teachers, technicians, and anyone working in the fields of science, technology, engineering or maths. The competition aimed to develop new talent in science communication, rather than promoting those already working in the field, and a total of 332 individuals entered.
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