So what can science do for us? Spin-outs from particle physics, space science and astronomy

So what can science do for us? You may be surprised to learn that technologies developed for research in astronomy, space science and particle physics are now being used in fields as diverse as medicine, architecture, aviation and information technology.

Some of the successes of Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC) funded university research that have transformed into business ventures are being showcased at the House of Commons on Wednesday 22nd October 2003. , ,The "Commercialisation of Research" reception, which is organised by SET for Britain and hosted by Kerry Pollard MP for St Albans and Chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Small Business, aims to show how basic research in universities is being exploited and commercialised successfully. The reception will provide an opportunity for MP's to meet with participants from science and technology disciplines., ,Among those taking part from the PPARC science area are the following four., ,Dr Mark Williams, Surfability Ltd - the development of a web tool to measure the navigability of websites born out of work on the international BaBar physics collaboration., ,Roger Iles, SolarMetrics Ltd - measuring the effects of cosmic radiation and space weather on aircraft, passengers and crew., ,David Walker, Zeeko Ltd - computer controlled lens polishing technology developed for astronomy but with many wider applications, including prosthetic joints and turbine blades., ,Joy McKenny, University of Durham - the development of lightweight mirrors, initially for astronomical instrumentation but also with applications in solar power and light architecture., ,Dr Peter Fletcher, PPARC's Head of Education and Innovation Division said:, , "All these new ventures have been spun out from technologies or research results originally funded by PPARC, either through PPARC Industrial Programme Support Scheme (PIPSS), PPARC/Royal Society Edinburgh Enterprise Fellowships. Events like this help to demonstrate to the public and opinion formers that there are tangible benefits for all, including the UK economy, from investing in basic research.",
NOTES TO EDITORS:, ,The reception takes place on Wednesday 22nd October at Terrace Pavilion Room of the House of Commons (11 am to 3 pm)., ,Images,Photographs of the four individuals and (hopefully their MP's) will be available after the event. Contact Gill Ormrod for further details (contact details below)., ,Contacts, ,Gill Ormrod - PPARC Press Office,Tel: [phone]. Mobile: [phone].,E-mail: [e-mail], ,Dr Eric Wharton - SET for Britain,Tel: [phone]. E-mail: [e-mail], ,Susan Lansdowne - PPARC Business and Partnerships Schemes Manager,Tel: [phone]. E-mail: [e-mail], ,Background Information, ,Dr Mark Williams, Surfability Ltd,Tel: [phone]. E-mail: [e-mail],Website: http://www.surfability.co.uk ,Dr Mark Williams from Surfability Ltd originally began working on the redesign of the international BaBar Physics collaboration's website and intranet, which had accumulated over 100,000 linked documents in just four years making it chaotic and unusable., ,"It was the success of developing software for this project that led me to apply for a PPARC Enterprise Fellowship. The original idea of starting a company offering web tools and consulting services quickly grew. Now developed software to measure the effectiveness of web sites and then offer to make them more navigable and usable.", ,Joy McKenny, University of Durham,Tel: [phone]. E-mail: [e-mail], ,A business venture that has come out of astronomy is a project which is developing lightweight research grade gamma ray telescope mirrors and reflectors. In the 1990's the University of Durham Gamma Ray Astronomy Group were building a telescope, which had the mirrors been constructed from the traditional glass would have been prohibitively expensive. As a result they developed a vacuum forming technique (VFT)., ,Joy McKenny, Royal Society Edinburgh/PPARC Enterprise Fellow explains more,, ,"There was a need to economise without compromising on optical quality. By using VFT the resulting mirror is lightweight (less than 30% of a glass equivalent), robust, durable and inexpensive when manufactured in bulk. The initial application of this technology will be in the astronomical instrumentation market but the next stage will be to expand into other markets such as solar power and light architecture." , ,David Walker, Zeeko Ltd,Tel: [phone]. E-mail: [e-mail],Web site: http://www.zeeko.co.uk ,David Walker from Zeeko Ltd explains how the polishing technology originally developed for astronomical mirrors and lenses has developed to have much wider commercial appeal., ,"The building of optics for astronomy has long been a time consuming and costly business. After first developing a computer controlled polishing machine for large optics we turned our attention to developing similar technology for smaller optics in the industrial, defence and scientific,sectors. This resulted in the development of a simple universal tooling moved by a computer numerically controlled machine supported by some advanced software developments.", ,The needs of the astronomical community look set to grow with the planning of the next generation of Extremely Large Telescopes which will need thousands of mirror segments to tile enormous areas. Coupled with this, Zeeko is looking at a wide range of non-optical applications ranging from the manufacturing of knee-joint implants to the finishing of turbine,blades and industrial moulds., ,Roger Iles, SolarMetrics Ltd,Tel: [phone]. E-mail: [e-mail],Website: http://www.solarmetrics.com ,Initial work on the effects of cosmic radiation on passengers and aircrew on commercial flights, carried out through a PPARC Industrial Programme Support Scheme (PIPSS) Award, has resulted in the formation of SolarMetrics Ltd. Passengers and crew on transatlantic flights receive an average radiation dose from space equivalent to a chest X-ray. This dose appears to be larger during periods of intense high solar activity., ,Bryn Jones, Managing Director of SolarMetrics Ltd, an astrophysicist with over 15 years of military and commercial flying behind him explains, , ,"Cosmic radiation comes from the Galactic background and its intensity is affected by solar activity. SolarMetrics aims to provide intelligence about the impacts of Cosmic Radiation and Space Weather on air travellers, aircraft and air traffic systems. We have developed technology to directly measure the effects of radiation on human tissue. , ,The Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC) is the UK's strategic science investment agency. It funds research, education and public understanding in four broad areas of science - particle physics, astronomy, cosmology and space science. , ,PPARC is government funded and provides research grants and studentships to scientists in British universities, gives researchers access to world-class facilities and funds the UK membership of international bodies such as the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, CERN, the European Space Agency and the European Southern Observatory. It also contributes money for the UK telescopes overseas on La Palma, Hawaii, Australia and in Chile, the UK Astronomy Technology Centre at the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh and the MERLIN/VLBI National Facility.,

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