Book Week, SALA, and National Science Week

So much happening in Adelaide in August!

We give those we love nicknames because love requires a word that belongs to us alone.Frederik Backman, Anxious People

This novel, Anxious People, begins with a bank robbery and the circumstances that force a group of strangers together. As the story unravels, it delves into their worries, regrets, and desires, revealing the universal struggle for understanding. The story celebrates human resilience and the power of chance encounters. It reminded me that everyone carries their own fears and insecurities beneath the surface of daily life. If I was still a primary school student, I think during Book Week I’d dress up as a bank robber this year.

I look forward to the month of August with delight because not only does Book Week start on the 19^th, but National Science Week commenced this weekend (12^th) as well. And if those two events were not enough, the South Australian Living Artists (SALA) Festival is celebrated all month long! For the creatives amongst us, there is truly an abundance of happenings on offer. Sometimes we forget that science is very much a creative process too. Science is a lively and imaginative process that isn't just about people in lab coats following strict rules. Basically, it's like exploring and finding out cool stuff. Just like artists use brushes and writers use pens to create things, scientists use ideas and experiments to understand how the world works. Being creative is what helps scientists discover new things.

I think science and art complement each other. Perhaps ‘complement’ is not the right word here. Science and art enhance each other. Both artists and scientists need creativity and imagination. They think of new ideas and solve problems in unique ways. Art and science connect with other things too. Scientists sometimes use art to explain complex ideas, and art can be influenced by what science discovers. Art and science make us feel things. Art can make us feel strong emotions, and science can show us how amazing the world is.

“In search for scientific discoveries, every problem is an opportunity. The more difficult the problem, the greater the likely importance of its solution.” – Edward O. Wilson, Letters to a Young Scientists

PS For the HDR students out there looking for some good book recommendations that would help boost their writing styles, these are two books I found not only useful but wonderfully written as well (by two ‘Stevens’).

The Sense of Style by Steven Pinker and On Writing by Stephen King