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Get to know the amazing team that not only makes BIG SCIENCE! possible but will also guide and support you throughout your journey.
Rodrigo is a Physicist and Science Educator, and the Founder and Head Scientist of BIG SCIENCE!
Rodrigo was initially drawn to science by trying to understand how things worked. When he was a very young kid he would take apart his toys just to figure out what was behind the noise, light or movement they made. Putting the toys back together was a completely different challenge!
Rodrigo very much enjoys the amazing feeling that science triggers of going from not understanding something to finally getting it. He also really likes the realisation that the more you know, the more you appreciate just how much there is to know.
Rodrigo has worked in many different science fields, from doing research in the world of the big, such as space and spacecraft studies, to the world of the very small, working in nanoscience and experimenting with atoms and electrons.
He loves sharing his passion for science and his extensive knowledge about the exciting and peculiar universe we live in.
BIG SCIENCE! projects: Your Place in the Universe, Mastering the Force, Building with Atoms.
Favourite science fact: Light elements, like Hydrogen and Helium, were created very shortly after the Big Bang; however, heavier elements were (and are still) made at the core of stars, where temperature and pressure are extremely high. When a star explodes, it spreads its contents through the universe, and the elements released combine to make everything we see: other stars, planets, and eventually plants and animals. We are also made of these elements, which were created inside of stars that eventually exploded. So this means we are literally made of star dust!
Rhia is a Physicist who found her way to science when she was very young by continually searching answers to her many questions about the universe.
Whether it was in the classroom or during many hours spent immersed at her local library, she was always driven to seek answers. Her curiosity combined with her love for science fiction naturally steered her towards the captivating field of astrophysics.
For Rhia, exploring the enigmatic workings of our world serves as a gateway to fresh perspectives and new ways of solving problems, and she still feels fascinated by the beautiful and strange way the universe works in.
BIG SCIENCE! project: Mastering the Force.
Favourite science fact: There are billions of tiny uncharged particles called neutrinos passing right through your body every second. Most of them come from the sun, but sometimes if you’re lucky, there might be one or two of these particles that have travelled all the way from outside our solar system, or from beyond our galaxy!
Kate is a Physicist who loves uncovering the endless and fascinating curiosities of the world of science.
She started experimenting at a very young age in the kitchen, trying to guess the outcome of whatever cake or muffin recipe her mum was (not) following, especially when they lacked the proper ingredients and had to improvise. Science has allowed Kate to continue to experiment to this day, except now she does it with chemicals and cutting-edge technologies, rather than with baking ingredients.
The unexpected and mesmerizing marvels that science holds are a daily motivator for Kate to continue to have fun experimenting.
BIG SCIENCE! project: Building with Atoms.
Favourite science fact: Spice is not taste, it is pain! The chemicals from spice trigger heat and pain receptors in the tongue.
Rocio (pronounced “Roh-SEE-oh”) is the Project Manager of BIG SCIENCE! and supports the scientists in running their amazing projects.
While she’s not a scientist herself, she’s always found science pretty awesome, particularly biology – the study of living things, from animals to plants to microbes.
If you have any questions about BIG SCIENCE! that are not answered on the FAQ page, please get in touch with Rocio at [email protected].
Favourite science fact: The Blue Whale weighs over 136 tonnes (that’s 136,000 kilograms!) and can be as long as over 30 meters in some parts of the world. It’s the largest animal known to have ever existed, bigger than even the largest dinosaurs!
