Basingstoke: Fungi are more than soup: appreciating a poorly understood kingdom

Basingstoke science enthusiasts are invited to this talk by Dr Stuart Skeates. The subject of this evenings talk is "Fungi are more than just soup: An appreciation of a poorly understood kingdom”.

Most of our talks are at the Basingstoke Makerspace, 65 New Road, Basingstoke RG21 7PW near the Basingstoke Council Offices. There is plenty of public parking nearby or some free parking in the Kwik Fit car park off Southern Road behind the building.

If you are interested in joining Basingstoke Makerspace, there are plenty of leaflets available on the night to find out more details.

SUMMARY
Stuart has been an enthusiastic amateur mycologist for most of his adult life after a good friend and mentor from the Natural History Museum introduced him to this little known kingdom. His talk will be a general introduction to the fungal kingdom looking not just at their diversity but also their evolutionary history, their roles in the environment and their interactions with humans, both helpful and problematic. Fungi can be found in almost every aspect of the world around us even being able to survive in space.

SPEAKER DETAILS
In his professional life he worked as a GP and medical educationalist, a career he realised was his calling following a brief diversion into mathematics. He has been leader of the Hampshire Fungus Recording group for the past fifteen years which has been documenting the 3000 species of fungi found in Hampshire. The group has found many new species to Britain and some newly described species.

VENUE:
The Tea Bar doors will be open from around 6:45pm before the talk which starts at 7:30pm, so you can get yourself a drink of tea or coffee and indulge in biscuits and cakes. If you want something alcoholic, then you will need to bring this with you ... the premises are not licenced. This is a chance for a social chat with other participants before the talk starts.

SCHEDULE
The talk and discussions start at 7.30pm prompt and will aim to finish around 9:00pm. Everyone will be welcome to stay and have a chat with the speaker after the talk.

The format of the evening is usually a talk of 30 to 40 minutes, followed by a short break so you can refill your cup of tea or coffee before the questions and discussions about the talk.

Cafe Sci talks are free and open to everyone. However we politely suggest a donation of £3 towards the speakers expenses, the venue and the tea, coffee and biscuits supplied during the evening. There will be a jar for you to put your donation into on the evening.

Cafe Scientifique is a place where, for the price of a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, anyone can come to explore and debate the latest ideas in science and technology.

Hosted by: Bob Clifford, Basingstoke Cafe Scientifique Organiser