Science festival
Encyclopedia
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
. Many science festivals are annual events, and for most of them, the actual festival takes place over a period between a few days and more than a week.
History
Modern science festivals have a number of different roots. The British Association for the Advancement of ScienceBritish Association for the Advancement of Science
frame|right|"The BA" logoThe British Association for the Advancement of Science or the British Science Association, formerly known as the BA, is a learned society with the object of promoting science, directing general attention to scientific matters, and facilitating interaction between...
's Festival of Science evolved out of the society's annual meetings, first held in 1831, which were originally meant to provide a discussion forum for scientists, but later became a public showcase of science. The oldest science festival in the modern sense appears to be the Edinburgh International Science Festival
Edinburgh International Science Festival
The Edinburgh International Science Festival is a science festival which takes place each April in Edinburgh, Scotland. The festival features hundreds of talks, tours and exhibitions for children, families and adults in locations around the city...
, which was first held in 1988. More annual science events appeared following the success of Edinburgh, most notably the Cheltenham Science Festival
Cheltenham Science Festival
The Cheltenham Science Festival is one of the UK's leading science festivals, and is part of Cheltenham Festivals: also responsible for the Jazz, Music and Literature Festivals that run every year.-Introduction and History:...
in 2002.
As science organizations and funding bodies put ever more emphasis on outreach to foster public understanding both of the results and the wider relevance of science, recent years have seen the creation of a number of new science festivals. Since 2002, there is an umbrella organization for European science festivals and similar events, the European Science Event Association.
The US has been something of a latecomer as far as regular science festivals are concerned, although the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Association for the Advancement of Science
The American Association for the Advancement of Science is an international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsibility, and supporting scientific education and science outreach for the...
includes a number of public events. Focusing on one particular science, the physics festival "Mastering the Mysteries of the Universe", was held in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1999 in association with the centennial of the American Physical Society
American Physical Society
The American Physical Society is the world's second largest organization of physicists, behind the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The Society publishes more than a dozen scientific journals, including the world renowned Physical Review and Physical Review Letters, and organizes more than 20...
.
Since 2004, there has been a science festival in Pittsburgh (the SciTech festival; from 2005 on known as the SciTech Spectacular), and new science festivals have been held in Cambridge, Massachusetts (the Cambridge Science Festival, first held in April 2007) and in New York City (the World Science Festival
World Science Festival
The World Science Festival is a science festival held in New York City that is held annually in the summer. The 2008 inaugural festival was held May 28 – June 1 and consisted mainly of panel discussions and on-stage conversations, accompanied by multimedia presentations.The festival was the...
held at the end of May 2008) and in March 2009, San Diego hosted the first west coast science festival, the San Diego Science Festival founded by Larry Bock.
As of 2009 the Science Festival Alliance, a consortium of major festivals formed with a 3-year NSF grant, has supported the growth of independent regional science festivals, with an initial emphasis on celebration in communities throughout the US.
In late October 2010, the USA Science and Engineering Festival
USA Science and Engineering Festival
USA Science and Engineering Festival was a science festival in Washington, D.C. that founder Larry Book deemed the country’s first national science festival. The inaugural event was held from October 10, 2010 through October 24, 2010 and was planned to be a yearly event. The two week festival...
was the "country’s first national science festival." This national emphasis was based partly on encouraging local events to coincide with the major event in Washington DC.
Festivals can vary greatly in size and scope. A university might stage a small festival in its hometown; on the other end of the scale, the 2006 British Association
British Association for the Advancement of Science
frame|right|"The BA" logoThe British Association for the Advancement of Science or the British Science Association, formerly known as the BA, is a learned society with the object of promoting science, directing general attention to scientific matters, and facilitating interaction between...
Festival of Science held on September 2–9 in Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
, England, was attended by more than 174,000 visitors.
Typical festival events
Science festivals feature a great variety of events. A classic format is to have a series of lectures, with topics ranging from cutting-edge research to unusual perspectives on science. For instance, the 2007 Edinburgh festival Big Ideas series includes talks on what makes racing cars fast, the molecularMolecule
A molecule is an electrically neutral group of at least two atoms held together by covalent chemical bonds. Molecules are distinguished from ions by their electrical charge...
basis of food preparation, the neurobiology of love
Love
Love is an emotion of strong affection and personal attachment. In philosophical context, love is a virtue representing all of human kindness, compassion, and affection. Love is central to many religions, as in the Christian phrase, "God is love" or Agape in the Canonical gospels...
and beauty
Beauty
Beauty is a characteristic of a person, animal, place, object, or idea that provides a perceptual experience of pleasure, meaning, or satisfaction. Beauty is studied as part of aesthetics, sociology, social psychology, and culture...
and the properties of quark
Quark
A quark is an elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter. Quarks combine to form composite particles called hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons, the components of atomic nuclei. Due to a phenomenon known as color confinement, quarks are never directly...
s. Most science festivals include hands-on activities similar to those found in science center
Science center
A science center or science centre is a science museum that emphasizes a hands-on approach, featuring interactive exhibits that encourage visitors to experiment and explore....
s. Another popular theme is the interaction of science and culture.
Science festivals are also aimed at playing an important, if informal part in secondary science education
Science education
Science education is the field concerned with sharing science content and process with individuals not traditionally considered part of the scientific community. The target individuals may be children, college students, or adults within the general public. The field of science education comprises...
. Many have events specifically aimed at students and/or teachers, such as workshops or offering curriculum-linked workshops and science shows to regional schools throughout the year.
External links
- European Science Events Association
- Mapping the World's Science Festivals - From Nature Publishing Group's Team Blog