Have you ever looked through a telescope? Do you know what to do in the event of a zombie outbreak? Have you ever been to a science slam or a science ceilidh?
The interactive, educational and fun events at this year’s Leeds Festival of Science, which runs from 13 to 27 March 2015, offers these experiences and more.
The Festival, which celebrates its 10th birthday this year, runs a separate programme of events for schools and the general public.
Dr Kerry Baker, one of the Leeds Festival of Science organisers, said: “Every year the Festival inspires people of all ages, but we have gone all out this year to make the 10th year our biggest and most successful event to date.”
Highlights of the Festival include:
Wednesday 18 March -
Science Slam: Battle of the Bodies, Brains and Theatre
Judge your favourite acts in this
fierce competition where science meets theatre.
Wednesday 18 March – BBC Stargazing Live
Leeds Astronomical Society hosts a star party to coincide with the new
series of BBC Stargazing Live, which returns to TV screen from 18 March. The
star party event will take place at The New Inn in Eccup.
Thursday 19 March – Science Ceilidh
Celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the Festival with a ceilidh, comedy
show, spoken word performance and other science surprises.
Saturday 21 March – Engineering Experience
Come along to the engineering marketplace for some interactive, hands-on
activities for adults and children of all ages.
Monday 23rd March – All Aboard the
Cloud Lab: Crossing America in an Airship
Dr Jim McQuaid will explain the
science behind the stories from the BBC series Operation Cloud Lab: Secrets of
the Skies, and show some of the amazing things that never even made it onto the
screen.
Wednesday 25 March – The Simpsons
and their Mathematical Secrets
The Simpsons is one of the most
successful shows in television history and in this lecture, author Simon Singh explains
how its gang of mathematically-gifted writers have explored everything from
calculus to geometry, pi to game theory, and infinitesimals to infinity.
Thursday 26 March – Zombie Science: Worst Case
Scenario
A spoof tutorial on the real science behind a disease outbreak.
Dr Baker continued: “People of all ages have a natural curiosity for science. We have tailored our school programme to support science education in the National Curriculum, with a list of public events so diverse in content that there is definitely something going on to grab everyone’s interest.”
The Festival coincides with British Science Week, organised by the British Science Association, promoting STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) activities across the UK to people of all ages.
Visit the Leeds Festival of Science website.
Further information
Journalists wishing to attend or film any of the events should contact the University’s press office on 0113 343 4031 or email pressoffice@leeds.ac.uk.
Dr Ruth Holland and Dr Kerry Baker, Leeds Festival of Science organisers from the University of Leeds, are also available to talk about any of the events.