11 – 24 March 2013
Join the exploration www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival
Welcome
Welcome to the Cambridge Science Festival, your opportunity to discover, question and take part in scientific activity at the University of Cambridge and partner organisations. Explore research that is leading the world at hundreds of events discussing science and its place in our lives. Come to our family open days on 16, 17 and 23 March and join in conversations throughout the entire Festival fortnight.
Highlights Page 4
Guest Director’s picks Check out Benedict Cumberbatch’s highlights in the Festival programme. Page 22
The modern alchemist with Dr Peter Wothers
Highlights this year include Professor John Gurdon, winner of the 2012 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine, science comedian Robin Ince, author Simon Mayo and up-and-coming BBC science presenter Helen Czerski. We’re excited to welcome Benedict Cumberbatch as our Guest Director, who searched for clues in our programme and outlines his top picks over the page. What will yours be? We couldn’t run this Festival without the support of our researchers, volunteers and sponsors. Hundreds of people from the University of Cambridge, partner organisations and research institutes work together to offer the Cambridge Science Festival and we hope you enjoy it. With so much on, there really is something for everyone. Challenge your mind, try something new and join us on a journey of discovery and excitement.
Illustrations by Tim Parker: timparkerillustration.com
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Dr Wothers will be sharing some of the highlights from his Royal Institution Christmas Lectures shown on the BBC. Warning: Loud bangs and explosions! Pages 30 – 32
Science on Sunday Building on the popularity of Science on Saturday, a selection of favourites for all ages will be on offer again, including hands on fun in the Biology Zone and Top Talks in the Babbage.
How to use this programme The programme pages are colour-coded to help you plan your visit to Cambridge Science Festival. Events are listed chronologically and we have a new Science on Saturday pull-out section with map in the centre pages to help you navigate your way around our big family fun day. Our events are held in a large number of buildings around Cambridge; accessibility information for all these venues can be found on page 43.
11 – 24 March Throughout the Festival pages 5 – 12, 33 – 37 16 March Science on Saturday pages 13 – 29 17 March Science on Sunday pages 30 – 32 23 March Science on Saturday 2 pages 38 – 44 Booking is required where mentioned and unless otherwise stated can be done at www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival, or by calling 01223 766766, or by emailing csf@admin.cam.ac.uk. Booking opens at 10am on 4 February and lines are open Monday – Friday, 10am – 4.30pm. Booking closes 24 hours before the event takes place. We’re a very small team so please keep trying if you can’t get through first time or book via our website.
Tips for attending the Festival • • • • •
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There is no need to book for events unless otherwise stated. There may still be spaces available at events which are listed as ‘pre book’; you are welcome to turn up and enquire on the day, but we cannot guarantee entry. Arrive on time for events; entry may be refused if the venue is full or if you are late. All events are free-of-charge unless otherwise stated. Children should be accompanied at all times and observe the minimum age guide in the event description; those under the minimum age may not be admitted owing to the nature and content of the event. Please call ahead to check. Your attendance at any Festival event signifies your agreement to comply with the following guidelines for attendance: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival/guidance
The Festival gets very busy with around 30,000 people attending over the two weeks, so we ask for your patience with staff and volunteers as queues can occur and resources are limited. The Festival is hosted in working departments and is run by staff and student volunteers. We are trying to give you the best experience possible, while keeping events free-of-charge and accessible to everyone. Please check: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival for the latest updates on events and follow us on: www.facebook.com/cambridgesciencefestival www.twitter.com/camscience #CSF2013
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A note from our Guest Director, Benedict Cumberbatch I'm delighted to be the Guest Director of the 2013 Cambridge Science Festival. My link to a science festival may seem a little tenuous at first glance. And yet as an actor who has researched playing Stephen Hawking, Joseph Hooker, Heisenburg and both Frankenstein and his creation I've long had a passion for all fields of science. It really all began at school in the biology lab and keeping mice! But ever since then and partly thanks to my ridiculously privileged existence as an actor, I have been able to keep that amateur interest and investigation of science alive and build a very personal relationship with some of my heroes from that world like Professor Hawking. I believe science and our engagement with it has reached a crucial crossroads. Whether it's fighting disease on a cellular scale, tackling climate change, solving food and energy crises, exploring the outer regions of the universe or simply making it easier to shop online – science and technology play an increasingly integral part of our daily lives. And yet to the layperson like me, the intellectual and ethical complexities and technical detail can often seem daunting and distancing. Hence a festival of this range and accessibility is a hugely important bridge between the public and science. While it has been an exciting time for science, with the work at CERN producing incredible results in the search for the HiggsBoson particle, it's vital for us to look beyond the headlines. And as while there is much to marvel at, scientific discovery is a step-bystep, day-by-day process that involves incredible hard work and devotion. Those aspects can be related to so many of our lives and other non-scientific pursuits.
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We hope the programme entertains and inspires you to take a deeper look at our extraordinary world and our existence in it and the universe. With Science on Saturday, the whole family is encouraged to participate in/with hands on scientific exhibits and activities. You can try anything from dissecting owl pellets to extracting and taking home your DNA and finding out what makes you you! Personally, as someone who has portrayed Sherlock Holmes, I'm of course particularly looking forward to Professor Jim Woodhouse on 8 March talking about why the violin is so hard to play, and also on 16 March testing my real-life deduction skills in the mock crime scene at the Central Science Library during Science on Saturday. I'm also a huge fan of last year’s Guest Director Robin Ince; his mixture of humour and insight is as informative as it is entertaining, so watch out for his 'The Importance of Being Interested' on Sunday 17 March. Robin will bring science within the reach of all of us and dare us to become engaged. This is surely the ambition of science at school as well as a way to reignite adult interest. Have a wonderful Festival and hopefully I'll see you there! Live long and think hard! Benedict Cumberbatch
11 – 15 March The Science Festival starts here! Welcome to the first week of events at the Science Festival, a time to immerse yourself in talks, tours and discussions on a range of topics from infectious diseases and conservation, to how our polar regions enable us to study space technologies close to home. Events in these pages are listed chronologically by time and date and show the type of activity, the appropriate age and whether you need to pre-book. Access information for all venues is provided at the end of this programme and there are maps in the centre pages to help you navigate your way around Cambridge. We have over 200 events on offer at the Science Festival this year, with something for everyone, whatever your age and interests.
Highlights Page 7
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Caught on camera: engineering in action
The future of energy
Cell replacement in age and disease: what are the prospects?
A stunning selection of entries from the photography competition at the Department of Engineering are on display during the Festival at the Michaelhouse Café.
Join a panel of experts as they explore the possibilities for finding a sustainable future.
Nobel Prize winner Professor John Gurdon outlines his work and looks towards the future for cell replacement.
Throughout the Festival
Throughout the Festival
Throughout the Festival
6.30pm – 9pm, 4, 11, 18 March
Reproduction on film: making babies Cambridge Arts Picturehouse, 38-39 St Andrew’s Street, CB2 3AR The sometimes-winding road to parenthood can be a source of great joy and much anguish. This third series of ‘Reproduction on Film’ charts changes in cinematic representations of pregnancy, childbirth and babies from the 1940s to the present day. It is shown by the Generation to Reproduction programme with support from the Wellcome Trust. 6.30pm, 4 March Miracle of Morgan’s Creek 6.30pm, 11 March Junior 6pm, 18 March Vicky Donor Event: 1, Map: 2, Film, Adults, Pre book visit: www.picturehouses.co.uk/ cinema/Arts_Picturehouse_ Cambridge, £8.50 7.15pm – 9.30pm, 8 March
Why is the violin so hard to play? West Road Concert Hall, West Road, CB3 9DP Professor Jim Woodhouse (Engineering) gives a pre-concert talk with examples of how computer modelling combined with acoustical measurements can shed light on ‘playability’ of bowedstring instruments. This talk is followed by Magdalena Filipczak performing virtuoso works for violin including Beethoven’s Romance with the Cambridge Graduate Orchestra. The concert closes with Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique. Event: 2, Map: 70, Demonstration, Ages 12+, Pre book email: president@cambridgegraduateorchestra.com or visit: cgowitchinghour-csf.eventbrite.co.uk £12, £8 concessions, £5 student, special offer: £15 family (one adult and one child aged 16 or under). This ticket must be purchased in advance
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12.30pm – 1pm, 9 March Grafton Shopping Centre 8pm – 9pm, 16 March Gala Performance, Sir Humphrey Cripps Auditorium, Magdalene College, CB3 0AG
Inside an unquiet mind Inside an Unquiet Mind (IAUM3) is a powerful musical theatre project taking people and their mental health experiences on tour in local community settings to explore perceptions and challenge stigma. A full-length gala performance will be premiered as part of this year’s Science Festival. Both the gala event and the staged ‘hit and run’ performance will bring together those that we label service users, scientists, mental health professionals and professional musicians. Together they create pieces of original musical theatre containing collective emotive and interactive portrayals of personal experience. Event: 3, Map: online, 42, Performance, All ages 6pm – 7pm, 11 March
The amazing world of cells, molecules … and cancer Mill Lane Lecture Room 9, Mill Lane, CB2 1RX Dr Robin Hesketh looks at what makes us work and how we develop diseases when bits of our body go wrong. We now understand how the code of DNA is transcribed and can reveal both the stunning beauty of cellular life and its staggering complexity. The essence of cellular life is cell proliferation – making two cells from one – and it is abnormal cell proliferation that gives rise to cancers. Much is known of the damage that accumulates in DNA to drive cancer and great progress has been made in treating these diseases, particularly by drugs. Even so, the challenges remain immense but the prospects are incredibly exciting. Event: 4, Map: 44, Talk, Ages 14+
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
If science is the answer, what are the questions? Reflections on science and faith Nave of Wesley Methodist Church, Christs’s Pieces, CB1 1LG Professor Alister McGrath will give a talk covering the rich and complex relationship between Christianity and the sciences. The talk will focus on current debates raised by ‘New Atheists’ such as Richard Dawkins about the limits of science, the ‘warfare’ of science and religion, and whether the sciences are intrinsically atheistic. He will also consider some of the important questions of ethics and spirituality that emerge from engagement with the natural world. Free refreshments will be served before the event. Event: 5, Map: online, Talk, Adults 8pm – 9pm, 11 March
The cost of conservation Mill Lane Lecture Room 9, Mill Lane, CB2 1RX Conservation costs money, but how do we put a price on the very existence of a species or ecosystem? By the services it provides humans? By the valuable genetic material it might contain? Is putting a price on nature a necessary response or should this be a case of values not value? Join a panel of experts to discuss this controversial and increasingly relevant issue. Event: 6, Map: 44, Talk, Ages 14+ 8am – 5pm, 11 – 16, 18 – 23 March
Caught on camera: engineering in action Michaelhouse Café, Trinity Street, CB2 1SU Entries from the photography competition at the Department of Engineering, sponsored by Carl Zeiss, provide a stunning visual insight into the ways in which engineering makes a beautiful and vital contribution to our lives. Event: 7, Map: 43, Exhibition, Drop in, All ages
Discovering a Roman landscape
11am – 4pm, 11 – 15, 18 – 22 March
Discovering a Roman landscape North West Cambridge Development Site; access via track road off Huntingdon Road opposite Howes Place Do not miss this opportunity for your class to see and handle the newest archaeological discoveries in Cambridge. The Cambridge Archaeological Unit will be undertaking excavations at the North West Cambridge development site and are inviting schools to visit. All ages and Key Stages can be accommodated. Event: 9, Map: online, Tour, School parties only, Pre book* 10am – 4pm, 12 – 16, 19 – 23 March
Frozen worlds Polar Museum, Lensfield Road, CB2 1ER The Polar regions are a portal for exploring space. This exhibition presents some extraordinary technology developed to probe the most challenging places in the Universe. It examines how humans exist in harsh and otherwise inhospitable conditions such as the Poles and space. There will be activity boxes for people to use during their visit. Event: 10, Map: 51, Exhibition, Drop in, All ages 11.30am – 5pm, 12 – 17, 19 – 24 March
9am – 9pm, 11 – 24 March
Map it
Photographs... developed in coffee
Kettle’s Yard, Castle Street, Cambridge CB3 0AQ Pick up a free copy of our new ‘art meets science’ mind-map, commissioned especially for the Cambridge Science Festival. Artist Anne-Mie Melis has transformed our ‘Idea Hunters’ workshop into a family-friendly photomontage of facts, ideas and flights of fancy to encourage you to find your own links between art and science. Event: 11, Map: 36, Trail, Drop in, All ages
Grads Café, University Centre, Mill Lane, CB2 1RU Discover a novel application for coffee: developing black and white photographs in it! Come and see a selection of photographs developed in caffenol, together with an explanation of the science behind this environmentally friendly alternative to commercial developers and instructions on how to have a go yourself. Event: 8, Map: 67, Exhibition, Drop in, All ages
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Throughout the Festival
7.45pm – 9.15pm, 11 March
Throughout the Festival
6pm – 7pm, 12 March
Molecular advances in the diagnosis of infectious diseases Mill Lane Lecture Room 3, Mill Lane, CB2 1RX Sponsored by Cambridge University Press
Francesca Happé, WiSETI lecture: my mum’s a scientist
5pm – 6pm, 12 March
WiSETI lecture: my mum’s a scientist Peterhouse College, Trumpington St, CB2 1RD Sponsored by Schlumberger Cambridge Research
Professor Francesca Happé is a specialist in autism and Asperger syndrome research from the Institute of Psychiatry. A mum of three, she has also developed a set of children's books promoting female scientists and was a Royal Institution ‘Scientists for the New Century’ Lecturer. Event: 12, Map: 49, Talk, Ages 16+, Pre book email: equality@admin.cam.ac.uk
Tim Wreghitt explores the recent development of molecular techniques to diagnose infections in humans. These techniques have been of significant benefit to individuals and have had great impact on how we detect and respond to epidemics of infectious diseases. Event: 14, Map: 44, Talk, Ages 14+ 6pm – 7.30pm, 12 March
A portal to space: frozen worlds panel discussion Polar Museum, Lensfield Road, CB2 1ER The Polar regions offer impressive opportunities to study space, as planetary analogues and a way of exploring human endurance in difficult and isolated conditions. The Polar Museum presents a panel discussion by leading experts on current research in Antarctica. Event: 15, Map: 51, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book* NASA
5pm – 6pm, 6pm – 7pm, (Practical sessions) 7pm – 8pm, (Talk) 12 March
Accidental discoveries Cambridge Regional College, C019 Biology Lab, C133 Chemistry Lab, King’s Hedges Road, CB4 2QT Join in practical activities in biology and chemistry. The biology practical looks at the discoveries of penicillin and saccharin, viewing bacteria and food testing. Chemistry practicals will centre on the discovery of vulcanized rubber, Teflon and the colour mauve. This will be followed by a talk by Lata Sahonta, of the University of Cambridge Device Materials Group on ‘Matter in our Universe’. Event: 13, Map: online, Talk/Hands on, Ages 10+, Pre book tel: 01223 418580 or email: kedwards@camre.ac.uk
Accidental discoveries
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Astronomy by microscope
6pm – 7.30pm, 12 March
Astronomy by microscope The Open University, 12 Hills Road, CB2 1PF Traditionally, astronomers study stars and planets by telescope. But we can also learn about them by using a microscope – through studying meteorites. From meteorites, we can learn about the processes and materials that shaped the Solar System and our planet. Tiny grains within meteorites have come from other stars, giving information about the stellar neighbourhood in which the Sun was born. In her lecture, Professor Monica Grady will describe how the microscope is another tool that can be employed to trace stellar and planetary processes. Event: 16, Map: 63, Talk, Ages 16+, Pre book tel: 01223 584647 or email: R06-Outreach@open.ac.uk
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
Cambridge Science Centre: hands on science
Genomes on a grand scale
7pm – 9pm, 12 March
Genomes on a grand scale Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinxton, CB10 1SA How are the latest tools in genetics enabling scientists to discover the secrets held within the human genome? Find out how scientists are comparing thousands of human genomes and epigenomes to understand human variation and the genetics behind human disease. Dr Matt Hurles and Dr Paul Flicek from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and EMBL European Bioinformatics Institute will discuss their involvement in global collaborations in an evening of ground-breaking genome science. Event: 17, Map: online, Talk, Ages 16+, Pre book tel: 01223 496995, email: pubengage@sanger.ac.uk or visit: gogs.eventbrite.co.uk 7.30pm – 8.30pm, 12 March
How to spot a shabby statistic Babbage Lecture Theatre, New Museums Site, CB2 3QH 2013 is the International Year of Statistics, and as data gets more open we can expect to be bombarded with bucket-loads of numbers, often being used to try to impress and influence us. But can we trust all these stats? Professor David Spiegelhalter suggests some ways to help detect the naughty numbers in the news. Event: 18, Map: 4, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book*
Cambridge Science Centre, 18 Jesus Lane, CB5 8BQ Come along and discover the brand new public hands on science centre in the middle of Cambridge. This new venue has interactive exhibits, workshops and demos running throughout the Festival for all the family. See www.cambridgesciencecentre.org for details. Event: 20, Map: 8, Exhibition/Hands on, Drop in, Ages 5+, £3.50, £2.50 concessions and children, under 5s free, family pass £10
Science and the Renaissance printing press: a fruitful encounter
5pm – 6pm, 13 March
Science and the Renaissance printing press: a fruitful encounter Cambridge University Library, Morison Room, West Road, CB3 9DR A chance to view some of the earliest scientific incunabula, early printed material, from Cambridge University Library’s collections. Medical, astronomical, astrological and mathematical treatises and books were illuminated by hand, decorated with woodcut illustrations and diagrams, or supplemented with engraved instruments. Event: 21, Map: 10, Talk, Ages 16+, Pre book*
8pm – 9.30pm, 12 March
How curiosity turned into science Department of Pharmacology Lecture Theatre, Tennis Court Road, CB2 1PD Sponsored by Bird and Bird
Award-winning author Dr Philip Ball will examine how our inquisitive impulse first became sanctioned – when it changed from a vice to a virtue, and when it became permissible to ask any and every question about the world. Event: 19, Map: 22, Talk, Ages 10+, Pre book visit: www.scisoc.com/booking
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Throughout the Festival
1pm – 5pm, 12 – 15, 19 – 22 March 10am – 5pm, 16, 17, 23, 24 March
Throughout the Festival
6pm – 7.30pm, 7pm – 8.30pm, 13 March
7.30pm – 8.45pm, 13 March
Laboratory tour and introduction to the world of doping control
The future of energy
The HFL Sport Science Laboratory, Newmarket Road, Fordham, CB7 5WW Join a tour around the modern laboratories at HFL Sports Science. Take a look at a real forensic laboratory and see how we compare to the TV world of CSI. Our expert scientists will be on hand to answer questions and demonstrate the techniques and equipment we use in our medication and doping control work, including undertaking all of the equine testing for the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics. Event: 22, Map: online, Tour, Arrive on time, Ages 16+, Pre book* 6pm – 8.30pm, 13 March
Riley Auditorium, Clare College, Queen’s Road CB3 9AJ Sponsored by Science AAAS
Across the boundaries of academic disciplines, energy researchers are working toward a more sustainable future. But what does that future look like, and what possibilities exist for reaching that goal? Tim Radford, former Science Editor at The Guardian, will chair this panel discussion with Cambridge researchers Richard McMahon, Julian Allwood, Emily Shuckburgh and Tony Roulstone around challenges in sustainability – technical, intellectual, behavioural and political – and recent developments in energy research toward meeting these challenges. Event: 25, Map: 73, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book*
A window on the brain Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, MRC, 15 Chaucer Road, CB2 7EF Come for an hour of hands-on practical demonstrations followed by a series of short talks. For the first hour, there will be practical demonstrations of experiments for you to try out and informative posters to view, with lots of our scientists on hand to explain their work. At 7pm three different talks begin in the Lecture Theatre. Each talk will be 20 – 25 minutes followed by questions. Light refreshments (tea/sandwiches) will be served. Event: 23, Map: online, Talk, Ages 14
1.30pm – 2.30pm, 13, 20 March 10.30am – 11.30am, 12.30pm – 1.30pm, 22 March
Sedgwick storytime: tall tales from the Broomsquire
SIR CAM
Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences, Downing Street, CB2 3EQ Take a magical journey with the Broomsquire. Discover his fossils and the stories he tells about them. Can you spot which of them are true, and which are tall tales? With Cambridge storyteller Marion Leeper. Children must be accompanied by a parent or carer. Event: 26, Map: 18, Performance/Hands on, Ages 3 – 7, families, Pre book* 5.30pm – 7pm, 14 March
Focusing on ADHD Babbage Lecture Theatre, New Museums Site, CB2 3QH Supported by The Wellcome Trust and the British Association of Psychopharmacology
Biological design: the history and future of plant architecture
7.30pm – 8.30pm, 13 March
Biological design: the history and future of plant architecture Sainsbury Laboratory Auditorium, 47 Bateman Street, CB2 1LR Dr Siobhan Braybrook gives a talk about the history of plant architecture at the Stirling Award-winning Sainsbury Laboratory. How and why do plants have the shapes they have, how has domestication influenced this and how can we use plants as inspiration for new materials and design principles? Event: 24, Map: online, Talk, Ages 16+, Pre book*
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Poor concentration, hyperactivity and impulsivity are common in people with ADHD. These symptoms may be distressing and cause difficulties in daily life, but what causes them? How can they best be treated? This Brain Awareness Week discussion panel includes Professor Barbara Sahakian, Dr Ulrich Müller and Dr Sam Chamberlain. Event: 27, Map: 4, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book*
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
6.30pm – 8.30pm, 14 March
Roger go to yellow three: the sense of hearing
Look what chemistry has done for me
Whipple Museum of the History of Science, Free School Lane, CB2 3RH Supported by the Wellcome Trust
The science of hearing in crowds or ‘the cocktail party problem’ is explored through music and performed by award-winning vocal ensemble, The Clerks. Event: 28, Map: 71, Performance, Ages 12+, Pre book email: hps-whipple-museum@lists.cam.ac.uk SIR CAM
Royal Society of Chemistry, Thomas Graham House, Cambridge Science Park, CB4 0WF An informal and informative event showcasing the experiences of chemists in academia and industry. The event offers an excellent opportunity to learn more from real chemists about possible career options in chemistry. A free buffet is included and there will be an opportunity to talk informally with the speakers. Event: 31, Map: online, Talk, Ages 16+, Pre book visit: www.rsc.org/ConferencesAndEvents/ conference/alldetails.cfm?evid=112284 7.30pm – 10.30pm, 14 March
Bright club
Challenging the price of drugs
6.30pm – 8pm, 14 March
Challenging the price of drugs Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, New Museums Site, CB2 3RA Why does developing drugs cost so much? Why does it take so long? What’s the difference between branded drugs and a generic? In a panel discussion with Professor Gerard Evan and Sir Gregory Winter amongst others, these dilemmas can be pondered and a fundamental understanding of drug development can be gained. Event: 29, Map: 16, Talk, Ages 16+ 6.30pm – 8.15pm, 14 March
Travelling Salesman Centre for Mathematical Sciences, Wilberforce Road, CB3 0WA Award-winning indie film Travelling Salesman is an intellectual thriller which imagines that four brilliant mathematicians discover a solution to a major unsolved mathematical problem, P vs NP, with profound implications for computer science and cryptography. Offered $10 million by the US government for exclusive access to their work, they must grapple with the practical and moral consequences as they make a life-changing decision. Event: 30, Map: 12, Film, Ages 16+, Pre book visit: plus.maths.org/PvsNP £5.50
The Portland Arms, 129 Chesterton Road, CB4 3BA The thinking person’s variety night, with a special guest on stage alongside fellows and researchers giving stand-up comedy a go for the first time. Join academics from Cambridge and beyond for a lighthearted look at their research. It’s a comedy night with a difference and has some special guests on the bill not to be missed. Event: 32, Map: online, Performance, Ages 18+, Pre book email: andy@thinkoutreach.org or visit: cambridge.brightclub.org £8 2pm – 4pm, 15 March
The science behind conservation: caring for museum collections Fitzwilliam Museum, Trumpington Street, CB2 1RB Take a rare peek behind the scenes of the Fitzwilliam Museum with a conservator and find out about the methods used to tackle damaging effects of everyday life, from sunlight to pests. Event: 33, Map: 60, Talk and Tour, Ages 14+, Pre-book tel: 01223 332904, email: fitzmuseum-education@lists.cam.ac.uk or visit: www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Throughout the Festival
6pm – 7pm, 14 March
Throughout the Festival
SIR CAM
7pm – 8.30pm, 15 March
The science and science fiction of immortality: can we and should we live forever?
Andrew Chamblin MemorialLecture: the infinity puzzle – from Higgs Bosun to the LHC
5pm – 6pm, 15 March
Andrew Chamblin Memorial Lecture: the infinity puzzle – from the Higgs Boson to the LHC Babbage Lecture Theatre, New Museums Site, CB2 3QH Professor Frank Close takes you on a journey from when Rutherford and Bohr discovered the nuclear atom 100 years ago to the present day. The work of Peter Higgs and others around 50 years ago inspired the theory of this basic structure of matter. In July 2012, discovery of what is probably the Higg's Boson and experimental proof of the theory was announced, and speculations about Nobel prizes mushroomed. This talk reviews the ideas and the history, and assesses how the credits should be shared. As for recommendations to the Nobel Committee: these might not be what you expect. Event: 34, Map: 4, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book* 7pm – 8pm, 15 March
Think you can handle outer space? Institute of Astronomy, Sackler Lecture Theatre, Hoyle Building, Madingley Road, CB3 0HA Discover the extremes of the Universe! Join us as we find out what it’s like on other planets and in outer space! See what happens to everyday things as they go from the burning hot to the freezing cold and up to extreme pressures. Get ready for some loud bangs and mess! An explosive talk about space. Event: 35, Map: 34, Talk, Ages 8+
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Department of Biochemistry, Sanger Building, Tennis Court Road, CB2 1QW Death is in decline: average human lifespan continues to increase at the startling rate of five hours per day. Are we on the threshold of immortality or infinite ageing? What is ageing and can it be defeated? Is immortality desirable? These crucial issues will be discussed by immortalist Aubrey de Grey, philosopher Stephen Cave, biochemist Guy Brown, and the audience. Come and find out what the future has in store for you! Event: 36, Map: 15, Talk, Ages 16+ 7.30pm – 8.30pm, 15 March
Cell replacement in age and disease: what are the prospects? Babbage Lecture Theatre, New Museums Site, CB2 3QH Sponsored by TTP Group
In this talk, Nobel Prize winner Professor John Gurdon will discuss recent developments in the field of nuclear reprogramming by which new embryonic cells can be derived from adult cells. The lecture will cover ethical and legal concerns in this field. Event: 37, Map: 4, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book* 10am – 4pm 16, 17, 23, 24 March
Inventions and discoveries that help us understand the natural world Shepreth Wildlife Park, Station Road, Shepreth, SG8 6PZ We offer 'Muybridge to Madagascar' – a look at how the evolution of animation has brought the natural world into our living rooms, with Lainie Bazzoni and Pete Skinner. Find out how palaeontology, genetics and advancements in technologies improves our understanding of the inter-relationship of species at 'Re-gene-eration' with Dan Raven. Hands-on animal handling sessions will also occur throughout the day. Event: 38, Map: 56, Hands on, Drop in, Ages 5+, Admission charges apply
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
Science on Saturday
Science on Saturday starts here! 16 March Science on Saturday is our busiest day during the Science Festival. With over 100 free events across the city, it’s a great opportunity to see how scientists, engineers and mathematicians shape our world. Events run from 10am to 4pm and we’ve got lots on offer, from hands on activities to talks and demonstrations from students, staff and volunteers from across the University and beyond. Don’t forget to collect your ‘bug battles’ cards as well. These are available at various locations around the Festival and help you discover the wonderful world of microorganisms. Can’t get round everything in just the one day? Why not come back tomorrow!
Highlights Page 14
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Itch Rocks
The secret of the sinister scientist
ThinkCon
BBC Radio 2 Drivetime host and children’s author Simon Mayo joins us to talk about the new adventures of Itch, a 14 year old element hunter.
It looks like a crime has been committed at the Festival. Can you help Sherlock crack the case?
Something for an older audience and back for 2013, ThinkCon is a day of short talks on everything you could possibly imagine!
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10am – 11am
Itch Rocks Join author and BBC Radio 2 Drivetime host Simon Mayo as he talks about his children’s books Itch and Itch Rocks. Itch is a 14-year old, accident-prone hero whose habit of collecting all the elements in the periodic table gets him in some seriously dangerous situations. When he discovers a new and very powerful element, terrorists and governments will stop at nothing to track Itch down. Itch is forced to pit his brain against them using science as his weapon and elements as his gadgets. With the element safely disposed of, Itch returns to school – with a sizeable security detail in tow – and life looks as if it’s back to normal…. With live experiments from chemist Andrea Sella it’s guaranteed to be an effervescent event! Simon Mayo Event: 39 11.45am – 12.45pm
Strange ice Though you will find it in every refrigerator in the world, ice is a material so strange that it breaks almost every rule in our textbooks. Yet its very familiarity makes us take it and its properties completely for granted. In this demonstration lecture, coinciding with the centenary of X-ray diffraction, Professor Andrea Sella will explore how we know about its properties, how it compares with other ices, and the way in which ice may be the canary warning us that our futures may be much less certain than we imagine. Event: 40
Andrea Sella
1.30pm – 2.30pm
Science pranks BBC 1’s Britain’s Brightest saw unsuspecting members of the public confounded by Steve Mould's mindbending experiments. Discover other psychological tricks and hair-raising practical jokes with a scientific twist at his prank-filled show. Event: 41 3.30pm – 4.30pm
Anturus – survival science An interactive adventure show designed by Anturus and Scintillate. In this hour-long show, get lost high in the mountains and deep in the forests as we make our own compasses harnessing the Earth’s magnetic field, look at the principles of being rescued and learn why you should never drink wild water unless you know a bit about microbiology. Being caught out in the wind, the nutrition of bugs and outdoor clothing are just a few of the ideas we’ll look at in this exciting science show and perhaps you too will become a survival scientist! Event: 42, Ages 12+
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*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
at the Arts School Room A Map: 3, Talk 10am – 10.45am
Dinobores: why mammals are way cool Think dinosaurs were the most exciting animals ever to walk the Earth? Join PhD student Nick Crumpton as he fights in the mammal corner, dispelling myths about your earliest furry relatives, explaining why they became so successful and why dinosaurs just couldn’t hack it in the Age of Mammals. Event: 43, Ages 8+ 11.15am – 12noon
Cracking the code: the genetics of superheroes The comic books are filled with mutants; heroes and villains whose special abilities are genetic in their origin. But what are real mutants like, and could we one day use genetics to make us superhuman? Join Simon Watt to find out. Event: 44, Ages 12+ 12.45pm – 1.30pm
Sciencelele singalong with Helen Arney Bring your ukulele or just your singing voice to a fun family show that mixes singalong songs with science experiments. Join geek songstress Helen Arney and her trusty scientist side-kick, Michael Contario, as they explain how hot you'd get by ‘Walking on Sunshine’, which genes make up a ‘Brown Eyed Girl’, when is the next ‘Blue Moon’ and why do we ‘Dream a Little Dream’ at night? Don't forget, you're part of the show too! There'll be chords to play along and words to sing too, so get ready to take part in the first ever Sciencelele singalong! Event: 45, All ages, Pre book* 2pm – 2.45pm
The evolutionary Olympics We spend a large part of our waking lives moving from place to place, but how we do so rarely gets a second thought. It is all too easy to miss the fact that we are locomotory machines of dazzling sophistication. But that's not all. We are the way we are thanks to our long evolutionary history, and if we look at this history closely enough, we see that the need to move around (and get better at it) has been life's guiding light almost from its origin roughly 3.5 billion years ago. From photosynthesis to sex, our brains to our breathing, we owe it all to life's Olympic spirit. Join zoologist Matt Wilkinson on an unusual tour of the living world, and find out why learning to move was one of the most important things that life ever did. Event: 46, Ages 12+ 3.15pm – 4pm
Not-so-scary skulls Do you think skulls are creepy objects only to be seen at Hallowe’en? Think again. The skull is the most complicated part of the skeleton, and has to perform an astonishing range of functions such as protecting the brain, eating food and housing the ears, eyes and nose. Join Phil Cox to be introduced to some of the weird and wonderful skulls of other animals, and discover what you look like underneath your skin. Event: 47, Ages 8+
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Science on Saturday
Top Talks
Science on Saturday
New Museums Site 9.45am – 4.30pm
CHaOS talks: more from the makers of ‘Crash, bang, squelch!’ Department of Zoology CHaOS student volunteers are running a series of talks filled with exciting demonstrations! You’ll find more crashes, bangs and squelches here if you find that our hands on events are full, or if you want even more CHaOS at the Festival. 9.45am – 10.15am ‘Water: the weird and wonderful wet stuff’ With David Bebb 10.45am – 11.15am ‘What’s inside a cell?’ With Nunu Tao and Raghd Rostom 11.45am – 12.15pm ‘Please don’t eat me!’ With Sonja Dunbar 1pm – 1.30pm ‘Parasites: unwelcome visitors in your body’ With Lia Chappell 2pm – 2.30pm ‘Sending signals and making messages’ With Philip Garsed and Lia Chappell 3pm – 3.30pm ‘Big things, small things and everything in between’ With Will Benfold 4pm – 4.30pm ‘Are we alone?’ With Catherine Hog For the latest details of what each talk covers, check out our website www.chaosscience.org.uk Event: 48, Map: 24, Talk, Ages 8+ 10am – 5pm
Crash, bang, squelch! Department of Zoology Get to grips with exciting, fascinating and just plain weird experiments that show how some of the world around us works. Enthusiastic students from the CHaOS Science Roadshow are on hand to show you what’s going on in each of our many interactive and fun experiments, covering lots of science that goes ‘crash’, ‘bang’ and ‘squelch’! During busy periods we’ll be issuing timed tickets for later in the day – these ran out very early in 2012, so come early to avoid disappointment! Event: 49, Map: 24, Hands on, Drop in, All ages
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10am – 11am, 10.45am – 11.45am, 11.30am – 12.30pm, 12.15pm – 1.15pm, 1pm – 2pm, 1.45pm – 2.45pm, 2.30pm – 3.30pm, 3.15pm – 4pm
The secret of the sinister scientist Central Science Library, New Museums Site, CB2 3PY Solve a mystery in the library using your detective skills and real forensic science. Put on a lab coat and gloves to search for fingerprints, microscopic clues and invisible traces of the crime. Working with a team of researchers you will find out who dunnit, how, when and why. Event: 50, Map: 3, Hands on, Ages 8+, Pre book* 10am – 4pm
Health research unit Babbage steps Visit the Cambridge BioResource Health Research Unit, a custom-built mobile unit, complete with clinic and waiting area. This Unit is often out in the community to make research participation even more accessible to local people. Come on board and make some health awareness measurements like BMI, percentage body fat and blood pressure and find out more about the research that Cambridge BioResource is supporting in the local area. Event: 51, Map: 4, Hands on, Drop in, All ages
10am – 4pm
Bug battles Café Start collecting bug battles cards, and find out about the weird and wonderful world of microorganisms. Take the opportunity to sort the goodies from the baddies, and pit the bugs against each other. From the most villainous viruses to the wiggliest of worms, collect the cards and find out who is the biggest bug in the bunch? Who is the deadliest? Who delivers the biggest ouch? Playing cards are available to collect from various points all over the Festival. Download a collection card from the Festival website, or pick up one from our bug battles hub. There are 33 cards to collect – can you get them all?! Event: 52, Map: 3, Hands on, Drop in, Ages 8+
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
GetSET Information Marquee Find out what it is like to study science, engineering or technology at the University of Cambridge. Admissions and teaching staff will be available to help prospective applicants, parents and teachers ‘GetSET’ for the future. www.cam.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate Event: 53, Map: 32, Exhibition, Drop in, Ages 14+
Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy Map: 20, Talk, Ages 12+ (unless otherwise stated) 9am – 10am, 11am – 12pm
Ten things you didn’t know about ice cream
DR BARRY DENHOLM
In this talk we’ll explore ten scientific reasons why ice cream is the world’s coolest dessert. We will also make two gallons of delicious ice cream for the audience to try, using the ultra-fast cooling power of liquid nitrogen. Event: 56, Ages 8+, Pre book email: sls55@cam.ac.uk 1pm – 2pm
Polymers: the world’s weirdest materials This talk demonstrates some of the weirdest polymer materials to be invented, featuring homemade silly putty, paint that changes colour when you pee on it, and beautiful liquid crystal patterns. Event: 57 2pm – 3pm Lords and ladies of the flies
11am – 12noon, 12noon – 1pm, 1 – 2pm, 2 – 3pm, 3 – 4pm
Lords and ladies of the flies Department of Zoology, Basement Descend into the basement of the Department of Zoology to see how scientists are using the brains, guts and kidneys of fruit flies to learn more about how the human body works. The lords and ladies of the flies will show you what these organs look like, and how we measure and control their function. Discover what we can learn by watching flies mate or by collecting their droppings! Event: 54, Map: 24, Hands on, Ages 8+, Pre book* 11am – 4pm
Where the wild things are kept Museum of Zoology The Museum of Zoology is home to a fabulous collection of wild things. From new fossil finds helping us to understand the evolution of landliving vertebrates, to live butterflies and their genetics, the Museum is alive with scientific discoveries. With live insects and hands on activities, join scientists and staff of the Museum to explore the science behind the collections. Event: 55, Map: 47, Hands on, Drop in, All ages
Steel: probably the best material in the world Now taken for granted, steel is probably the most important material ever discovered. It is used to build our machines, vehicles and buildings, it is worshipped in some cultures, and it was the heart of the industrial revolution. This talk explores why steel is such an incredible material and how it will become even more vital to us in the future. Event: 58 3pm – 4pm
Biomimetics: mimicking nature’s materials Why do animals’ and plants’ bodies have such remarkable properties, and what can we humans learn from them? From ants’ feet and spider silk to carnivorous plants, can we mimic them? Nature had a two-billion year head start – can we catch up? Event: 59 4pm – 5pm
Magnetism and superconductivity What happens when you cool materials to close to absolute zero? We explore the weird behaviour of superconductors, the ultra-cold materials which drive the Large Hadron Collider and could be the future of electricity transport. Event: 60
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
17
Science on Saturday
11am – 12noon, 2pm – 3pm
Biology Zone Science on Saturday
at the Arts School 10am – 4pm Event: 61, Map: 3, Hands on, Drop in, All ages Around 20 biological departments and organisations from across Cambridge come together to host hands on exhibits for all the family. Dissect owl pellets, extract and take home your own DNA and find out what makes you you! The Biology Zone will also be open on Sunday 17 March from 11 – 3pm.
Small Exam Hall (Ground floor) Everybody, make an antibody
Bottle your genes
MedImmune
Cancer cells – past, present and future! Hutchinson/MRC Research Centre and MRC Cancer Cell Unit
The cancer challenge with microscopes and computers Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute and MRC Cancer Cell Unit
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Arts School Room B (Ground floor)
(Saturday only) Long Road Sixth Form College
Discover DNA! EMBL European Bioinformatics Institute and Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute
The EPIC generation game: be part of the bigger picture European Prospective Investigation of Cancer (EPIC Norfolk)
Society of Biology hands on fun Society of Biology
The Biology Zone is kindly supported by the Medical Research Council who are celebrating their Centenary year. Over the past century, the MRC has been at the forefront of scientific discovery to improve human health. Founded in 1913 to tackle tuberculosis, the MRC now invests taxpayers' money in some of the best medical research in the world across every area of health.
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
The wonders of biostatistics – impact on health MRC Biostatistics Unit
Moving through time and space MRC Epidemiology Unit
Marvellous metabolism Metabolic Research Laboratories
Journey through your blood vessels Division of Cardiovascular Medicine
Stem generation Wellcome Trust – MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute
Generating life Papworth Hospital
How do we get energy out of food?
Who do you think you are? DNA is not your only destiny
MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit
Babraham Institute
You – under a microscope BBSRC BioEnergy
MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
Nutrition time travel MRC Human Nutrition Research Unit
Cambridge AWiSE stand (Saturday only) AWiSE
Medicines under the microscope (Saturday only) Department of Pharmacology
Entry by lift and stairs
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Science on Saturday
Large Exam Hall (First floor)
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Science on Saturday
Downing Site
The science of your mind
10am – 12noon, 2pm – 4pm
The science of your mind Practical Classroom, Department of Psychology The Department of Psychology offers a range of interactive exhibits and posters showing the latest cutting-edge research. You will learn about children’s understanding of other people, how the mind reasons, processes language and remembers facts. Discover new ways to test personality and how your mobile phone can recognise your emotions. Event: 62, Map: 23, Hands on, Drop in, Ages 8+
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10am – 3pm
Why snot? Department of Pharmacology Why do our noses make snot? It's part of our body's defence against viruses and other bugs. Make your own snot and find out about our bodies’ amazing standing army. Event: 64, Map: 22, Hands on, Drop in, All ages 10am – 4pm
Plant resources: generating our future Plant Sciences Marquee Discover the fascinating world of plants and their role in shaping our planet’s future. Explore how research is helping to provide food, energy and material supplies for a growing population in a changing world. Have fun building a plant from scratch and dressing up as a bee to get tasty nectar! Event: 65, Map: 52, Hands on, Drop in, All ages 10.30am – 3.30pm
Time Truck at the Sedgwick Museum The cosmos of your body
10am – 3pm
The cosmos of your body
Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences Travel in time with Time Truck! Investigate rocks and minerals, discover dinosaurs and explore earthquake science with hands on activities and demonstrations. Event: 66, Map: 18, Hands on, Drop in, All ages
Department of Pathology, Tennis Court Road, CB2 1QP Did you know your body hosts millions of microbes? Did you know that millions of proteins make your body function? Come to the Department of Pathology to see the miniature world that is your body. Event: 63, Map: 21, Hands on, Drop in, All ages
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*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
10.30am – 4pm
2pm – 3pm
Archaeological science
Healthy ageing and the brain: the good news
11am – 12pm
Imagination: the door to identity Anatomy Lecture Theatre A collaboration between behavioural psychologist Professor Nicky Clayton and fine artist and creative writer Clive Wilkins. We shall explore the nature of imagination, and how it forms the cornerstone of our identity, diversifying reality yet impeding and disorientating our memories. Event: 68, Map: 1, Talk, Ages 12+ 11am – 3pm
DNA discoveries
3.30pm – 5pm
Is seeing believing? Physiology Main Lecture Theatre, Physiological Laboratory It is often said that ‘seeing is believing’. This lecture explores the limits to human vision, how they determine the information extracted by the visual system about the external world, and the illusions that arise when they are violated. Event: 72, Map: 50, Talk/Demonstration, Ages 12+ LUC VIATOUR / WWW.LUCNIX.BE
Department of Biochemistry, Hopkins Building How can a simple molecule like DNA carry the instructions which guide the growth and development of every plant and animal on the planet? Discover for yourself! The Biochemistry Department hosts a series of interactive exhibits and demonstrations which tell the story of DNA and Cambridge’s unique contribution to uncovering its secrets. Event: 69, Map: 15, Hands on, Drop in, Ages 8+
Anatomy Lecture Theatre Normal healthy ageing involves widespread brain changes, thought to impair everyday cognitive functions, including memory and attention. However, this view is undergoing a radical revision. Professor Lorraine Tyler, a cognitive neuroscientist, will discuss the emerging positive view that ageing does not necessarily result in inevitable declines in neural and cognitive fitness. Event: 71, Map: 1, Talk, Ages 12+
11am – 4pm
Compasses and catapults Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology Come and explore the Museum’s collections and find out about discoveries and inventions that have changed the world – from pantochronometers to potatoes – then get hands on with our siege machines. Find amazing inventions and discoveries in the Museum, inventions that have helped people travel, explore and communicate. Event: 70, Map: 46, Hands on, Drop in, All ages
Science on Saturday
McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research If you thought archaeology was just a load of broken pots and old rubbish, think again! Come and discover bones, stones, and prehistoric plants. See how archaeologists answer questions about our ancient world using science. Event: 67, Map: 41, Hands on, Drop in, All ages
Compasses and catapults
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Science on Saturday
Chemistry Zone in the Department of Chemistry, Lensfield Road, CB2 1EW Supported by the Walters Kundert Charitable Trust
Map: 17, Hands on, Drop in, All ages A map and guide to all the activities in the Department of Chemistry will be available on the day from the main reception area outside the BMS Lecture Theatre. For further information on all activities visit: www.openday.ch.cam.ac.uk 10am – 4.30pm
Chemistry in action Once again the Department of Chemistry is hosting a day of hands-on chemical exploration for all the family. Our enthusiastic demonstrators will guide visitors through simple, but exciting, experiments. Or you can visit the Royal Society of Chemistry's (RSC) 'Chemistry for better health' stand to find out more about how science keeps us healthy. Event: 73 11am – 12pm, 1.30pm – 2.30pm, 4pm – 5pm Additional shows 2pm – 3pm, 17 March and 7pm – 8pm, 18 March
The modern alchemist with Dr Peter Wothers For those of you who missed the broadcast in December, a chance to see some of the highlights from the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures. When medieval alchemists staged spectacular stunts in front of royalty they never revealed the secrets of their mystical potions and fire-breathing creations. Today's chemists can perform equally impressive feats, but they do so to explain and explore the extreme frontiers of our material world. Dr Peter Wothers is the modern alchemist. In the 2012 Royal Institution Christmas Lectures he unpicked the chemistry of the world around us, looking at air, water and earth, three of the original ancient Greek ‘elements' that tantalised alchemists for centuries. Dr Wothers will be sharing some of the highlights from his lectures shown on the BBC at Christmas. Warning: Loud bangs and explosions! Event: 74, Talk, Ages 8+ Entry will be by tickets which are free and can be booked in advance by telephone (01223 336300) Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm or email: openday@ch.cam.ac.uk. Ticket requests made after 4.30pm on Friday 15 March will not be processed. Unreserved seats and uncollected tickets will be available on a first come, first served basis 10 minutes before the lecture begins. Please arrive promptly for the lecture.
The modern alchemist with Dr Peter Worthers
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Science on Saturday pull out guide
Plan your perfect Festival Welcome to our Science on Saturday pull out guide At a glance information for the 100 free activities we have on offer across the city. The centre pages list events by time and location and are colour coded by age category. Events marked with an asterisk (*) require pre booking; please check the full event listing for further information. We look forward to seeing you enjoy our big Saturday!
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Anatomy Lecture Theatre Department of Biochemistry Department of Earth Sciences and Sedgwick Museum Department of Pathology Department of Psychology McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology Physiological Laboratory Plant Sciences Marquee
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Plan your perfect Festival: Saturday events at a glance 9am
9.30am
10am
New Museums Site (p14 – 19) Babbage Lecture Theatre Arts School Room A
10.30am
Central Science Library Babbage Steps Café Information Marquee Museum of Zoology Materials Science and Metalurgy
11.30am
12pm
12.30pm
40T Strange ice*
39T Itch Rocks* 43T Dinibores: why mamals are way cool 48T CHaOS talks
Zoology
11am
44T Cracking the code: the genetics of superheroes 48T CHaOS talks
48T CHaOS talks
50H The sinister scientist* 50H The sinister scientist* 50H The sinister scientist* 50H The sinister s 51 53E Get SET 56T Ten things you didn’t know about ice cream*
Arts School Downing Site (p20 – 21) Psychology Pathology Pharmacology Plant Sciences Marquee Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences McDonald Institute Anatomy Lecture Theatre Biochemistry Museum of Arch and Anth Physiological Laboratory In and around the city (p22, 27 – 29) Chemistry
56T Ten things you didn’t know about ice cream*
62H The science of your mind
63H The cosmos of you 64H Why snot? 65H Plant re 66H Tine t 68T Imagination: a door to identity
74T The modern alchemist* The Guildhall St Columba Hall St Catharine’s College Whipple Museum The Pitt Building The Cambridge Buddhist Centre Tourist Information Centre St John’s College McCrum Lecture Theatre Gurdon Institute Mill Lane Lecture Rooms
76H Living with robots*
75H Hand on act 76H Living with robots* 77H Translational medicine and 78H Objects 79 80H What goes 81T Buddhism and science 82GT Inventions and discoveries – a walking tour*
D Demonstration, E Exhibition, F Film, GT Guided tour, H Hands on, P Performance, T Talk * Check event listing for booking information Evening events: 84T ThinkCon* (p29), 87HTF Expedition to Mars* (p29), 88P Festival of the spoken nerd* (p29)
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3.30pm
4.30pm
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42T Anturus – survival science*
41T Science pranks* 45T Sciencelele singalong with Helen Arney*
4pm
46T The evolutionary Olympics
47T Not-so-scary skulls
48T CHaOS talks 48T CHaOS talks 48T CHaOS talks 48T CHaOS talks 49H Crash, bang, squelch! 54H Lords and ladies of the flies* cientist* 50H The sinister scientist* 50H The sinister scientist* 50H The sinister scientist* 50H The sinister scientist* H Health research unit 52H Bug battles 53E Get SET 55H Where the wild things are kept 57T Polymers: the world’s weirdest materials
58T Steels: probably the best material in the world
60T Magnetism and superconductivity
59T Biomimetics: mimicking nature’s materials
61H Biology zone 62H The science of your mind
r body
esources: generating our future ruck at the Sedgwick Museum 67H Archaeological science 71T Healthy ageing and the brain 69H DNA discoveries 70H Compasses and catapults 72TD Is seeing believing? 73H Chemistry in action
74T The modern alchemist* tivities with Anglia Ruskin University 76H Living with robots* d therapeutics s of science – Saturday opening 9H Helicopter heaven s on inside a computer science lab?
74T The modern alchemist* 76H Living with robots*
82GT Inventions and discoveries – a walking tour* 83E St John’s College and the physical sciences* 84T ThinkCon* (various talks until 7.30pm) 85H All you ever wanted to know about cloning 86T Othe worlds: exoplanets and discovering life beyond Earth
All ages
8+
12+
16+
Adults
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Kettle’s Yard House and Gallery Lady Mitchell Hall McCrum Lecture Theatre Magdalene College Michaelhouse Café Mill Lane Lecture Rooms Peterhouse Polar Museum Robinson College St Catharine’s College St Columba’s Church Hall
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St John’s College The Fitzwilliam Museum 61 The Guildhall 63 The Open University in the East FEN CAUSE WAY of England 64 The Pitt Building 65 The Portland Arms 66 Tourist Information Centre 67 University Centre 69 Wesley Methodist Church 70 West Road Concert Hall
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Cambridge & Chelmsford
10am – 4pm Event: 75, Map: 61, Hands on, Drop in, All ages (unless otherwise stated) The Festival is delighted to partner once again with Anglia Ruskin University, who have taken over the Guildhall to put on a whole host of interactive hands on activities for all ages. You can meet giant creepy crawlies or take part in your very own forensic science investigation. There’s something for everyone at this exciting open day highlighting the brilliant array of subjects offered at Anglia Ruskin University.
Interactive crime scene Visit a set of crime scenes and collect evidence for analysis in order to solve the crime.
Discover your body composition Use infrared technology to explore the distribution of fat, tissue and water in the human body. Ages 8+
What are you really looking at? See what you’re looking at with eye-motion tracking glasses. Ages 8+
Power your way through the Tour de France Experience what it is like to ride at the relative power output maintained by champions of this prestigious race. Ages 8+
Let’s face it! Activities using eye tracking and galvanic skin response measurements will explore how we see faces.
Discover your eyes and ears Discover the amazing tricks your brain plays with the eyes by journeying through a gallery of optical illusions. Take a peek into the ear and learn how it works. Discover how good your 3-D vision and colour perception is.
Arts and crafts corner Younger scientists can personalise their own spectacle frames. Enjoy a range of hands on activities designed to help you discover how amazing your eyes and ears are.
Meet the creepy crawlies You can meet the giant African land snails, giant African millipedes as well as the Madagascan hissing cockroaches! They're safe and fine to handle for all ages.
How does it work? Presented by the IET
The Institution of Engineering and Technology in Cambridge will have gadgets and gizmos, computer internals (from chips to disk drives) and other technology, and will explain how everything works together.
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Science on Saturday
Anglia Ruskin University
The Guildhall
Science on Saturday
In the city 9.30am – 10.45am, 11am – 12.15pm, 1pm – 2.15pm, 2.30pm – 3.45pm
Living with robots St Columba’s Church Hall, Downing Street, CB2 3EL Join STEM Team East to build, design and create your own moving model robot. Find out how important robots are to all our lives and discover the underlying physics behind how robots operate. Event: 76, Map: 58, Hands on, Ages 8+, Pre book* 10am – 3pm
Translational medicine and therapeutics St Catharine’s College, Ramsden Room, Trumpington Street, CB21TQ MPhil students will demonstrate how new medicines are discovered and translated from the laboratory. Event: 77, Map: 57, Hands on, Drop in, All ages 10am – 4pm
Objects of science – Saturday opening Whipple Museum of the History of Science, Free School Lane, CB2 3RH Explore the Whipple Museum’s collections and investigate how some of our objects work using the handling trolleys. The Whipple Museum holds a unique collection of scientific instruments and models ranging from the purely functional to the beautiful and ornate. Visit our new Globes Gallery, investigate our Discover Gallery and remember to call in to our hands on Victorian Parlour. Short tours will also be available throughout the day. Event: 78, Map: 71, Hands on, Drop in, All ages 10am – 4pm
Helicopter heaven The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, CB2 1RP Helicopters use an unbalanced force to accelerate upwards but they need balanced sideways forces for stable flight. A bigger body is more stable but will the elastic band store enough energy to lift a chunky helicopter? Join the Department of Engineering to investigate what makes the “best” helicopter design – by making and testing your own model! Event: 79, Map: 64, Hands on, Drop in, Ages 8+
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10am – 4pm
What’s the latest in computer science? The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, CB2 1RP Prepare to be surprised! Computing is not just about spread sheets and presentation slides; it’s used to do many more amazing things that you might not expect. Come and see some exciting Microsoft Research projects, meet our researchers and get hands-on with computer science. Event: 80, Map: 64, Hands on, Drop in, Ages 12+ 10.30am – 11.30am
Buddhism and science Cambridge Buddhist Centre, 38 Newmarket Road, CB5 8DT Join Dr Bronwen Rees (Buddhist name: Sinhagupta) for a talk on the radical findings in physics, molecular biology, and neuroscience to show how they have resonance with the practices and principles of different spiritual traditions, including Tibetan Buddhism, alchemy and Taoism. Event: 81, Map: online, Talk, Adults 10.30am – 12.30pm, 2.30pm – 4.30pm, 16, 17, 23 March 10.30am – 12.30pm, 18, 20, 22 March
Inventions and discoveries – a walking tour Tourist Information Centre, Peas Hill, CB2 3AD Come on a walk with the science guides and find out how Cambridge scientists have changed the face of the world with their discoveries from Newton’s laws of motion to sequencing the human genome. Along the way you will hear about Cambridge inspired inventions including the first flushing toilet, the computer and the jet engine. The afternoon tour on the 23 March will be in Spanish. Event: 82, Map: 66, Tour, All ages, Pre book* 11am – 4.30pm
St John’s College and the physical sciences St John’s College, St John’s Street, CB2 1TP From compasses to digital computers, a journey through the contributions members of St John’s College have made to modern day science. Come and see where a science degree can take you! This exhibition showcases a wide range of material from early printed works to personal papers, letters and photographs. The event is held in the atmospheric surroundings of our 17th century Old Library, one of Cambridge’s hidden treasures. Event: 83, Map: 59, Exhibition, Ages 12+, Pre book*
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
St Bene’t Street, CB2 1RH Event: 84, Map: 40, Talk, Ages 16+, Pre book tel: 07980 155167, email: andy@thinkoutreach.org or visit: http.//thinkoutreach.org 10am – 7.30pm
ThinkCon Back for 2013, ThinkCon is a day of talks aimed at adults and older teens covering science and the arts. All the talks are free and open to anyone at the Cambridge Science Festival. Please feel free to pick and choose what interests you. The talks are as follows: 10am – 10.30am ‘Good Will Hunting and the troubled genius’ With James Grime 10.30am – 11am ‘Diffusion of the dead’ With Thomas Woolley 11am – 12noon ‘I’m a ghost hunter, get me out of here!’ With Hayley Stevens 1pm – 2pm ‘Ocean’s got talent – or why we should love fish as much as we love whales’ With Dr Helen Scales 2pm – 3pm ‘Disconnected; how not to do the Internet’ With Kate Russell 3.30pm – 4.30pm ‘Sex and the media’ With Feona Attwood 4.30pm – 5.30pm ‘A world of science toys’ With Helen Czerski 6pm – 7.30pm ‘The Pod Delusion live!’ With James O'Malley 1.30pm – 4pm
All you want to know about cloning Gurdon Institute, The Henry Wellcome Building, Tennis Court Road, CB2 1QN Sir John Gurdon was awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his pioneering work on animal cloning. Come along to better understand what cloning is about and to discover and practice some techniques that the Gurdon Laboratory is using. Event: 85, Map: 28, Hands on, Drop in, Ages 8+
2.30pm – 4pm
Other worlds: exoplanets and discovering life beyond Earth Mill Lane Lecture Room 3, Mill Lane, CB2 1RW Once only science fiction, astronomers are now finding hundreds of planetary systems beyond our own. Are any of these ‘exoplanets’ like Earth? NASA’s Dr Jennifer Wiseman explores how these planets might yield evidence of biological activity and the implications for science and religion if life can thrive beyond Earth. www.faraday-institute.org Event: 86, Map: 44, Talk, Ages 16+ 7.30pm – 10.15pm
Expedition to Mars The Polar Museum, Lensfield Road, CB2 1ER Prepare yourself for space exploration at the Poles! During one evening you will ‘train’ for your space expedition at the Poles and go on to conquer space! A film screening of the 1950s classic space adventure ‘Conquest of Space’, with hands on activities and an introductory talk. Event: 87, Map: 51, Hands on, Talk/Film, Ages 16+, Pre book* 8pm – 10pm (doors open 7.30pm)
Festival of the spoken nerd presents: full frontal nerdity Cambridge Union, Bridge Street, CB2 1ER The Spoken Nerds return to Cambridge Science Festival with a new night of comedy, science and special guests at the Union Society. Fresh back from their first UK tour, stand-up mathematician Matt Parker, geek songstress Helen Arney and BBC1 experiments guy Steve Mould have created a showand-tell night out of all their favourite things. If you enjoy comedy at the geeky end of the spectrum, join Spoken Nerd for an evening of laughter, wonder – and full frontal nerdity! Event: 88, Map: 9, Performance, Adults, Pre book visit: wegottickets.com/festivalofthespokennerd £6, £4 concessions, unsold tickets available on the door for cash
Ocean’s got talent – or why we should love fish as much as we love whales
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Science on Saturday
McCrum Lecture Theatre
Science on Sunday
Science on Sunday 17 March Science on Sunday gives everyone another chance to take part in hands on science in the Biology Zone, to check out talks for young people and see a host of demonstrations in the Babbage Lecture Theatre. We’re also delighted to welcome back our 2012 Guest Director, comedian and science champion Robin Ince. He’ll be hosting a another ‘show and tell’ featuring a plethora of punchy presentations from some of the finest scientific talent across the UK.
Highlights Page 31
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Demo Derby
Matt Parker: stand-up mathematics
The importance of being interested
Comedian and mathematician Matt Parker combines his two passions to bring the world of numbers alive.
Robin Ince returns with his follow up show to ‘Happiness through science’ with a look at Charles Darwin and Richard Feynman.
Ever wondered who was better at demonstrating the joy of science? Well now is your chance to find out as we pit Cambridge against the rest of the UK in this one-off demo derby. Who wins – you decide! Robin Ince
10am – 5pm
Top Talks
Sunday science! Cambridge Science Centre, 18 Jesus Lane, CB5 8BQ The Cambridge Science Centre goes all-out science crazy, with a fun filled day of hands on non-stop workshops for all the family. Make and take away some amazing pieces of science and engineering. Event: 92, Map: 8, Hands on, Ages 5+, £3.50, £2.50 Concessions and children, Under 5s free, Family pass £10
at the Babbage Lecture
Theatre Map: 4, Talk, Ages 8+, Pre book* 11am – 12noon
Matt Parker: stand-up mathematics
Matt Parker
1pm – 2pm
The Naked Scientists – stripping down science Join the Naked Scientists as they strip down science and use everyday objects to reveal the secrets of the world. In this explosively fastpaced show, the Naked Scientists demonstrate the physics and chemistry of everyday life. Expect electrocuted vegetables, flash frozen flowers, a vacuum-cleaner powered bazooka and much, much more! Event: 90 3pm – 4pm
Demo derby – Cambridge versus…. Join us for the ultimate ‘science off’ as Cambridge’s finest demonstration experts take on the rest of the UK! Familiar faces from the Naked Scientists and CHaOS will do battle with our favourite experts from across the UK including Steve Mould. Who will win the demo derby? Event: 91
11am – 3pm
Biology zone Arts School, New Museums Site The Biology Zone opens its doors for another day of hands on activities for all ages. Please see pages 18 – 19 for all the events taking place Event: 93, Map: 3, Hands on, Drop in, All ages 2pm – 5pm
Robin Ince’s show and tell STEVE ULLATHORNE
Comedian and mathematician Matt Parker combines his two passions to bring the world of numbers alive. Matt's maths is enjoyed by everyone from hard-core nerds to those who remember once trying a sudoku. His last Festival show sold out, with the probability of it happening again tending to 1. “Capable of generating big laughs using the deceptively simple power of numbers” (The Guardian) “Not just for maths geeks” (Chortle) Event: 89
Cambridge Union, Bridge Street, CB2 1UB From moon rocks to tarantulas, amethysts to ammonites, anything and everything is possible... A totally outrageous open afternoon of punchy presentations from some of the best science presenters from Cambridge and beyond – as they show off their favourite things from the world of science. Event: 94, Map: 9, Demonstration, Drop in, All ages 2.30pm – 3.30pm
From Maxwell to microscopes: electricity and magnetism united Institute of Continuing Education, Madingley Hall, CB23 8AQ What is the connection between James Clerk Maxwell’s vision for students of physics, his treatise on Electricity and Magnetism and our present day understanding of the structure of materials? In ICE’s 140th anniversary year, we will take a journey through 140 years of electromagnetism, from Maxwell’s laboratories to modern electron microscopes. Event: 96, Map: online, Talk, Ages 8+, Pre book email: enquiries@ice.cam.ac.uk or visit: www.ice.cam.ac.uk/what-we-do/sciencefestival
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Science on Sunday
In and around Cambridge
Science on Sunday
3.45pm – 4.45pm
7.30pm – 10pm
Playing pinball with the stars
The importance of being interested
Institute of Continuing Education, Madingley Hall, CB23 8AQ Stars, just like people, prefer to live in groups. In this talk we explore what happens when the biggest, heaviest stars encounter each other, and what consequences unfold for both the stars and their surroundings. Event: 97, Map: online, Talk, Ages 8+, Pre book email: enquiries@ice.cam.ac.uk or visit: www.ice.cam.ac.uk/what-we-do/sciencefestival
Cambridge Union, Bridge Street, CB2 1UB Award winning comedian and science enthusiast Robin Ince looks at his favourite scientists – Charles Darwin and Richard Feynman. Find out why we have eyebrows, why bald dogs have bad teeth and how heavy metal music makes pigs deaf. This is a loving look into the minds of two giants of human imagination who changed our worldview. Robin will stop off on the way to look at some of the more bizarre views of early science – is the ostrich really the offspring of the union of a gnat and a giraffe? (No). A night of barnacles and safe-cracking. Event: 95, Map: 9, Performance, Ages 18+, Pre book tel: 01223 300085 or visit: www.adcticketing.com £6, unsold tickets available on the door for cash
5pm – 6pm
DNA and ancestry: where do I come from? Institute of Continuing Education, Madingley Hall, CB23 8AQ Learn how fossils, genetics and forensic science are now helping us to answer this question at a number of time levels, from the birth of humankind up to the present day. For this event only, each participant will receive an optional order form with a special discount for DNA ancestry testing by Dr Peter Forster and colleagues. Event: 98, Map: online, Talk, Ages 12+, Pre book email: enquiries@ice.cam.ac.uk or visit: www.ice.cam.ac.uk/what-we-do/sciencefestiva 6.30pm – 7.30pm
Festival choral evensong University Church, Great St Mary’s, Senate House Hill, CB2 3PQ A traditional choral service according the Book of Common Prayer to celebrate the Science Festival. With a visiting preacher. Event: 99, Map: 29, Service, Ages 12+
Arctic film week: voices from the north
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17 – 24 March
Arctic film week: voices from the north Cambridge Arts Picturehouse, St Andrew’s Street, CB2 3AR A series of film screenings and discussions copresented by the Canadian High Commission and National Film Board of Canada in partnership with Arts Picturehouse, the Cambridge Film Trust and the Polar Museum. The Arctic makes up over 40% of Canada's landmass and is home to some 100,000 Canadians, many of whom are Inuit and Métis. This series of films by and about the Inuit presents a unique account of life in the north and the challenges faced there today. Event: 100, Map: 2, Talk, Various ages, Pre book visit: www.picturehouses.co.uk/cinema/ Arts_Picturehouse_Cambridge
18 – 24 March The second week of the Festival offers more evening talks and exhibitions, with topics ranging from the Higgs Boson, to dinosaurs and the fascinating developing world of neuroprosthetics. It’s another wonderful opportunity to find out more about what’s going on in Cambridge and wider afield. Events in these pages are listed chronologically, showing shows the type of activity, the appropriate age and whether you need to pre book.
Highlights Page 36
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Our fluid Earth
Incredible edibles
Dan McKenzie explores the way we now see our planet.
Food adventurer Stefan Gates returns to the Festival to showcase some gastronomic science!
Beyond the Higgs Boson: antimatter, spacetime and supersymmetry Andy Parker and Val Gibson look ahead at the next steps for particle physics
Throughout the Festival
Throughout the Festival
Throughout the Festival
5pm – 6pm, 18 March
The American woodsman: John James Audubon and The Birds of America Cambridge University Library, Morison Room, West Road, CB3 9DR An opportunity to view and learn about The Birds of America, one of the largest and most lavish plate books ever produced, and its author John James Audubon (1785 – 1851). Event: 101, Map: 10, Talk, Ages 16+, Pre book* 6pm –7pm, 18 March
Smart pills, anyone? Mill Lane Lecture Room 1, Mill Lane, CB2 1RX Would you take tablets to boost your brain function? An interactive session debating the controversial subject of cognitive enhancers, the science of them and their ethical and social implications with local school students and Professor Barbara Sahakian. Project by the Naked Scientists, Graphic Science, BCNI and schools across East Anglia. Event: 102, Map: 44, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book* 10am – 12noon, 1pm – 2.45pm , 18 – 22 March
Primary rocket launchpad LR4, Department of Engineering, CB2 1PZ Our primary rocket pad activity challenges teams of school pupils to build the cheapest, lightest rocket launchpad capable of holding a rocket launcher. Event: 103, Map: 19, Hands on, Years 5 and 6, Pre book tel: 01223 415650 or email: melanie@stemteameast.org.uk 2pm – 4pm 19 March
Graduate School of Life Sciences poster and image competition University Centre, Cormack Room, Mill Lane CB2 1RU Sponsored by Linguamatics
An exhibition of posters and images from life science research in the University of Cambridge. Postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers will be present to exhibit and discuss their work. The exhibition forms part of an annual competition within the Graduate School of Life Sciences that encourages researchers to target their communication at public audiences. Event: 104, Map: 67, Exhibition, Drop in, Ages 15+
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Incredible edibles: Stef’s big, bad, explosive, world-changing foor science show
4.30pm – 5.30pm, 19 March
Incredible edibles: Stef's big, bad, explosive, world-changing food science show Lady Mitchell Hall, Sidgwick Site, CB3 9DA Stefan Gates (BBC1’s Food Factory and CBBC’s Incredible Edibles) and Professor Andrea Sella (Incredible Edibles’ brilliantly bonkers chemist) take you on a gut-busting gastronomic journey to reveal the amazing, explosive science hiding in your food AND shows how to save the planet...by eating the weirdest, creepiest and wriggliest foods on earth. They'll also tackle the critical questions: How do you milk a camel? What's the fartiest food of all? What do sheeps' eyeballs taste like? Find out the answers to these questions and much, much more in this seriously funny and hilariously informative show. Event: 105, Map: 38, Demonstration, Ages 8+, Pre book* 7pm – 8pm, 19 March
The Wisdom of Psychopaths Lady Mitchell Hall, Sidgwick Site, CB3 9DA Psychopath. No sooner is the word out than images of murderers, rapists, suicide bombers and gangsters flash across our minds. But not all psychopaths are violent, or even criminal. In fact, they have a lot of good things going for them. In this groundbreaking adventure, renowned psychologist Kevin Dutton reveals a shocking truth: beneath the hype and the popular characterisation, psychopaths have something to teach us. Event: 106, Map: 38, Talk, Ages 15+
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
2pm – 3pm, 3pm – 4pm, 19, 22 March
News from CERN and the Large Hadron Collider
Tour and object handling session at the Whipple Museum
Pippard Theatre, Department of Physics, Cavendish Laboratory CB3 0HE By recording collisions between protons fired at each other using the Large Hadron Collider, CERN scientists probe the states of matter that were present in the Universe less than one picosecond after the ‘Big Bang’. Dr Lester will talk about what the LHC is, how it works, and what it has (and hasn't) discovered since it was turned on. Event: 107, Map: 11, Talk, Ages 16+
Whipple Museum of the History of Science, Free School Lane, CB2 3RH Take a tour of the galleries followed by a hands on session using objects from the Whipple’s collection. Event: 111, Map: 71, Tour/Hands on, Ages 14+, Pre book tel: 01223 330906, email: hpswhipple-museum@lists.cam.ac.uk or visit: www.hps.cam.ac.uk/whipple
6pm – 7pm, 19 March
When we walked on the moon Mill Lane Lecture Room 3, Mill Lane, CB2 1RW Sponsored by Cambridge University Press
The moon is still the only body beyond Earth on which humans have set foot. Ian Ridpath introduces the main features of the moon from its ancient plains of solidified lava to craters the size of cities blasted out by meteorite impacts. He traces the lunar exploration from the first space probes to the Apollo landings and describes why astronomers now think that the moon was born when another body hit the Earth billions of years ago. Event: 108, Map: 44, Talk, Ages 14+
5pm – 6pm, 20 March
A goodly spring of flowers: early botanical books in Cambridge University Library Cambridge University Library, Morison Room, West Road, CB3 9DR An introduction to early botanical books from the Library’s collections, from rare fifteenth-century herbals illustrated with woodcuts to magnificently coloured eighteenth-century plate books. Event: 112, Map: 10, Talk, Ages 16+, Pre book* 6pm – 7pm, 20 March
Global science from the Antarctic continent Mill Lane Lecture Room 3, Mill Lane, CB2 1RX Sponsored by Cambridge University Press
Join us for an evening of inspiration and performance of writing from the Thresholds Poetry and Museums project, with poems based on exploration of collections from archaeology to zoology. Guests Daljit Nagra, Ann Gray and Jo Shapcott present highlights of their work with the University of Cambridge Museums and Collections. Event: 109, Map: 46, Talk/performance, Ages 14+, Pre book*
Antarctica is a remote and hostile place but a very active area for scientific research. This ice-covered continent and the surrounding Southern Ocean are a critical part of global climate models and offer us an unrivalled view of how our planet interacts with the Sun. The stability of the Antarctic ice sheet affects global sea levels, the ocean absorbs huge amounts of carbon dioxide and the weather systems affect all the southern continents. Antarctic animals and plants provide important insights into evolution whilst the Southern Ocean supports one of the world's major fisheries. Talk by David Walton. Event: 113, Map: 44, Talk, Ages 14+
7pm – 10.30pm, 19 March
7pm – 8.30pm, 20 March
Late night lab
Animal bytes
Cambridge Science Centre, Jesus Lane, CB5 8BQ Join in the science mayhem as the Cambridge Science Centre and Festival teams come together to present an amazing night of science comedy, workshops, music and exhibits, for adults only! Event: 110, Map: 8, Hands on/Performance, Adults, Pre book email: info@cambridgesciencecentre.org or visit: www.cambridgesciencecentre.org £9 (includes drinks and snacks)
Museum of Zoology, Downing Street, CB2 3EJ Discover the Museum’s collections through the eyes of the people who study and care for them. Curators, staff and others share their experiences through the Museum specimens that have inspired them. This event launches the Museum’s animal bytes project, capturing stories of the Museum and responses to the collections by its staff and visitors. Event: 114, Map: 47, Talk, Ages 14+
6.30pm – 8pm, 19 March
Step inside Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology Supported by Arts Council England
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Throughout the Festival
6pm – 7pm, 19 March
Throughout the Festival
7pm – 9pm, 20 March
6pm – 7.15pm, 21 March
What’s in a footprint?
Open access
Friends Meeting House, Jesus Lane, CB5 8BA Experience a taste of our six-session course Carbon Conversations, which The Guardian called one of the ‘best 20 climate solutions’, developed right here in Cambridge. You might be surprised at what contributes to a carbon footprint! Come along and try out some hands on activities with our experienced facilitators. Event: 115, Map: 25, Workshop, Adults, Pre book email: info@cambridgecarbonfootprint.org
Mill Lane Lecture Room 3, Mill Lane, CB2 1RX The move to open access publishing has the potential to transform researchers’ communications and access to information by the public on a global scale. Join Cameron Neylon, PLoS; David Carr, Wellcome Trust; Neil Hammond, CUP and Professor John Naughton for a panel discussion and Q&A. Event: 119, Map: 44, Ages 16+, Pre-book* 6pm – 7pm, 21 March
Stem cells: hope or hype 8pm – 9pm, 20 March
Our fluid Earth Mill Lane Lecture Room 3, Mill Lane, CB2 1RX In partnership with CSAR and BlueSci
Fifty years ago people imagined the Earth as a solid planet, unchanged for millions of years, until plate tectonics showed continents drifting 25cm each year. Mapping continental velocities using the Global Positioning System makes land look more like a glacier than a rigid plate. See how the Earth’s vigorous movements in the mantle that maintain these motions show us 50 years on that the Earth is a fluid, not a solid, sphere. With Professor Dan McKenzie. Event: 116, Map: 44, Talk, 14+, Pre book* 2pm – 4pm, 21 March
Dinosaurs from the inside out Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences, Downing Street, CB2 3EQ World-renowned palaeoartist Bob Nicholls will take you through the creative process of reconstructing anatomically accurate dinosaurs. Starting with fragments of fossilised bone, you will bring the dinosaur back to life by adding organs, muscles, covering it with skin, scales and feathers and finally deciding what colour it was. No previous experience required. Event: 117, Map: 18, Workshop, Adults, Pre book tel: 01223 333456, £6 6pm – 7pm, 21 March
MRC Centenary lecture: 100 years of TB – poets, sanatoriums and the MRC Mill Lane Lecture Room 9, Mill Lane, CB2 1RX Presented by the MRC
Science writer and broadcaster Vivienne Parry OBE presents a fascinating insight into science through the ages to celebrate 100 years of the Medical Research Council. Event: 118, Map: 44, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book*
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Umney Theatre, Robinson College, Grange Road, CB3 9AN Stem cells are basic building blocks of life and objects of scientific wonder. Unlocking their secrets will illuminate how the human body is formed and maintained throughout life. Stem cell research can provoke exaggerated claims of miracle cures on the one hand and moral outrage over use of human embryos on the other. So what makes a cell a stem cell, and can they really be used to treat disease? Event: 120, Map: 53, Film, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book email: scicoordinator@stemcells.cam.ac.uk 6.30pm – 7.30pm, 21 March
My life as a dinosaur fanatic Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences, Downing Street, CB2 3EQ World renowned palaeoartist Bob Nicholls talks about his life as a professional dinosaur fanatic. Like many children Bob developed an interest in drawing dinosaurs at a very young age and now has over 13 years of experience as a professional palaeoartist. He talks about some of his projects and shares advice on the techniques he uses to bring dinosaurs back to life. The Museum will be open from 6pm for a private view of the new interpretation panels that feature Bob’s work. Event: 121, Map: 18, Talk, Adults, Pre book* 8pm – 9pm, 21 March
Open your mind with the Naked Scientists Mill Lane Lecture Room 3, Mill Lane, CB2 1RX The Naked Scientists take you on an interactive journey through the workings of the nervous system. If you're brave enough, they'll read your brainwaves, reveal how your nerves send and receive information, activate your muscles electrically, fool your senses into seeing and feeling things that aren't really there and even spot when you are lying. Event: 122, Map: 44, Talk, Ages 14+
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
7.30pm – 8.30pm, 22 March
Uomo, la macchina perfetta (Man, the perfect machine)
Malaria: perspectives from art, science and history
La Dante in Cambridge, The Lodge, Hawthorn Way, CB4 1BT Discovering the amazing inner workings of the human body. From the skin, bones and brain, what happens inside our body in an ordinary day? What happens when we breathe, eat, run or sing? With animations, indoor pictures with miniature and other sophisticated technological tools, this film sheds new light on everything. Event: 123, Map: online, Film, Ages 10+
Castlereagh Room, St John’s College, St John’s Street, CB2 1PT Discover how artist Deborah Robinson is exploring the world of malaria research at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute to create a new piece of art. A fascinating line up of speakers from the arts, genetics research and medical history will discuss their experiences of the global killer, malaria. Event: 126, Map: 59, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book visit: malariaperspectives.eventbrite.co.uk
7pm – 8pm, 22 March
2pm – 3pm (talk), 3.15pm – 5pm (workshop), 24 March
The changing perceptions of the nature of light Whipple Museum of the History of Science Opus Anglicanum use music and texts chosen by John Allen, Emeritus Professor of Physics, St Andrews University, to chart the changing perceptions of the nature of light through history. John Allen has chosen Zarathustra, Parmenides, Democritus, Alhazen, Newton, Young and Einstein to be performed along with first performances of new works by Dobrinka Tabakova to a text by Einstein; and by Gordon Crosse to a text by Hafiz. With Judith Bingham ‘Breguswith’s Dream’ from ‘Necklace of Light’; John Dunstable ‘Veni Sancte Spiritus’; Josquin ‘In principio erat verbum’; Tallis ‘O Nata Lux de Lumine’; and other works. Event: 124, Map: 71, Performance, Adults, Pre book* 7pm – 8pm, 22 March
Science shops: an introduction The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, CB2 1RP Residents facing noise from wind turbines, and environmental organisations interested in 'green chemistry' are among those who have teamed up with researchers and students to co-create knowledge, without financial barriers, through science shops. Charities in the Cambridge area have also had research projects carried out for them by students using science shop principles. Join us to learn more with Dr Henk Mulder, University of Groningen and Dr Emma McKenna, Queen’s University Belfast. Event: 127, Map: 64, Talk/Workshop, Adults, Pre book* 6pm – 7pm, 26 March
Design principles for neuroprosthetics
Beyond the Higgs Boson: antimatter, spacetime and supersymmetry
Babbage Lecture Theatre, New Museums Site, CB2 3QH
Mill Lane Lecture Room 3, Mill Lane, CB2 1RX The recent discovery of a Higgs-like boson at the Large Hadron Collider opens a new chapter in particle physics. In this talk, Andy Parker and Val Gibson will discuss some of the open questions to be investigated in the next phase, including why the Universe is not made of antimatter, whether there are more than three space dimensions and if supersymmetric particles exist. Event: 125, Map: 44, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book*
A brain-machine interface (BMI) enables users to interact with computers and with physical devices through the voluntary modulation of their brain activity. The central challenge of a BMI is to distinguish different patterns of brain activity, with each associated with a particular intention or mental task. This is a long way from being solved! What are the principles for operating complex brain-controlled robots over long periods of time? Event: 128, Map: 4, Talk, Ages 14+
The Cambridge Neuroscience Public Lecture
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Throughout the Festival
5pm – 6.30pm, 22 March
Science on Saturday 2
Science on Saturday 2 23 March West Cambridge opens its doors today from 11am. Find out what the scientists of tomorrow are doing today in the Schools’ Zone and how our ancestors were living 2000 years ago. Discover how advanced manufacturing techniques are changing how things are made and how linking mathematics and medicine helps investigate the spread of disease. There will be light, bangs and physics inspiration for all ages and, if the sky is clear, the chance to observe the night sky using modern and historical telescopes. And if you are in the city, why not join our walking tour? Find out where past scientists made their famous discoveries and spent their time, and what’s going on where in the University today.
Highlights Page 39
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Schools’ Zone
Roman street party
Manufacturing Zone
Teams of schools students from across the county come to the Festival and show off their skills as the next generation of scientists.
Your chance to see what's been unearthed at excavations on the North West Cambridge site.
The Institute for Manufacturing host FantasTech events at their open afternoon.
Science on Saturday 2
West Cambridge Site and Mathematics Zone 26
KSON 12 ROAD
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RFORC
CL AR
COTON FOOTPATH/ CYC
LEPATH
GRANGE ROAD
E ROAD
MA X W
11
WILBE
30
CLERK
33
ROAD
ELL RO AD
14
JJ THOM
SON AV
ENUE
MADINGLEY
STOR
EY’S
WAY
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11am – 3pm
12noon – 1pm, 2.30pm – 3.30pm
Schools’ Zone
Unearthing ancient life
Hauser Form, Charles Babbage Road, CB3 0GT Teams of students from secondary schools and sixth form colleges are the experts, showing what is happening in schools either as part of their curriculum or in after-school clubs. Don’t miss these exciting demonstrations from the next generation of scientists, engineers and mathematicians as they bring interactive fun to the Festival. Event: 129, Map: 30, Hands on, Drop in, All ages
Geological Conservation Unit, A.G Brighton Building, Madingley Road, Madingley Rise, CB3 0EZ Find out what a paleontological research team collected during an expedition to Greenland during August 2012. Meet some of the scientists and discover why their training for the expedition included survival skills and shooting. Find out more about how fossils are prepared and cared for with a behind the scenes tour. Event: 131, Map: 26, Tour, Ages 10+, Pre book*
11am – 4pm
Roman street party North West Cambridge Development Site; access via track road off Huntingdon Road opposite Howes Place Join archaeologists, re-enactors and your neighbours in our Roman street party celebration of the Roman landscape of North West Cambridge. Be the first to hear about the new discoveries found on the site, see the archaeology beneath your feet and feel the artefacts in your hands. Learn how the site was created 2000 years ago and how it was rediscovered this winter. Hands on activities for children and adults alike as well as intellectual challenges for the more discerning party goer! Event: 123, Map: online, Film, Ages 10+
Unearthing ancient life
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Science on Saturday 2
3pm – 4.30pm
Albert Einstein, La vita e la scienza (Einstein’s life and science) La Dante in Cambridge, The Lodge, Hawthorn Way, CB4 1BT A brilliant and complex personality, a man who loved life, but most of all, he loved science. For the 90th anniversary of the award of the Nobel Prize for Physics, the American network WGBH produced this documentary that sheds light on the personality of a man of genius, a pioneer of his time. Event: 132, Map: online, Film, Adults, Ages 10+ 2.30pm – 6.30pm
Open afternoon at the Institute of Astronomy Institute of Astronomy, Madingley Road, CB3 0HA The Institute of Astronomy opens its doors for the annual open afternoon. We will have talks, displays, demonstrations and hands on activities for everyone to learn more about Astronomy, and the kind of research we do. There will also be an exhibition from the historical archives of the Library. Event: 133, Map: 34, Hands on, Drop in, Ages 8+
Public observing at the Institute of Astronomy
7pm – 9pm
Public observing at the Institute of Astronomy Institute of Astronomy, Madingley Road, CB3 0HA Stargazing on the Observatory lawns using both modern and historical telescopes if (and only if!) the weather is clear. If it is cloudy, the event will not go ahead. Event: 134, Map: 34, Demonstration, Drop in, Ages 8+ 6.30pm – 7.10pm
Performance programming – digital and generative dance, music and art Computer Laboratory, JJ Thompson Avenue, CB3 0FD Computers always follow rules, and people sometimes do. Can following rules be creative? This live performance will experiment with technical and compositional rules, including live coding of music (Sam Aaron) and generative dance (Jane Turner). The event includes a 20 minute performance, technical demonstrations of new digital arts technologies followed by an audience discussion with the performers. Event: 135, Map: 14, Performance, Ages 16+, Pre book*
Mathematics Zone
2pm – 3pm
at the Centre for
One of the earliest applications of mathematics to medicine was Bernouilli's study 250 years ago of the efficacy of vaccinating against smallpox, which in the 18th century killed hundreds of thousands of people a year. Join Professor Tom Körner as he explores Bernouilli's work and investigates how the arguments and ideas involved remain relevant and interesting today. Event: 138, Talk, Ages 14+
12noon – 4pm (unless otherwise stated) Map: 12, Hands on, Drop in (unless otherwise stated)
Maths open day Cambridge has been a world-leading institution for mathematics since the time of Isaac Newton. Modern mathematicians work on everything from the Big Bang to prime numbers, fluid dynamics or investigating the spread of disease. The maths open day shares the excitement of mathematics and theoretical physics through hands on activities, demonstrations and displays (featuring everything from chocolate eggs to computer simulations!) Event: 136, Ages 8+
Mathematics Zone at the Isaac Newton Institute for Mathematical Sciences 20 Clarkson Road, CB3 0EH
Hands on maths fair Hands on mathematical games, puzzles and activities for children and young adults. Develop your strategic thinking skills with activities including the Soma cube, giant dominoes, tactical teacups and calculus countdown, brought to you by the University’s Millennium Mathematics Project and staff and students from the Mathematics Faculty. Event: 137, Ages 5+ SIR CAM
Colva Roney-Dougal
11am – 12pm
Party hard! The maths of connections How many guests need to come to a party to guarantee that at least five of them either all know each other or are mutual strangers? Join Dr Colva Roney-Dougal and see some unexpected applications of the maths behind this still-unsolved problem, from modelling flu epidemics to galaxy formation. Event:139, Map: 35, Talk, Ages 14+, Pre book tel: 01223 335983, email: library@newton.ac.uk or visit: www.newton.ac.uk Hands on maths fair
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Science on Saturday 2
Mathematical Sciences, Wilberforce Road, CB3 0WA
Mathematics and smallpox
Science on Saturday 2
Manufacturing Zone in the Institute for Manufacturing, 17 Charles Babbage Road, CB3 0FS 1pm – 5pm (unless otherwise stated) Map: 33, Hands on, Drop in, All ages (unless otherwise stated)
Laser rocket racing Fire lasers at mini rockets and make them speed along a wire track. Race your friends and family and see who has the best aim! Event: 140, Ages 8+
Raspberry Pi at the IfM The Raspberry Pi creators will be hosting a range of demos, competitions and hands on activities. They would also love to hear about your own Raspberry Pi projects, so why not bring a photo or even better a SD-card to demo! There will be prizes for the best projects seen on the day! Event: 145
Cambridge Science Centre – blowing in the wind The Cambridge Science Centre is back with its mighty wind tunnel. Discover more about the how seeds fly and send up your own creation to see how it catches the wind. Event: 146 1.15pm – 2pm, 3.15pm – 4pm
Laser lab tours Get a glimpse of the latest laser technologies and find out how they are used in industry. Watch a focused ion beam etch possibly the smallest ever Union Jack. Have your name laser engraved onto the head of a live match and try to use a laser to ignite gun cotton... it goes off with a BANG! Event: 141, Ages 8+
FantasTech! Enjoy a host of activities from our photonics experts, including creating your very own laser etched metal ID card. Use your finger to write on the wall with just your own heat or see your hot spots! Event: 142, Ages 5+
Inkredible! Our in-house inkjet experts will show you how they can ‘slow down the world’ with their ultra-high speed technology, and how their liquid jet research reveals some monstrous findings! Event: 143
i-Teams competition – what would you use THAT for? Try out some of the latest science-based products from local companies and win a prize for thinking of the best way to use them! Previous demos have included a holographic projector from Light Blue Optics, augmented reality from Aurasma and robots from ARM. Event: 144
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Think big, make small: manufacturing adventures in the nanoworld What is the nanoscale? How will it affect our lives in the future? How can we design and manufacture things in the nanoworld? These are just some of the questions that will be answered by Professor Bill O’Neill, who will take you on a journey to the atoms and the nanofactories of the future. Event: 147, Talk, Ages 10+ 2pm – 4pm
Pecha Kucha challenge: can they do it? Engineers take the Pecha Kucha challenge. Graduate students enrolled for a PhD in Engineering will take on the challenge of sharing their research with you using the Pecha Kucha presentation method of 20 slides each lasting 20 seconds. Will they succeed? Event: 148, Talk, Ages 12+ 2.15pm – 3pm, 4.15pm – 5pm
Yes! Why engineers love competitions Challenges, competitions and prizes are often used to push engineers to do amazing things. Manned space flight, driverless cars, better ways of recommending movies, and new medical devices have all been developed through competitions. Use your creative skills to win some fabulous(ish) prizes during the talk! Event: 149, Talk, Ages 10+, Pre book*
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
in the Cavendish Laboratory, JJ Thompson Avenue, CB3 0HE 1pm – 5pm (unless otherwise stated) Map: 11, Hands on, Drop in, All ages (unless otherwise stated) 1pm – 1.45pm
How to make great discoveries and inventions Pippard Lecture Theatre The history of physics is full of splendid examples of great discoveries and inventions being made by quite unexpected routes. Join Professor Malcolm Longair as he looks at examples, including James Watt and the discovery of the laws of thermodynamics, Einstein and the discovery of quanta, CTR Wilson and the invention of the Cloud Chamber and Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe and the origin of the Universe. Event: 150, Talk, Ages 12+
Physics IS fun talks Small Lecture Theatre Event: 153, Map: 11, Pre book visit: tinyurl.com/cavendish-sw
Science on Saturday 2
Physics Zone
1.45pm – 2.15pm ‘Tripping the light fantastic’ With Dave Ansell Ages 8+ 2.45pm – 3.15pm ‘Tripping the light fantastic’ With Dave Ansell Ages 8+ 3.45pm – 4.15pm ‘The most famous Cavendish experiments’ With Dr Lisa Jardine-Wright Ages 12+ Pippard Lecture Theatre 2.30pm – 3pm ‘Physics you meet every day especially in toys’ With Dr Lisa Jardine-Wright Ages 12+
1pm – 5pm
Experiments, demonstrations and CHaOS Experience physics in action by making your own physics related toy. Past Festival favourites return including giant bubbles, cars and hovercraft. To avoid overcrowding tickets for specific times will be allocated, if necessary, on arrival. Event: 151, Drop in, All ages
3.45pm – 4.15pm ‘Vacuum bazookas and custard fireballs’ With Dave Ansell Ages 8+ 4.30pm – 5pm ‘Vacuum bazookas and custard fireballs’ With Dave Ansell Ages 8+ NASA
1.15pm, 2pm, 2.30pm, 3.15pm, 3.45pm and 4.30pm
Astronomy roadshow planetarium Sponsored by the East Anglia Branch of the Institute of Physics
Explore the beauty of the night sky. Learn about space, stars and the Solar System through these interactive and lively shows. Event: 152, All ages, Pre book visit: http://tinyurl.com/cavendish-sw
Astronomy roadshow planetarium
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Science on Saturday 2
In and around the city 10.30am – 12noon, 1.30pm – 3pm
A chemical trail around Cambridge University Botanic Garden
Meet outside Great St Mary’s Church, Senate House Hill, CB2 3PG Ever wondered what really goes on behind the University’s doors? The city is bursting with exciting research and scientific history. Come and join this walking tour led by a Cambridge academic for an insider’s view. You will learn where Cambridge’s most famous alumni liked to spend their down time as well as up to date information about the state of the art research currently being investigated. Almost every street in Cambridge is crammed with scientific history, but this can sometimes be easy to miss. This tour is led by Hayley Frend, a PhD student in the Department of Pathology. Event: 156, Map: 29, Tour, Adults, Pre book tel: 07875 279122 or email: htf20@cam.ac.uk SIR CAM
Botanic Garden, 1 Brookside, CB2 1JE A guided walk around the Chemicals from Plants trail. This trail highlights a few of the interesting chemical compounds in some of the Garden’s plants. These include the molecules that give plants their well-known properties as foodstuffs, supplements and drugs, as well as some other compounds like melatonin which is useful across the plant and animal kingdoms. It highlights some issues related to the use of plants such as how knowledge of some detrimental components can allow these to be eliminated and how plants can be harmed when they are found to be beneficial to us. Event: 154, Map: online, Tour, Ages 15+, Pre book*
1.30pm – 3pm
Science in the city
11am – 12noon, 12.30pm – 1.30pm, 2.30pm – 3.30pm, 4pm – 5pm
Acts of kindness Robinson Theatre, Hills Road Sixth Form College, Cambridge CB2 8PE An exciting and adventurous collaboration between theatre and science, centred around a new play, The Altruists, by Craig Baxter. 11am – 12noon ‘Game theory in The Altruists’ With Rufus Johnstone and Menagerie Theatre Ensemble 12.30pm – 1.30pm ‘Highs and lows – the presentation of Bi-Polar Disorder in The Altruists’ With Dr Belinda Lennox, Professor Emily Holmes and Martina Cherubini di Simplicio 2.30pm – 3.30pm ‘Evolution and nature in The Altruists’ With Dr Francis Neary and Professor Steve Jones 4pm – 5pm ‘Play science’ representing science and scientists on stage Event: 155, Map: online, Performance, Ages 16+, Pre book*
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The wonderful world of pollination
1.30pm – 4pm
The wonderful world of pollination Botanic Garden, Classroom, 1 Brookside, CB2 1JE Discover how flowers send out secret signals to attract animal pollinators like bees and butterflies and create science inspired artworks. You’ll never look at flowers in the same way after this fun afternoon workshop at the Botanic Garden. Event: 157, Map: online, Ages 12+, Pre book tel: 01223 331875 5pm – 7pm, 23 March
Innovation and development: Hackathon finale The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, CB2 1RP All are welcome to the finale event of a two-week collaboration or ‘hackathon’. Enterprising students and professionals will present innovative approaches to real challenges faced by people living in poverty overseas, with a focus on food security and social enterprise. Awards will be presented to the team of innovators chosen by an expert panel – and by the crowd! Organised with the Humanitarian Centre and Cambridge University Technology and Enterprise Club. Event: 158, Map: 64, Talk, 16+, Pre book*
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
Public engagement The Cambridge Science Festival is co-ordinated by the University of Cambridge Public Engagement team. Working across the University and its Colleges, the team supports outreach activities from the annual Festivals to various student-run schemes and educational programmes. For more information about the team, visit: www.cam.ac.uk/publicengagement Be the first to hear about our events by registering for the free monthly What’s On e-bulletin; visit: www.cam.ac.uk/whatson.
13 – 15 September 2013 (Programme available from July)
Open Cambridge Cambridge is home to spectacular architecture, art collections and gardens. Open Cambridge is an accessible weekend of tours and talks for residents and visitors to see beautiful spaces for free. Sunday 15 September 2013 (registration open in June)
Bridge the Gap charity walk This five-mile route through Colleges is a one-of a-kind day out that raises funds for local charities. 23 October – 3 November 2013 (Programme available from September)
Festival of Ideas The University of Cambridge Festival of Ideas explores arts, humanities and social sciences. Take your pick from talks, performances and film screenings, or have a go with hands-on activities and workshops for all ages.
Keep up-to-date What’s On is the online list of public events from the University of Cambridge: www.cam.ac.uk/whatson The Outreach Directory is a user-friendly online database of resources for members of the public, schools and community organisations. Find out more about activities run by the University by visiting: webservices.admin.cam.ac.uk/outreach Become a friend of the Cambridge Science Festival on Facebook or follow us on Twitter: www.facebook.com/cambridgesciencefestival www.twitter.com/camscience #CSF2013
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Tell us what you think Your experience is important. We will be listening to your suggestions because knowing what you think helps make every next Festival better. You will have the opportunity to give us your feedback when you make an online booking, when you attend Festival events and when the Festival is over. Are you willing to share your thoughts before, during and after the Festival? If so, please visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival/festival-feedback
Accessibility The Festival takes place across dozens of locations, each with their own architectural style, character and level of accessibility. Everyone is welcome and this includes children in pushchairs, wheelchair users and people with additional access needs. We have indicated available facilities at our venues to help you plan your visit. We are able to make some additional adjustments, for instance installing a temporary hearing loop or advising on parking, and our codes represent the minimum level of assessed accessibility. The full Cambridge University Disability Access Guide contains more comprehensive practical information across the University but please ask us if you have a specific question related to your own circumstances.
Please contact us if you would like all or part of this publication in large font, audio or Braille. The Cambridge University Disability Access Guide, including maps, is available here: www.cam.ac.uk/disability For further information about accessibility, please contact the Festival by email: csf@admin.cam.ac.uk; or call 01223 766766, Monday – Friday, 10am – 4.30pm.
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Science Festival accessibility guide We use the following codes: Toilet, wheelchair accessible Level, ramped access Partial access: phone or email to discuss your needs Lift to all floors Induction loop 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37
Anatomy Lecture Theatre T, L, Li, I Arts Picturehouse T, L, PA, I Arts School/Central Science LibraryT, L, Li Babbage Lecture Theatre L, Li, I Botanic Garden T, L Cambridge Buddhist Centre T, PA Cambridge Regional College T, L, Li Cambridge Science Centre T, L Cambridge Union L Cambridge University Library T, L, I, PA Cavendish Laboratory T, L, Li, I Centre for Mathematical T, L, Li, I Sciences Clare College PA Computer Laboratory L, Li, T Department of Biochemistry T, Li, L, I, PA Department of Chemical T, L, Li, I Engineering and Biotechnology Department of Chemistry T, PA Department of Earth Sciences T, PA, Li and Sedgwick Museum Department of Engineering L, Li Department of Materials T, L, Li, I Science and Metallurgy Department of Pathology T, L, Li, PA Department of Pharmacology T, L, Li, I Department of Psychology L, Li Department of Zoology L Friends Meeting House T, L, Li Geological Conservation Unit PA Grafton Shopping Centre T,L,Li Gurdon Institute T,L,Li,I Great St Mary’s Church T, L, I Hauser Forum T, Li Hills Road Sixth Form College T,L,Li,I Information Marquee L Institute for Manufacturing L, PA Institute of Astronomy T, PA Isaac Newton Institute for T, L, I, Li Mathematical Sciences Kettle’s Yard House and Gallery PA La Dante in Cambridge PA
38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71
T L PA Li I
Lady Mitchell Hall T,L,Li Madingley Hall T, L McCrum Lecture Theatre T, Li, I McDonald Institute for L, T, I, Li, PA Archaeological Research Magdalene College T,L,Li,I Michaelhouse Café T, L, Li Mill Lane Lecture Rooms T, L, Li MRC Cognition and T, L, Li, I Brain Sciences Unit Museum of Archaeology T, L, Li, I and Anthropology Museum of Zoology T, L, Li North West Cambridge PA Development Site Peterhouse T, L, Li, I Physiological Laboratory T, L, Li, I Polar Museum T, L, Li, I Plant Sciences Marquee L Robinson College T,L,I Royal Society of Chemistry L, Li, T Sainsbury Laboratory T, L, Li, I Shepreth Wildlife Park T, L St Catharine’s College L, PA St Columba’s Church Hall T, L, Li, I St John’s College T, L, Li, I The Fitzwilliam Museum T, L, Li, I The Guildhall T, L, Li The HFL Sport Science Laboratory T, L The Open University in the T, L, Li East of England The Pitt Building T, L, Li, I The Portland Arms PA Tourist Information Centre PA University Centre T,L,Li Wellcome Trust T, L, Li, I Genome Campus Wesley Methodist Church L, I West Road Concert Hall T, L, I Whipple Museum of the L, Li History of Science
*Pre book visit: www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival or tel: 01223 766766
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Spotlight Sponsors
Partner Sponsors
Anglia Ruskin University Cambridge & Chelmsford
Associate Sponsors
Pye Foundation In Kind Support
Media Partners
Cambridge Science Festival Patrons Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, Professor John Barrow, Dr Claire Cockcroft, Dr Henry Gee, Lord Rees of Ludlow, Professor Malcolm Longair, Mr Tim Radford, Professor Barbara Sahakian, Professor Jeremy Sanders, Dr Andrew Sugden, Ms Carol Vorderman, Professor Jim Secord, Mr Ian Harvey, Professor Andrea Brand, Professor Ron Laskey, Professor Bill Sutherland, Professor John Naughton, Professor Alan Barrell
Printed on 80% Recycled paper