Manchester Science Festival 2010 - reflections and thank you

Manchester is an amazing place for a science festival. There’s so much rich industrial heritage and iconic scientists to draw inspiration from and so much innovation and exciting research happening in the city, it provides a unique backdrop. The fourth Manchester Science Festival has just taken place and since it began in 2007, so many people have got behind the Festival, sharing their ideas, creativity and passion for science. It’s a real thrill to be putting science at the heart of the cultural calendar in Manchester.

A huge thank you goes out to all the funders, partners, organisers, speakers, researchers, community groups and volunteers who made this year’s Festival happen. The Festival is a huge partnership effort and we’re proud to work with so many (over 75!) different partner organisations. This year’s Festival was particularly exciting and so many great projects came together to create an inspiring and innovative programme. In fact there was such an action packed programme of event, it’s hard to pick a particular highlight to shout about. However, there are a few projects we’re particularly chuffed about and thought they were worth a mention.

This year we embarked on an ambitious community programme. As well as science busking, we delivered kitchen science workshops through each of the ten Greater Manchester boroughs. We put young people at the heart of the Festival, inviting them to get involved in the development and delivery of key projects. 18 year olds with no previous interest in science got together to work with scientists, ethicists and artists to explore the topic of human enhancement and develop creative performances for the public. We also added a twist to the Dragon’s Den. As part of the Manchester Beacon Science Festival Community Awards scientists pitched their creative event ideas to a panel of ruthless dragons (teenagers), who chose which project to fund and work with to shape and deliver an event. The winning idea, the bacteria party saw students sharing their work, getting hands-on, eating bacteria shaped cake and playing games with the local community. It was such a fantastic event and exactly the kind of programming we want to encourage as part of the Festival.

We really provided some unique experiences for people this year with projects like Super K Sonic Booooum, an immersive experience where you could experience what it’s like to be in neutrino observatory. Unsuspecting members of the public donned their wellies and lab coat and jumped aboard a boat to see what it’s like to be a particle physicist in Japan. The installation explored some really serious and exciting science, as well as being fun and giving you the chance to experience an environment you would never dream of seeing.

We welcomed over 80 volunteers who assisted at events and went to venues throughout Greater Manchester, entertaining the masses with science busking – fun, hands-on science demonstrations that capture the imagination as you’re on the commute or out shopping. They were passionate, enthusiastic and committed. A huge thank you goes to our volunteers who are helping to inspire our future scientists!

This diverse and innovative programme could only be put together by the people in Manchester for the people of Manchester. Manchester is a truly original science city and I hope you enjoyed this exciting, passionate and ambitious Festival. So thank you for coming and getting involved and we'll keep you posted on the blog with plans for next year!

Natalie Ireland,
Manchester Science Festival Director

Manchester Science Festival - Nobel prize winners, comedy, craft and more

We're half way through this year's Manchester Science Festival. It's been a cracking week so far, so thanks to everyone who's come along and got involved. There's loads more on offer until the end of October for familes and adults. Here's our top picks!

Meet Manchester’s newest Nobel Prize winner
Join us tonight for an evening of Manchester science, as part of the Royal Society’s 350th Anniversary ‘Local heroes’ programme in the North West. some of our region’s Royal Society Research Fellows Prof Andrew Sharrocks, Prof Barbara Maher, Dr Alexander Oh and recent Nobel Prize winner Dr Konstantin Novoselov, chaired by Prof Dame Nancy Rothwell FRS will discuss their work on the latest developments in biomedicine, climate change and environmental pollution, and particle and condensed matter physics. The event is at 7pm tonight at MOSI. Tickets are free and you can book here.

Laugh your scientific socks off
We've teamed up with Manchester Comedy Festival to see the lighter side of science at some of our comedy gigs. Tomorrow Helen Keene takes a trip to the arctic (well, Islington Mill) to entertain us with stories of an expedition to this cruel environment in The primitive methodist guide to arctic survival.

Rosie Wilby’s will be educating the adults about the Further Science of Sex on Friday night. Do aphrodisiacs work? Why do we kiss? What’s going on in the brain when we fall in love? Spoof experiments and handmade props galore!

We’ve also got comedy for the younger ones! The Punk Scientists have travelled all the way from London, yes, London to entertain us with their mad and explosive world of science tomorrow! You can also catch crazy multi-media show Parannoyance packed with magic and storytelling on Friday. Both at the Comedy Store.

Get creative
Head to Longsight Library tomorrow or Manchester Museum on Saturday to see Wriggling rangoli. As part of the Manchester Beacon Science Festival Community Awards, ‘Inspired Sisters’, a group of Asian women from Longsight will be demonstrating the beautiful art of rangoli, looking at the science of infectious disease.

Get those knitting needles out and join us for a spot of knitting with your science. Bee knitting will run on Saturday at Manchester Museum. Learn about bees and biodiversity, and pick up a new skill.

Science Junkies
One of our headline shows, Science Junkies is action packed, adrenaline fuelled fun for the whole family! Find out about the physics and physiology of extreme sports and see some extreme sports in action! This Sunday at the Zion Arts Centre.

Please do put any pictures and feedback up on our Facebook page or send us a Tweet.

Dragon's den bacteria party

A Dragon’s Den-style teenage panel has selected a ‘Bacteria Party’ as its winning idea presented by scientists as part of the Manchester Science Festival’s community awards. The ‘Bacteria Party’, which will be held on 25 October, was an idea presented by the ‘B team’ from the School of Pharmacy at the University of Manchester, and includes cake and goodie bags alongside games, interactive exhibits and poster displays to celebrate the good and bad sides of bugs, germs and bacteria.

A panel of three young Dragons (17-19) judged four pitches made by academics in the fields of biology, medicine, technology, chemistry and physics. Each had to present a fun idea about science which will be created into a community-focused event during the Manchester Science Festival.

The winning team includes two academics and a team of eight masters students of pharmacy. The young Dragons from the Den have planned and prepared the event with the winning group and invite visitors to come and join in the fun. At the event there will be five stations to teach the public about antibodies, as well as different germs good and bad. Each participant gets a passport and a stamp at the station.

Sarah Evans of the Dragons Den Decides said: “The Bacteria Party is a great idea to help promote understanding of science and have some fun at the same time. The team at the School of Pharmacy did a great presentation and convinced the Dragons that this was the event that was most likely to inspire the local community to learn about science. Do come along and party with us on 25 October, and learn about the good as well as the bad sides of bacteria and how it affects our lives.”

Other contestants included a scientist form University of Salford, who wanted to run an event to show young people how to make ice cream the old fashioned way. Another team from University of Manchester wanted to demonstrate the dangers of a bad diet to our brains and the effect of lifestyle choices to having a stroke. A scientist from University of Manchester wanted to run an event to demonstrate the different senses and how they could be used to document scientific research.

The Dragons Den Decides is a youth participatory project as part of the Manchester Beacon Science Festival Community Awards. Manchester Science Festival is now in its triumphant fourth year and has quickly become the most popular science festival in the UK! As well as exploring all aspects of science, this year the Festival celebrates the International Year of Biodiversity. The Festival brings together universities, museums, unusual venues and community spaces to inspire people from across the region and learn more about why science is amazing, great fun and an essential, accessible part of everyday life.

The Bacteria Party is supported by the Manchester Beacon. The Manchester Beacon combines the complementary strengths of The University of Manchester, Manchester Metropolitan University and The University of Salford with the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester and Manchester:Knowledge Capital. The Manchester Beacon engages staff, students, community groups and local businesses in the design and delivery of activities that use engagement to break down the barriers between universities and local people.

The event runs this afternoon from 3pm at the Zion Arts Centre.