Annual global festival Pint of Science will return to South Africa for a third time with a three night festival, which will take place between 14 – 16 May 2018 in the city of Cape Town. The event aims to create spaces and moments for interaction between scientists and the public by providing a valuable opportunity to ‘bring the lab’ to the public and foster conversation -over a pint- on the latest research and findings in science.
“Pint of Science has proven to be an exciting adventure for all involved, from people learning about scientific concepts for the first time, to experienced research being challenged in unexpected ways. It is a wonderful opportunity to bridge the gap, making science more accessible to people who would not usually engage in science, as well as ignite critical thinking,” said Dr Taime Sylvester, Postdoctoral
Research Fellow, SA MRC Centre for Tuberculosis Research, Stellenbosch University.
“Two years ago the first Pint Of Science South Africa was launched by Eugenie Marias and I joined the team as a volunteer. I loved it! I am passionate about bringing the conversations into public spaces, and hope that scientists all over South Africa will use this as an opportunity to have a drink and chat to their community about their work. We aim to have events all over South Africa and would love your help! We are looking for speakers, volunteers, partners and chapter heads. Please have a look at our new website
and chat to us”, said Chantal Louw, Director of Pint of Science South Africa.
“When we created Pint of Science, we didn’t expect to expand so much and seeing it today in every continent is amazing! It’s also showing a need for scientists to share their research to the public that is hungry for science. South Africa is the first country in Africa to start Pint of Science and I hope it won’t be the last,” stated Elodie Chabrol, International Director for Pint of Science.
Festival goers can look forward to the following topics:
● Beautiful Mind – neuroscience, psychology and psychiatry
● Atoms to Galaxies – physics, chemistry, maths, astronomy
● Our Body – medicine, human biology, health
● Planet Earth – geosciences, plant sciences, zoology
● Tech Me Out – biotechnology, robotics, computers
● Our Society – law, history, politics, policy, languages
“As South Africa moves to the forefront of research in a number of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) arenas, it is important to get everyone involved in science, from young to old, because the best ideas come from the most unlikely of people,” concluded Sylvester.
Pint of Science was founded in the UK and runs every May in more than 150 cities across 19 different countries. For more information, visit http://www.pintofscience.co.za/
