By Neelabja Adkuloo
Art, science, and technology converged on the 29th of September this year in Valletta, Europe for the sixth edition of Science In The City. The popular annual festival is part of the EU-wide celebration called European Researchers Night. The aim of the event, which began in 2012, has been to communicate research and science to all age groups.
NGOs on the forefront
An environmental organisation named Greenhouse via a series of events will highlight the importance bees have on the future of our food production. A project by Wasteserv titled Plastic Planetsan installation using plastic bottles and fishing netswill deliver a message on plastic waste. Several other NGOs concerned with social, historical and artistic issues will set up stalls on the same.
Main attractions
An interactive light installation called ‘Light Pushes Stuff’ is touted as changing modern methods of travel and communication. The premise behind the project is straightforward: scientists have discovered that light is capable of moving things. Visitors will be able to interact with and manipulate the sculpture any way they wish to.
The CITYCoP project aims to renovate the existing traditional relationship between communities and law enforcement using augmented reality. The event involves downloading an app and helping superheroes to fight a crime based in the future. Music will also be given a scientific treatment through Jazz for the Braina result of an unlikely partnership between jazz players and neuroscientists from the University of Malta. Lights and music will converge in a series of melodious performances to address the complexity of a neurological disorder called a stroke.
Theme of the year
This years theme is the future: “Todays Research; Tomorrows Society”. From new means of transport and communication to innovative way of producing food items, the programme features an array of attractions. The festival looks forward to bring to life technologies that we once thought can only be seen in movies. The important question that it seeks to address is: how does the research of today shape the society of the tomorrow?
Featured Image Source: Wikimedia Commons
