Scientastic kindles the public's interest in science
The "How it works" section invited visitors to discover how the digital world works. © Alain Herzog/EPFL
The public descended on EPFL’s campus this past weekend, 10 and 11 November, for Scientastic. Some 17,000 visitors took part in the fifth edition of the school’s science fair, the theme of which was “digitalization at your fingertips.”
How do you make digitalization easy to understand? EPFL’s Scientastic, held this past weekend, did just that through a series of demonstrations, displays, talks and workshops. It taught visitors the ins and outs of the connected world and how some of the high-tech things in our lives really work. This was the fifth edition of EPFL’s science fair – the third held on the school’s main campus – and it set itself the lofty goal of helping people make sense of the digital world around us.
The public turnout did not disappoint, with some 17,000 people – 7,000 on Saturday and 10,000 on Sunday – taking part in one way or another. “We’re delighted! There was some really great interaction with the researchers. We had visitors of all ages, and this year we were particularly pleased that so many teens got involved in different parts of the fair,” said Farnaz Moser, the head of EPFL’s Science Outreach Department, which organized the event.
An intellectually curious public came away satisfied, having learned more about various aspects of science and their practical applications. The weekend was punctuated by a number of expert talks – to packed audiences – on topics ranging from cryptography and molecule modeling to the use of digital technology to make skis.
In keeping with Scientastic’s mission of promoting science by taking it to the public, EPFL’s next science fair will be held in Sion (Valais) on 18–19 May 2019.
