One of the most popular events in the TechFest Festival of STEM calendar, the Activity Weekend, returns this year in a new digital format in keeping with the rest of the online festival.
Taking place over November 14 and 15, the weekend is jam-packed with a fun and exciting range of activities for all ages. They include Colour Detectives with Aberdeen Science Centre, Amazing Soap Bubbles with Philip Noble, Wobble Nano Jelly Experiment with Really Small Science, 10 Cool Facts About Stars and much more.
There are also competitions, with prizes, for three age groups 4-12, 7-12 and 12-18. Details are on the website and the closing date is November 25.
The Activity Weekend, which is supported by RockRose Energy, includes three presentations from Skills Development Scotland under the heading My World of Work and takes in Spinning Water, Invisibility and Cornflour Goo.
Booking is open now for the Activity Weekend.
Sarah Chew, managing director of TechFest, said: “The Activity Weekend is a firm favourite with many of our festival-goers. It always has a great mix of activities which appeal to all ages and this year is no exception.
“The online format means it will be a different Activity Weekend this year, but that has opened up new possibilities for our audiences. Going on-line means we’re not restricted by geographic reach so we can engage with people right across Scotland and beyond. It also means that in many cases the size of our audience can be increased.
“We have many interactive activities so participants can still take part in activities in real time and we are looking forward to another great weekend.”
The annual festival is aiming to be the biggest and most ambitious digital science festival in Scotland this year.
With an exciting and eclectic mix of more than 30 events taking place over a three-week period, the festival will have two main strands - the traditional public programme and a programme for schools.
Supported by joint principal sponsors bp and Shell and also sponsored by Equinor, Ithaca Energy, SBRC, The Data Lab and supported by RockRose Energy, the celebration of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) usually runs for three weeks in September, with events taking place in venues across Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire.
This year, rather than cancel the festival due to current events, organisers not only decided to go ahead with a 2020 event but to make it wider ranging than ever before.
The mix includes both live and pre-recorded events delivered via Zoom, Facebook, LinkedIn and through interactive activities.
Live events in the public programme of afternoon, evening and weekend sessions include talks on deep sea genetics and marine plastic pollution, human evolution according to brain size, sleep management and the development of good sleep habits. There is even a session on RAF Air Cadets and links to STEM learning.
A schools programme will bring science-based activities directly into the classroom with a variety of activities, video conferences, talks, and virtual events with partners including Edinburgh Zoo, the RAF and the Red Cross in collaboration with Skills Development Scotland TechFest’s new programme collaborator.
The 2020 TechFest festival of STEM launched on November 5 and continues until November 25.
Admission to all events is free. For more information and to book, visit the TechFest website at www.techfestsetpoint.org.uk/