Public Engagement in the Community:
Cambridge Science Festival

The Cambridge Science Festival attracts visitors from across the South East with around 2000 visitors to The Biology Zone. Since 2006 we have, through collaborations with the regional MRC communications manager, the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, CRUK and University Departments, developed an exciting ‘science trail’ through the Biology Zone. Poster displays explaining our science and its relevance to society, hands-on science activities for children aged three upwards, a Stem Cell exhibit and ‘Superheroes of the immune system’ have featured in the past.

Posters explaining our science and its relevance to society, hands-on science activities for children aged three upwards, a Stem Cell exhibit and ‘Superheroes of the immune system’ have featured in the past. We also bring a stereomicroscope, kindly loaned by Olympus, so that people can get up close and personal with a variety of specimens. This has been a major attraction in recent years for our younger visitors.

In 2007 Wolf Reik gave a keynote evening lecture on epigenetics and we are planning a panel discussion on Stem cells, epigenetics and regenerative medicine for 2012. In 2011 the main feature of our exhibit in the Biology Zone was ‘Calcium signalling – getting to the heart of the matter’. We also included some of our fun hands-on immunology games and a new activity based around the immune system and diet-related ill health.