STIRLING SCIENCE FESTIVAL LINE UP ANNOUNCED
Discover the mysteries of the deep with Dynamic Earth at Tolbooth Stirling.
From code breaking to discovering the deep, the full line-up for this year’s Stirling Science Festival has been announced: www.stirlingsciencefestival.org
Wednesday 19 October
Make your own music with Sensatronic Lab.
Four days of family fun kick off on Wednesday 19 October at the Tolbooth with an expedition under the sea with special guests Dynamic Earth. A chance to see real marine specimens and conduct your own biodiversity survey of a deep-sea reef.
The fun continues at the Tolbooth with Sensatronic Lab, an interactive sound experience where you can create your own music from a host of brilliant sound making machines and installations.
Then it’s time for a celestial evening of star gazing at Stirling Highland Hotel with Stirling Astronomical Society. Climb the spiral staircase to the copper domed observatory for amazing views of the solar system through the 133-year-old Newtonian reflective telescope.
Thursday 20 October
Uncover clues with the Dinosaur Detectives.
Day two highlights include a World War II themed codebreaking challenge at Bannockburn Library. Where participants age 12+ will use replica encoding machines to intercept and decode radio messages, hunting down ‘submarines’ in an exciting game of cat and mouse.
There’ll also be problem solving fun for younger kids aged 5+. Join the Dinosaur Detectives as they search for clues about the past in a dinosaur fossil themed puppet show featuring projection and shadow theatre.
Thursday will also see the Tolbooth host two interactive science shows. ‘Do you feel Lucky?’ looks at superstition and luck with some clever mind reading experiments!
If you still have some energy to burn, head to Thistles Stirling to use your pedal power to make your own smoothie or race against your friends with their bicycle powered Scalextric track. Little ones can also enjoy storytelling sessions with the award winning author of One Button Benny, Alan Windram.
Friday 21 October
Hop on down to Thistles Stirling to learn how to create, restore and manage amphibian habitats with the Pond Doctor and take in Froglife’s novel virtual reality exhibition.
Or try your hand at the festival’s coding challenge, creating your own text-based adventure game.
Saturday 22 October
The final day of the festival will see The Albert Halls throw open its doors for a family fun day with circus performers and science sessions galore:
Uncover the hidden link between chemistry and music.
Lift and analyse your own fingerprints.
Discover what happens ‘behind the scenes’ at Stirling’s composting facilities.
Test your sense of smell and learn more about how important this sense is.
Design your dream playground and learn about the science of play.
Pop up the road to Codebase to grow your digital skills.
The full festival programme can be found at www.stirlingsciencefestival.org, where you’ll also find a series of fun experiments and experiences to try at home from escape rooms to making your own animation.
SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY
As part of the festival, Tolbooth Gallery is also showing an ambitious film exploring the ethics of scientific discovery and the complex relationship between science, politics and race in an age of avatars, video gaming and DNA Ancestry testing.
‘A Lament for Power’ by artists Larry Achiampong and David Blandy is open now until Saturday 29 October.
FESTIVAL PARTNERS
Stirling Council are delivering this year’s festival in partnership with Glasgow Science Festival, Dynamic Earth, University of Stirling, Forth Valley College, Codebase and Thistles Stirling with the support of EventScotland.
Paul Bush OBE, VisitScotland Director of Events said: "We are delighted to support Stirling Science Festival through our National Events Programme.
“This year’s festival is bursting with a variety of fascinating and exploratory events, which will provide fun for all the family, over the four days.
“Festivals such as Stirling Science showcase how magnificently diverse Scotland’s events portfolio is, while helping build on Scotland’s reputation as the perfect stage for events.”
For full details of this year’s festival see www.stirlingsciencefestival.org