10th Science Picnic
BIS Polish Radio
In 190 tents – 160 institutions: technological novelties, historical discoveries, art and literature, medicine, ecology, sport and... travels – you could visit 12 different countries in one place!
It was a record Picnic! In every sense: participating institutions, experiments and presentations performed and, of course, visitors. Such big crowds in the New Market Square and Podzamcze had not been seen there for a long time…
The numbers are as follows:
Over 160 institutions
Representatives of 12 countries from 4 continents
150 thousand visitors
+ thousands of radio listeners ;-)
The main slogan of the 10th Science Picnic was “The World in Ten Years Time”. Therefore, the main concern was the future: forecasts of changes, achievements in various science fields, as well as dangers which we will have to face.
Picnic participants could design the urban space of their city, learn how our environment is going to change, and also what will happen on Venus in a few decades time…
Visitors were awaited by the elite of Polish science, whose research work concentrates mostly on the future: inventors of the blue laser, participants in space programmes, coordinators of the Polish artificial heart project and many more.
You could watch the stars directly through modern telescopes mounted at the Picnic or through the internet, using the Faulkes Telescope based in Hawaii!
Crowds gathered by the stands of chemists and physicists to watch exploding volcanos, boiling colourful liquids, objects changing colours, frozen roses breaking apart, human voice changing under the influence of helium, balls rolling up instead of downhill, trains flying and hair standing on end…
Everyone who likes travelling had a unique opportunity to travel around the world! Representations of 12 countries took part in the Picnic: Bulgaria, China, Czech Republic, Equador, France, Spain (Catalonia), Lithuania, Germany, United States of America, United Kingdom, Slovakia and Sweden.
Listening to the music from all over the world you could taste regional specialties, admire folklore clothes and craftsmanship or learn the basics of foreign languages. You could also see ancient Chinese inventions (such as a magic mirror or ancient compasses), learn Japanese calligraphy, hear about new methods of teaching Physics at Czech schools and the Swedish idea for playing with science. The Germans showed how to utilise waste and the French explained what are the advantages of using energy from renewable sources.
For a moment, you could even travel into the past: become a Mesolithic hunter chasing a huge animal, fight with a medieval knight, climb a fortified tower or mint an ancient coin. Less active visitors could see mummies, archaeological excavations, clothes and objects for everyday use coming from different epochs.There were also animals, old cars, airplains, boats, climbing walls, fitness and dexterity tests, art classes and many, many more... It’s a pity that the Picnic lasted only one day...
But next year we will meet again on the New Market Square and Podzamcze in Warsaw. See you soon!