Science Alive

Our Planet Earth has an ever-changing, dynamic nature. We will demonstrate the rock cycle to show how the three main rock types: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks are formed on Earth. Participants will also get an opportunity to identify how the rocks we found in Hong Kong fit into this rock cycle.

During the weekends of Science Alive, the outreach teams from Newcastle University and the University of Glasgow, Dr Michael Pittman, a dinosaur paleontologist from the University of Hong Kong and Huw James, a scientist and adventurer, will be joining us to deliver a variety of drop-in activities and science walk-about shows. Come join us to explore a range of fun and interactive science activities on these themes: the Earth and environment under the glaciers, bringing dinosaurs back to life, introducing microbes, exploring surface tension. Families will also get an opportunity to participate in a range of activities and to experience the fun of STEM education.

Previous FameLab Hong Kong finalists will also be joining the teams to deliver the shows and activities. Additionally, walk-about magic shows and various science tricks will be performed during the family days.

Have you ever wished you could fly like a superhero? Or have the power of invisibility? Join us for the ‘Who wants to be a superhero’ show as we discover how real life scientists and engineers are turning the powers of superheroes into reality. Watch as we send a message inside a laser beam, and help us make something fly live on stage! This exciting show demonstrates that, because of science and engineering, anyone can be a superhero.

Suitable for: primary (P1-P6) students, families and the general public

Curriculum links: General Studies curriculum P1-6: Strand 3 Science and Technology in Everyday Life

Details and registration

• Conducted in English (with Cantonese interpretation).
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis. 
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

We will take our audience on a journey of discovery and adventure as we look at how science and engineering have changed the way we live. Comparing new and old technology, and what it takes to be the next Albert Einstein, Marie Curie or even Sir Tim Berners-Lee, we will look at how individuals have shaped our world and the journeys which they took to get there.

Suitable for: secondary (S1-S3)  students, families and the general public

Curriculum links: Science curriculum S1-S3: Unit 5 Energy, Unit 8 Making Use of Electricity and Unit 13 From Atoms to Materials

Details and registration

• Conducted in English (with Cantonese interpretation).
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis. 
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

An interactive adventure show that explores the science and technology behind the Anturus Expeditions. In this hour-long show, we take a look at the most important idea you need in order to survive an adventure in the outdoors. We will also look at the sustainability advantages of eating bugs and the nutritional values needed for survival, and how to make sure you are prepared for adventure! Field scientists are some of the best adventurers, and after this engaging science show perhaps you will want to be a science adventurer too!

Suitable for: primary (P1-P6) and secondary (S1-S3)  students, families and the general public

Curriculum links: General Studies curriculum P1-P6: Strand 2 People and Environment; Science curriculum S1-S3: Unit 2 Water and Unit 3 Looking at Living Things

Details and registration

• Conducted in English (with Cantonese interpretation).
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis. 
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

We will take you an inspiring journey of science, engineering and invention as we look at those individuals who have shaped the modern world in which we live. We will be looking at the different types of energy and how they feature in our everyday lives and how some of our most important discoveries in the last 50 years were made using only household items.

Suitable for: primary (P1-P6) students, families and the general public

Curriculum links: General Studies curriculum P1-P6: Strand 3 Science and Technology in Everyday Life

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English (with Cantonese interpretation).
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis. 
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

Space exploration has helped us learn a lot about the planets in our solar system, especially our own. What can we learn about meteorites hitting the Earth?  How can we use infrared light to help us study the universe, and what do you look like through an infrared camera? Find out what a real dinosaur fossil feels like, as well as ways we can use space travel and technology to find out more about our little corner of space.

Suitable for: primary (P4-P6) students and parents

Curriculum links: General Studies curriculum P1-6: Strand 2 People amd Environment

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English (with Cantonese interpretation).
• Each child must be accompanied by only one adult to participate the workshop.
• Each session has 40 seats for 20 children and 20 adults.
• Registration starts one hour before the workshop outside the laboratory on a first come, first served basis.

This workshop is all about the fascinating and delicious science of confectionary. You will be able to act like Willy Wonka and create your own sweets while learning about the scientific reactions that make honeycomb, the chemistry of sherbet and how to make express ice cream. You will also find out why we all love sugar so much!

Important: this workshop does involve making edible products. Ingredients include dairy products and sugar. Please let us know at the registration point if you have any dietary issues.

Suitable for: primary (P4-P6) students and parents

Curriculum links: General Studies curriculum P1-6: Strand 3 Science and Technology in Everyday Life

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English (with Cantonese interpretation).
• Each child must be accompanied by only one adult to participate the workshop.
• Each session has 40 seats for 20 children and 20 adults.
• Registration starts one hour before the workshop outside the laboratory on a first come, first served basis.

This is an explosive experience which includes a fantastic mini-show and the added benefit of hands-on workshops that take everyone who attends on an inspiring journey. We will be showing you how we all have the ability to shape the future of our world and could be the next big scientist, inventor or engineer! Join us! We will look at energy changes and transfers, motion and forces, chemical reactions, combustion, transfer of electrons, friction and much, much more!

Suitable for: primary (P4-P6) students and parents

Curriculum links: General Studies curriculum P1-6: Strand 3 Science and Technology in Everyday Life

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English (with Cantonese interpretation).
• Each child must be accompanied by only one adult to participate the workshop.
• Each session has 40 seats for 20 children and 20 adults.
• Registration starts one hour before the workshop outside the laboratory on a first come, first served basis.

Rocks, made of various naturally occurring minerals, form the Earth’s outermost solid layer on which we all live. Studying the properties of the rocks and their formation history helps us to understand our planet. During this workshop, we will carry out interactive demonstrations and experiments on petrology, sedimentology and plate tectonics so participants can study fossils and natural resources formation in the Earth’s crust. Children will gain hands-on experience in being ‘little geologists’ through these activities with their families and understand the physical nature of Mother Earth.

Suitable for: primary (P4-P6) students and parents

Curriculum links: General Studies curriculum P1-6: Strand 3 Science and Technology in Everyday Life

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English (with Cantonese interpretation).
• Each child must be accompanied by only one adult to participate the workshop.
• Each session has 40 seats for 20 children and 20 adults.
• Registration starts one hour before the workshop outside the laboratory on a first come, first served basis.

This workshop challenges the ideas and stereotypes that people have about science and scientists with a whole host of fun and interactive Street Science experiments. The hands-on demonstrations will inspire and enthuse everybody in the group. By the end of the session we can guarantee that everyone will be excited about STEM, and will actually be able to do some Street Science yourself!

STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

Suitable for: primary (P4-P6) students and parents

Curriculum links: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English (with Cantonese interpretation).
• Each child must be accompanied by only one adult to participate the workshop.
• Each session has 40 seats for 20 children and 20 adults.
• Registration starts one hour before the workshop outside the laboratory on a first come, first served basis.

Join us on an Amazon adventure! With scientist and adventurer Huw James, find out what it is like to live in the jungle with all sorts of plants and animals. See what science is being done to save these fragile environments and what you can do to help. Having spent part of 2016 around the world’s most endangered creatures, hear all about why Huw thinks that these habitats can be brought back from the brink. And maybe one day, you will get to have your very own Amazon adventure!

Suitable for: primary (P4-P6) and secondary (S1-S3) students, families and the general public

Curriculum links: General Studies curriculum P1-P6: Strand 2 People and Environment; Science curriculum S1-S3: Unit 3 Looking at Living Things

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis.
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

Dinosaurs are amazing animals and they are still alive today. Really! We just call them birds! We usually find dinosaurs as fossil bones and these tell us a lot about their biology, including their appearance, physiology and habits. However, sometimes we are lucky enough to find dinosaur fossils preserving the soft parts of dinosaurs, including skin, feathers and even their organs, which gives us even more information. Join dinosaur paleontologist Dr. Michael Pittman from the University of Hong Kong to find out how he uses lasers to find new information about dinosaur soft parts. Find out about the earliest feathered dinosaurs and what their soft parts tell us about birds. Get ready to travel back in time to the world of dinosaurs!

Suitable for: secondary (S1-S3) students and senior secondary (S4-S6) students, families, teachers and the general public

Curriculum links: Science curriculum S1-S3: Unit 3 Looking at Living Things; Biology curriculum S4-S6: Part 2 Genetics and Evolution (Compulsory Part)

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis.
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

The climate is changing and it is rapidly transforming the world around us. This interactive lecture takes us on a journey through time from ice ages to ancient civilisations, through rapid industrialisation and to the present day to see how and why the Earth's climate has changed throughout history. Then, in the context of the current human-induced warming, David Saddington shows us how current climate change is so much more than a scientific process. What exactly is climate change and why should we care?

Suitable for: senior secondary (S4-S6) students, teachers and the general public

Curriculum links: Biology curriculum S4-S6: Part 3 Organisms and Environment (Compulsory Part) and Part 6 Applied Ecology (Elective Part); Geography curriculum S4-S6: Part 3 Confronting Global Challenges (Compulsory Part)

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis.
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

Maybe it was an asteroid impact, a nuclear war, or a viral pandemic. Whatever the cause, the world as we know it has ended and you and your community of survivors must start again. What key knowledge would you need to not only survive in the immediate post-apocalyptic aftermath, but avert another Dark Ages and accelerate the rebooting of civilisation from scratch? Living in the modern world, we have become disconnected from the basic processes that support our lives, as well as the beautiful fundamentals of science that enable you to relearn things for yourself. The knowledge is a grand thought experiment on the behind-the-scenes fundamentals of how our world works, and what drove the progression of civilisation over the centuries.

Suitable for: senior secondary (S4-S6) students, teachers and the general public

Curriculum links: Chemistry curriculum S4-S6: Part 1 Planet Earth (Compulsory Part); Geography curriculum S4-S6: Part 3 Confronting Global Challenges (Compulsory Part)

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis.
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

Famous scientists Watson and Crick worked out the structure of DNA in the 1950s. Technology in genetics now allows us to sequence or map out the full human genome. Watson had his genome sequenced in 2007 at a cost of US$1.5 million. Nowadays, the cost of sequencing is now under US$1,000. In a few years, everyone can have their genome sequenced; and scientists are working out how to make change to the human genome.  What next?

Suitable for: senior secondary (S4-S6) students, teachers and the general public

Curriculum links: Biology curriculum S4-S6: Part 1 Cell and Molecules of Life (Compulsory Part) and Part 8 Biotechnology (Elective Part)

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis.
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

Since the birth of the first IVF baby in 1978, it has been possible to have children without sex.  We can collect eggs and sperm and mix them in the laboratory to make human embryos. This technology has allowed women to delay having children and also to create new types of families. The science in this area is still evolving but new technology such as making eggs and sperm from adult stem cells, artificial wombs and genome editing may soon be a reality.

Suitable for: senior secondary (S4-S6) students, teachers and the general public

Curriculum links: Biology curriculum S4-S6: Part 1 Cell and Molecules of Life (Compulsory Part) and Part 8 Biotechnology (Elective Part)

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis.
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

This is the eighth year of the FameLab competition in Hong Kong. It aims to find the most talented science communicators in the city by getting contestants to share a scientific topic in captivating and innovative way in three minutes in order to inspire and excite public imagination. Audiences can select their favourite presentation for the Audience Choice Award at the Grand Final! Local celebrity comedian Vivek Mahbubani will return as the MC.

Suitable for: senior secondary (S4-S6) students, university students, teachers and the general public

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis.
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.
• More details about the FameLab competition can be found at www.britishcouncil.hk/en/famelab

Most scientists agree that humans are having an adverse impact on our planet and that conservation and sustainability are imperative. But where do we start?  Whose needs come first? At this year's Science Alive student debate, junior form students will try to get to the bottom of this dilemma. In accordance with this year's theme "This Pale Blue Dot" students will debate the topic that conservation should start with animals and not people. Join our audience and find out if the maxim “four legs good, two legs bad” will prevail.

Suitable for: senior secondary (S4-S6) students, teachers and the general public

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• Local schools can register as audience members online through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• The general public and international schools can register online here.
• Seats are on a first come, first served basis.
• A portion of the seats will be reserved for walk-ins.

Students will learn about what renewable energy is and why it is important given the global challenges to our climate and the unsustainability of our traditional energy sources. Students will be split into groups of four and each team member will be given the role of an engineer, geoscientist, ornithologist or marine mammal expert. Each team will then determine the best place to site an offshore wind farm, looking at all of the different considerations, like whether there are any protected bird species nearby and what sort of material the seabed is made from.

Suitable for: secondary (S1-S3) students and teachers 

Curriculum links: Science curriculum S1-S3: Unit 5 Energy

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• The workshops aim to have teachers and students learn together. Teachers can form groups with a minimum of 4 students and a maximum of 9 students. Priority will be given to groups who have 10 members (1 teacher and 9 students).
• Local schools can register as participants through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• International schools can register online here.

Embark on a journey through our oceans and lakes to discover the amazing world of plankton in this workshop led by the University of Glasgow. What are plankton? How do they survive? Why are they important?  Peer into microscopes to discover this fascinating and diverse group of organisms and uncover cutting-edge research from the University of Glasgow. Explore food chains and learn what these tiny creatures can tell us about the health of our aquatic environment. Can you identify the mystery species? Become a marine microbiology detective and find out!

Suitable for: secondary (S1-S3) students and teachers 

Curriculum links: Science curriculum S1-S3: Unit 3 Looking at Living Things

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• The workshops aim to have teachers and students learn together. Teachers can form groups with a minimum of 4 students and a maximum of 9 students. Priority will be given to groups who have 10 members (1 teacher and 9 students).
• Local schools can register as participants through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• International schools can register online here.

This practical half-day workshop provides ideas about how to inspire young people to study STEM subjects by making science fun and relevant. One workshop is aimed at primary teaching, and one at secondary teaching. The primary workshop will focus on the Street Science educational sessions and how we use interactive experiments to engage students. The secondary workshop will focus on making quite difficult scientific topics appealing and understandable to students. Both will equip teachers with some new ideas and skills to use in the classrooms.

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English.
• The workshops target science teachers of primary and secondary schools.
• Local schools teachers can register as participants through the Training Calendar on the Education Bureau website.
• International schools teachers can register online here.
• Each session has 20 seats and registration is on a first come, first served basis.

Energy and the world we live in! (For primary school)

We will take you an inspiring journey of science, engineering and invention as we look at those individuals who have shaped the modern world in which we live.  We will be looking at the different types of energy and how they feature in our everyday lives and how some of our most important discoveries in the last 50 years were made using only household items.

Duration of the show: about 40-45 minutes

Suitable for: primary (P1-P6) students

Curriculum links: General Studies curriculum P1-6: Strand 3 Science and Technology in Everyday Life

Incredible engineering and enlightening invention (For secondary school)

We will take secondary schools on a journey of discovery and adventure as we look at how science and engineering have changed the way we live.  Comparing new and old technology, and what it takes to be the next Albert Einstein, Marie Curie or even Sir Tim Berners-Lee, we will look at how individuals have shaped our world and the journeys which they took to get there.

Duration of the show: about 40-45 minutes

Suitable for: secondary (S1-S3)  students

Curriculum links: Science curriculum S1-3: Unit 5 Energy, Unit 8 Making Use of Electricity and Unit 13 From Atoms to Materials

Details and registration

• Conducted in English (Cantonese interpretation can be provided for schools on request).
• Schools who are interested in having this performance please register online here. We will notify you on the registration results by e-mail on or before 20 February 2017.
• There is no maximum limitation on the number of audiences.
• Schools should provide a screen, a projector and PA system with three sets of microphones (preferably clip-on or hands-free ones) for the performers.

Scientific study tour to Ma Shi Chau

Ma Shi Chau, located in Tolo Channel in the Northeast New Territories, forms one of the most significant parts of the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark. The island is composed of sedimentary rocks formed about 280 million years ago. The distinctive geological features and the outstanding conservation values make Ma Shi Chau an ideal destination for geologists and ecologists. 

This scientific study tour to Ma Shi Chau will enable students to make connections with nature and build up knowledge in both Earth Sciences and Environmental Sciences. Students can get into the natural environment, apply what they’ve learnt in the classroom and bring science alive!

Suitable for: senior secondary (S4-S6) students and teachers

Curriculum links: Biology curriculum S4-S6: Part 3 Organisms and Environment (Compulsory Part); Geography curriculum S4-S6: Part 1 Dynamic Earth, the building of Hong Kong (Elective Part)

DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

• Conducted in English (with Cantonese interpretation).
• Teachers and students can form groups with a maximum of 25 members. Priority will be given to groups who have 25 members.
• Schools who are interested in participating this tour, please register online here.
• Schools are required to arrange transportation.