Science expo hands-on

More than 1000 people visited New Zealand International Science Festival University of Otago...
More than 1000 people visited New Zealand International Science Festival University of Otago Science Expo on Saturday. PHOTOS: GERARD O’BRIEN
From digging up the dead to revealing the secret lives of plants, a variety of science was on display at the University of Otago over the weekend.

This year’s New Zealand International Science Festival University of Otago Science Expo attracted more than a 1000 visitors.

Science festival associate director Andrea Liberatore said the expo was one of her favourite events because of the range of science on display.

"A lot of people have a preconceived idea of what science is, but this is the place where you can come and see all the various aspects of science."

University of Otago department of anatomy PhD candidate Kirsten Rutten helps Orion Kenny, 7,...
University of Otago department of anatomy PhD candidate Kirsten Rutten helps Orion Kenny, 7, place bones to make a representation of the human skeleton at the expo.
She said young visitors could try a variety of different hands-on activities and see what science might interest them.

"I would love to know how many kids come through these doors, get exposed to something here and then end up studying here and going on to careers in science as well."

A range of departments from the university had displays at the expo, including the zoology, marine science and anatomy departments.

The department of botany was giving people a closer look at various seaweed and fungi its students were researching.

Dr Katja Schweikert said she enjoyed talking to the children at the expo about botany.

Zoe Te Au, 5, takes a look through the microscope set up by the department of botany.
Zoe Te Au, 5, takes a look through the microscope set up by the department of botany.
"The kids are just really excited and the parents are quite surprised."

She said people were usually not that interested in plants, particularly seaweed, because they did not understand their importance.

However, researching them was important because it helped identify what plants could survive the high-stress environments caused by climate change and which ones could provide people with a healthy source of protein.

She said events such as the science expo helped to keep children inquisitive about science and think critically about the world.

mark.john@odt.co.nz

 

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