Carol Vorderman to open Cambridge Science Festival

Celebrity mathematician and University of Cambridge graduate Carol Vorderman will be opening the 2006 Cambridge Science Festival, delivering an inaugural talk for a family audience on Saturday, March 18.

The Cambridge Science Festival is the UK’s largest free festival of scientific events and will be held March 15-26 2006 in and around the University of Cambridge. There is a wide range of events for children and adults of all ages. They include:

Family events:

• The science of Harry Potter – Who is the real Dumbledore? Can owls really deliver the post? Roger Highfield, Science Editor of the Daily Telegraph, has interviewed the world's best Muggle scientists to identify the explanations behind everything from broomstick flight to the Invisibility Cloak. Join him for a fascinating account of the mysteries of the world of Harry Potter.

Events for kids:

• Solve an ancient murder with Carenza Lewis of Channel Four’s Time Team.

• Crash, bang, squelch! – 50 hands-on science experiments from Cambridge’s Hands-On Science team of students.

Events for adults:

• Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, an expert on autism, has put forward the theory that autism may be described as the ‘extreme male brain’. In this new lecture, he will discuss whether there is a connection between gifted scientists, who are required to systemize – to understand how systems work and how to predict them - and autism.

• Best-selling author Simon Singh talking on the mathematics of luck, risk and gambling, from the casino to the hospital. Understand how our intuition often misleads us and hear how mathematics and critical thinking can help us thrive and survive.

• The Government’s Chief Scientific Officer, Sir David King, will give a special lecture on the role of scientific education and technological advances in international development to improve the quality of life in developing countries.

The Science Festival will run from Wednesday, March 15 until Sunday, 26 March. It provides people of all ages the opportunity to explore science through hands on activities and talks hosted by people who study or work with science, engineering and technology.

The first Science weekend will be held on the weekend of March 18-19, when many of the laboratory tours, demonstrations and hands-on activities will take place. Vorderman will open up the Science weekend on Saturday, March 18 in the Courtyard, Downing Site, Downing Street, Cambridge.

The Festival will also continue its ‘Spotlight on Science’ lecture series, which will include environmental focused lectures ‘Climate Change Begins at Home’ and ‘Priorities for People and Planet’ as well as health and technology lectures ‘Autism and the Extreme Male Brain’ and ‘The Mathematics of Luck, Risk & Gambling’.

Now in its 13th year, the Cambridge Science Festival hosts over 100 events and is one of National Science Week’s major initiatives. Its aim is to interest school children and adults in the scientific research going on throughout the University, and to encourage school pupils to consider studying science in the future. The events also provide the general public with the chance to ask questions of researchers at the University of Cambridge and for scientists to engage with the public on issues of interest and concern.

The full programme of the events will be available on the festival’s website. Interested parties can also call the information line on 01223 766766. Those interested in any of the events that require booking, should book soon due to some venues’ space limitations.

The 2006 Cambridge Science Festival is sponsored by Cambridge University Press, The Technology Partnership, Microsoft Research, the Vodafone UK Foundation, the journal Science and Oracle. Supporters of the Festival include Cambridge Evening News and BBC Radio Cambridgeshire.

Note:

Warner Bros. Entertainment and J.K. Rowling are not responsible for this event but, subject to conditions, they have kindly granted us permission to use the HARRY POTTER® trade mark and other materials