Activities / Project
Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition
After months of preparation, the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition (RSSSE) took place from 29th June – 4th July, 2009. A total of 5,492 visitors attended the RSSSE during the week. This included the first ever Saturday opening with over 950 members of the public attending! The RVC team consisted of 24 volunteers who were able to demonstrate the tools on display as well as discuss the work of the LIVE centre and its ongoing projects. Our research was therefore made available to a wide audience – not only members of the public but also invited VIPs at the two evening soirees.
Our exhibit was titled “Do you feel like a vet?” and consisted of interactive demonstrations of the Haptic Cow, the Core Skills Trainer (haptic computer games), a quiz relating to the informative posters on display (with prize giveaways), the haptic cat (work in progress), and even a hand coordination skills station. This range of activities provided an opportunity for visitors of all ages to become involved. The Core Skills Trainer recorded 743 visitors, and the Haptic Cow is likely to have had twice as many.
We were interviewed by the media throughout the week, and some of the press coverage can be seen here:
BBC Online Video: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8125651.stm
Quintin Cooper on BBC Radio 4: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00lbt3w/Material_World_02_07_2009/
For a shortened version that only features Sarah Baillie on the above program, click here:
The following is the exhibit’s main page on the RSSSE website. Links to the daily blog, photo gallery, factsheet, and audio intro can be accessed from this page. http://www.summerscience.org.uk/09/exhibit/do-you-feel-like-a-vet
Comments from the public indicated we were the most talked about amongst students. The teachers reported they were advised, “You gotta try this!”. Even a seven year old boy printed out all 26 exhibits the night before and rated ours as a #1 must see! Other visitors during the week included Caroline Pym (1954 Bristol vet graduate) and one of our soiree guests, Annabel Nicoll (Trustee, The Arbib Foundation).