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About
- About the Exhibition
- Exhibition dates
- List of exhibits
- Evaluation of the Exhibition
- Audiences
- What else is going on at the exhibition?
About the Exhibition
The Summer Science Exhibition is a free festival showcasing the science shaping our future. It is a celebration of the cutting edge research being done right now across the UK and the researchers making that happen. Each year 21 exhibits are selected in a competitive process to exhibit their work during the exhibition in July.
The exhibition aims:
- Provide an opportunity for the public and school groups to meet and question scientists about the cutting-edge research they are undertaking and demonstrating.
- Inspire and enthuse visitors of all ages about the potential for science through hands-on interaction and participation.
- Use the Royal Society’s status as the UK’s National Academy of Science to lead by example and champion excellence in public engagement.
- Enable UK scientists to showcase their research and gain public engagement experience in association with a leading advocator of scientific research and technology.
- Give young people the aspiration to be scientists.
- Reach new audiences with science including families, young professionals and people looking for a great, free day out in London.
View a 360 video from the 2018 exhibition
What is the dress code during the exhibition week?
Comfortable clothes. Most exhibit teams choose to wear matching T-shirts with trousers/skirts, and comfortable shoes, so that they are distinct from the general public and other exhibit groups. Please note, Royal Society exhibition team wear red t-shirts during the week and we would strongly advise your team wears a different colour to avoid any confusion with visitors.
Exhibition dates
SET UP
| Date | Time | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Friday 3 July |
2pm - 4pm |
Exhibitor deliveries ONLY - no set-up at all |
| Saturday 4 July |
10am - 6pm |
Exhibitor delivery and set-up (Last delivery 5pm) |
| Sunday 5 July |
10am - 6pm |
Exhibitor delivery and set-up (Last delivery 4pm) |
EXHIBITION
Please note that the timings listed below are the public opening hours for the exhibition. During the exhibition, exhibitors are allowed to be on site 1 hour before the exhibition opens and remain behind for no more than 30 minutes after the exhibition closes to the public.
| Date | Time | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Monday 6 July |
9.30am - 11am 11am - 6pm |
Press preview of the exhibition Exhibition open to the public and registered school groups |
| Tuesday 7 July |
10am- 4pm 6pm - 10pm |
Exhibition open to the public and registered school groups Summer Science Lates evening |
| Wednesday 8 July |
10am- 4.30pm 7pm - 10pm |
Exhibition open to the public and registered school groups Soiree |
| Thursday 9 July |
10am- 4.30pm 7pm - 10pm |
Exhibition open to the public and registered school groups Soiree |
| Friday 10 July |
10am - 6pm |
Exhibition open to the public and registered school groups |
| Saturday 11 July |
10am - 6pm |
Exhibition open to the public |
| Sunday 12 July |
10am - 6pm |
Exhibition open to the public |
BREAK DOWN
| Date | Time | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Sunday 12 July |
6pm - 8pm |
Exhibitors can begin to pack up their exhibits |
| Monday 13 July |
8am -12pm |
Exhibitors dismantle and collect their exhibits |
Note: all exhibit materials and exhibitors must be off site by 12pm on Monday 13 July. We will be unable to store items in the building after this point.
List of exhibits
| Title | Institution |
|---|---|
| A breath of fresh air | University of Manchester |
| Beware: Flooding ahead! |
University of Reading |
| Blue Carbon and Changing Seas: Responding to the Global Climate Emergency |
University of St Andrews |
| Connecting to the human brain: Next generation technology |
Imperial College London |
| Disease Detectives |
The Pirbright Institute |
| Energy Critical Elements: the mineral cost of a sustainable future |
Natural History Museum |
| Exploring the Landscape of Cancer |
Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute |
| From open, to keyhole, to robotic surgery. Would you trust a robot surgeon? |
Imperial College London |
| Growing New Body Parts! |
King's College London |
| Happy Birthday Hubble |
University of Sussex |
| Last Day of the Dinosaurs |
University of Manchester |
| Our breathing Earth new views of carbon from satellites |
University of Edinburgh |
| Owls and eagles inspire aeronautical advances |
Royal Veterinary College |
| Personalised Printing for Pills! |
University Of Nottingham |
| Sensing Danger |
University of Manchester |
| The bee trail: Where have you been? |
Earlham Institute |
| The ExoMars Rover and its Experimental Tools in the Search for Life on Mars |
University of Leicester |
| The good, the bad and the methanogenic: understanding the microbes that manage our waste for us |
University of York |
| The Science Behind Body Odour |
University of Oxford |
| The Third Thumb: How can our brains and bodies adapt to augmentation? | UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience |
| Your place in the Universe | Durham University |
Evaluation of the Exhibition
The Royal Society evaluates the exhibition in two ways, from the perspective of the public and from the perspective of the researcher.
All the lead exhibitors from the Summer Science Exhibition will be asked to fill in a survey covering the below areas, which help us understand motivations for being involved in the exhibition and how we can better support public engagement in institutions.
- Career stage
- Public engagement experience
- Experience at the exhibition including impact
Public visitors are asked to complete a questionnaire on leaving the exhibition. An evaluation report, based on the findings of this survey is circulated to exhibitors in the months following the exhibition. The survey questions will cover the following areas.
- Visitors' overall enjoyment of the Exhibition and whether they would recommend the exhibition to a friend or colleague.
- Have visitors’ perspectives on science been changed? If so, how?
- Demographic data
- Diversity data
A separate survey is filled in by pre-registered school groups and covers questions linked to science as a career and perception of scientists.
Audiences
Visitor statistics (%) are taken from completed visitor questionnaires from the 2019 exhibition.
Pre-registered school students
- 1,518 students visited with 187 teachers
- 54% of schools came from outside of London
- 98% of teachers agreed that by attending the exhibition their students had gained a greater understanding of the relevance of science to the world around them
- 98% of students agreed that by attending the exhibition they learnt new scientific knowledge
Public visitors
- 9,783 public visitors attended the exhibition
- The highest proportion of visitors were 13 - 17 years old, including school visitors, though there was a good spread across all age groups
- 48% of visitors were female compared to 41% male
- 93.1% rated the exhibition 'Excellent' or 'Good'
- 90% of visitors agreed or strongly agreed that they had 'learnt something new from the exhibition', and 81% said the exhibition gave them chance to discuss research with scientists.
Visitors also gave us some qualitative feedback:
“Excellent afternoon. Everyone explained their work clearly, enthusiastically, and kept me totally fascinated - brilliant communicators”
“It is particularly good that you can approach every exhibit with no previous knowledge of that topic and be drawn in so that you move on with some understanding and ever greater curiosity. Thank you for providing a free event. This is an investment in our future”
“Thank you so much! The exhibitors were all friendly, knowledgeable and able to describe their projects so my 6 year old could understand complex concepts”
“I think the exhibition was incredible and such a great event for all ages. The details and effort put into every exhibit did not go unappreciated and all those running the exhibits were approachable, interesting and informative. Would definitely recommend to friends!”
What else is going on at the Exhibition?
Talks and activities programme
During the exhibition, a number of events are held during exhibition week, including talks, tours, hands-on drop-in activities and interactive family shows at the weekend. There will be a special programme of events for our Summer Science Exhibition Lates evening on Tuesday 7 July. A full list of the events can be found on the public Summer Science Exhibition website. The 2020 website will be launched at the beginning of April.
Royal Society exhibits
In addition to the exhibits, we will also have a history of the Royal Society display and history of science exhibit in the basement featuring objects from our archive collections.
Science Busking
During the busy weekends of the Summer Science Exhibition, we invite science buskers from various organisations and universities to help engage visitors of all ages.