The University of Barcelona consolidates its programme of science dissemination activities

The Aula Capella of the Historic Building hosted one music performance of NeuroConcerts.
The Aula Capella of the Historic Building hosted one music performance of NeuroConcerts.
Research
(01/08/2013)
Throughout 2012-2013 academic year many science dissemination activities have been developed; it has been a particularly active period of time. Besides the big project NeuroUB, the Scientific Culture and Innovation Unit (UCC+i) has resumed activities and projects carried out in previous years, such as the storytelling sessions Pintaʼm un conte, the lecture series Tardes de ciència i xocolata, the contest Cristal·lització a lʼEscola, and the university activities for children Universitat dels Nens i les Nenes de Catalunya. At the same time, it has organised new initiatives, such as the performances of Theatrum Sapientiae, the knitting project Ciència i punt and the edition of the book Ciència i xocolata. All the activities were funded by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) - Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness and the Secretary for Universities and Research of the Ministry of Economy and Knowledge of the Government of Catalonia.

The UCC+i of the University of Barcelona, which is part of the Communication Unit, was created in 2008 and was funded by FECYT-MICINN. Its main aim is to coordinate and promote science and technology dissemination activity developed at the different administrative units, faculties and departments of the UB.

The 2nd Meeting of UB Science Communicators closed the academic year on 16 July. It gathered many researchers and university lecturers who promote science dissemination activities at the University; they were able to exchange experiences and discuss on this issue. The Meeting also included lectures and workshops aimed at creating a network to improve University's dissemination competences.

The Aula Capella of the Historic Building hosted one music performance of NeuroConcerts.
The Aula Capella of the Historic Building hosted one music performance of NeuroConcerts.
Research
01/08/2013
Throughout 2012-2013 academic year many science dissemination activities have been developed; it has been a particularly active period of time. Besides the big project NeuroUB, the Scientific Culture and Innovation Unit (UCC+i) has resumed activities and projects carried out in previous years, such as the storytelling sessions Pintaʼm un conte, the lecture series Tardes de ciència i xocolata, the contest Cristal·lització a lʼEscola, and the university activities for children Universitat dels Nens i les Nenes de Catalunya. At the same time, it has organised new initiatives, such as the performances of Theatrum Sapientiae, the knitting project Ciència i punt and the edition of the book Ciència i xocolata. All the activities were funded by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) - Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness and the Secretary for Universities and Research of the Ministry of Economy and Knowledge of the Government of Catalonia.

The UCC+i of the University of Barcelona, which is part of the Communication Unit, was created in 2008 and was funded by FECYT-MICINN. Its main aim is to coordinate and promote science and technology dissemination activity developed at the different administrative units, faculties and departments of the UB.

The 2nd Meeting of UB Science Communicators closed the academic year on 16 July. It gathered many researchers and university lecturers who promote science dissemination activities at the University; they were able to exchange experiences and discuss on this issue. The Meeting also included lectures and workshops aimed at creating a network to improve University's dissemination competences.

 
NeuroUB: Neuroscience, Music and Art

NeuroUB was born to celebrate the designation of the year 2012 as the Year of Neuroscience in Spain by the Spanish Society of Neuroscience (SENC). The project is divided into three parts: NeuroConcurs: "You, your brain and YouTube", NeuroCinema and NeuroConcerts. The project was co-developed by the Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior (IR3C) and the UCC+i of the UB.

• NeuroConcurs: "You, your brain and YouTube" . The objective of this short film contest was to link neuroscience with daily life aspects in order to highlight the permanent action of the nervous system and the brain in our daily actions and, consequently, understand their relevance. The panel, chaired by the vice-rector for Science Policy, Dr Enric Canela, and composed by researchers from IR3C and UCC+i, and staff from the Communication Unit of the UB, considered the following aspects to select winners: short films' originality, how neurosciences were related to daily life aspects, the clarity of the message and the difficulty of the concepts analysed.

 
• NeuroCinema. The activity included two cinema sessions, at Cinemes Girona in Barcelona, followed by expert debates. In the first session, addressed to secondary education students, the film Rain Man was screened. The second one was addressed to associations of relatives and patients who suffer neurological disorders; they watched the documentary El mal del cerebro, directed by the journalist Antonio Martínez Ron. 
 
• NeuroConcerts. The series NeuroConcerts was composed by nine concert sessions in which a scientist, a musicologist and musicians participated. It took place from April to June. The activity, carried out together with the Higher School of Music of Catalonia (ESMUC), wanted to highligh some aspects, such as the connections between music and memory; the relationship between perception and emotions; musical training and an increase of brain plasticity; music therapy; etc.
 

Pintaʼm un conte (Paint Me a Story)

The storytelling series Pinta'm un conte was created two years ago, but new sessions continue to be programmed. The main objective of the project is to bring 5-8 year old children closer to science and the environment in order to raise their awareness of the need to protect nature. A narrator, who gives voice to characters, and an illustrator, who makes drawings of stories' landscapes, have enabled hundreds of children to know posidonia meadows, discover the secrets of the formation of Montserrat Mountain and get familiar with extreme weather.

Besides the sessions carried out in some civic centres, stories have been also told at the main entrance hall of the Historic Building in two moments: one within the exhibition "GEOflaix! Una mirada alternativa als objectes quotidians", in November, and the other taking advantage of the exhibition "Ciència i punt", in July. Moreover, one session addressed to students of the subject Knowledge and Exploration of the Natural Environment of the EHEA Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education was done on Mundet Campus.

 
Book: Ciència i xocolata

The third lecture series Tardes de ciència i xocolata (Science and chocolate evenings) coincided with the presentation of the book Ciència i xocolata (Publicacions i Edicions of the UB). The book is a collection of the speeches given within the two first editions of the lecture series.

The book provides the reader with a complete description of chocolate and other cocoa products, their scientific and industrials characteristics, and their history and applications in cooking. It is written in a light and pleasant way. The book is as full of curiosities and anecdotes as the lecture series Tardes de ciència i xocolata was.

 

Universitat dels Nens i les Nenes de Catalunya (Catalan Children's University)

Within the third Universitat dels Nens i les Nenes de Catalunya (UdN².cat), 125 children from three primary schools in Barcelona and Santa Coloma de Gramenet visited the UB and the Food and Nutrition Campus, located in Santa Coloma de Gramenet. The main objective of this programme is to bring university, science and culture closer to children, primary schools and families. Activities, coordinated by the UCC+i of the UB, are organised by the Office of the Vice-Rector for Students and Language Policy every year.
 

2nd Contest Cristal·lització a lʼEscola (Crystallization at the School)

The Contest Cristal·lització a lʼEscola, a science dissemination project centred on Crystallography and addressed to upper secondary teachers and students, was organised by the University of Barcelona (UB), the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), and the Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV) . More than 900 Catalan students participated in the second edition of the contest.

The project included a training programme addressed to secondary education teachers. Lessons were given by experts from the Consolidated Research Group on Crystallography at the Faculty of Geology of the UB, the Faculty of Science of the UAB and the Faculty of Chemistry of the URV. The main objective was to show teachers the procedures that must be followed to obtain crystals. Once they completed the course, teachers went back to high schools with the necessary knowledge and material to carry out crystallization practices with their students.

Schools selected short-listed works which were later presented by their creators in an event that simulated a scientific congress. Winners of the different categories were selected (single crystal, crystal compound, working plan and poster presentation).

 
Theatrum Sapientiae
Some dramatized guided tours of the Historic Building offered the opportunity to know better Ramon Margalef's life, one the most prestigious ecologists all over the world. The activity was co-organised by UCC+i and the Poetic Music Studies Research Group of the Faculty of Philology; the Department of Ecology of the Faculty of Biology of the UB advised them.
 

Exhibition "Ciència i punt" (Science and Knit)

From 27 June to 26 July, everyone that got into the main entrance hall of the Historic Building of the University of Barcelona could see a Mediterranean wood made up of wool. The exhibition, which was part of the project Science and Knit, aimed at bringing general public closer to biology and at showing the funniest and most aesthetic side of science. The exhibition reproduced a wool holm-oak wood, a common Mediterranean ecosystem. It was created by a group of knitters who selflessly joined the project, individually or in group. Wool was provided by Coats.