The open day of the Science Park of the University of Valencia (PCUV), which will be held on Saturday 10 May, will offer more than a hundred scientific activities for all audiences, including inclusive proposals in the new Tent of the Senses and the Marie Curie Auditorium
The Science Park of the University of Valencia will hold next Saturday, May 10 the XVII edition of Expociència, the traditional open day focused on scientific dissemination. This year, under the motto "Expociència no limits", we incorporate for the first time activities specially adapted for people with functional diversity, in a step towards a more inclusive and accessible science.
Throughout the morning, from 10.00 to 14.00, more than a hundred proposals will allow attendees to explore science from a playful and participatory perspective at the facilities of the Science Park UV and Technical School of Engineering of the University of Valencia (ETSE-UV). The activities have been designed for the most part by research institutes and companies of the innovative ecosystem of the PCUV and entities of the UV, and will be promoted by some 800 people, mostly research and technical staff, together with about 70 volunteer university students who will act as guides.
For the design of adapted activities and training in awareness towards functional diversity, the organization has relied on the advice of Aptent Solutions, company specialized in accessibility to communication for people with sensory and cognitive disabilities.
For a science without barriers
The great novelty of this edition is the launch of the Tent of the Senses, a space that will bring together several activities designed to facilitate the participation of people with disabilities. Among them is an inclusive chess experience, organized by the Valencian Association of Educational Chess, in which accessible boards are used for people with visual disabilities and aesthetic sense and spatial orientation are stimulated.
Also noteworthy is the proposal of the Astronomical Observatory of the University of Valencia (OAUV), which presents an exhibition of three-dimensional models of celestial bodies with relief, allowing their tactile exploration. The Institute for Materials Science (ICMUV) offers a workshop exploring phenomena such as surface tension and charge transfer through accessible sensory experiments. The Molecular Science Institute (ICMol) adds another inclusive experience through an activity that simulates the operation of an atomic force microscope, in which participants must identify hidden objects by touch.
Beyond the adapted proposals, the general program of Expociència includes more than a hundred activities aimed at audiences of all ages. These include experiences such as "Why do POP popcorn?" , the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology (IATA-CSIC); a toy LHC particle accelerator, developed by the Institute of Corpuscular Physics (IFIC); or initiatives from Parc companies such as "Science in your pocket", from Darwin Bioprospecting Excellence; and "Secret Language", by Datipic.
A girl at one of the Expociència activities. Photo: PCUV
Adapted musical performance
The music will also have its space in this edition with the performance of the Hardbrass Quintet, a brass quintet formed by members of Philharmonic Orchestra of the University of Valencia, students of the last courses of the Superior Conservatory of Music of Valencia (CSMV) and the School of High Performance Music (ESMAR). The concert, which will take place in the Marie Curie auditorium, will be accessible to all attendees.
The day will end with the award ceremony of the audiovisual event Media100cia, organized by the Fundation of Science Park of the University of Valencia (FPCUV), which has the support of the Conselleria of Education, Culture, Universities and Employment. This competition recognizes talent in science outreach in both the university and non-university settings.
"We want Expociència to be a celebration of science open to all people, without barriers. That is why, in this edition we have taken another step towards real inclusion with accessible proposals that allow everyone to enjoy, learn and participate", says Pedro Carrasco, director of the UV Science Park.
Families during one of the activities of Expociència. Photo: FPCUV
More than 80 participating entities
In this 17th edition of Expociència participate more than 80 entities belonging to the innovative and academic ecosystem of the University of Valencia and collaborating research centers. These include reference institutes such as the Molecular Science Institute (ICMol), the Materials Science Institute of the University of Valencia (ICMUV), the Integrative Systems Biology Institute (I2SysBio, joint centre of the University of Valencia and CSIC), the Cavanilles Institute for Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology (ICBiBE), the Institute for Corpuscular Physics (IFIC), the Research Institute for Robotics and Information and Communication Technologies (IRTIC), and the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology (IATA-CSIC).
There are also faculties from various fields of knowledge such as Physics, Pharmacy and Food Sciences, Biological Sciences, Mathematics, Teaching Magisterium, Psychology and Logopedia; as well as departments specializing in Microbiology, Statistics and Operational Research, Analytical Chemistry, Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Technology, Prehistory, Archaeology and Ancient History. There are also research groups linked to the Biotechnology and Biomedicine Platform (BIOTECMED), the Interdisciplinary Reading Research Structure (ERI-Lectura) and the Interuniversity Institute of Molecular Recognition and Technological Development (IDM), among others.
The participation is complemented by highly prestigious joint centres such as the Valencia Institute of Biomedicine of the Spanish Council for Scientific Research (IBV-CSIC), the Institute of Chemical Technology (ITQ) and the Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology of Plants (IBMCP), the latter co-owned by Polytechnic University of Valencia and CSIC. In addition, collaborating entities and initiatives with a solid track record in the dissemination and transfer of knowledge such as the Experimenta Contest fair, the Luis Alcanyís Foundation, the House of the Science (CSIC’s delegation in the Valencian Community), the Natural History Museum of the University of Valencia (MUVHN), EMTREduca - environmental education programme of the Metropolitan Authority for Waste Treatment -, the City of Arts and Sciences (CACSA), and cooperatives and companies such as Anecoop, Darwin Bioprospecting Excellence, Datipic and Evolving Therapeutics, the last three hosted in the business area of the UV Science Park.
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