Memorial facilities to participate in national Science Literacy Week

Sep 17th, 2015

Kelly Foss

Memorial facilities to participate in national Science Literacy Week

Memorial University’s Faculty of Science, Queen Elizabeth II (QEII) Library and the Botanical Garden have joined forces with the Johnson GEO Centre and St. John’s Regional Library to host a series of science themed events during the week of Sept. 21st.

Science Literacy Week is a coast-to-coast celebration encompassing over 100 universities, libraries, museums, zoos and other organizations across the country in nearly 50 cities. It provides a forum for these diverse institutions to showcase the amazing work they do year round and promote a greater public understand of science across Canada.

In St. John’s, the all-ages events begin Monday, Sept. 21 at the Ocean Science Centre in Logy Bay and culminate at the Avalon Mall on Sunday, Sept. 27. The week-long offering of lectures, demos, presentations and programs cover a variety of themes including ocean sciences, physics, biology, chemistry, computer science, earth sciences, astronomy, nature and gardening, and more.

“We live in an age of constant scientific discovery — something new is discovered every single day,” said Dr. Aimée Surprenant, a professor with the Department of Psychology and one of the coordinators of the St. John’s events. “The goal of Science Literacy Week is to expose the public to the wonders and excitement of our scientific discoveries and to help them understand why knowing about science is important to them in their everyday lives.”

Science Literacy Week, which is only in its second year, was the brain child of Jesse Hildebrand, a recent University of Toronto alumni.

A schedule of events is available at https://www.geocentre.ca/science2015/