The 22nd edition of the Science Festival will take place throughout France from October 9 to 13, under the national theme for 2013: “From the infinitely large to the infinitely small.” Entirely free, its aim is to showcase science in a fun, friendly, and fascinating way and to inspire vocations among young people through numerous free activities designed for both schools and the general public.
In the Alpes-Maritimes, this 2013 edition, in addition to the extremely rich program dedicated to schools, will feature some major events for the general public through three science villages organized at sites of higher education and research:
– NICE – Faculty of Sciences Parc Valrose – UNS: Valrose Science Village. The 9th edition of the Valrose campus science village, set up on the lawns of the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis, will host around thirty stands for scientific activities accessible to everyone from October 9 to 13.
– VILLEFRANCHE-sur-MER – OOV – CNRS/UPMC: The Science Village of the Oceanological Observatory of Villefranche-sur-Mer will present on October 12 and 13, the research activities of the Oceanological Observatory of Villefranche-sur-Mer: a discovery journey that leads “From Plankton to Humans,” passing by viruses, micro-algae, and large gelatinous organisms.
– SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS – SophiaTech Campus: Sophia Antipolis Weekend Science Village. For its 4th edition, this science village will take place on October 12 and 13, at the recently established SophiaTech Campus, bringing together students, researchers, and businesses around the field of digital sciences. Activities, laboratory visits, and scientific equipment demonstrations are on the agenda.
Beyond these flagship events, several towns and villages are particularly active for this operation, such as GRASSE, which offers several events in emblematic locations of the city, CONTES, a faithful participant for years, or SIGALE, which enlivens the entire Estéron Valley (and even offers guided tours for retirement homes and associations for the disabled), not to mention the cities of ANTIBES, VALLAURIS, and MENTON.
