SNOWMASS VILLAGE—From a balloon ascent to Tabletop Science; from an evening Sky Party to Physics on Stage; from a Virtual Science Fair to hands-on exhibits: Science Weekend has something for everyone of every age on Saturday and Sunday, July 7 and 8, in and around the Snowmass Village Mall.
As part of the three-week “Snowmass2001” physics conference, Science Weekend keynotes an effort that “will take public outreach and education efforts to a new level, thanks to a remarkable response from the whole particle physics community,” says theoretical physicist Elizabeth Simmons of Boston University, coordinator of Snowmass2001 outreach efforts.
Here’s the program:
Saturday
| 10 AM | Virtual Science Fair (Incline A): Explore physics and astronomy on-line with physicists and teachers to guide you through interactive science web sites from around the world (continuous through 4 PM). |
| Science on the Mall: Large-scale interactive exhibits from SciTech, the science museum in Aurora, Illinois; levitation and more “Wonders of Superconductivity” from the University of Houston; and many more activities as children learn through play and adults discover fresh perspectives (continuous through 4 PM). | |
| Tabletop Science (Incline B): Small-scale science complements the large-scale exhibits on the Mall, with scientists and teachers to answer your questions and encourage your explorations (continuous through 4 PM). | |
| Physics on Stage (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors): Performance groups from the University of Illinois and Michigan State University dramatize science principles and paradoxes—followed by a lively question and discussion session (additional performances at Noon, 2 PM and 4 PM). | |
| 11 AM | Planetarium Show (Lift Ticket Pavilion, indoors): Astronomers and educators from Chicago’s famed Adler Planetarium lead explorations of the cosmos (additional shows at 1 PM and 3 PM). |
| 30-Minute Lecture (Lecture Room): Greg Landsberg, “Out-of-this-world Physics—Extra Dimensions and Parallel Universes.” | |
| Noon | Physics on Stage (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors) |
| 1 PM | Planetarium Show (Lift Ticket Pavilion, indoors) |
| 30-Minute Lecture (Lecture Room): Fred Stein, “Physics and Philosophy” | |
| Conversation (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors): Nobel Laureate Leon Lederman | |
| 2 PM | Physics on Stage (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors) |
| 3 PM | Planetarium Show (Lift Ticket Pavilion, indoors) |
| 30-Minute Lecture (Lecture Room): Michael Peskin, “Particle Physics” | |
| Conversation (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors): Greg Snow and Jeff Wilkes, cosmic rays and balloon ascent (see also Sunday at Sunrise) | |
| 4 PM | Physics on Stage (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors) |
| 8:30 PM | Evening Sky Party (Campfire Circle): Astronomers and educators from Adler Planetarium explorations of the night sky at Campfire Circle, just a short walk away from the lights of the Mall (until 10 PM). |
Sunday
| Sunrise | Cosmic Ray Balloon Ascent (Baseball Field): An attempt to re-enact the 1911 discovery of cosmic rays by Victor Hess. Dressed in period costume, physicists will go aloft with cosmic ray detection equipment. |
| 10 AM | Virtual Science Fair (Incline A), through 4 PM |
| Tabletop Science (Incline B), through 4 PM | |
| Science on the Mall, through 4 PM | |
| Physics on Stage (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors) | |
| 11 AM | Planetarium Show (Lift Ticket Pavilion, indoors) |
| 30-Minute Lecture (Lecture Room): Bernice Durand, “The Sky” | |
| Conversation (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors): Greg Snow and Jeff Wilkes, cosmic rays and balloon ascent (see Sunday at Sunrise) | |
| Noon | Physics on Stage (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors) |
| 1 PM | Planetarium Show (Lift Ticket Pavilion, indoors) |
| 30-Minute Lecture (Lecture Room): Sean Carroll, “Einstein’s Legacy: Gravity and the Forces of Nature” | |
| Conversation (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors): Nobel Laureate Leon Lederman | |
| 2 PM | Physics on Stage (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors) |
| 3 PM | Planetarium Show (Lift Ticket Pavilion, indoors) |
| 30-Minute Lecture (Lecture Room): Michael Turner, “How the Universe Got Going” | |
| 4 PM | Physics on Stage (Lift Ticket Pavilion, outdoors) |
For more information, call the Snowmass2001 Press Room at 970-923-8313, and visit the web at http://www.snowmass2001.org. Fermilab, offering organizational and logistical support for Snowmass2001, is operated by Universities Research Association, Inc., under contract with the U.S. Department of Energy.