Brighton Science Festival
Published 20th Feb 2006 by Brightonlife Knowledge Dept.

This week Brighton plays host to a wondrous science festival, featuring a range of events across the city for both adults and children. Some potential highlights include:

The Science of Discworld

Discworld science is topsy-turvy, but it works. From time-travel to philosophical dilemmas, quantum physics to the ?cause and effect? effect, Jack Cohen entertainingly turns the latest scientific research into an easy-to-understand, hilarious journey through the development of the planet Earth and the human race. An entertaining and approachable blend of science fact and fiction. ?The hard science is as gripping as the fiction? The Times.

Jubilee Library, Thurs 23rd Feb. Tickets ?4.50 / ?2

Music Pleasure and the Brain

Have you ever wondered why music makes you feel so good? In this interactive demonstration, physiologist Dr. Harry Witchel from the University of Bristol will show you how the body and the brain are influenced by different kinds of music. He will be joined by clarinetist Karl Durr-S?rensen and French horn player Dominic Nunns from the New London Orchestra, who will play enchanting, haunting, and brain-befuddling excerpts of music live on stage, in order to illustrate the aspects of music that wield power over our emotions. Together they will show you why some music makes us joyous, while other music makes us sad, or angry, or anxious, and how the brain interprets this music. They will also show you how music affects your other sensations and plays with your memory.

City College, Pelham Street, Sat 25th Feb. Tickets ?4.50 / ?2

The Chemistry of Smell, Taste and Sex

Why do we have the senses of smell and taste, how do they operate and are there smells which play a role in human relationships? Looking from a chemists point of view, one asks what is detected when we smell a molecule . the peculiarities of its shape or its vibrations? And what is the mechanism by which this is done? Some of these questions are still unanswered, but ideas championed by Luca Turin of University of London offer some insights, drawing from the mysterious world of quantum mechanics.

City College, Pelham Street, Sun Feb 26th. Tickets ?4.50 / ?2

For full listings, check out the Brighton Science Festival website: www.brightonscience.com.

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