ATU Sligo announces 2023 Sligo Science Festival programme (events open to public from 12 Nov)

Wonderstruck BANG Show, workshops, demos & displays, talks and more

The 2023 Sligo Science Festival returns with a series of exciting events for all ages taking place in ATU and venues across the northwest region from 12 to 18 November, organised by ATU’s Faculty of Science, Sligo, and sponsored by Science Foundation Ireland and pharmaceutical company AbbVie.

The theme of this year’s festival is “Human?” which aims to question how human decisions will impact the future of the world. The seven-day programme will explore the wonders of science with events ranging from science shows, workshops, demonstrations and displays to talks, road shows, exhibitions and debates, all part of SFI’s National Science week.

The festival kicks off on Sunday 12 November with the ever-popular Science Fair, featuring over 30 science base activities, demonstrations and performances including the Devon-based company, Wonderstruck’s ‘BANG’ show which shows how awesome explosions and special effects in action movies are created.

The Sligo Science Festival has been run by the Sligo Science Faculty for 24 years. Head of the ATU Sligo Faculty of Science Dr Jeremy Bird says: “We are delighted once again to continue our partnership with AbbVie and Science Foundation Ireland to produce this year’s festival which promises to engage and excite audiences of all ages”. 

On Tuesday 14 November, ATU’s Professor Suresh Pillai will deliver a talk titled “Unlocking the Potential of Innovation: Bridging Ideas to Real-world Impact”, examining the fundamental elements propelling innovation from the inception of groundbreaking concepts to their far-reaching impact on society, businesses, and individuals, whilst on Wednesday 15 November, ATU’s Paul Nolan, explores the development of cardiac diagnostics and treatments from the 1800’s through to the modern day.
On Thursday 16 November,  Professor Raymond Pierrehumbert, Oxford University, will deliver a talk on “Planetary Systems”, Sligo’s Blaithin Sweeney PhD will discuss “The Science of Wellbeing” and Dr Robin Parmar, University of Limerick, will discuss “The Science of Music”.
Zing and Zong, from Edinburgh based company, Thunderbolts & Lightening, will deliver an exciting online interactive family show, “Kids who fell to Earth”, as they discover the science that holds the key to saving their civilisation and with some dramatic explosions look to find their way back home. This event takes place on Saturday 18 November.

Michael Gallagher, Site Director at AbbVie’s Ballytivnan facility (ongoing sponsor of the Sligo Science Festival) says: “AbbVie’s commitment to promoting science within our communities is exemplified by the company’s ongoing sponsorship of the Sligo Science Festival. Over the past number of years, AbbVie’s support has helped the festival undertake exciting initiatives including performances, educational exhibits and STEM-focused engagements with local schools, and we are delighted to see the festival go from strength-to-strength. As an innovation-based company, we need to continuously engage with parents, teachers, schools, and others to highlight the broad range of high-quality opportunities that come from studying STEM disciplines. It’s our job to inspire the next generation of STEM workers and enthusiasts.”

For a full list of events, visit; www.atu.ie/sligosciencefestival 

For further information email regina.daly@atu.ie