South East Science Festival returns with a range of fun events

Preparations are mounting across Waterford, Carlow, and Tipperary for this year's action-packed South East Science Festival programme. The festival runs from November 7-15 and is the regional celebration of national Science Week. The free programme offers a range of opportunities for members of the public from primary school level to families to adult audiences to engage with all things science, technology, engineering and maths, STEM, in a fun and engaging way. Each year, the South East Science Festival brings top scientists and STEM presenters from Ireland and abroad to the region for practical, informative, and engaging events in museums, theatres, libraries, sports halls, heritage centres and so much more. Festival favourites Mark Langtry, Caroline Ainslie and Ken Farquhar are all back by popular demand. This year's theme is Water: From Molecule to Ocean and among the dozens of presenters exploring all things water are award-winning environmental artist, Sean Corcoran, who is hosting an event on a beach and in his coastal studio on Waterford's Copper Coast. Morgan VanderKamer's not-to-be-missed 'Water into Wine' event at Union restaurant promises to fill up fast. She will explain the influence of water used to make on the final flavour. Places are also expected to book up quickly for multiple award-winning filmmaker Dónal Ó Céilleachair's screening of Camino Voyage. It features a crew including a writer, two musicians, an artist and a stonemason who embark on the Camino by sea, in a traditional boat that they built themselves on an inspiring, and dangerous, 2,500 km modern day Celtic odyssey all the way from Ireland to Northern Spain. Lecturers and researchers from SETU will also take centre stage, and they will discuss the cutting edge research taking place in SETU at events throughout the South East Science Festival. In Tipperary, the festival's flagship event, Community Science Day, will take place at MIC Thurles on Saturday, November 14, from 11am–3pm. Families can look forward to a packed programme of hands-on activities, including the Ultimate Bubble Show with Guinness World Record holder Ray the Bubbleologist, interactive experiments with the Nutty Scientist, LEGO challenges with Brick Legends, and science puzzles and games with MIC's CRAFT Maker Space. Read more Mary Immaculate College Thurles open day to showcase six new degree courses Visitors will have the opportunity to meet animals and birds with Animal Magic, explore marine life with Ocean Discovery, and take part in slime-making activities. The festival will bring a range of activities to communities across the Premier County. MIC's CRAFT team will host water-themed workshops at libraries in Tipperary town, Roscrea, and Templemore, where families will build LEGO boats, experiment with water pressure, and explore the microscopic world of water. Other highlights include Water Confidence: The Science Behind Swimming at Thurles Leisure Centre and Life Under Water at Cashel Library, where Dr Mary Kelly-Quinn of UCD's Freshwater Group will explore the fascinating world of freshwater biodiversity. TUS Thurles will deliver fun, hands-on coding workshops where children will create their own water-themed game. The TUS Thurles campus will also host a seminar on Water Quality: Policy and Action, while a Water to Light project in conjunction with Tipperary Library Service and Thurles Men's Shed will see participants construct a working water wheel capable of generating electricity.