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In 2012 Dr Praveen Paul and Dr Michael Motskin were two research scientists at Imperial College London. They started and organised an event called ‘Meet the Researchers’. It brought people affected by Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, motor neurone disease and multiple sclerosis into their labs to show them the kind of research they do. It was inspirational for both visitors and researchers. They thought if people want to come into labs to meet scientists, why not bring the scientists out to the people? And so Pint of Science was born.
The Pint of Science festival is built around a simple idea: take current research out of lecture theatres and put it somewhere people already feel comfortable. This year the Pint of Science Festival runs from the 18th to 20th May coming from 42 locations across the UK & 16 across Australia and 20 across the USA. Across three evenings, researchers give short, informal talks in pubs and cafés, grouped into themed nights “Our Body,” “Planet Earth,” “Beautiful Mind,” or “Tech Me Out.” The aim is not to present finished answers, but to share what scientists are working on right now, explain why it matters, and open the floor to questions and discussion.
What you get, as a result, is a very different kind of science event. Talks are typically 10 to 20 minutes, often paired with demos, quizzes, or live experiments, and there is plenty of time to chat with speakers afterwards. It is designed to be accessible, so you do not need a scientific background to follow along, but the content is still rooted in real, often cutting edge research.
To give you a feel for the kind of sessions you might find in the UK programme, here are a few sessions that might be of interest this year
- Why does our performance vary from moment to moment? Insights from psychology and neuroscience – Dr Marlou Perquin (DPUK Postdoctoral Research Fellow)
- Unravelling the toxic proteins of Alzheimer’s disease – Dr Matthew Reid and Laura Li Yu (Postdoctoral Research Associate and PhD student)
- Dementia’s hidden culprit: is inflammation the key to switching off the disease? – Dr Maura Malpetti (Group Leader in Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Cambridge)
- Dementia: it’s not just about your head – Nicola Morrice (Postdoctoral Researcher in Neuroscience)
- Gone but not forgotten: Unlocking Dementia with donated brain tissue. – David Koss (Lecturer in Neuroscience at the University of Dundee)
- The brain’s energy crisis: before symptoms even start – Lauren O’Neill (Postdoctoral Research Assistant in Neuroscience at the University of Dundee)
- Tiny cells, big clues – Athina Grigoriou (PhD student at the University of Dundee)
- A protein behind Parkinson’s Disease – Chloe Flitton (PhD student at the University of Dundee)
- Is dementia risk a postcode lottery? – Conor Durkin (Research Assistant at the NIHR Policy Research Unit in Dementia and Neurodegeneration), Harriet Demnitz-King (Lecturer in Mental Health), Paul Harvey (Lived Experience Advisor in Young-Onset Dementia)
- Steps, smartwatches and symptoms: what can step counts tells us about mental health? – Yolanda Lau (Postdoctoral Research Associate at the NIHR Policy Research Unit in Dementia and Neurodegeneration)
- Dementia: What Are the Risks? – Dr Shannon Gilchrist (Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Glasgow)
- Untangling the Genetic Web of Brain Health – Emily Paremain (Dementia Network Manager & Data Science MSc)
- Creating mini-brains to model Alzheimer’s disease in a dish – Ashley Harlock (Graduate student – Mount Sinai)
- Old Timers? All Timers? Or Alzheimer’s? – Madison Shyer (PhD Student – UT Health Houston)
The exact talks change each year and vary by city, which is part of the appeal. What you see in London will not be identical to Manchester or Edinburgh, because the programme reflects local researchers and strengths. But the thread running through all of it is the same: real science, explained clearly, with space for curiosity and conversation.
Its all free… just visit the website, pick your nearest city and see if there is an event you’re interested in… from space travel to environment and more… the programme has everything!
Adam Smith