The knowledge frontier at Science Festival

31 May 2004

Cybernetic man and deep sea explorer living on the knowledge frontier at Science Festival

The New Zealand International Science Festival 2004 will amaze, surprise and shock audiences with an extensive programme that ranges from meeting real-life human cyborgs to discovering how birds can predict next years weather.

The Festival is to be held from 3-11 July 2004 in Dunedin and features some fascinating international and New Zealand visitors from the frontiers of science and technology.

Two keynote international guests at the Festival are the world’s ï�rst cybernetic man, Professor Kevin Warwick (UK), and National Geographic’s Explorer in Residence and internationally renowned marine biologist Dr Sylvia Earle (USA).

Professor Kevin Warwick of the University of Reading describes himself as “an accidental human.” In the course of his research, he has fused his body with high-tech implants and communication devices.

Dr Sylvia Earle was named the ï�rst “Hero of the Planet” by Time magazine, and describes the ocean as the “cornerstone of Earth’s life support system.” She has spent thousands of hours under water, and has led over 50 deep sea expeditions.

This year’s festival theme is “Emerging Technology: Innovation and Sustainability” and will take visitors on an exploration of future technologies, and how they may help to protect the environment.

The Festival has strong international support with sponsors including the French and United States Embassies, the British Council and the Australian High Commission.

New Zealand International Science Festival Chair Dame Elizabeth Hanan says the Festival is a major event for Dunedin, and seeks to attract a wide audience, with an extensive programme of interactive activities, science theatre, workshops and field trips.

With over 40,000 visits to the last major Festival in 2002, the opportunities for everyone to be involved in this one mean that numbers may even be greater, says Dame Elizabeth.

We are also delighted that many Otago University departments are providing a two day expo as an integral part of the Festival.

Festival Director Emma Ramsay Brown says a large amount of work has already gone on behind the scenes in preparation what is the fourth biennial New Zealand International Science Festival.

All events featured in the festival are open to the public. Many of the events are free of charge or gold coin donation, while some have specific ticket prices – please check the Festival Programme for further details.

Tickets will be available from the Otago Daily Times CyberStation, Festival HQ in the Dunedin Art Gallery from 28 June 2004 or call 0800 SCIFEST.

For a copy of the programme go to the website www.scifest.org.nz.

ENDS

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