Cambridge Science Festival 2013

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The Institute of Continuing Education (ICE) will be taking part in the Cambridge Science Festival in 2013 with a programme of free talks at Madingley Hall on Sunday 17 March 2013.

From Maxwell to microscopes: electricity and magnetism united

17 March 2013, 2.30pm, Dr Erica Bithell

What is the connection between James Clerk Maxwell’s vision for students of Physics, his Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism and our present day understanding of the structure of materials? In ICE’s 140th anniversary year, we will take a journey through 140 years of electromagnetism, from Maxwell’s laboratories to modern electron microscopes.

Playing pinball with stars

17 March 2013, 3.45pm, Sarah Smedley

Stars, just like people, prefer to live in groups. In this talk we explore what happens when the biggest, heaviest stars encounter each other, and what consequences unfold for both the stars and their surroundings.

DNA and ancestry: where do I come from?

17 March 2013, 5.00pm, Dr Peter Forster

Learn how fossils, genetics and forensic science are now helping us to answer this question at a number of time levels, from the birth of humankind up to the present day. Only for this event, each participant will receive an optional order form with a special discount for DNA ancestry testing by Dr Peter Forster and colleagues.