‘Dave’s Jungle’ is just one of the events of this year’s Science Week to have been hailed a great success by its organisers, Waterford Institute of Technology’s CALMAST.

Designed for primary school pupils, ‘Dave’s Jungle’ brought their not-so-cuddly charges to Waterford Institute of Technology, so the children could come face to face with snakes, spiders, scorpions, and lizards.

"‘Dave’s Jungle’ has been an incredibly popular programme in this year’s Science Week", says CALMAST’s Dr Sheila Donegan. "This was a chance for the children to meet some very different animals up close, to touch and learn all about them. Even the children who were less keen to be introduced to the animals at first were soon fascinated by the snakes and scorpions."

Science week was not only for school children, though, as Dr Donegan explained: "The idea of Science Week is to encourage everybody to have an interest in science, whether they are going to study science or not. We feel it’s very important that everyone has some understanding of the importance of science in all our lives."

The popularity of Science Week has attracted events from across Europe. Waterford is the only venue in Ireland that the London Science Museum and the Palace of Miracles from Hungary will be visiting.

The Palace of Miracles from Hungary visited Waterford as part of the EU WONDERS Science Festival, where 32 different science festivals across Europe are joining together. CALMAST participated in this festival through a presentation they gave at the Czech Academy of Sciences. The Centre will also be taking part in the European finals of the WONDERS Festival, which takes place in Lisbon, Portugal, at the end of November.

6,500 people attended the 60 sessions throughout the week, some of which were attended for primary and secondary school children who came from Dungarvan, Clonmel, and all around Co Waterford, others which were geared towards the general public.

"One example of a presentation that has really appealed to members of the public was the talk by Dr Siobhan O’Sullivan, Director of the Bioethics Research Council", continued Eoin Gill of CALMAST.

"During her talk, Dr O’Sullivan looked at the potential issues and pros and cons surrounding the creation of DNA forensic databases. Dr O’Sullivan pointed out that there is not a united approach even across Europe, let alone globally, with some countries compiling the DNA of everyone living there, whilst other countries only sample the DNA of crime suspects. These ethical and security questions generated a lot of interest and discussion."

"Dr Kevin McGuigan also held a very popular talk entitled ‘Science saves millions!’, in which he spoke about his solar water purification system. This is currently undergoing trials in Guatemala, Cambodia, and Mexico, and is a great example of how science can be used to make drastic improvements in people’s lives", said Mr Gill.

Other popular activities during the Week included the Bubble Show, where the London Science Museum taught junior infants and second class pupils about the science of bubbles – even putting some of the pupils and their teachers inside bubbles!

The Science of Endurance Sports with WIT’s Dr Michael Harrison looked at the science behind fitness, and if it is possible to screen for good athletes. Also popular was the Bone Show by Rosie Donnelly and the Centre Stage School of Dance, who explained the importance of keeping your bones healthy and how bones mend when the are broken.

Dr Marie Cassidy’s presentation on the use of science in solving crime kept the audience on the edge of their seats, as she described her job and some of the scenes she has seen.

Dr Donegan added: "This year’s Science Week has been incredibly popular. This is the first year that the Festival has been split over three venues around Co Waterford – in the main venue of Waterford Institute of Technology, but also with activities taking place in Lismore and Dungarvan.

"Although this year’s Week is the biggest yet, we still managed to sell out of tickets for all of our presentations and activities – we just don’t seem to be able to keep up with demand! We sold 4,500 tickets within two hours of confirming the final line-up this year, so next year’s Science Week already has a huge target to reach."