Sasol Scifest 2006

Wow! What a week! With 425 contributors, 683 events, 40 373 visitors and a record number of tickets sold (20 964), the tenth anniversary of Sasol SciFest has been hailed by stalwarts as the best yet! Visitors came from as far afield as Australia, Botswana, Cameroon, China, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, India, Italy, Kenya, Korea, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Swaziland, Sweden, Tanzania, the UK, USA, Zambia, and Zimbabwe to take part in Africa's premier science festival. The festival took place from 22-28 March.

Lectures

Sasol SciFest 2006 featured eight international and 16 South African lecturers, all leaders in their respective scientific fields, who covered topics that include the new Airbus A380; chemistry of cooking; conservation of chimpanzees; creativity; frogs; hand-eye co-ordination; medical imaging; pterosaurs; the science of music; SALT; the Southern Ground Hornbill; stem cell research; and much more! The Festival also launched a Talkshop programme featuring 21 less formal interactive presentations which allow for discussion and debate, as well as increased interaction with scientists. Topics included Antarctica; climate change; magnetism; mathematics; pedal cars; planets; and snakes.

Exhibitions

Exhibitions form the heart of the Festival, and 2006 was no different with 41 exhibitions featured in the 1820 Settlers National Monument and the Albany Science Museum. Exhibitors included government departments, industry, NGOs, science centres, research facilities of the National Research Foundation, and tertiary institutions. Entrance to all exhibitions was free.

Workshops

The Festival offered 308 workshops (52 titles) for all ages and included topics such as astronomy; bird-ringing; electronics; enzymes; genetics; the science of golf; HIV/Aids; lasers; mapwork; micro-rockets; palaeontology; recycled paper; physics; satellites; volcanoes; and (of course) the weather.

Special Extras

The Special Extras section includes a wide range of activities and events which add variety to the programme. The 2006 programme featured the AMESA Inter-school Mathematics Relay; an astronomy lesson in the Addo Elephant National Park; a church service; educational theatre; field trips; a PlayFair (for Grades 0-3); the Popular Mechanics Soap Box Derby; an introduction to the Roots & Shoots Programme by Dr Jane Goodall DBE, UN Messenger of Peace; the Sasol Laser Show; schools quizzes; Science Olympics; science shows; Spoor of the Year; Sport & Science; storytelling; Sunset Shows; and tours.

FilmFest

Films screened were from commercial selections presently on circuit in South Africa. The 10 titles screened were Fantastic Four; The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; The Island; Jane Goodall's Wild Chimpanzees; The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou; Madagascar; Robots; Sahara; Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith; and War of the Worlds.

Fringe Festival

The Fringe Programme is planned, hosted and staged by outside organisations, as apposed to the Main Programme, which is arranged by Sasol SciFest. The Grahamstown Masonics, Louis Brittz Band, Rhodes University, the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB) and St. Andrew's Preparatory School made a significant contribution to the Festival's Official Programme with 150 additional events including apprenticeships, demos, exhibitions, field trips, films, lectures, live music, quizzes, Talkshops, tours, and workshops.