An innovative and engaging way of narrating science, strongly linked to the territory and recognised as one of the most important events for the dissemination of scientific culture in the world. From Thursday 26 October to Sunday 5 November, 35 venues in Genoa will host the twenty-first edition of the Festival of Science, with a programme of 239 events divided into 97 conferences, 86 workshops, 26 exhibitions, 3 shows and 27 special events. Over 11 days, the event will bring together 300 Italian and foreign scientists and personalities, as well as almost 350 organisations, associations, companies and publishers who have contributed to the programme. A further 45 events are part of the Extra Festival section, a complementary offer for the Festival audience. The theme chosen for the 2023 edition, “Footprints”, links all the events in the programme and encompasses many fields of knowledge: from genetics to neuroscience, from biometrics to palaeontology, from astronomy to archaeology, but above all it makes people think about ecological footprints and sustainability issues.
ETT S.p.A. is present in several activities of the Festival of Science 2023, including two major projects of which ETT is a Partner: Culturgame and RAISE – “Robotics and AI for Socio-Economic Empowerment”.
Culturgame
The Culturgame exhibition will be on display at the Falcon Theatre in the Royal Palace for the duration of the festival, from 26 October to 5 November, from 9 am to 4 pm on weekdays and from 10 am to 7 pm on public holidays.
Programme here
EXHIBITION Let’s play Culturgame! Spreading culture through play
In the Culturgame Exhibition at the Festival of Science 2023, you can try your hand at five game activities divided into three thematic areas: science, history and ecosystems. For example, you can explore the collections of the Darwin Dohrn Museum in Naples through a virtual reality viewer and compare Anton Dohrn’s scientific methodology with that of Charles Darwin. An Augmented Reality board game lets you explore the underwater soundscape, searching for sound sources in the sea. A PC video game allows you to play the role of a scientist by entering an aquatic ecology laboratory. You can look for matches between environmental conditions and phytoplankton adaptations in a party game with a physical and a digital part. Finally, you can explore five ancient worlds, inspired by the collections of the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, and discover how some of the most pressing problems of life today were present in other eras and contexts, and how the choices we have made over the centuries have transformed (and endangered) the planet.
At the Culturgame Exhibition at the Festival of Science, visitors will be able to try out all the games using VR viewers, PCs, tablets and smartphones.
RAISE
ETT is a partner of RAISE – “Robotics and AI for Socio-Economic empowerment” (www.raiseliguria.it), the innovation ecosystem funded by the MUR under the PNRR, which brings together research institutions and companies in the area involved in the development of new technological solutions based on robotics and artificial intelligence.
RAISE is attending the Festival of Science with a dedicated space at Porta Siberia in the Porto Antico area: an innovation village that, for the duration of the event (26 October – 5 November, 10am – 6pm), will show the public, through interactive activities and demonstrations, the advances and challenges of the project, which aims to promote the research and development of innovative technologies in various areas of interest, such as healthcare, environmental sustainability, smart ports and accessible and inclusive smart cities, responding to the productive and social needs of the Ligurian territory.
Through installations, demonstrations and a rich programme of encounters with the main protagonists, the festival audience will be able to learn about the challenges and objectives of the project, which concerns the future of healthcare, environmental sustainability and the future of cities, and discover the many ways in which the results of scientific research can improve the quality of life, work and the environment in which we live.
IMMERSIVE CUBE
As part of its activities in Spoke 5 of the Project – Tech Transfer & Development – ETT installs an immersive cube for the Innovation Village, which connects the visitor emotionally to the contents and spheres of the project and its five spokes, i.e. the areas of intervention of the individual topics, which are formed by the implementing subjects, through an immersive experience of full-wall and seamless multi-projections.
The immersive experience is enhanced by the mirrored floor and ceiling, which play with perspective to reflect and reinforce the evocative power of the images.
The choice of sound design has been curated to accompany the immersive vision, providing a narrative layer that engages and accompanies the visitor through the experience.
RAISE: TALKS & DEMOS
Spoke 3 – Talk: OceanBigData: humanity’s footprint on the Ocean
- As part of the SPOKE 3 RAISE meetings – Sustainable environmental caring and protection technologies > development of robotic systems, energy storage and distribution techniques, and natural and man-made hazard monitoring and prevention systems for urban, terrestrial, marine and coastal ecosystems.
Monday 30 October 12:00 – 13:00 > TALK OceanBigData: humanity’s footprint on the Ocean
Speaker
Antonio Novellino, R&D Manager in SmartCity&Sustainability
Francesco Misurale, R&D Project Manager ETT
ETT is part of RAISE’s Spoke 3, dedicated to environmental sustainability, contributing its expertise in the collection and monitoring of environmental data and the prediction of climate-related phenomena, not only at national level but also at European level, giving the ecosystem a more international scope at a time when extreme environmental phenomena are the order of the day.
ETT is co-leading 4 of the 11 projects in SPOKE 3, which aim to monitor and predict different environmental phenomena, particularly those related to the sea, air quality and environmental risk detection.
The Earth is going through a critical phase, and the seas and oceans are particularly vulnerable. Rising temperatures and sea levels are just two of the many disruptions threatening these ecosystems. Our very existence is at stake and urgent action is needed to protect our blue planet. The first key step is to measure and understand these phenomena in order to take effective action. The use of Big Data from the oceans is proving to be an inexhaustible source of information to support decisions aimed at conserving our seas. This summary provides an introduction to some of the most significant impacts, including temperature, sea level and ocean currents, and invites everyone to join in this crucial effort to preserve and protect our planet.
Spoke 1 – Demo: SENSE Works of art accessible to all
- As part of the SPOKE 1 meetings – Urban Technologies for Inclusive Engagement > design and development of technologies for the inclusive use of the urban and domestic environment with particular attention to issues relating to cognitive and sensorial disabilities, children and the elderly.
Friday 27 October, 12:00 – 13:00 and 15:00 – 16:00 > DEMO SENSE Works of art accessible to all
Speaker
Manuela Serando, Content specialist e Cultural Project Manager ETT
Sense is a full-scale, tactile and sensorial representation of a work of art. It was created as an accessible project to facilitate artistic enjoyment for the blind and partially sighted, but can be seen more generally as a new way of exploring a work of art through multi-sensoriality.
The project stems from a Ph.D. thesis in the Study and Enhancement of Historical, Artistic-Architectural and Environmental Heritage at the University of Genoa, carried out by Manuela Serando, content specialist and cultural project manager at ETT, the project’s technological partner.
The project focused on the bronze bas-reliefs by Giambologna, a Flemish sculptor (16th century) who worked mainly in Florence and who combined the Nordic taste for the representation of the smallest details with the canons of Italian perspective.
To enable the blind and partially sighted to appreciate the structural and stylistic complexity of the compositions, a 1:1 model of the bronze bas-relief of the Deposition in the Tomb has been created, linked to a synchronised audio guide thanks to a system of sensors. The model thus combines tactile perception with the added value of narration.
The special sensors used allow the content to be activated by simple contact with the surface, significantly breaking down the barriers between the public and the work. Hands are free to move and explore the model independently, without mediation that can ‘alter’ the cognitive and relational experience.
The creation of the relief with sensors and audio guide involved several stages: laser scanning of the original, 3D printing (rapid prototyping) of the model divided into blocks, assembly of the various printed parts, with treatment to minimise joints, and finishing and application of the sensors, a careful study of the content and how to convey it, combining historical-artistic knowledge and narrative techniques with the principles of haptic perception. Fundamental and indispensable to the realisation of truly accessible projects was a phase of experimentation and testing carried out with blind and visually impaired volunteers in collaboration with UICI – Italian Union of the Blind and Visually Impaired.
Quando la scienza dà i numeri – L’impatto dei dati scientifici, giusti e sbagliati (When Science Goes Nuts – The impact of scientific data, right and wrong)
Talk
Saturday 4 November, 11.30 – 13.00 and 16 – 17.30
Sunday 5 November 11.30 – 13.00
Galata Museum of the Sea, ground floor – Calata De Mari, 1
Speaker
Marco Alba, R&D Tech Manager ETT
How do you manage a research organisation with a focus on environmental sustainability projects that meet the goals of the famous 2030 Agenda? Find out thanks to Impact, a board game that covers all these aspects, from finding resources, through innovation and research, to developing projects that benefit the planet. Try implementing a project plan to increase sustainability and improve the human impact on the ecosystem. On the weekends, the game session will be followed by two interactive conferences with researchers who will talk about their activities, show that science is not just a bunch of numbers, nor is it just correct information, and illustrate some of the oceanographic instruments of the past, comparing them with the latest technologies for monitoring the health of the sea.