FameLab Israel - science in 3 minutes! The competition will be held at Hamada, the Weizmann Institute and the Science Museum in Jerusalem, the final will be held at Hamada on May 2
The British Council in Israel is bringing to Israel from Britain the successful FameLab competition which aims to find the next voice of science in Israel. In the competition, young science and technology professionals will compete in presenting a scientific topic in a fascinating and exciting way with only 3 minutes at their disposal (no computer presentation!).
The first stage of the competition will take place in March and April 2007 at three sites in Israel: at Hamada - the center for scientific education in Tel Aviv, at the science festival of the Weizmann Institute and at the Bloomfield Science Museum in Jerusalem.
The FameLab competition is the brainchild of the Cheltenham Science Festival and NESTA (the British National Foundation for Science, Technology and the Arts) and is held in the UK with the support of Pfizer, the Daily Telegraph, the UK Research Councils, the British Council and Channel 4. In Israel the competition is held under the auspices of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. and the magazine Scientific American Israel.
FameLab Israel competition
FameLab encourages scientists to excite the public's imagination with the scientific vision of the early 21st century. In the early stages of the competition, which will be held in March and April 2007, the contestants will be given only 3 minutes to prove to a team of expert judges that they have the ability to make science a lively and fascinating subject. Nine competitors, who will choose the various competitions, will advance to the finals. They will participate in a professional workshop in scientific communication before competing in the finals held on May 2, 2007 at Hamada - the center for scientific education of Tel Aviv-Yafo. The Israeli winner of FameLab 2007 will win a fully funded trip to the Cheltenham Science Festival in June 2007.
The competition is designed to locate Israel's new science communication professionals who are able to present a scientific topic in front of a wide audience in an accurate, entertaining, exciting and attractive way for only 3 minutes.
Those with a bachelor's degree in science, engineering, mathematics or medicine, who are excited by science and who are able to stand in front of a panel of judges and present a topic for 3 minutes, are allowed to participate (it is allowed to bring aids that can be carried on the body but not a PowerPoint presentation).
Prizes:
First prize: a trip to the Cheltenham Science Festival in the UK in June 2007
Places 1-3: Peres Teva for further studies
All finalists: participation in an internship workshop in scientific communication led by experts from Great Britain and Israel
Annual subscription to Scientific American Israel magazine.
The competition will be conducted in Hebrew
The dates of the competition
Qualifying stage:
• March 26, 2007 at Hamada - the Center for Scientific Education in Tel Aviv
• April 4, 2007 at the science festival at the Weizmann Institute of Science (open to institute students only)
• April 12, 2007 at the Bloomfield Science Museum in Jerusalem
the final:
• May 2, 2007 in Hamada - the center for scientific education in Tel Aviv
The FameLab competition is part of Beautiful Science, a regional initiative organized by the British Council in the nine countries of the Council's South-East European Region: Austria, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Israel, Romania, Serbia and Turkey and in the United Kingdom. The Beautiful Science project is a new initiative to link science, education and art. The project includes activities designed to develop cooperation between the UK and those engaged in science communication in the entire region with the aim of creating shared experience and encouraging professional development. Ultimately, the Beautiful Science initiative aims to encourage young scientists to connect with the general public and to encourage young people to consider careers in science.
More information can be found on the British Council website: www.britishcouncil.org.il
or by contacting Sonia Feldman at the British Council at 03-6113626 or by email sonia.feldman@britishcouncil.org.il
