The 2012 World Science Festival: Action-packed, Interactive, Inspiring Experiences for Kids and Families

New York, NY (PRWEB) May 29, 2012

The 2012 World Science Festival (worldsciencefestival.com) returns to New York City for its fifth anniversary season, May 30th to June 3rd, 2012, with more than 50 extraordinary events, performances and exhibitions designed to make the esoteric understandable and the familiar fascinating

This year’s programs offer an exciting range of science adventure and discovery for kids of all ages. Check out what’s in store:

Icarus at the Edge of Time
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
7:00 pm to 8:00 pm, United Palace Theatre, 4140 Broadway @ 175th Street; Ticketed
LeVar Burton (Actor, Director, Roots, Reading Rainbow, Star Trek - film and TV) is the narrator for this special, family-friendly performance of Icarus at the Edge of Time.
The story is a dramatic re-telling of the Icarus myth that will capture the hearts and imagination of audiences of all ages. The multimedia performance piece is adapted by Brian Greene and Tony-Award winning playwright David Henry Hwang from Greene’s young people’s book of the same title and features an original orchestral score by Philip Glass, a film directed by innovative, cutting-edge British filmmakers Al+Al and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, conducted by Brad Lubman.

Science-on-Site: Explorations in Brooklyn Bridge Park
Saturday, June 2, 2012
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM; Brooklyn Bridge Park; Free Admittance
Science comes to life along the historic East River. Join adventurous scientists for a day of family-friendly exploration in one of the city’s most dynamic parks. Join a leading botanist for a park-wide botanical safari, learn the science secrets of the iconic Brooklyn Bridge, and more.

•     Grab a net and explore the surprisingly diverse marine ecology of the East River
•     Learn how to measure and interpret the weather with leading meteorologists
•     Explore the secret world of Brooklyn bugs and greenery

Innovation Square
Saturday, June 2, 2012
12:00 PM - 7:00 PM; NYU Polytechnic Institute, MetroTech Plaza, Brooklyn; Free Admittance
The 2012 World Science Festival’s “Innovation Square” transforms a picturesque quad in downtown Brooklyn into a technophile’s adventure land, teeming with future-shaping innovations from all over the world. Watch the first public demonstration of quantum levitation and play with the world’s lightest material. An unforgettable afternoon of amazing demos, challenges and interactive fun, suitable for all tech enthusiasts.

•     Play soccer with the current RoboCup World Champion robot – “DARwIn-OP”
•     See Festo’s “SmartBird” bionic defy gravity as it takes flight
•     Watch as inventor Maurizio Porfiri controls schools of robotic fish with an iPad
•     Philip White presents his non-linear feedback systems, made from a mixer and homemade circuits
•     View a slithering, autonomous robotic snake, designed for urban search-and-rescue duty

Cool Jobs, Cool Kids, Hot Contest
Saturday, June 2, 2012
1:00 PM - 2:30 PM; The Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College, 695 Park Avenue; Ticketed
This double feature shows science in a whole new light: pure, imaginative, mind-bending fun! The big event heats up as Alan Alda hosts “The Flame Challenge,” a contest that calls on scientists worldwide to give their best explanation of how a flame works—but in a way that makes sense to a kid. The excitement continues with the Festival’s ever-popular “Cool Jobs,” a show that brings you face-to-face with amazing scientists and with amazing jobs. Imagine having an office that’s a zoo and co-workers that are lemurs and porcupines. Or that your desk was a basketball court and your clients were superstars trying to improve their game through biomechanics. Hear from scientists who have these jobs—find out what they do, how they do it and how they got the coolest and weirdest gigs on the planet.

Einstein, Time and The Coldest Things in the Universe
Saturday, June 2, 2012
3:30 PM - 4:30 PM; The Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College, 695 Park Avenue; Ticketed
Nobel prize-winning physicist William Phillips returns to the World Science Festival for another spellbinding journey to the lowest temperatures ever recorded. What’s an atomic clock and why does it keep better time when cold? What’s the relationship between speed, temperature and relativity? Through crackling, fizzing, popping experimentation, see what happens when ordinary objects plunge to the edge of absolute zero.

A Night of Stargazing at Brooklyn Bridge Park: From the City to the Stars
Saturday, June 2, 2012
8:00PM to 11:00PM; Brooklyn Bridge Park; Free Admittance
Families are invited to join professional and amateur astronomers for a free evening of stargazing. It is a night to explore and discover the vast wonders of the cosmos. Guests can bring a telescope, or use a one of the dozens on hand. Scientists will be on hand to help viewers learn more about what they are seeing. With Mario Livio (astrophysicist), Lawrence Krauss (cosmologist), Kelle Cruz (Astronomer, Physicist) and enjoy celestial tunes by Brooklyn DJ Patrick Billard.

The Ultimate Science Street Fair
Sunday, June 3, 2012
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM; Washington Square Park; Free Admittance
The Festival’s popular Science Street Fair returns to Washington Square Park with an action-packed day of interactive exhibits, games and shows, all designed to entertain and inspire. Visit a telepathy lab and control a computer just by thinking about it, learn the science tricks to shooting perfect free-throws with NBA stars, ride a square-wheeled tricycle and much, much more!

•     International Flavors and Fragrances “Smell Lab” is back! Experience the complexity and chemistry of scents and the art of perfumery
•     The BioBus is the world's only grease-powered science lab on wheels
•     See Festo’s “AirPenguin,” a penguin-shaped 'bot that floats like a blimp
•     Cool chemistry springs into action at the Superball Factory
•     Meet zoologist Jarod Miller and his exotic friends from faraway lands
•     Don "inversion goggles" to simulate the experience of space
•     Make musical instruments out of materials found at home
•     Check out Field Station Dinosaur and an interactive 15-foot Tyrannosaurus Rex

TICKETS:
Tickets for World Science Festival events are on sale now:

•     Online: at http://www.worldsciencefestival.com
•     By phone: (212) 352-3101 or (866) 811-4111

o    Operators available: Monday – Friday, 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM. Saturday & Sunday, 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM

•     In Person: NYU Ticket Central @ NYU Skirball Center, 566 LaGuardia Place at Washington Square, New York, NY 10012

o    Box office hours: Tuesday- Saturday, 12:00 PM (Noon) – 6:00 PM

World Science Festival ticketing services provided by NYU Skirball Center.

World Science Festival 2012 Cultural Partners, whose collaboration enriches the diverse spectrum of Festival programming, include:

•     American Museum of Natural History
•     Brooklyn Bridge Park
•     Eyebeam Art + Technology Center
•     Galapagos Art Space
•     Le Poisson Rouge
•     Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
•     The Metropolitan Museum of Art
•     The Moth
•     Museum of the Moving Image
•     New-York Historical Society
•     Science Gallery, Trinity College Dublin
•     United Palace Theatre

The World Science Festival 2012 Media Partners:

•     ABC 7
•     ABC News
•     ABC Radio
•     Mental Floss
•     Popular Science
•     Time Warner Cable
•     The Week
•     WNYC

The World Science Festival’s 2012 University Partners provide a broad range of Festival support. The 2012 University Partners include:

•     The City University of New York
•     The Cooper Union
•     Columbia University
•     The New School
•     New York University
•     The Rockefeller University

About the World Science Festival:
The World Science Festival is a production of the Science Festival Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization headquartered in New York City. The Foundation's mission is to cultivate a general public informed by science, inspired by its wonder, convinced of its value, and prepared to engage with its implications for the future.

The World Science Festival has been made possible with the generous support of its Founding Benefactors: the Simons Foundation, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and the John Templeton Foundation.

The World Science Festival gratefully acknowledges the generous support of its major sponsors, Ann Ziff, Con Edison and The Kavli Prize; its media partners, ABC News, ABC Radio, WABC-TV, Mental Floss, Popular Science, Time Warner Cable, The Week, WNYC Radio; and its university partners, New York University, The City University of New York, Columbia University, The Rockefeller University, The New School, and The Cooper Union.

To learn more about the World Science Festival, visit http://www.worldsciencefestival.com, or follow the World Science Festival on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

Media Contacts:
Caroline Andoscia caroline(at)andoscia(dot)com 212-475-2122 x701 917-207-4060
Dan Scheffey            dan(at)andoscia(dot)com     212-475-2122 x702 917-647-7626