The Europe’s largest outdoor event popularising science will take place on 12 May 2012, again in the Edward Rydz-Śmigły Park in Warszawa’s Powiśle neighbourhood. The theme of this year’s Science Picnic of Polish Radio and the Copernicus Science Centre is “Energy”.

As usual, the Science Picnic will be an excellent opportunity to present Polish science and its popularisers to a wider audience. In a unique way, the community of scientists will meet the public interested in discovering the mysteries of science in a friendly, understandable and entertaining way.
“Energy” is a capacious concept, and both engineers and humanists will find something for themselves. Energy is one of the few physical quantities awarded a special meaning in the order of the universe – enough to think of the absolute law of its conservation. Energy is not born and does not disappear. It only assumes different forms.

The largest outdoor popular science event will be attended by approximately 200 domestic and foreign institutions. In the exhibition tents and on the stage, it will be possible to see over one thousand shows – most of them related to the topic of this year’s Picnic. You will be able, among other things, to unleash a storm, feel the energy generated during explosive synthesis of water on your own hand and see a simulation of a flood. As every year, there will be no shortage of attractions for children.

“The Science Picnic is an event which in the most complete way matches the role and objectives of Polish Radio. For years, we have been consistently and fully engaged in organising this event because it promotes knowledge, supports innovations and also due to its popular and interactive character. Our synergy with the Copernicus Science Centre at co-creation of the Science Picnic is also worth mentioning,” says Andrzej Siezieniewski, President of the Management Board of Polish Radio. “This year’s motto, i.e. ‘Energy’, gives us special opportunities. On one hand, from a technical point of view, acquisition and generation of energy in harmony with nature is perhaps the most important topic for the world in the coming decades. On the other hand, enthusiasm and creative energy is something that accompanies us in our daily work. We intend to take advantage of the potential brought by this year’s Picnic by providing out listeners with an interesting and challenging offer on all our channels.”

From this year’s edition, the organisational structure of the Science Picnic of Polish Radio and the Copernicus Science Centre has changed. It is currently created by the Management Board, the Honorary Committee as an advisory body of the Management Board, the Programme Team and the Organising Team. The Management Board, in charge of the Picnic, is composed of: the President of the Management Board of Polish Radio, Andrzej Siezieniewski, and the Director of the Copernicus Science Centre, Robert Firmhofer. The Honorary Committee, whose composition changes each year in relation to the leading theme of the event, is presided by Professor Łukasz Turski from the Centre for Theoretical Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences, who has been involved in the organisation of the Science Picnic from the very beginning. This year’s Honorary Committee consists of eminent professors: Zygmunt Kolenda, Maciej Sadowski, Bogusław Smólski, and Kazimierz Wójs. The head of the Programme Team, whose task is to assess the substantive value of shows and exhibitions presented at the Science Picnic, is Konrad Bajer, PH.D., from the Institute of Geophysics of the University of Warsaw. The Organising Committee is composed of representatives of Polish Radio and the Copernicus Science Centre.

We invite everyone to the 16th Science Picnic of Polish Radio and the Copernicus Science Centre on Saturday 12 May from 11.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m. to the Edward Rydz-Śmigły Park in Warszawa (at Rozbrat). Admission is free.

The Science Picnic of Polish Radio and the Copernicus Science Centre is Europe’s largest outdoor science event. The aim of the Science Picnic is to disseminate knowledge from various scientific disciplines through presentation of interesting experiments – both simple ones related to archaeology or low temperatures physics, as well as the latest achievements of modern scientists.
In 2005, the Science Picnic was commended by the European Commission as one of ten model European projects in the “Science and Society” field.

For more information, please contact:
Magdalena Zaleska
Promotion Agency – Polskie Radio S.A.
tel. (22) 645 51 39, mobile 508 011 353
e-mail: magdalena.zaleska@polskieradio.pl
www.pikniknaukowy.pl