So much to see and learn! Science Festival at RUDN University

Main building of RUDN University

Humanities students, philologists, ecologists, farmers, engineers, physicians, physicists, chemists and mathematicians welcomed the guests at the exhibitions.

What we saw:

• Fanuc series LR Mate 200iD/4S industrial robot —the guests were amazed by the fast and accurate work;
• dental equipment;
• plants in test tubes and visual aids on plant propagation technology;
• fingerprint reader;
• Petri dishes with agar medium and different content of fungicides for growing phytopathogenic fungi.

What we learned:

• how liquid nitrogen works;
• how to make an indirect heart massage;
• how to create artificial blood;
• how to print parts on a 3D printer;
• how the human body works in virtual reality.

“This year the Science Festival has become a center of attraction for high school students who are interested in science and university life. They visited new classrooms and got acquainted with teachers and senior students.

Most of all I remember a master class from the Agrarian and Technological Institute on creating fish food in the winter garden of RUDN University. We were told what kind of fish live in aquariums and what they eat. We even calculated the proportions of the ingredients ourselves and mixed them. I also enjoyed a master class on painting T-shirts and beading. We customized T-shirts and created our own unique bijou.

The Science Festival at RUDN University is an opportunity for schoolchildren to feel like students and participate in the scientific life of the university,” says Irina Lokhankina, Deputy Chairman of the Student Research Club, 3rd-year student of the Faculty of Philology.

Each workshop has its own atmosphere. This year, the guests enjoyed interactive events in 11 new classrooms of the main building of RUDN University. Comfortable, spacious and bright — exactly what you need for a scientific journey.

What we understood:

• how to make a historical avant-garde collage;
• how to conduct environmental monitoring;
• how to tell minerals from each other;
• how to provide first aid;

Vera Tolchennikova, Deputy Director of RUDN Research Institute for Brain Development and Higher Achievements, spoke about the interactive lecture “How to increase intelligence through movement training?”:

“Two-thirds of our brain is associated with movement. Movement is the best way to increase intelligence. This may seem paradoxical, because we remember from school: if you pull yourself up 30 times and run faster than anyone, this does not guarantee an A in mathematics. Of course, improving memory, attention, and the ability to predict and control oneself, takes training special movements. The lecture participants learned the basic motor stereotypes: eye-hand and eye-neck coordination. The students did a great job, the movements improve immediately, if you give feedback to the brain”

“During the quest ‘Catch the smuggler’, students investigated a crime. They learned how to work with the gadgets and devices at customs control, examine, search and check hand luggage,” says Zhanna Chupina, Associate Professor of the Department of Customs at the Law Institute.

Science Slam at the Festival of Science — for the first time at RUDN University!

Is science the new rock and roll? For the first time, the battle of young scientists took place at the Science Festival in a new format. The participants of the semi-final showed that discussing research can be fun.

The co-working space became the site of slammers — the new rock-n-rollers of RUDN science. The sound level meter in the semi-finals of the battle of physicists, lyricists and natural scientists, showed the victory of medical students with a margin of one point!

Musonda Ketura, a 5th year student of the Medical Institute, spoke on the topic “Fortune-telling of the Covid Age”. Using the example of David’s mannequin, she convinced everyone of the need for vaccination.

What we learned:

• how to make a “piropo” compliment;
• how to turn fisheries into non-waste production with the least financial investments;
• what is HSE-management;
• how real is 5G with avatars and metaverses;
• how knowing the stylistic techniques of sarcastic comments on social networks increases your IQ;
• how to make a Christmas tree out of oil refining waste.

“For the first time it turned out very well! Preparations for the Battle at the Science Festival took several months: to understand the format and features of the performance, I studied at a slammer school. After we made a draft, which helped us with the final version of the performance.

I am for the popularization of science and researchers. This is not a competition, but a way to express your point of view. I didn’t have any problems speaking: I am fairly good at the research topic, and the audience is not experts with tricky questions. My advice to future participants: think about how to present your research for people to understand it. Not every project can be easily presented in 10 minutes. Watch the speeches of other participants, and look for interesting oratory techniques.

Scientists are not abstract sages, but people like you!” says Alexandra Antonova, participant in the Science Slam at the Festival of Science, 1st year postgraduate student of the Faculty of Science.