Discovering science at L'ideatorio: resuming activities

L'ideatorio of Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) announces its programme for 2020-2021. From 5 September, the headquarters of Cadro will reopen to the public on weekends and to schools during the week and will host numerous events, workshops, ateliers and conferences: from the exploration of the cosmos in the astronomical planetarium to informal scientific cafés with experts on the themes of sustainability and neuroscience. In the venue, it will also be possible to visit the exhibition on the brain "Imperfetto – Tra inciampi e abilità del nostro cervello" and the IDEA spaces, renewed in their guise and contents. In addition to the events offered at Cadro, the program is enriched with proposals on the territory, carried out in collaboration with various institutions. With this project, USI, in collaboration with Science et Cité and the School Institute of the City of Lugano, intends to continue to consolidate its presence on the territory and encourage dialogue between science and society, with particular attention to families, young people and schools.

The exhibition on the brain "Imperfect", carried out in collaboration with Neurocentro della Svizzera italiana, will be extended until June. During the exhibition, visitors will be able to experience the power and fragility of their brains and meet doctors and researchers active in the fields of neuroscience and psychiatry. The brain will also be at the centre of the public evenings proposed by Brain Week of Southern Switzerland, postponed to the month of October. We particularly recommend the event "Brain Vs Machine: what makes us human" scheduled on 28 October at the Lux Cinema in Massagno. The philosopher Carmine di Martino will dialogue with the computer scientist Luca Gambardella and the neuroscientist Rosalba Morese. The debate will be introduced by a performance by Lucilla Giagnoni. Art, science and philosophy in dialogue to discover what makes us human.

The theme of sustainability will be the focus of several proposals during this new year. In Cadro's headquarters, three meetings will be held as part of the series "Tea of Sustainability", in collaboration with ACSI, in which various themes will be addressed: from food waste to electric cars to plastic recycling. Questions and trivia from the audience will be answered with the aid of an expert in front of a cup of tea and cookies. Sustainability and the future of our planet will also be discussed on the following occasions: during the conference with Nobel Prize winner Jacques Dubochet at USI on 23 March (an event co-organised with the Ticino Society of Natural Sciences and the Liceo Lugano 1); in a conference proposed by L'ideatorio and the Institute of Political Economy on 1 March at USI, as well as in the reflections on the film "Anthropocene" (screened at the Cinema Leventina in Airolo and at Lux in Massagno). In turn, the documentary "Human", directed by Yann Arthus-Bertrand, which will be screened during the openings to the public at the Spazio Immaginazione in Cadro, will touch on this important current theme.

The astronomical planetarium, which in its first year of opening welcomed over 7,000 people, will feature important changes. In addition to "A Journey into the Cosmos", the generic projection of L'Ideatorio to discover the sky, three new shows are scheduled: "The History of the Apollo Project", "A Day on Mars" and "To the Origins of Planet Earth". Under the dome of the planetarium, exclusively, the new show between art and science by Roberto Mucchiut "SYN" will be presented. An audiovisual work that explores the mechanisms of perception of our brain through the immersion in a sound and visual world.

Within the Exploration Space at Cadro's headquarters, activities related to the fascinating world of microscopy will be proposed, to discover the amazing worlds invisible to our eyes. Experimentation will also be the focus of numerous workshops offered to families (from olfactory laboratories to robotics). In addition to training courses for teachers and the public, on topics ranging from astronomy to robotics, a new course dedicated to adults with cognitive disabilities to discover science is starting this year.

The new program can be downloaded from the website of L'ideatorio. There will be shows, theatre, music, readings and many new features. The headquarters of Cadro will be open to schools from Monday to Friday, while public opening hours are Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Lastly, please note that schools have their own separate programme - available on the website - and that until December 2020 all classes will be able to participate in an activity free of charge upon registration.

For more information: 
www.ideatorio.usi.ch