Celebrating at Glasgow Science Festival

The OU's long-standing relationship with Glasgow Science Festival continued this year. This year's theme was 'Glasgow Celebrates', marking Glasgow turning 850 years old.

The wide range of OU activities at the Science Festival started on Sunday 1 June with the Festival's 'Science on the Sofa' online programme, available until Monday 30 June.

The online programme included the online OU talk 'Unmasking Artificial Intelligence' and provided a prime opportunity to promote some collated OpenLearn resources to the public. 

The OU's contribution to the Glasgow Science Festival for 2025 culminated in a weekend event in June in the main hall of the popular Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. The event was visited by thousands of guests, breaking all records for the OU's involvement in the Science Festival.  

Linda Moore (OU in Scotland Staff Tutor in Life, Health and Chemical Sciences) has worked hard to secure this space for OU activities for several years and coordinated the OU activities again this year.

Hosted by OU colleagues from both the Faculty of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), and the Faculty for Art and Social Sciences (FASS), the 12 activities invited visitors to find out if they are super tasters, learn how to collect space rocks, create LEGO aliens, become heritage chemists, and explore how music transformed Glasgow.

Also, a key event in the Science Festival's programme was delivered by OU and Glasgow Caledonian University academics. The 'Conviction or Acquittal: The Science of Jury Decision Making' provided a rare opportunity for participants to watch a trial, be on the jury, and reach a verdict. 

The OU presence at the festival led to a significant number of enquiries about Open University study.  Including a young visitor who said,

"I have had the best day of my life today learning about science. I want to be a scientist when I grow up." 

Originally published on OU Life on 1/7/2025