The participants – who ranged from parents of researchers to friends of administation staff and even a group of biological systems engineering undergraduates from the UPC – attended the presentations, demonstration and lab tours to learn about IBEC and its various research areas.
They were fascinated and full of questions about the concepts they heard about, which included biomaterials, artificial olfaction, robotics and iPSC, and the ‘robotic hand’ demonstration by PhD student Luis Amigo had the audience clamouring to have a go themselves.
“It was a really stimulating morning, and now I’m keen to find out more about research as a career,” said one 23-year-old visitor. “It was very interesting,” commented another participant, 47. “Now I understand why scientific investigation is so important for society, and I’m going to tell everyone!”
The day, which was held as part of this year’s nationwide Setmana de la Ciència, welcomed a good mix of people, with the oldest attendee in her 70s and the youngest 20. As the limited places were oversubscribed, it is planned that more such events for the general public will take place in the future, independently of the Setmana.
The Communications and Outreach Unit would like to thank all the IBEC staff who helped out, and the visitors themselves for their interest and enthusiasm.
