Blog posts
Do try this at home...
Blogging science to life
Mon 8 March 2010, Written by: Nicole
Just a quick reminder to listen to Bristol Community fm (93.2) on 15 March 2010 from 5.30pm as At-Bristol’s John Polatch will be carrying out an experiment live on air, and he is inviting you to participate at home while you listen!
For all of you that missed Monday’s show, which listed the easy-to-get household apparatus you need to take part in the experiment, here is a list of what you need to have to hand:
1.5kg Jelly whichever flavour is your favourite! (if you don’t fancy making your own wobbly jelly, ready-made is fine!)
1 x Freezer bag or Clingfilm
1 x Elastic band
1 x Marker pen
The experiment has been devised with Brain Awareness week in mind but all will be revealed on Monday from 5.30pm!
For other Brain Awareness week activities, such as meeting the Bristol Neuroscience Group and how to make pipe-cleaner neurons, visit At-Bristol next week!
And if you can’t wait until Monday – check out our do try this at home page- and put your grey matter to the test!
Do try this at home...
Blogging science to life
Mon 8 March 2010, Written by: Nicole
At-Bristol is giving you the chance to tune in and take part in a live experiment!
At-Bristol’s very own John Polatch will be carrying out an exciting live experiment on Bristol Community fm(93.2) and because At-Bristol is all about interactivity we are inviting you to carry out the experiment at home as you listen!
Be sure to listen to Bristol Community fm today from 6.45pm to find out what household apparatus you need to take part in the interactive experiment. The experiment itself will be taking place on Monday 15 March during Brain Awareness week (15 March- 21 March) so make sure you tune in to test out your brilliant brain!
And if you can’t wait until Monday 15 – check out our do try this at home page - which has lots of other experiments for you to test out!
Fancy a bit of light Sport Relief this week?
Blogging science to life
Fri 5 March 2010, Written by: Nicole
Well head down to Millennium square and take part in A Question of Sport outdoors!
We are giving you plenty of opportunities to put your sporting knowledge to the test and have fun all in the name of Sport Relief!
On Saturday 6 (12pm and 2pm) and Tuesday 9 March (12pm, 2pm and 4pm) an interactive brand new A Question of Sport game will be played on the big screen in Millennium square and just needs you to make it a success.
So come down and challenge your friends and other members of the public to see who has superior sporting knowledge- while doing your bit for Sport Relief!
Is it a bird? Is it a train? No it's Wallace & Gromit!
Blogging science to life
Mon 15 February 2010, Written by: Nicole
Bristol Temple Meads and Bath Spa stations are preparing themselves for some VIP visitors tomorrow, as Wallace & Gromit, are rumoured to be making an appearance.
The famous pair will be at the First Great Western stations to greet travellers, giving adorning fans the perfect chance to meet and even have a photo with their favourite Oscar nominees!
They will begin their guest appearance in Bath Spa, from about 10am, where they will be handing out hugs and high-fives a plenty! From there the pair will then travel to Bristol Temple Meads for about 11.30am, and will be accompanied by some lovely At-Bristol folk in red shirts so be sure to keep your eyes peeled and come and have a chat!
Free Shuttle bus to help get you from A to At-Bristol!
Blogging science to life
Thu 2 December 2010, Written by: Nicole
Over February half term At-Bristol is running a shuttle bus from the Westend car park on Berkeley Place (NCP) to our door, to make enjoying your half term that little bit easier!
With the school holidays imminent, increased visitor numbers are expected, meaning car parking spaces in Millennium car park may be limited. To make sure your day is as hassle free as possible, when Millennium car park reaches capacity we will have a team of helpers on hand to let you know. They will direct you to Westend car park where the shuttle bus will start its engines to ferry you free of charge!
Also to make your visit even easier here’s a hit-list of hassle-free tips:
Buy Tickets online – this will make your entry much quicker and avoid any queuing!
Are you a Gift Aid visitor? - Because we’re an educational charity we are able to claim Gift Aid, this is voluntary donation which is added to entry price. To check prices with and with out Gift Aid.
Membership – There are two big advantages to being a member, firstly – you get to fast-track the queue on busy days and secondly – you get to visit us as many times as you like during the year! Please call Ann on: 0117 9157 177 for more information, or visit the membership page.
Important note: If you are a member and would like to see a Planetarium show, please pre-book your ticket via the Booking line so you can pick them up at the red desk when you arrive
Lockers and a Buggy park - To enable you to have hands-on interactive fun we have a buggy park, however we do have a limited number of lockers so we recommend bringing as little with you as possible!
How long will you want to be here? – This depends on a lot of factors – if you’ve got kids with you, how old they are, if you want to see a Planetarium show and the other shows on offer. We suggest you allow at least four hours, and more if you want to factor in eating too! Time can totally escape you whilst you’re in At-Bristol as there’s so much to see and do so allow as much time as possible….
Food – We have a very family friendly café attached to the venue which you can use at your convenience or you’re welcome to bring a packed lunch to eat either in the venue or outside in Millennium Square if the weather’s nice. You are free to come and go once you’ve bought your ticket, just make sure you show it upon re-entry.
And above all, have a good visit :)
Fun phone freebies with At-Bristol...
Blogging science to life
Thu 11 February 2010, Written by: Nicole
Being at the forefront of science and technology developments is important to us here in At-Bristol, even when it comes to giving you money off!
That’s why you can now download discount vouchers for At-Bristol straight to your mobile phone. Instead of fiddling with paper vouchers or even worse, forgetting them, VoucherCloud allows you to download your voucher to your mobile phone as you walk into the At-Bristol foyer. You then just show it to one of the lovely At-Bristol visitor services team when paying for your ticket and you get £1.50 off per person for up to four people!
This offer is completely free, providing you have an iPhone, all you have to do is register on vouchercloud.com – and get downloading! Watch this space - as we will let you know when the application is made available to other smart phones.
Love is in the air...
Blogging science to life
Tue 9 February 2010, Written by: Nicole
If you are looking for a way to escape the cliché of Valentine’s Day - I don’t know about you but all those red hearts and chocolates are already starting to make me feel a bit nauseous! – then head on down to At-Bristol for a date with a difference!
Rather than having to find an overcrowded restaurant which can squeeze you in next to millions of tables for two, you can enjoy your day in At-Bristol and experience some real chemistry.
With plenty to do and even more to talk about, try to cover yourselves with a giant bubble and learn the science behind what gets your heart pumping. Then you and your loved one can go stargazing in the Planetarium without the need to wrap up and be swept off your feet in our Walk-in tornado (not literally of course!).
And you can even make the love of your life a personal animated Valentine’s e-card, in our Animate It! exhibition. Much more imaginative than a generic hallmark sentiment, and a unique and special keepsake for you to remember your date by - perfect!
Millennium Square Car Park wins prestigious ParkMark ® award!
Blogging science to life
Tue 19 January 2010, Written by: Nicole
We are delighted that our very own Millennium Square Car Park has been awarded the ParkMark ® award for the second year running.
The award is part of a safer parking scheme managed by the British Parking Association and the Associations of Chief of Police Officers for England, Wales and Northern Ireland and Scotland as well as the Home Office. It requires the car park to be risk-assessed for crime and fear of crime.
Millennium Square, which is the only ParkMark ® car park in Bristol city centre, was recognised for its spacious, well-lit and safe environment. And with 24hour on-site security and 48 CCTV cameras to deter criminal activity and anti-social behaviour, it is no wonder our customers feel so safe - Happy parking Bristol!
Is At-Bristol the scene of a crime?
Blogging science to life
Tue 19 January 2010, Written by: Nicole
On 27th January, Bishopsworth CSI will be paying At-Bristol a visit…
However don’t worry, your favourite science centre is not the scene of a horrible crime but offering students the chance to uncover the amazing world of forensics!
Bishopsworth CSI are taking part in a Forensic’s Special theme day held for Swanage Middle School where pupils will get to learn the secret science behind solving crimes.
Starting with an At-Bristol Solve It! workshop the detectives-in-the-making will gain hands-on experience in a number of forensic techniques including foot-print analysis, ink chromatography, fingerprinting and even hair and fibre microscopy.
They will then delve deeper into crime solving, with the CSI team putting these techniques into ‘real-life’ contexts and demonstrating how various chemical powders and equipment can solve crimes. Students will get the opportunity to try their hand at investigating; testing for blood stains, finger prints and even analysing scene photography to try and work out who dunnit!
This is one of a number of educational workshops run by At-Bristol to enrich your visit. Workshops are National Curriculum led and cater for KS 1,2,3,4 and Post 16.
Find out more
Special theme days are designed to challenge and engage students on a variety of innovative subjects.
Find out more
Visitor Review
If you haven’t already why not take a look at our fabulous new Visitor Review page!
We love hearing about your visits to At-Bristol and by uploading your comments, photos and videos, we are giving you the chance to tell us what you think!
Alternatively if you are planning a visit, why not read other people’s comments so you can be sure to make the most of your day.
Visit Visitor Review
2009 - A year of successes...
Blogging science to life
Tue 19 January 2010, Written by: Nicole
Phew! What a year 2009 was! For those of us here at At-Bristol it has been filled with exciting, inspirational and astounding activities, people and above all science! So for those of you who feel like you have blinked and missed it - here’s a quick round up of the highlights and successes:
January:
Did the New Year begin with a miracle outside At-Bristol…? A leg brace and crutch were found lying in Anchor Square, abandoned as if the owner had been healed inexplicably from one moment to the next. At-Bristol is widely known as an inspiring place to visit, but until now no one had been aware of its healing effects upon the surrounding area!
We also had Jo Brand filming for the BBC’s ‘Britain’s Best Young Speaker’ in Millennium Square.
February:
To kick start a year of brand new exhibits, the All About our World exhibition opened for half-term. Every one of the new exhibits offers something to marvel at. Discover the amazing world in which we live with chance to take a closer look at cosmic rays in a cloud chamber, play with magnetic sand and even cover yourself in a giant bubble - the ordinary truly becomes extraordinary!
March:
March started with International Brain Awareness Week which saw a giant inflatable brain and 300 children make up a giant nerve cell network on Millennium Square. With plenty of interactive stands to test and explain the key processes performed by the nervous system - learning about your grey matter has never been so fun!
We also had a visit from Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock MBE, an amazing space scientist and role model who took part in our community outreach project Bright Sparks. The focus of this was to increase personal development of teachers in supplementary schools in the Bristol area, also consequently to improve student’s attitudes towards science. Traditionally these attitudes can be somewhat lacking, however if science is taught creatively it can engage and inspire - something which was apparent after the success of Bright Sparks!
Another important visitor was Lord Drayson, the Minister of State for Science and Innovation who rounded off his trip to Bristol with a tour of At-Bristol from CEO Goéry Delacôte. Lord Drayson had a go on many of the exhibits, and was taken ‘behind the scenes’ to At-Bristol’s workshop where almost all of the exhibits are designed, built and maintained. He was really impressed with the Centre and the educational work we carry out.
April:
As 2009 was the International Year of Astronomy, At-Bristol chose to celebrate this with a fantastic Star Party - giving visitors the opportunity to get a good look at the Bristol night sky! With showings of our Spring Night Sky show in the Planetarium there was then the chance to go on the terrace of At-Bristol and join local experts from the Bristol Astronomical Society in admiring stars, planets and satellites – you could even see Saturn and the Orion Nebula with the really powerful telescopes, truly awe-inspiring!
May:
We took a trip to The Royal Bath and West show in Somerset. We teamed up with Destination Bristol and kept the crowds educated as well as entertained with our ‘science busking’ activities such as plate spinning, the foil boat challenge and DIY experiments – it’s amazing what fun you can have in the middle of a field!
June:
We hosted the Business in the Community (BITC’s) Awards for Excellence Gala Dinner in one of our Venue Hire spaces. The evening was a great success with over 100 businesses from the South West attending and 12 of them being awarded for acting responsibly and making a real difference both in their communities and on the environment.
July:
July saw the launch of more exciting exhibits including the newest At-Bristol exhibition, Animate It!
This highly interactive look at animation past and present is in association with Aardman Animations and includes being able to make your own animation! You can even email it home to continue editing, and then enter it into our competition win a ‘Golden’ morph! With animation royalty Wallace & Gromit, as well as Aardman co-founders David Sproxton and Peter Lord, attending the launch it really was fantastic opening to the hugely successful exhibition.
Launch It, an exhibit designed by Rolls Royce graduates was also ‘launched’ this month. The fun exhibit designed to demonstrate gravity, air resistance and flight gives you the chance to design and test out your very own gliders. Its aim? To inspire the next generation of aerospace engineers!
August:
We enjoyed bumper visitor numbers over the summer - must be down to all the amazing new exhibits we have had installed!
This also coincided with another important milestone, as the At-Bristol ‘family’ grew to include 70 volunteers! The At-Bristol volunteers are a fantastic bunch, who perform essential roles both in the venue and behind the scenes, and without whom help outreach projects such as Bright Sparks and other amazing events couldn’t take place - so this is an opportunity to say a big thank you to them!
September:
As part of our continuing pledge to make ‘science accessible to all’, At-Bristol, in partnership with UK Association for Science and Discovery Centres, started a new national training scheme for professional science communicators.
Dialogue Academy, which has been developed as part the Wellcome Trust’s Embedding Dialogue and Debate project, gives a unique opportunity for training and the sharing of expertise that is not usually available to science communicators. It also gives science communicators the chance to discuss experiences and share knowledge they have for engaging with their audiences in the field of science communications.
October:
October saw a lot of hard work come to fruition, as our brand new website was launched! One of the most exciting features is the online booking system; you can now purchase tickets online, book Planetarium shows and even gain fast-track entry once you get to At-Bristol - it’s already been hugely popular! There’s much more on this website to sink your teeth into; the What’s On calendar, fun-filled games, DIY experiments and lots of social media.
This was also the month in which we had a visit from Britain’s most respected and well-loved naturalist David Attenborough. Visiting for a BBC event in one of our many venue hire spaces, the At-Bristol team were delighted to welcome him.
November:
The beginning of November saw At-Bristol hosting Richard Dawkins’ sell-out talk. For those who couldn’t get tickets to the controversial talk, which sold out in a record two days, At-Bristol tweeted live from the event and even managed to pose questions from tweeters to the man himself!
November also saw At-Bristol helping celebrate the 20th anniversary of one of the most successful partnerships in show business…Wallace & Gromit! It kick-started with a golden ticket style competition in the Bristol Evening Post and the event itself was full of fantastic animation activities with Aardman animator-led workshops and a special prize-giving for the first round of winners in our Animate It! competition. The icing on the cake was the surprise visit from Wallace & Gromit creator Nick Park and Aardman co-founder David Sproxton - cracking!
December:
To end on a high note December saw At-Bristol’s members reach record numbers of 7,300!
Membership, as well as offering unlimited year-round fast-track access to At-Bristol and the Planetarium, gives you the chance to support the essential work we do as an educational charity.
That, plus exclusive Member’s only events and previews, free entry to over 300 ASTC science centres worldwide, Member’s newsletters and more - clearly so many perks that scores of you found it too good to miss!
With At-Bristol being a charity, there are a team of fundraisers constantly writing bids so try and secure money so we can carry out more and more new projects and exhibitions. This year we met our fundraising target of £1.3million, allowing the Centre to bring more sciency fun and facts to you!
