Masons’ marks and devotional pecking, 19th-century names and sailors in Scapa Flow – come on a 50-minute guided tour of the ground floor and parts of upper levels not normally seen on tours, and see for yourself. Tours at 10 am, 11 am, 2 pm, 3 pm. Age 12 and over. Tickets £6. Numbers limited, booking essential: phone Cathedral on 01856 874894, or email cathedral@orkney.gov.uk, or call in person.
Digital technologies like the PC, the internet and the mobile phone have opened up huge opportunities for Orkney communities in business and education and family contact. Could artificial intelligence or robotics have similar potential, even to reverse the concept of remoteness that developed out of the Industrial Revolution? And if so, asks Prof. Alan Dix of Swansea University, how can we make the most of it?
… and the bar charts and the graphs and the pencils and rulers, says Dr Finn MacLeod, whose company name, Beautiful Data, summarises its approach: to display massive amounts of data from millions of sources in innovative, elegant and enjoyable ways.
Join ethnobotanical researcher Anna Canning and Orkney wildlife guide Megan Taylor to walk along a further part of the St Magnus Way and look for wild plants and learn about their traditional uses for sustenance and health. Walk across the sand of Waulkmill Bay and through the RSPB’s Hobbister bird reserve. Outdoor event, numbers limited, booking essential. £25 price includes picnic lunch of local fare. Meet in Waulkmill car park.
The One O’Clock Toast at the Peedie Kirk: Vikingways and the 1960s pioneers of the Faroe Airways link, by Moya McDonald
Join experts from Scapa and Highland Park for special tours of both. Advance booking essential: over-18s only. Tickets £10. Organised by the IBD and sponsored by the two distilleries
It’s all about crystals, says Prof. Wilson Poon of Edinburgh University, they have to be the right size and the physics of crystallization leads into fascinating areas. On the way there he looks at the cultural history of sugar, and the development of confectionery, and then explains how every step in making really appetising fudge involves getting the crystals right. You can confirm this directly with samples of Orkney Fudge kindly provided by Argo’s Bakery. Supported by the Institute of Physics in Scotland
Join a relaxed talk and discussion with neuroscience and arts educator Lewis Hou (Science Ceilidh) on the research around the links between creativity and wellbeing. Followed by a free workshop from 3.30-4.30 about getting involved in celebrating culture – science and arts, heritage and technology – in Orkney with Fun Palaces. Numbers limited, booking essential for the initial talk, with tickets £6 & £4.
Deerness and Stenness schoolmaster Magnus Spence, who died 100 years ago, studied Orkney’s environment and weather, and, as Patricia Long outlines, took a pioneering step in archaeoastronomy with his study of Maeshowe and the winter solstice. John Crossley describes his work on plants that led to the book Flora Orcadensis.
Imagine cruising at aircraft speeds in a pod hovering through a tube from Edinburgh to London – in just 45 minutes. A new concept, the Hyperloop, can make this a reality and an award-winning team of over 200 students at Edinburgh University is one of the global teams at the forefront of its development– as several of its members explain.
A visually arresting and humorous show for children, opening its Scottish tour, inviting them (and parents too) to the fascinating world of food chains and digestion. Developed by award-winning designer and performer Mamoru Iriguchi, a trained zoologist, it features Lionel McLion and the human he swallowed who’s alive and well in his stomach … and now wants to say hello. Presented by Independent Arts Projects with support for Creative Scotland
PhD researcher Julie Cassidy of The Institute for Northern Studies, UHI describes her studies of the early days of Highland Park. Master distiller Alan Winchester tells the story of Scapa. Tickets £6 (IBD members free). Over-18s only. Organised by the Institute of Brewing and Distilling
with Dave & Co, and Lewis Hou’s fiddle and dance steps, for would-be and why-not dancers of all ages. Tickets (with light supper) £10. Sponsored by Highland Park
A science festival has a radical role in developing a creative climate for a region. Here is the story of how it began, and how Orkney was involved from an early stage in the concept.
