On September 29, The Cyprus Institute once again participated in the Europe-wide public event, “Researcher’s Night 2017” that is dedicated to popular science and fun learning. The event is an initiative of the European Commission, and takes place annually on the last Friday of September, simultaneously in almost all European countries. In Cyprus, the event is organized by the Research Promotion Foundation (RPF), and this year took place at the International Fair Grounds in Nicosia.

Audiences of different ages had the opportunity to meet with Cypriot researchers in a festive environment. CyI groups were part of this science day with the following 4 activities:

Vi-SEEM European Project – Servicing Computational Science needs and Digital Cultural Heritage
VI-SEEM is a European project which aims in creating a Virtual Research Environment portal (VRE portal) which provides computational resources to computational researchers working in the fields of Climatology, Digital Cultural Heritage and Life Science. These computational resources include High Performance Computers (HPC), Cloud and Grid resources and data storage space and data management. CyI researchers demonstrated access to the VRE-portal and applications with emphasis given to Digital Cultural Heritage in the Southeast Europe and Eastern Mediterranean Region.

Your heritage, your skeleton: Dig it from the sand, build it from Lego
Skeleton exploration and building activity by the public: White Lego building blocks for building skeletons, Lego skeleton parts, containers. For the demonstration, a mini-excavation area was created with a container, child-safe play-sand, child-safe excavation tools, screen & container for shifting small bones and teeth from sand, so children enjoyed the experience of a bioarchaeologist for the day.

Dioptra: Digital Library for Cypriot Heritage
The Cyprus Institute “DIOPTRA: Digital Library of Cypriot Culture” gave the opportunity to the public to study digitally important aspects of the Cypriot history and the cultural heritage. Visitors could explore different modules of DIOPTRA such as Medieval Cypriot coins, traditional Cypriot costumes and the architecture of important Cypriot monuments through advanced technologies.

Water and Land in Motion
This adjustable scale model (2 x 1 m) of a Cypriot hill-slope demonstrated the effect of different land management practices on water flows and erosion. Visitors could adjust the land slope, turn on the rain and experience how human decisions can reduce flooding and soil loss. This iconic model was accompanied by audio-visual material of climate hazards and climate-resilient water management practices.