Science is one subject that harnesses the ability to think, reason, question and experiment. Birla Industrial and Technological Museum (BITM) recently hosted a show called ‘Science Circus’ to get the grey matter of school students running. The programme was conducted by two of Australia’s foremost science communicators, Dr Graham Walker and Dr Stuart Kohlhagen. Both from Australian National University, the duo conducted a science workshop called ‘Train the Trainer’.

The programme was organised by the Australian High Commission in partnership with the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM). The event was a nine – city tour, one of them being Kolkata that commenced on 13 June. Dr Graham and Dr Stuart brought life to the usually colourless and boring concepts of science that we study in text books.

A game of cricket with eggs, liquefied nitrogen rockets, shooting marshmallows from a vacuum cleaner into the audience and the trick of lighting fire to your hand but not getting burnt were some of the experiments that Dr. Graham and Dr Stuart performed. Now that’s something we never see happening in a science class to explain the concepts of kinetic energy, gravitation, pressure or even Newton’s law of motion.

The students were more than willing to be volunteers for their experiments. Drum rolls, liquefied nitrogen clouds and outbreaks of laughter resulted in the perfect learning and fun experience for both students and teachers.

Dr Stuart ended the show a brain wracking question, “Why is it that we see images as laterally inverted in a mirror but not upside down?” He asked the students post their answers on the show’s facebook page.

Dr Graham said that, “Australia and India have a strong bond of friendship. This tour has helped to strengthen network, share practice and have a greater impact on people.” Dr. Stuart went on to say that, “children in India are enthusiastic and communication with them is easy. We get a lot of answers to the mirror question on our facebook page. This shows that the kids are curious. They even come to take selfies after the show and ask questions regarding education in Australia” The duo laughed when asked if they’ve had the delicious food of Kolkata yet. They said “We don’t have so much time all we’ve seen in India are airports.” Minara, a 15-year-old science student of class XI from BD Memorial International said “the show was not only informative but also creative.”

Nishika Saha, a 17-year-old class XII science student from KV Ballygunge said, “They gave a very funny outlook to science. The show was innovative, relatable and gave more clarity to the things we study in class.”