Four representatives of VSU took part in Science Slam, an international project aimed at popularisation of science, which was held in Voronezh. The university was represented by Alexey Bolgov and Alexander Dunilin, fifth year students from the Faculty of Pharmaceutics, Maria Solosina, PhD in Economics, and Natalia Merzlikina, a PhD student from the Faculty of Philology.
Alexey Bolgov gave a presentation dedicated to the topic “Anti-ageing pill”. The student from the Faculty of Pharmaceutics raised a challenging issue of ageing of living organisms and shared data on his research in the area of plant antioxidants.
“I have taken part in such an unconventional scientific event for the first time. The experience of public performance was incredible. I have always wanted to combine something useful with pleasure, to combine science and leisure. And the event exceeded my expectations. Such conferences unlock your potential, encourage you to develop and to generate new ideas. This is a wonderful opportunity to prove oneself. I want to thank the organisers for such an opportunity,” said Alexey Bolgov.
Maria Solosina, PhD in Economics, told the audience how to find your place in the city. According to her, studying the city allowed her to cooperate with her neighbours to beautify her neighbourhood, to work in the Far East, to create a podcast about the city, to master the genre of urban expeditions, and to meet city dwellers from all over Russia.
“I have taken part in Science Slam for the first time. I enjoyed it enormously. It was interesting to give a speech and prepare for it. The organisation of the event was similar to what you can see on YouTube: Ted-talks and stand-up performances. Lighting, microphones, cameras. This was a wonderful opportunity to boost your pubic performance skills. I want to say thank you to the team of organisers. I am glad that such popular science project attracted over 130 guests. And the organisers needed to look for chairs since there weren’t enough of them for all the visitors. Such interest in science among citizens is absolutely awesome,” said Maria Solosina.
Natalia Merzlikina gave a presentation dedicated to the topic “Hacking happiness: an algorithm by Goncharov, a writer.” The PhD student studies happiness as it is presented in the works by the well-known Russian writer.
“My major goal was, first, to tell the audience about my research in an interesting and understandable way and, secondly, to show practical benefits of philology and reading Russian classical literature. The audience was really welcoming and I am glad that they joined in analysing the key quotes and drawing final conclusions. Literature studies is an interesting and amazing science and I think I managed to show this. I was especially surprised to see how many people from different areas came to support me,” said Natalia Merzlikina.
Alexander Dunilin gave a talk named “Torments of science or what chestnuts keep secret”. The student from the Faculty of Pharmaceutics told the audience what secrets are held within chestnut flowers and why they are promising for study and use in medicine.
Science Slam is an international project aimed at the popularisation of science which was first implemented in Germany. Young scientists meet informally in a bar or a club and present their research to a wide audience. Each speaker has ten minutes to talk about their achievements in and interesting and unusual way. The winner is chosen with the help of a decibel meter and stopwatch and is determined by the intensity and duration of the applause.
