FameLab Finals at Scifest Africa

Report by Robyn Perros, Raphaela Linders and Tassyn Munro

Famelab, “the pop-idols of science”, is a competition where contestants give a 3-minute presentation to a non-scientific audience. These scientists are practicing getting their science out into the public through the competition. The competition is open to anyone between the ages of 21 and 30. Nine finalists from around South Africa partook in the final on 15th March 2013 at Scifest Africa in Grahamstown.
Famelab is an initiative of the Cheltenham Science Festival in the UK. It began in 2004 and now includes 25 countries — the most recent being South Africa. It is a vibrant initiative which seeks out young, new voices in science, technology, engineering and maths. The nine finalists attended master classes in communication and public speaking prior to the finals. “They learnt a range ofskills, obviously public speaking, but also a lot about media and camera work too” said Robert Inglis, director of Jive Media, which sponsored the event.