Science Rendezvous 2024

UBC is proud to be a host of Science Rendezvous, a free festival that takes science out of the lab and on to the street. Join us on Saturday, May 11 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. for a day of hands-on, family friendly science activities!

Festival-goers of all ages will get a chance to meet world-class researchers and innovators, participate in hands-on experiments, and see amazing scientific demonstrations on UBC's Vancouver campus. There is a Google map with all venues at the bottom of this page.

Download the event brochure.

HANDS-ON ACTIVITIES (all day)

The Monty Hall problem 
Earth Science Building, 2207 Main Mall
Calling all probability enthusiasts! The Monty Hall problem, although a seemingly simple statistical puzzle, may be more complex than you initially suspect. Come explore conditional probability and see if you can beat the odds!  
All ages

Vancouver spring fungi 
Earth Science Building, 2207 Main Mall
Bring your own mushrooms, lichens, molds to add to our display of some of Vancouver's crazy spring fungi! Learn how to recognize the poisonous death cap mushroom and to appreciate the ecological roles of fungi.
All ages 

Pacific Museum of Earth 
Earth Science Building, 2207 Main Mall
Students from Vancouver Independent School of Science and Technology will show their redesign of the Pacific Museum of Earth’s Omniglobe exhibit. Then get up close and personal with some of the museum’s amazing mineral and fossil specimens!
All ages

TRIUMF - Circuits and resistors + magnets and resistance   
Earth Science Building, 2207 Main Mall
All ages

The levitating superconductor 
Earth Science Building, 2207 Main Mall
See a superconductor levitating over a magnetic track after being cooled to a low temperature using liquid nitrogen.  
Ages: High school students, but younger students may enjoy watching too.

Geering Up 
Engineering Student Centre, 2335 Engineering Road Main
UBC Geering Up hosts an engineering hub with a variety of interactive demonstrations of the team's innovative design projects.
All ages 

Making vaccines 
Michael Smith Laboratories, 2185 East Mall
A hands-on demonstration of how nanoparticles are made for RNA-based vaccines (like the Covid vaccine), with an activity in which teams of participants race to mix their own “vaccines” and put them into a syringe. The demonstration uses food colouring, safe chemicals and syringes without needles. 
Ages: Kindergarten to Grade 7

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in Action
Michael Smith Laboratories, 2185 East Mall
Check out protein crystals and multi-colour yeast under the microscope. Test which colour dye moves faster to see some of the techniques used to separate small molecules. See yourself as a scientist, complete with lab coat and beakers in our photo both. Learn how to isolate your own DNA using ingredients from your kitchen!
These demonstrations are free but you must register separately for each show on Eventbrite so we can prevent overcrowding. Click on the times below to register for a specific experiment.
11:00 | 2:00

CHEMISTRY

Hands-on chemistry activities
Chemistry Building, 2036 Main Mall, Rooms D211 and D213
A space for kids to grab chemistry by the hand in a safe environment where they’ll learn while doing simple yet fascinating chemistry experiments. See and play with non-newtonian fluids, make your own slime, take home a lava lamp! 
Ages: Kindergarten to Grade 7

Chemistry demonstrations - SOLD OUT
Watch chemists bring the stage to life with quantum dots and liquid fireworks. Learn about cool materials, their unexpected properties, and where you find them in your everyday life. Experience the energy of different types of fuels on stage. Did you know that gummy bears can growl when they oxidize? 
All ages 

These demonstrations are SOLD OUT but seats may become available so please check at the venue on the day of the event.

Liquid nitrogen ice cream shows
Chemistry Building, 2036 Main Mall, Room D200
A people pleaser and long-time favourite in the Chemistry Department! See liquid nitrogen flash freeze a delicious mixture of ingredients to make ice cream in seconds. It’s the best type of edible chemistry! 
All ages 
Times: 10:30, 11:15, noon, 12:45, 1:30, 2:15

THE NEST ACTIVITIES

Beaty Biodiversity Museum
The Nest, 6133 University Blvd.
Connect with real museum specimens: see and touch some of our favourite plants, animals and other organisms. Bring your biodiversity questions and curiosity! Want to dive in deeper? Visit the Beaty Biodiversity Museum and receive 25% off general admission rates on Saturday, May 11. 

Math Mania
The Nest, 6133 University Blvd.
Math Mania presents a variety of interactive demonstrations, games and art such as the penny game, the Set Game, the 'Game of 24', kaleidoscopes and hexaflexagons, Nim, Tower of Hanoi, and other mathematical puzzles and paradoxes. These activities demonstrate to children—and their parents—fun ways of learning math and computer science concepts.

Pump it up! Heart Edition (School of Medicine)
The Nest, 6133 University Blvd.
Join us on a fun journey to learn all about the heart and its blood flow! Find out how our hearts pump blood and how different activities can change our heart rate.
All ages welcome, but most suitable for elementary students and above.

Chemistry
The Nest, 6133 University Blvd.
Hands-on activities

SCIENCE TALKS

Binding blocks
Earth Sciences Building lecture theatres, 2207 Main Mall, Room 2012
Use LEGO® bricks to explore a collection of scientific concepts captured in this unique presentation. Binding Blocks demonstrates how the production of chemical elements in the cosmos—the fusion process occurring inside stars and on Earth—links to nuclear and astrophysics as well as medicine and chemistry.
Older kids (10+) and adults
Time: 10:30

Materials degradation in the nuclear industry
Earth Sciences Building lecture theatres, 2207 Main Mall, Room 1012
Older kids (10+) and adults
Time: 10:30 

Rendezvous at Infinity
Earth Sciences Building lecture theatres, 2207 Main Mall, Room 1013
In this interactive presentation, math professor Dr. Fok Shuen Leung discuss the mathematical definition of infinity, and explores this idea in the universe.
Older kids (10+) and adults
Time: 10:30 

3 MINUTE THESIS TALKS

Scared to be scarred? Prevent gut fibrosis with bile acids 
Earth Sciences Building lecture theatres, 2207 Main Mall, Room 1013
Explore how the immune system is sculpted during development and how perinatal microbial exposures result in lifelong alterations in immune response to disease.
Older kids (10+) and adults
Time: 11:00

Soil amendments for the degradation of stormwater-derived trace organic contaminants in bioretention systems 
Earth Sciences Building lecture theatres, 2207 Main Mall, Room 1013
Older kids (10+) and adults
Time: 11:00 

Axion Quark Nuggets: A recipe for a glowing Milky Way?
Earth Sciences Building lecture theatres, 2207 Main Mall, Room 1013
Older kids (10+) and adults
Time: 1:30

MUSEUMS

Beaty Biodiversity Museum
(25% off admission) 2212 Main Mall
Explore the university’s spectacular biological collections, with 20,000 square feet of exhibits, from insects to birds! Among our two million treasured specimens is a 26-metre-long blue whale skeleton, dinosaur trackways from B.C.’s early Cretaceous period, and myriad fossils, mammals, reptiles, and plants from around the planet. 

Pacific Museum of Earth
(Free entrance) 6339 Stores Road
The Pacific Museum of Earth boasts a 15-metre dinosaur skeleton, a vault of precious gems, and a tornado machine. Well known for its 80-million-year-old Lambeosauras skeleton, the PME now contains a precious minerals vault showcasing precious metals, gems and delicate mineral specimens. 

Nitobe Memorial Garden
1895 Lower Mall
Free entrance for Science Rendezvous visitors with wristband – pick up at the Science Rendezvous info centre in the lower atrium of The Nest.
Nitobe Memorial Garden is considered one of the most authentic Japanese gardens outside of Japan. The garden was designed to create a reverence for and sense of harmony with nature. A visit to Nitobe Memorial Garden is a window into Japanese culture and brings to light an important aspect of Japanese-Canadian history.

Venues map

The locations are close together. Museums are open by donation.