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THE READING EXPERIMENT Science and writing collide at the Science Festival
‘I t’s a chance to show off how much we love books and how much we love science, and have lots of interesting chats with people about both.’ So says writer and performer Sian Bevan, one of the brains behind The Reading Experiment, an ambitious series of events spanning Dunbar, Edinburgh and Midlothian’s Science Festivals. Non-academic science writing is all around us, explains Bevan, ‘in some obvious ways, like inventions within science fiction, but there’s also forensic science in crime writing, the speculation about scientific ideas in literary fiction, or even mathematics within poetry.’
Accordingly, these events will delve into areas like technology and literature, the ethics of expanding brain function and the question of who has the authority to write about science, as well as workshops, a science publishing event and even cabaret. In Dunbar SciFest’s Crime Writers’ Discussion, four authors will discuss
42 THE LIST 20 Mar–17 Apr 2014
how recent technological developments have changed the worlds of reading and writing.
Online, the Edinburgh Science Festival website will host specially-created Reading Lists highlighting in unexpected places, as well as the fantastically- titled ‘Sci-Ku’ competition, asking readers to capture a science-inspired theory, story or idea in three lines. science writing
And the results Bevan is hoping for from this ‘experiment’? ‘People reading some recommended books, thinking about the science within their favourite books – personally, I’ve got a whole theory about the science in Alice in Wonderland which I can only explain in pubs – and maybe having a go at a sci-ku or two. Or making us a cake. That’s always a great result.’ (Paul Gallagher)
Details at www.sciencefestival.co.uk/ whats-on/
HITLIST THE BEST BOOKS, COMICS & EVENTS
✽ Aye Write Household names, award- winners, and some of the best new talent
in Scotland, all under the Mitchell Library’s copper dome roof. See feature, page 43. The Mitchell Library, Glasgow, Fri 4–Sat 12 Apr.
✽ Illicit Ink Skyground: Lady Scientists Stitch and B*tch This collaborative, custom-written performance imagines what would happen if female scientists from across the ages met. Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh, Fri 11 Apr.
✽ Eleanor Catton The youngest ever Booker Prize winner appears at two events this month: once discussing the Commonwealth at Aye Write, and then talking about her novel The Luminaries with fellow writer Jenni Fagan. Mitchell Library, Glasgow, Wed 9 Apr; Teviot, Edinburgh, Fri 11 Apr.
✽ The Istanbul Review Night Join acclaimed Turkish author, speaker and
academic Elif Shafak to celebrate the launch of the fourth issue of literary magazine The Istanbul Review. Looking Glass Books, Edinburgh, Tue 25 Mar.
✽ JL Williams Back in January we swooned
over poet JL Williams’ performance at The Accelerator. Don’t worry if you missed it – now she’s launching a new book. The Saltire Society, Edinburgh, Thu 20 Mar.
✽ Electric Bookshop: Pressed For Time
Electric Bookshop presents Pressed For Time, a publishing time machine for everyone interested in technology, literature and
design. Not sure what to expect? Rock up and find out. Appleton Tower, Edinburgh, Wed 9 Apr.