The “Talk-Show: Stem Cells Rock!” will feature interviews, moments of satire, theatrical sketches and music, bringing scientists, artists and science communicators together on stage. The show takes to the stage of the Conservatório de Música de Coimbra next Wednesday at 6pm. The event is free but requires prior registration.
It's called Talk-Show: Stem Cells Rock! and aims to show the public how stem cell research is carried out and its importance for human health. Through a variety of artistic content and moments of informal conversation, this event, which will mark Stem Cell Awareness Day, aims to demystify myths and truths about the subject for audiences of all ages.
The initiative will feature interviews, moments of satire, theatrical sketches and music, bringing scientists, artists and science communicators together on stage. The show takes to the stage of the Conservatório de Música de Coimbra next Wednesday, October 9, at 6pm. The event is free, but prior registration is required here.
It will feature the special participation of the researcher from the Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology at the University of Coimbra (CNC-UC), professor at the Department of Life Sciences at the Faculty of Science and Technology at the University of Coimbra and Vice-Rector of the University of Coimbra for Research, João Ramalho-Santos.
Before this session, which is open to the public, the Talk-Show: Stem Cells Rock! project team will present the show on the same day (October 9) at the Escola Básica e Secundária Quinta das Flores (which will also take place in the Auditório do Conservatório de Música de Coimbra) to an audience of secondary school students. This session will have the special participation of CNC-UC researcher and coordinating researcher at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Coimbra, Lino Ferreira. The two sessions aim to understand the impact of the talk-show format for communicating science and engaging teenagers in the field.
Regarding the choice of stem cells for this show, Ricardo Neves, a researcher at CNC-UC and the Center for Innovation in Biomedicine and Biotechnology (CiBB), points out that “the general public's perception is that stem cells are those that are collected and preserved when a baby is born, something that falls far short of reality”. “Stem cells are much more than that: all our organs have stem cells that allow our body to renew itself and function optimally on a daily basis. When this process of stem cell renewal fails, the human body enters a process of disease,” adds the coordinator of the initiative.
In order to make this moment of sharing with the public more accessible and entertaining, the researcher reveals that the choice of talk-show - a style of program that, in general terms, is led by a presenter who interacts with various guests - “allows us to create different moments - such as interview spaces, satires on product marketing moments, sketches, humorous and dramatic moments and music - that can help explain complex subjects in a simple way, combating some pseudoscience”.
“We believe that the various characters and moments of interaction - interviews, theatrical moments and live music, with the participation of a band - that we have created for this show will help you understand the vast universe of stem cell research and its importance, addressing different systems and organs of the human body,” says Ricardo Neves. “In addition, we're also trying to address issues such as birth, development, health and death in a light and dynamic way that will capture the viewer's attention and, at the same time, make them aware of the importance of living a healthy life,” he adds.
The Talk-Show: Stem Cells Rock! project was one of the winners of the 4th edition of the “Promotion of Scientific Culture” initiative, promoted by the University of Coimbra, through its Institute for Interdisciplinary Research, to support science communication activities of an interdisciplinary scientific and cultural nature that disseminate the knowledge generated at the UC to diverse audiences.
This project is the result of a partnership between CNC-UC / CiBB and Casa da Música, Fábrica - Centro Ciência Viva de Aveiro and the University of Aveiro. It also has the support of the Portuguese Society of Stem Cells and Cell Therapy.
More information about the project is available here.
Catarina Ribeiro w/ CNC-UC
