Professor Wiseman said “We were expecting about 10,000 downloads in the first week and have been overwhelmed by the response from around the world. It shows us that people are obviously searching for a better night’s sleep with more pleasant dreams. Now the hard work of analysing the data begins.

”The Edinburgh International Science Festival broke new ground this year, coaxing science and scientists out of the lab and mixing them with everyone from authors to artists and philosophers to politicians and offered over 200 events in venues across the City. Visitors to the flagship venue for the family programme, the City Art Centre, exceeded 12,000 for the first time, and overall over 80,000 visitors enjoyed events and activities taking place everywhere from Ocean Terminal to The Jam House, Ghillie Dhu, National Museum of Scotland, Botanic Gardens, Inspace and The Filmhouse. With Science Busking bikes out on the streets of the City, the BBC’s Bang Goes the Theory Roadshow on the Mound Precinct and worldwide press coverage for the 2012 Edinburgh Medallist Dr James Hansen, the Ardbeg Distillery collaboration with NASA and the Dream:On experiment, the Science Festival was hard to miss.

Dr Simon Gage, Director of the Edinburgh International Science Festival said, “This year we examined everything from the science behind firewalking to clothing that cleans the air around us. We’ve explored Time, Taste, the funny side to Maths, the Future of Food and the Future Human and have had great fun along the way. It has been an exciting fortnight and a pleasure to have mixed so many people with interesting ideas with thousands of curious Science Festival goers. It is great to see new ideas springing up, such as Richard Wiseman’s App based dream experiment which has reached a global audience.

“The Edinburgh International Science Festival was the first in the world and we are set to remain a science festival that leads. We celebrate our 25th Birthday in 2013 so watch out for some particularly exciting plans for this special year.“Dr Alasdair Allan, Minister for Learning, Science and Scotland's Languages, said, “Having seen at first hand some of the inspiring hands-on activities at this year’s Festival I’m delighted to see that this highlight of the Scottish science calendar has again been a success, attracting many thousands of visitors over the Easter break. From dancing robots at the National Museum to the range of events pitched at children, young people and adults, the festival has had something for everyone.

“Edinburgh’s rich history of research means it can truly call itself a home of science but the ongoing work of the Festival organisers plays a large part in helping to inspire our next generation of scientists.”Science Festival innovations for 2012 included LateLab, a series of evening events in the University of Edinburgh’s Inspace Gallery where visitors enjoyed talks, performances and table-top science in a social, creative and participatory environment. The Edinburgh Enlightenment Exchange (Edinburgh E2) launched the Festival with a series of short, sharp presentations bringing together some of the country’s most creative individuals and the public for a day of shared inspiration, innovation and passion.

The family programme in the City Art Centre, Botanic Gardens and National Museum of Scotland proved extremely popular with the City Art Centre reaching capacity every day of the Festival, while In Motion, the flagship activity at the National Museum of Scotland, welcomed thousands of visitors including broadcaster Richard Bacon who presented his BBC Radio 5 Live programme from there. Bacon interviewed a range of Science Festival guests including physicist Jim Al-Khalili, Australia’s Numeracy Ambassador Simon Pampena and two of the three presenters of Festival of the Spoken Nerd – Steve Mould and Helen Arney.

The prestigious Edinburgh Medal was awarded to the American Climate Scientist, Dr James Hansen, for his commitment to helping people understand the issues surrounding climate change. Hansen presented two further sold-out events on climate change and renewable energy.Although the Science Festival has officially ended, one special event will take place next weekend when psychological illusionist Derren Brown will be in conversation with Professor Richard Wiseman.The Edinburgh International Science Festival will celebrate 25 years in 2013 and will run from Saturday 23 March to Sunday 7 April 2013. The full programme will be announced in January. Full details, images and information about this year’s Science Festival can be found atwww.sciencefestival.co.uk. 

The Edinburgh International Science Festival welcomes one of Radio 4’s amateur scientists and her psychology of fashion experiment to the city this weekend. Val Watham, a finalist on BBC Radio 4’s ‘So You Want to Be a Scientist?’ needs volunteers to help her settle the age old question of whether horizontal or vertical stripes are more flattering for your figure.

Amateur scientist Val has devised an experiment to investigate how wearing stripes affect our perception of body size. She’ll be asking visitors to the BBC Bang Goes the Theory Roadshow, based on The Mound Precinct from 13-15 April, to watch and rate videos of men and women wearing stripey clothes.

Psychologist Dr Peter Thompson from the University of York, an expert in visual perception, has helped Val turn her idea into a rigorous experiment. Traditionally, many people think that vertical stripes make you look taller and thinner. But Dr Thompson published a study in 2011 suggesting that clothes with horizontal stripes play a visual trick on our eyes, called the Helmholtz illusion (see attached image). In the picture, both sets of lines occupy the same area, but the horizontal lines appear taller and thinner.

However, Dr Thompson’s 2011 paper was done by showing volunteers 2D line drawings and photos of stripey clothes. So when Val wanted to update the study using videos of real people wearing real clothes, Peter was happy to help her discover whether his theory holds true in three dimensions.

A team of students from the Fashion Design course at the University of the Creative Arts in Rochester offered to help by designing and sewing a range of stripey shirts and dresses in different sizes, plus a plain black alternative. They modelled the clothes in a fashion shoot and these videos will be shown to volunteers at Edinburgh International Science Festival.

Participants will watch videos of models sized 10-14 (female), and 36 or 40 (male), before being asked to rate whether each person looks bigger or smaller wearing the different patterns.

Val is one of four amateur scientists who have been shortlisted for the BBC Amateur Scientist of the Year award. They will all present their findings at the Cheltenham Science Festival in June, when a winner will be selected by the judges.

Val’s Facebook research diary

http://www.facebook.com/BBC.stripes.experiment

Radio 4: So You Want to Be a Scientist?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/features/sywtbas/finalists/stripes/

The BBC’s Bang Goes the Theory Roadshow will be at the Science Festival from Friday 13 April to Sunday 15 April with live shows at the Usher Hall at 11.30am and 4.00pm each day (tickets are free but should be pre-booked).  The Interactive Arena on The Mound Precinct is open from 10.30am to 5.30pm offering a range of drop in experiments and activities, and a chance to meet the team.  The Edinburgh International Science Festival runs until Sunday 15 April.   Full details of the programme and all tickets can be found at www.sciencefestival.co.uk.

Hansen described how the questions of his grandchildren had changed him from a scientist who shied away from the media and public activism to one who believed passionately that he must use his voice to change government policy and public opinion.  He stated, ”It is immoral for us to leave to the next generation a planet whose climate is spiralling out of control.  I believe it is an issue of intergenerational justice – we can only pretend we don’t understand what is happening around us.”

He admitted that his cause seemed to have gone backwards in the last few years, with the public in general being less aware of the situation and continued “It is very difficult to communicate when people who are profiting from the current system don’t want changes, and governments are going ahead in allowing and even encouraging development of fossil fuels as if they don’t understand the implications.”

Dr Hansen was delivering the 2012 Edinburgh Medal Address having received the 24^th Edinburgh Medal from the Lord Provost of Edinburgh at a ceremony at the City Chambers last night.    The Edinburgh Medal is a prestigious award given each year to men and women of science and technology whose professional achievements are judged to have made a significant contribution to the understanding and well-being of humanity.  The Medal is supported by the City of Edinburgh Council and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and is awarded as part of the Edinburgh International Science Festival.

Dr Hansen is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, an adjunct professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Columbia University and at Columbia’s Earth Institute.   Perhaps best known for bringing global warming to the world’s attention in the 1980’s when he first testified before Congress, Dr Hansen’s background in both space and earth sciences gives him a broad perspective on the status and prospects of our home planet.

Dr Hansen is taking part in three other Science Festival events with some of the country’s most important voices on climate change. Tickets for ‘Our Climate Future’ with Lord Anthony Giddens and Professor Pete Smith, Science Director of Scotland's Climate Change Centre of Expertise today at 8.00pm,and for‘Fixing the Planet’ with, among others, Professor Stuart Haszeldene OBE Professor of Carbon Capture & Storage at University of Edinburgh at 5.30pm on Thursday 12 April are available from www.sciencefestival.co.uk or 0844 557 2686

The first Edinburgh Medallist in 1989 was the theoretical physicist and Nobel Prize winner Abdus Salam; of the subsequent twenty Medallists, three have gone on to be awarded the Nobel Prize.

This study aims was launched at the Edinburgh International Science Festival by psychologist Professor Richard Wiseman from the University of Hertfordshire.

Wiseman has teamed-up with app developers YUZA to create 'Dream:ON' - an app that monitors a person as they sleep and plays a carefully crafted 'soundscape' when they dream.  Each soundscape has been carefully designed to evoke a pleasant scenario, such a walk in the woods, or lying on a beach, and Wiseman hopes that these sounds will influence people's dreams.  At the end of the dream the app sounds a gentle alarm and prompts the person to submit a description of their dream into a database known as 'The Dream Catcher'.  Users of Dream:ON are also encouraged to share their dreams via Facebook and Twitter.

Each night Wiseman will collect thousands of dream reports and use the information to discover whether it is possible to give the world sweet dreams.
"The app is free and we want as many people as possible to participate," noted Wiseman. "I have conducted many mass participation experiments in the past, but this is by far the most ambitious and exciting."

As part of the launch, Wiseman has carried out a national survey into dreaming.  The results demonstrate the need for sweeter dreams, with 21% of respondents reporting that they have trouble sleeping and 15% suffering from unpleasant dreams (see the 'UK dream map').
"Getting a good night's sleep and having pleasant dreams boosts people's productivity, and is essential for their psychological and physical well-being. Despite this, we know very little about how to influence dreams - this experiment aims to change that" commented Wiseman.

How does the Dream:ON work?
Before going to sleep, people indicate when they would like to wake-up and select a 'soundscape'.  They then place the iPhone onto their bed.  Dream:ON then monitors the person's movements twenty minutes before they awaken.  If Dream:ON detects a lack of movement  - indicative of dreaming - it plays the desired soundscape.  When the person starts to move again Dream:ON plays a gentle alarm and prompts them to submit a brief description of their dream. These descriptions are stored in a database and, over time, will be used to examine how the soundscapes influence people's dreams. Dream:ON is free to download and contains a state of the art smart alarm clock as well as soundscapes to help influence your dreams.

Dream:ON is for iPhone at launch and available now for free from iTunes - globally. 

Joining Richard on the show will be stand up scientist Robin Ince and Prof. Robin Dunbar, discussing the science behind comedy. They will reveal what happens to us when we laugh, and how we do it.

Blue Peter’s resident scientist, Steve Mould, will also be making an appearance along with Helen Arney who together make up two thirds of the Festival of Spoken Nerd – the country’s premier night for the insatiably sci-curious.

Flying in from down under, Australia’s premier maths communicator, Simon Pampena will chat with Richard to try and find out just why are the Brits so bad at maths? And leading physicist Prof. Jim al-Khalili will provide listeners with a beginners guide to physics.

Richard has been presenting his programme on BBC Radio 5 live for the past 2 years, with 1.6m weekly listeners and 35,000 podcast downloads every day. The show often features leading figures from the world of science, showcasing Richard’s love of the subject, with notable guests appearing on his show in the past including Adam Hart-Davis, Simon Singh, Kevin Fong and Professor Brian Cox.

You can listen to the show on BBC Radio 5 Live on 693 MW and online at http://www.bbc.co.uk/5live/
 

'Rising like a Phoenix from the ashes', the Edinburgh made Typhoon 2 has been refurbished over the winter and can be seen at the City Art Centre until Saturday 14th April. Typhoon 2 was designed and made by a team of volunteer engineers from Selex Galileo working with a team of Edinburgh Air Cadets under the leadership of Peter Bennett; an ex-RAF Test Pilot.

Typhoon 2 accelerates like a Ferrari and its devastating spinning weapon can unleash enough energy to propel another robot over the Scott Monument in Princes Street, Edinburgh.

Following their Olympic success the Typhoon team turned to producing sporting robot kits for secondary school young engineers to construct and compete in an annual Scottish Robotic Games. Over 500 of these 'Rampaging Chariot' robots have been made by Scottish schools and visitors to the Science Festival can make these robots themselves in a special workshop area supervised by Apprentices from Selex Galileo. They can then drive them round obstacles in a purpose built arena.  

Peter Bennett said "The visitors get huge satisfaction from building, testing and driving a powerful robot at the Festival. - Engineering can be great fun"

The search for, and study of, planets orbiting other stars is a rapidly developing field of astronomy, and scientists and engineers based across Scotland are already taking a leading role in this exciting research. Now these ‘out of this world’ projects will be brought down to Earth during the Edinburgh International Science Festival as part of a Scottish Government Science Engagement Grant-funded project led by The Royal Observatory Edinburgh Visitor Centre. 

In the first collaboration between the Visitor Centre, Edinburgh College of Art (ECA), the Universities of Edinburgh and St Andrews and STFC UK Astronomy Technology Centre, filmmakers have been working with astronomers to produce two short documentary films to inform and inspire the Scottish public about the search for exoplanets.

‘Into Deep Space’ by Anne Milne and Alberto Iordanov, looks at the question of life outside of the solar system, focussing on the work of Dr Duncan Forgan – a theoretical astronomer from the University of Edinburgh – and Grant Miller, an observational astronomer based at the University of St Andrews.  Grant uses the James Gregory Telescope in St Andrews to study exoplanets and part of Duncan’s work involves theoretical calculations and computer simulations – incorporating the latest exoplanet data – to improve our understanding of how and where we might expect to see life appearing in the Galaxy.

ECA student, Alberto Iordanov said: “What an incredible journey into space! This film made me appreciate where we stand in the vast universe around us. It was a unique experience that I will remember for the rest of my life.”

Dr Duncan Forgan added: “It's essential for scientists to step back from their research once in a while, and explain clearly to the public why what they're doing is important.  Being in this film has really brought home to me the impact of what Scottish scientists are achieving in a very exciting field of astronomy.”

‘Close Distance’ by Stefano Nurra and Florian Schwarz, is a comparison of the lives of an amateur astronomer, Caroyln Bol, based in Helensburgh who is participating in the citizen science project, ‘Planet Hunters’, and Dr Martin Dominik, Royal Society University Research Fellow at the University of St Andrews. Martin uses a technique called gravitational microlensing to detect small planets orbiting other stars. The film explores the enthusiasm Carolyn, an amateur, and Martin, a professional astronomer, share for the study of exoplanets.

Dr Martin Dominik said: “We share the fascination about the myriads of pinpoints of light on the night sky. A new era of exploring new worlds not only involves professional scientists, but also amateurs, who love what they are doing, and thereby make important contributions.”

Emma Davie, Programme Director in the Film Department at ECA said: “Our students have had their cinematic brains challenged through searching for ways of telling stories in this hugely exciting collaboration. They've been inspired by what they found: a citizen astronomer – a woman from Helensburgh whose hobby is to sit at her computer and find exoplanets; scientists who believe that some sort of life will be found on another planet in our lifetime. How we define ‘life’ is a deeper question though...”

The films premier at the Edinburgh International Science Festival on Sunday 15^th April, at the National Museum of Scotland They will then go on tour across Scotland, reaching over 10,000 people from Hoy to Wigtown. They will be shown at a range of venues and events, from Science Centres and Cafés Scientifique, to town halls and local cinemas.

The Wind Power workshop encourages children to think about the importance of wind power around the world, and in Scotland specifically. It is a drop in workshop, facilitated by science communicators from the Science Festival, during which children can design and build their own wind turbine, and then test its effectiveness in a small wind tunnel.  Children can choose the size and shape of the blades for their turbine and can place it in different positions on the hill inside the wind tunnel to see if it performs differently.  They can find out how wind turbines work and how they generate electricity, what happens when the wind blows is really strong and what happens when there is no wind at all.

Shoppers can quickly engage with On Standby.  This is an eye-catching and simple activity that increases awareness of how much electricity is used by appliances on standby. Shoppers will be encouraged to switch on and off common household appliances represented on the panel and see how much the electricity levels change.

Visitors are also encouraged to try out the Future’s Bright Easy Rider bike simulator to see how much energy they would use cycling home from school or work. The activity will compare how far a person walking and a car driving would have travelled with the same amount of energy, thus demonstrating how energy efficient cycling and walking are compared to driving.

Can you go the distance? Is a fun and interactive driving simulator which demonstrates how to drive more efficiently to save fuel and is provided by The Energy Saving Trust. 

The Greener Scotland Directorate of the Scottish Government has been a generous supporter of Edinburgh International Science Festival for three years. This year they are working with the Science Festival to promote Natural Scotland and their “Let’s Go Greener Together” campaign and are keen to see whether taking part in these type of activities can make a positive difference to people’s green behaviour.

 Catalytic Clothing is a partnership that brings together the worlds of fashion and science and asks the public to join the campaign for clean air. Professor Storey, from London College of Fashion and Professor Ryan, from the University of Sheffield, together with partners and supporters including CRISTAL GLOBAL and the world’s best know ecological cleaning brand ECOVER, have announced that they have moved one step closer to making their world-changing ideas a reality. Employing existing technology in a new way, this public experiment between fashion and science explores how clothing and textiles can be used as a catalytic surface to purify the air we breathe.

 Catalytic Clothing works by neutralising the pollution in the atmosphere around it using the essential ingredient, ultrafine titanium dioxide. This powerful ingredient, which is already used in self-cleaning glass for example, breaks down harmful pollutants such as smog-producing nitrogen oxides when in the presence of UV light, converting them into less harmful substances. Nothing sticks to your clothing – in fact it has the opposite effect and helps keep your clothes cleaner! At the moment this technology is used in concrete and the surface of buildings to help keep then smog and pollution free.

 ECOVER, who are committed to producing sustainable and exceptional cleaning products are currently carrying our rigorous testing in collaboration with scientists from The University of Sheffield and Cristal Global who manufacture the essential ingredient, ultrafine titanium dioxide CristalACTIVTM, to produce a laundry product that will transform our clothes into air purifying catalysts.

 Ecover said “All citizens become part of the solution instead of being a part of the problem. The idea is simple and effective: by treating our clothes, each one of us can become a catalyst for clean air. Air pollution is neutralised around our clothes as we walk through the city. With the help of sunlight, the catalysts will neutralise the dirt from the air pollution around us that would otherwise end up stuck to our clothes. Cleaner air for our cities and clean clothes, what could be better? Current testing indicates that we will be ready to launch a product to the market in 2013.”

 Helen Storey and Tony Ryan will be taking part in an ‘in conversation’ at the National Museum of Scotland with Professor John Shepherd CBE FRS about the motivation behind their collaboration, the technology they have developed and the benefits it could bring. Wednesday 4 April Tickets £8/6 apply here: http://www.sciencefestival.co.uk/whats-on/categories/talk/catalytic-clothing

Also on display will be a softball-pitching robot arm and a two-legged walking device. These machines are designed to mimic how humans use their muscles to store and use energy to optimise their power and efficiency.

The two-legged robot is the first in the world to have sprung joints that can simultaneously adjust their stiffness and damping over variable surfaces. This is intended to enable smooth movement over uneven terrain for prosthetic limbs or robots operating in dangerous environments, such as earthquake zones, fires, or deep-sea operations.

Professor Sethu Vijayakumar, of University of Edinburgh’s School of Informatics, said: “We are developing robots that offer the best of both worlds – the reliability of automation combined with flexible and sophisticated decision-making of humans. We’re meeting the huge challenges involved in taking robotics to the next level by exploiting advances in data driven machine learning. The result is more precise, powerful, safer robots that draw inspiration from the way humans think and move.”

The robotic devices will be on show between 4 and 7 April at the Festival’s InMotion event in the National Museum of Scotland.   The mini humanoid robot dance routine,  EDINferno, will take place in the Grand Gallery on Friday 6th April at 2.30pm and 3.45pm and on Saturday 7 April at 11.45am and 3.30pm. 

The 2012 Edinburgh International Science Festival opens today with the launch of InMotion, a celebration of the science of human movement and performance in relation to sport, technology and dance.  The flagship event of this year’s Science Festival, and taking pride of place in the Grand Gallery of the National Museum of Scotland, InMotion was designed and developed by the team at the Edinburgh International Science Festival andis supported by the Scottish Government’s Edinburgh Festivals Expo Fund together with the Wellcome Trust, EPSRC and the Royal Academy of Engineering.

In 2012, The Year of Creative Scotland, and the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games,InMotion looks at everything from fitness and power to the science and aesthetics of movement.   Featuring leading Scottish athletes - middle distance runner Eilish McColgan, weightlifter Peter Kirkbride, cricketer Dewald Nel and rugby international Chris Paterson, – InMotion explores the extremes of human ability, analyses the styles and skills of the athletes and invites visitors to discover their own strength, agility and endurance.   See how high you can jump, how hard you can squeeze, how fast you can throw a ball or race a handbike.  Find out how mind over matter – or egotistical willpower – can persuade your body to override the signals from your brain by plunging your hand into an ice bucket and timing how long you can keep it there.

Dr Peter Lovatt, aka Dr Dance, will be inviting you into the Dance Box where he is studying how people communicate through dance, and look out for live dance performances from Scottish Ballet, contemporary dancers from DanceBase and even some of the University of Edinburgh’s humanoid robots on Friday 6 and Saturday 7 April. 

Dr Simon Gage, Director of the Edinburgh International Science Festival said, “InMotion is a fantastic, hands on exploration of human movement, and one which can be enjoyed by all ages.  Come and find out how our bodies work, how we train and develop them to achieve incredible feats of endurance and stamina and what you can teach yours to do. “

Culture Secretary, Fiona Hyslop, said “Scotland is world-renowned as a place of great innovation and creativity, qualities celebrated and promoted by the Edinburgh International Science Festival. This year’s Expo-funded project, InMotion, examines the science of human movement in new and innovative ways and is sure to inspire young and old alike in 2012, the Year of Creative Scotland and the London Olympic and Paralympic Games.“

InMotion is accompanied by a series of daily workshops for children aged 7+.  Make a Move encourages kids to examine human movement in more detail, looking at the anatomy of the body and how it makes and controls movements.  The workshop includes the opportunity to programme Lego MINDSTORM NXT robots to get a robotic arm to complete challenges, giving an insight into the complexities involved in developing artificial limbs. 

Power from the People celebrates NVA’s Speed of Light project which will transform Arthur’s Seat in August as part of the Edinburgh International Festival.  Kids can investigate electricity and explore some of the challenges this project presents, looking at the technology the NVA team needed to use to generate enough energy to create this incredible piece of art. 

For younger children, Move It is a fun, creative dance workshop developed by Scottish Ballet.  With no experience necessary, children from 4-6 years old can have fun, get moving and explore their own ideas in a friendly environment with musical accompaniment. 

InMotion opens to the public at 10.00am on Friday 30 March and runs for the duration of the Edinburgh International Science Festival until Sunday 15 April.  Entry to InMotion is free of charge, and workshop tickets are available at £3.50.  

Tickets can be booked online a www.sciencefestival.co.uk, by phone on 0844 557 2686, or on the day at the Science Festival Box Office in the National Museum of Scotland. 

The National Museum of Scotland is open daily from 10.00am to 5.00pm.  

Dr Kanazawa, a lecturer at the London School of Economics, has a new take on what it is that makes us successful in life. Psychologists have previously failed to properly disinter the factors that explain why some attain goals and other's fail, why some become happy and others remain miserable, argues the Evolutionary Psychologist, because of a basic misconception at the heart of psychology over the fundamentals of human nature.

Behavioural scientists have not distinguished between what demands modern life makes upon us which are 'evolutionarily novel' in contrast to which are closer to being part of human nature, or what we evolved to being good at naturally.

Satoshi argues that probably all subjects taught in school are more or less 'evolutionarily novel', which is precisely why we need to teach our youth how to do them. It clearly doesn't come easy given the incessant struggle to impart academic subjects and skills, replete with exam failures, detentions and expulsions along the way. And when we finally graduate at the end of the education system, we heave a collective sigh of relief and declare, 'never again'.

Yet we don’t seem need to teach pupils how to make friends. This is because, Satoshi argues, it's part of human nature. We evolved to make affiliations because for an extended part of our evolutionary history it was what enabled survival. Having friends was what predicted continued existence despite predators and warring tribes in our distant past, rather than knowing algebra. Everybody then can make friends, everyone that is, contends Satoshi, except for the academically successful, who end up at the top of hierarchies and running our societies.

Our brains evolved the kinds of academic skills which modern societies values over all else, for specific reasons linked to our ancestral environments. Academic skills were indeed helpful when the unexpected happened in our evolutionary distant past, such as flash floods or droughts or new enemies or novel predicaments emerged rapidly. These non-recurrent problems happened just frequently enough in the ancestral environment, and had serious enough consequences for survival and reproduction, then any genetic mutation that allowed carriers to think and reason would have been selected for. But, Satoshi argues, academic skills were no more specially helpful back then, than the skill of making friends or being a good parent. Now modern society values these academic skills above all else, preserving the greatest rewards and status for those who are top of the class, when in fact this group may be less good at what Dr Kanazawa argues are all the most important things in life, such as friendship and parenting.

Kanazawa uses a famous psychological study of the most academically gifted to back up his argument. The Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth tracks the lives of more than 5,000 individuals in the USA who have been identified as truly gifted, with an IQ score higher than 155 - when the national average is 100 and the average graduate scores 120. More than half of this elite group (51.7% of men and 54.3% of women) have earned a doctorate (Ph.D., M.D.), compared to the population baseline in the USA of 1%. More than a third of the men and about a fifth of the women earn more than $100,000 a year in 2003–2004 in their early 30s. Additionally, 17.8% of the men and 4.3% of the women have earned patents, compared to the population baseline in the US of 1%.

In stark contrast to their stellar successes in education and employment, this elite do not do very well in the 'evolutionarily familiar' domains of marriage and parenting, according to Satoshi. 64.9% of the men and 69.0% of the women remain childless at age 33, compared to the population baseline of 26.4% in the age group 30–34. The majority of these parents only have one child. As a result, the mean number of children is .61 for men and .44 for women, compared to the population baseline of 1.59 for women in the age group 30–34. Despite their extraordinarily high general intelligence, these men and women seem to be lagging behind everyone else in the evolutionarily familiar domains of marriage and parenting.

Dr Kanazawa argues that no particular advantage (and often disadvantages) accrue in such evolutionarily familiar domains as mating for the academically successful is illustrated by anecdotal as well as scientific evidence. He cites the following exchange between Stephen Hawking (University of Cambridge Lucasian Professor of Mathematics) and Larry King (TV Chat Show Host) when Hawking appeared on Larry King Live Weekend on Christmas Day 1999, and this conversation took place:

Larry King: What, Professor, puzzles you the most? What do you think about the most?

Stephen Hawking: Women.

Larry King: Welcome aboard.

In his new book The Intelligence Paradox, Dr Satoshi Kanazawa marshals evidence that while the academically successful make better physicians, better astronauts, better scientists, and better violinists, this is precisely because all of these pursuits are evolutionarily novel. Yet this is also precisely why in the bigger scheme of things, Satoshi contends, these are all the unimportant things in life.

We are not designed by evolution to be physicians, astronauts, scientists, or violinists. The academically successful frequently fail or demonstrate no special advantage in the most important things in life. They do not make better friends, they do not make better spouses and partners, and they do not make better parents, precisely because these are things that our ancestors have done for hundreds of thousands of years on the African savannah - without algebra.

Raj Persaud is a Consultant Psychiatrist and Emeritus Visiting Gresham Professor for Public Understanding of Psychiatry. Satoshi Kanazawa's new book The Intelligence Paradox is published by Wiley and Co.

Do you agree or disagree with these arguments from Evolutionary Psychology? Take part in a psychology experiment designed to test these theories by clicking here. Dr Raj Persaud will be exploring the results and the theories in a talk at the Festival on April 2nd at 8pm.

Perhaps best known for bringing global warming to the world’s attention in the 1980’s when he first testified before Congress, Dr Hansen’s background in both space and earth sciences gives him a broad perspective on the status and prospects of our home planet.

The chef of Noma, winner of two Michelin Stars, will join foraging experts Miles Irving and John Wright via video link from his Copenhagen restaurant for a live Q&A session at 2.45pm on Saturday 7 April as part of the Eating on the Wild Side event in the John Hope Gateway at the Botanic Garden.

How do we measure success in our own lives? Members of the public are being asked to answer these questions, and others, to try to determine whether certain attributes of character or background are indicators of a successful future. 

Firewalking has been practiced by many people and cultures in all parts of the world for over 3000 years! It has been documented throughout history as a rite of passage, a test of one’s strength or a testament to the power of one’s religious beliefs.  Historically people prepared themselves for the walk by chanting prayers or mantras to their God or Gods who they believed would protect them from the perceived danger of the undertaking.  

In the 1930's the University of London Council for Psychical Research organized a study to explore the phenomena whereby a number of people of different cultures and religions completed a firewalk successfully without injury and without prayer. Pursuant to this the council issued reports stating that neither religious faith, nor supernatural powers had anything to do with the performance of the feat.

In the 1980s firewalking experienced resurgence in popularity becoming a lucrative business as a confidence building, self-empowering exercise. Motivational speaker Tony Robbins presented firewalking as an activity which proved to individuals that they could achieve the impossible and overcome whatever obstacles they faced. If you could walk over hot coals you could be successful at whatever you put your mind to! Most of those making money from these ventures portrayed it simply as "mind over matter".  There is some truth to this. As people approach a bed of glowing amber coals on which they’re about to walk instincts yell “don't do it, it’s crazy” so some amount of mind over matter is undoubtedly required merely to take that first step.

But this most certainly isn’t all there is to it. Mind over matter is required to jump out of a plane but you still need a parachute on your back to ensure you don’t go splat. The same is true of firewalking. Physics is your parachute, science; your safety net. Muttering a mantra will not make you indestructible and mind over matter won’t protect your feet. Find out for yourself the truth about firewalking and how it really works at this year’s Science Festival. Join Festival director Simon Gage and Professor Richard Wiseman in Princess Street Garden and discover the scientific secrets of this ancient practice. 

Find out more about this event. 

In the 18th century, the Scottish Enlightenment was characterised by the vibrant flowering of ideas and enquiry that flourished as thinkers and scientists sought to understand the natural world and the human mind, and improve the world through new ideas, discoveries and inventions. An unprecedented outpouring of intellectual and scientific accomplishments led to 18th-century Scotland being described as ‘a hotbed of genius’, with rapid advances in philosophy, political economy, engineering, architecture, medicine, geology, archaeology, law, agriculture, chemistry and sociology.

From catalytic clothing that cleans the air you breathe, to poetic explorations of extinction (via some hard-hitting debates on food security, climate change and energy), there are some great events. Naturally, this year’s Edinburgh Medal awardee, US climate scientist and activist Dr James Hansen, is the perfect figurehead for this focus but there’s plenty to choose from and something for anyone interested in our precious planet.

Tuesday 3 April
Feeding the 7 Billion

Wednesday 4 April
Catalytic Clothing
Field of Jeans and Kilts
On Extinction

Wednesday 11 Apri
Our Climate Future

Thursday 12 April
Fixing the Planet

Friday 13 April
Richard Wiseman's Beginners Guide to... Climate Change

Professor Peter Higgs, is an English-born scientist who has lived and worked in Edinburgh for much of his life. Whilst working as a lecturer in Edinburgh University in the 60s, Professor Higgs put forward a theory predicting the existence of a new sub-atomic particle which theoretically gives other particles their mass. This elusive particle was termed the Higgs boson and has often been described as “the most sought after particle in modern physics”.

On the brink of its discovery, last Friday the City of Edinburgh paid tribute to Peter Higgs, recognising his contribution to the city by honouring him with The Edinburgh Award.  He is just the fifth person to be granted this accolade along with Ian Rankin, JK Rowling, Sir CHris Hoy and George Kerr.

On being a recipient Higgs said "It is a great honour to receive this award from the city that I fell in love with and is now my adopted home"

Click here to watch BBC interview with Peter Higgs about his achievements and receiving this award.

If you’re interested in this story you may like: A Year in the Life of the Large Hadron Collider 

                                                                                                                                Click to Download Brochure

For cinephiles and sci-fi fans we’ve got a fantastic series of special screenings, conversations and events inspired by films that deal with the question of what it means to be human. Human:2.0 is a rare opportunity to see some fantastic sci-fi favourites on the big screen and to join in topical discussion about technology, drugs and genetic manipulation. Films include Robocop, eXistenZ, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and the 1931 classic adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

For foodies there’s Science on a Plate; a diverse line-up of food-meets-science events taking place at the Royal Botanic Garden. These events are suitable for a family audience but if you’re looking for something a bit more adult-themed check out Aphrodisiac Cocktails and Canapés. Join our experts for a tasty and tantalizing evening of food and fun as they explore the amorous qualities of every bite, sorting aphrodisiac fact from fiction.

For the thrill seekers, we’ve lined up a special treat…well if you consider the opportunity to take a wee walk over red hot coals a treat! Discover the science behind Firewalking and try it out for yourself. Is it a supernatural phenomenon, the power of physics or simply mind over matter? Find out first hand in Princess Street Gardens.

For the innovators we’ve organised a unique opportunity, a meeting of great minds, with the Edinburgh Enlightenment Exchange – aka Edinburgh E2. We’re bringing together some of the country’s most inspirational individuals from the sciences, arts and business world for a day-long showcase of innovative, enlightened ideas.

This is just a mere taster of the multitude of events on offer. This year we’ve taken science out of the lab and infused it with art, food, philosophy, comedy, film… and just good ol’ fashioned fun! Don’t risk leaving booking till last minute, you may miss out. Tickets are on sale now so get browsing and get booking!

Tickets can be purchased onine, by phone through the Science Festival Box Office on 0844 557 2686 or in person at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival shop, 180 High Street, Edinburgh (open 10.30am – 5.30pm Monday to Friday, 11.00am to 5.30pm Saturday).