Science on the Southbank

To celebrate its 350th anniversary (See Ed. Chem., 2010, 47, 99) the Royal Society (RS) took over London's Southbank in June for a 10 day festival of science and art. The See Further festival featured talks from scientists such as physicist Brian Greene, doctor and newspaper columnist Ben Goldacre and mathematician Marcus du Sautoy. The BBC's Bang goes the theory set up an interactive science area and showed off their coffee powered car that travelled from London to Manchester earlier this year. Pop group They might be giants, whose songs include Meet the elements, performed an evening concert and a family friendly matinee at the Royal Festival Hall. 

Also in the Royal Festival Hall, research groups from around the country set up stands to demonstrate their work to visitors interested in science. Scientists from the Diamond light source explained how they were using X-rays to look at the structures of different proteins. 3D models of the molecules that Diamond have studied allowed the researchers to illustrate the protein binding sites that pharmaceutical companies target. The large synchrotron - the size of five football pitches - is illuminating the molecular world.