Discussing Science over coffee , a new trend in Argentina's Cafes

Argentina, and especially Buenos Aires, have a long tradition of long nights of coffee and debate on absolutely everything from football to quantum mechanics. The intellectual society chose the city's coffee shops to argue over the latest political scandals or the subtlest meanings in Borges' fantastic literature.

In this sense, literary coffees have been a popular means of bringing together devoted readers and talented authors. Occasionally, these encounters covered scientific topics.

Yet, the Cafe Scientifique in its modern sense, that is, an encounter where only science at a popular level is discussed over a cup of coffee, is a relatively new concept in Argentina.

As far as I know, there are Cafes in the cities of Buenos Aires, Rosario, Salta and Trelew. In Buenos Aires, the city's planetarium organizes these events in an external facility. More information on their Cafes can be found in the Planetario web site.

A Patagonian Café

About 1400 km South of Buenos Aires, you reach the city of Trelew (population near 100,000). Located by the valley of the Chubut River, the region draws much interest from all over the world for its touristic attractions. Within minutes from the city, you can overview Patagonia's wide landscape and sky, watch whales, penguins and sea lions, or enjoy a traditional Welsh tea and biscuits (Welsh settlers first arrived to these lands 140 years ago).

Patagonia is also well known for its great fossil deposits, making it a haven for paleontological research. The Museum of Paleontology "Egidio Feruglio" is among the best known and hosts over 60,000 tourists per year, includes a walk throughout the natural history of the planet, of course, showcasing the legendary dinosaurs of Patagonia.

Café Científico at MEF started this year as an outreach effort mainly aimed at the local public. Our goal is to offer an opportunity for regular folks to meet the scientists and debate over the topic of the night.

Topics delivered so far are:

- UB313: a planet or just another rock in space? (me, astronomer)

- On dinosaurs and birds. (Diego Pol, paleontologist)

- The search of extraterrestrial intelligences (me)

- Randomness or need? The mechanisms of natural evolution. (Ignacio Escapa, biologist)

Coming up: supernovae, plant life in Patagonia, dinosaur extinctions, and more...

We had an average attendance of 30, although it seems to be climbing slightly as the word gets spread. Meetings take place in Feruglio Cafe (the museum's cafeteria) every other friday evening, and admission is free (our excellent espresso coffee starts at 0.75 euro!)

Admission starts 30 minutes before the presentation, with background music and/or projection of scientific images, and first round of coffee. After the presentation, discussion follows. So far debates lasted between 30 and 90 minutes, with SETI having the record so far.

In my opinion, this is a great way to reach out to the local community, in an informal and relaxed way. Often, there is the perception that science is a luxury that only advanced countries can afford, and that scientific work has little or nothing to do with regular folks. I know that many of our first participants are naturally interested in science, but I hope that as the event gets better known, other people will start to come too. After all, what else is there to do? Watch cable? Please...

Pedro Saizar (30 May 2006)
Outreach coordinator
Museum of Paleontology Egidio Feruglio
Trelew, Patagonia Argentina