CERN AND EUROVISION UNITE TO ATTRACT "TWEENS" TO SCIENCE
Geneva, 11 July 2013. CERN and EUROVISION2 are awarding grants to two production companies to develop multiplatform media proposals to spark the scientific curiosity of "tweens" - children aged eight to twelve. "Children are the most remarkable example of curiosity," said Sergio Bertolucci, CERN's Director of Research and Computing. "We should not limit this curiosity, but develop it". "The best children's programmes educate and inform without the viewer even being aware," says Annika Nyberg-Frankenhaeuser, EUROVISION Media director. " These science-themed series should not only entertain children, but inspire a new generation of scientists and inventors." This initiative, co-sponsored by CERN and EUROVISION, launched last November with a call for ideas for multiplatform programmes to fascinate tweens with fundamental physics. The call attracted 23 entries from 12 countries in Europe and beyond. A panel of CERN scientists and EBU Community Members3 evaluated the proposals for their innovative, fresh approach to fundamental physics, stimulating the natural curiosity of children in an entertaining and creative way. Ideas needed to engage tweens in science beyond the television experience and appeal to different countries and cultures.
