Come and meet the scientists of the University of Cambridge Department of Earth Sciences. Take part in hands-on activities and find out what it's like to research fossils, earthquakes, tackle environmental challenges and more.
Activities include:
Microfossil Wonderland - use powerful microscopes to investigate tiny fossils of plants and animals that lived millions of years ago. Find out how these microfossils help us learn about past climates and environments.
Giant deer, fossil fish teeth, the rocks that built Cambridge... just some of the specimens on display that our staff can't wait to discuss with you. Beware, their enthusiasm is infectious!
Drop into our shop to reserve your free place on the tour.
Giant deer, fossil fish teeth, the rocks that built Cambridge... just some of the specimens on display that our staff can't wait to discuss with you. Beware, their enthusiasm is infectious!
Drop into our shop to reserve your free place on the tour.
Giant deer, fossil fish teeth, the rocks that built Cambridge... just some of the specimens on display that our staff can't wait to discuss with you. Beware, their enthusiasm is infectious!
Drop into our shop to reserve your free place on the tour.
Giant deer, fossil fish teeth, the rocks that built Cambridge... just some of the specimens on display that our staff can't wait to discuss with you. Beware, their enthusiasm is infectious!
Drop into our shop to reserve your free place on the tour.
Women have been involved in science throughout history, but they are often forgotten in histories of science.
To mark our display celebrating Rosalind Franklin and her work on DNA, come and find out more about other scientific women with links to our collections. Among others, we'll be telling the stories of the astronomer who impressed the King, the computer programmer who learned maths because her mum didn't want her to become a poet and the chemistry lecturer who made cupcakes to explain elements.
Talk by Alison Giles.
Join us for the Cambridge Festival family weekend opening!
Join us for the Cambridge Festival Family Weekend and explore the history of science through our collection of microscopes, telescopes, and globes. Take part in family trails and visit our Learning Gallery, where you can engage with interactive handling boxes to discover topics such as Light & Sound, the Human Body, and Earth & Space.
Events happenings:
Join us for a special Saturday workshop on 15 March led by artist James Tunnard, where we'll dive into the magic of colour and light.
As you may have heard, we’re creating a new art installation for the Learning Gallery ceiling and the activities in this workshop will inspire and contribute to this exciting piece!
Get creative with these hands-on activities:
Legumes like peas and beans have developed a clever way to overcome the lack of nitrogen in the soil. They form special structures on their roots, called nodules, which act as tiny homes for nitrogen-fixing bacteria. These bacteria help convert nitrogen from the air into a form the plant can use to grow. The process begins when the plant’s root hairs recognise the bacteria and allow them to infect the root. The nodules then form below this site, deep within the root tissues.
Nature has provided us with many beautiful patterns and forms to admire—for example, patterns on butterfly wings, stripes on a zebra, striking arrangements of leaves and flowers in plants, and diverse leaf shapes. A fundamental question in biology is how living forms are generated and diversified during evolution. Plants offer an attractive system to study this problem as they continue to develop their organs post-embryonically, allowing us to investigate organ initiation and follow their development over time.
