Science Museum celebrates the science of Launchpad at March Lates March 30, 2011

Bubbles, explosions, rockets and fond childhood memories will feature prominently at the Science Museum’s next Lates on Wednesday 30 March - in an evening dedicated to the museum’s flagship interactive Launchpad gallery.
To celebrate the Launchpad March Lates event, the Science Museum will also be running an online competition called #smlates. This is a fun twitter-powered competition where the top 10 point scorers before the 30th March will be entered into a draw to win an iPad 2, with a selection of science based prizes up for grabs for the runners up as well. To find out more about the competition and to enter please visit: http://lates.sciencemuseum.org.uk/

The March Lates Event
Visitors will have a chance to enjoy the child like wonder in Launchpad for a whole evening without any children being present. Guests will rediscover their inner child by building contraptions especially designed to compliment the gallery – including machines that catapult loveable childrens toys and glamour bug robots. People will be encouraged to volunteer and enjoy the fantastic Launchpad shows at various locations throughout the museum – on subjects ranging from bubbles to explosions.

Lates will also welcome psychologist Professor Richard Wiseman, who, in the spirit of Launchpad’s interactive curiosity, will be investigating the paranormal. Prof. Wiseman’s previous experiments include immersing himself in the world of séances; testing telepaths, spending nights in haunted castles, and attempting to talk with the dead.

Visitors will also be able to explore a new exhibition, James Watt and our world – which celebrates the life and work of the great engineer, inventor driven by curiosity and hero of the Industrial Revolution, James Watt. For the first time, visitors will be able to see Watt’s completely re-assembled attic workshop and learn more about the story of the man famous for ‘turning science into money’. Curators will be on hand throughout the evening to give talks and tours around the exhibition.
In addition, brewery Shepherd Neame (one of Watt’s early customers) will be creating a special limited edition ‘James Watt’s Late’ ale which visitors will be able to sample whilst marvelling at his work.
The evening will also feature a performance by the National Youth Theatre as well as the welcoming back the flagship Lates regular events such as the Silent Disco, a Launchpad themed Pub Quiz, Deaf led Tours of the museum and the new A Cockroach Tour of The Science Museum.
Visitors can also enjoy the regular selection of Lates activities including:

• Silent Disco: Pick up a pair of headphones, tune in and get down to your own sounds under the canopy of rockets in the Exploring Space gallery.
• The Lates Pub Quiz: Get competitive in our Lates ‘pub quiz’.

Official Website: http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/lates