Queen's 2015 Nobel Prize in PhysicsScience Rendezvous Kingston 2026 took place on May 9th at Slush Puppie Place. More than 4100 visitors explored hands-on science activities at more than 60 stations presented by more than 480 volunteers.
Nearly 50 volunteers from Department of Physics, Engineering Physics, and Astronomy and our partners at and the contributed to Science Rendezvous - a record contribution, making us once again the largest volunteer group at the event. This year our volunteers presented five stations: an indoor station, and outdoor station, a station in the Sensory Science zone, a station for the Kingston chapter of Optica, and, for the first time, a Stage Show. Together, these stations featured a wide array of physics-related activities and demonstrations.
Our Five Stations
Outside
- Gravity table - Sun spot viewing with solar telescopes
- A working radio telescope made from a cooking wok
- A scale demonstration of the Artemis II lunar mission
- Comet making
Inside
- Ping pong ball cannon
- Standing in a giant soap bubble
- ColourWhirl art
- Art with a chaotic pendulum
- Chaotic laser pendulum and cyanotype prints
- Rheostatic fluid spinners
- Remote controlled floating fish
- Whirlpool bottles
- Cartesian divers
- Visualizing sound with an oscilloscope
- Virtual tour of SNOLAB, information screen about other physics research
- Demonstration of atomic emission lines with spectrometers
Sensory Science
- Making UV bead bracelets
- Marble racetracks
- Visualizing magnetic fields with iron filings
- “Floating egg†density demonstration
- Candle powered steam boats
Optica
- Addition of colours demo
- Hand-held spectrometer
- Laser chess
- Interference of waves with water
- Index of refraction matching demonstration
- Hologram demonstration
Stage Show
- Comet making
- Liquid nitrogen demonstrations
- Ruben tube demonstration of sound waves
Science Rendezvous Kingston in Pictures
All photos are courtesy of Prof. Alex Wright.
Thank you to all the volunteers
We’d like to send a huge thank you to all of our volunteers who helped to plan, develop, and deliver such a wide variety of demos:Anthony Allega, Ryan Amaral, Dinel Anthony, Nikhil Arora, Minya Bai, William Ballik, James Barron, Kristina Bodiroga, Ivanna Boras, Julia Brachman, Joe Bramante, Noah Budz, Audrey Burggraf, Yilda Boukhtouchen, Pheerawich Chitnelawong, Emmett Desroche, Lawrence Faria, Patrick Given, Ella Hammett, Alex Hayes, Victoria Howard, Theo Hughes, Ammar Ibrahim, Gurpreet Kainth, Rob Knobel, Sophie Knobel, Brian Krar, Michela Lai, Annabelle Makowski, Julianna Manecka, Max Manecki, Szymon Manecki, Fraser McCauley, Jean-Michel Nunzi, John O’Dell, James Page, Muhammad Mubeen, Nicole Muchos, Nahee Park, Serena Riccetto, Sarah Sadavoy, Lance Schonberg, Willow Strey, Nick Swidinsky, Felix Thiel, Andrew Wakileh, Alex Wright, Joseph Wright, Ezri Wyman, and Sean Yin. Thanks again to everyone - we couldn’t do it without you! Special thanks to Szymon and Julianna (and Max!) who once again drove the 1200km round trip from Sudbury to participate.