For Immediate Release

170 AspiringScientists Perform Creative Science Shows At

the 3rd Science Buskers Festival

The Festival’s lively science shows are a hit with youths and

received a record number of participants this year

SINGAPORE, 20 September 2010– The highly anticipated Science Buskers Festival is back with a bang for the third year. A record number of 170 aspiring scientists from74 teamsregistered to put on creative performances around Science, marking a more than twofold increase in participation from the 96 participants whofirst took part in 2008.

Jointly organized by Science Centre Singapore and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), the Festival is aimed at encouraging creative expressions of scientific principles and phenomena. The competition is open to anyone aged between 7 and 70 with a desire to perform a Science show in front of a live audience.

A/P Lim Tit Meng, Chief Executive of Science Centre Singapore said, “The Science Buskers Festival is a fun and colourful way for the young tolearn and cultivate an interestin Science. Through such programmes,we hope to make Science more engaging for youths and help nurture young talents by providing them with the platform to learn and develop new skills. The buskers have done a fantastic job this year with their entertaining science shows. They’ve captured the interest and imagination of the young and old and clearly demonstrated the dynamism of science.”

Emerging as the champions of the 3rd Science Buskers Festival were the “e-lite Kinetics” with their outstanding performance on optics. The “Best Buskers Team”was the first runner-up for their intriguing performance on colours, and second runner-up went to “BuzzScience” for demonstrating the properties of matter.The winners will receive cash prizes and a one-year contract to perform at the Science Centre. (Please refer to Appendix A for a list of winners)

Dr Keith Carpenter, Executive Director of A*STAR’s Institute of Chemical and EngineeringSciences commented, “The Science Buskers Festival is a unique platform to spur the interest of our young in science. In putting up the Science shows, participants would have the opportunity to develop a thorough understanding of scientific principles, and translate them in a manner that engages a live audience. Certainly, it is hoped that the experience will inspire both buskers and the audience to delve deeper to experience the wonders of science.”

TheBusking Round was held at Plaza Singapura for the first timefrom 10-12 September in order to bring Science to the masses. The public got to cast their votes at the eventfor their favourite science buskers among 31 shortlisted teams and were also entertained with hands-on activities and “Science Circus” performances byUS science entertainer, Mr. Rhys Thomas.

Mr. Rhys Thomas was on special invitation by the organisers to conduct workshops for the participants of the Science Buskers Festival to help them bring their science performances to the next level. The performers were taught how to engage audiences using showmanship, humour and costumes. The top ten teams were also given special coaching by Mr. Jolyon Caplin, Chairperson of the Science Buskers Festival Advisory Committee.

The final busking round was held at the Science Centre Singapore on 18 September and the Prize Awards Ceremony was presided by Guest-of-Honour, Ms Annie Pek, Founder, Artistic Consultant & Festive Producer of Singapore Street Festival.

The Science Buskers Festival is a popular annual competition that began in 2008. It forms one of a number of innovative partnerships between Science Centre Singapore and A*STAR to nurture creative science learning in Singapore, such as the A*STAR Talent Search, the National Junior Robotics Competition and Science In The Mall.

For more information, please visit

About the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)

A*STAR is Singapore's lead agency for fostering world-class scientific research and talent for a vibrant knowledge-based Singapore. A*STAR actively nurtures public sector research and development in Biomedical Sciences, Physical Sciences and Engineering, with a particular focus on fields essential to Singapore's manufacturing industry and new growth industries. It oversees 22 research institutes, consortia and centres, and supports extramural research with the universities, hospital research centres and other local and international partners. At the heart of this knowledge intensive work is human capital. Top local and international scientific talent drive knowledge creation at A*STAR research institutes. The Agency also sends scholars for undergraduate, graduate and post-doctoral training in the best universities, a reflection of the high priority A*STAR places on nurturing the next generation of scientific talent. For more information about A*STAR, please visit

About Science Centre Singapore

The Science Centre Singapore is a non-formal educational institution dedicated to the promotion of science and technology among students and members of the public. As a leading Science Centre in the region, the Science Centre Singapore has twelve exhibition galleries with more than 1,000 exhibits, and another 18,000 sq metres of outdoor space showcasing the Waterworks, Ecogarden and the KineticGarden exhibits. The Centre also houses the Omni-Theatre — Singapore’s only dome-shaped, 5-storey high theatre with a capacity of 276 seats. The Science Centre, with Omni-Theatre and SnowCity, received more than 1.55 million visitors for FY2009/2010. For more information, please visit

For more information, please contact:

Jiayi Li
Band Public Relations
DID: 6324-0385
Email: / Eunice Choy
Science Centre Singapore
DID: 6425-2372
Email:

Appendix A

Science Buskers Festival 2010 winners

Category / Team / Winners’ Name / School
D’Science Busker (Champions) / e-lite Kinetics / Mary Raj, Grace Raj, Seah Jin Heng / BeattySecondary School
First Runner-up / Best Buskers Team / Cynthia Lee, Avani Gupta / BukitViewPrimary School
Second Runner-up / Buzz Science / Tan Ruxin, Sheryl Lim / BeattySecondary School
Best Teenage Busker Award / Chemagic / Ong Ze Xuan / NUS High School
Best Junior Buskers Award / JJA / Adrian Yeo / AngloChineseSchool (Primary)
Best Group Supporters Award / Best Buskers Team / Cynthia Lee, Avani Gupta / BukitViewPrimary School
Best Communicator Award / Buzz Science / Tan Ruxin, Sheryl Lim / BeattySecondary School
Best Stage Presence Award / e-lite Kinetics / Mary Raj,Grace Raj, Seah Jin Heng / BeattySecondary School
Best Teamwork Award / JJA / Joel Keandre Tan, Joseph Liew, Adrian Yeo / AngloChineseSchool (Primary)
Best Dressed Award / Best Buskers Team / Cynthia Lee, Avani Gupta / BukitViewPrimary School
Most Popular Online Video / Best Buskers Team / Cynthia Lee, Avani Gupta / BukitViewPrimary School