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Description:
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Can you imagine how much physics there is in a simple match of ping-pong, in throwing a boomerang, or in a musical concert? Physics is all around us and governs our lives. In the recent years, a wealth of new technologies have found their way from science into everyday life. These technologies form the base of our ever-increasing standards or living with longer life expectancy, improved health and working conditions and easy access for everybody to information and knowledge. But who is going to maintain these technologies and develop new one in the future? Surveys show a frightening decline of interest in physics and technology among Europe's citizens, especially schoolchildren. Fewer and fewer people enroll in physics courses at university, while many seek renewed "flight into superstition". The current disenchantment with science is becoming a serious problem for society, and national governments and international bodies are now increasingly engaged in finding solutions to this problem. In early November 2000, more than 500 physics educators from 22 European countries gathered at CERN in Geneva to take part in the Physics on stage festival to show how fascinating and entertaining physics can be.
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