Flanders will know that the Einstein Telescope is coming…
A podcast series by Flemings with a strong ‘Flemish touch’ and a roadshow visiting all Flemish universities, mainly targeting students in secondary education. This is how Research Foundation Flanders (FWO), the Flemish partner of the Einstein Telescope, wants to introduce Flemings to the world of gravitational waves and this underground telescope and convince them of its importance for the Euregio Meuse-Rhine.
The main goal is to generate enthusiasm for the world of gravitational waves and the Einstein Telescope. ‘This attention obviously does not have to stop at the Flemish border’, explains Daniel Mayerson. He works for the Einstein Telescope within the Flemish FWO team.
The podcast series will soon be available for anyone to listen to at any time, for example on Spotify. The series was created by Daniel Mayerson himself and Bert Vercnocke. As physicists, they have specialised in public outreach for their field.
Podcast series
The podcast series has 11 episodes. The two first episodes will be available from mid-September. After that, a new podcast will follow weekly.
The topics are diverse. For example – after a teaser – the first episode will explain what we actually want to measure with the Einstein Telescope. And what about the technology behind the detector? For example, what role does the ETpathfinder play in Maastricht, and what role will it play in the next 25 years or so?
BeamPipes4ET
Leuven geologist Rudy Swennen will captivate listeners with an episode on all aspects of soil in the Euregio Meuse-Rhine. There is also a podcast on the valorisation opportunities for innovative businesses. A good example is the BeamPipes4ET project, in part because of the cross-border cooperation between companies and universities. There is an episode about this project as well. The environment is the focus of the next podcast, in which environment manager Johan Rutten and residents of Vaals, among others, tell their stories. These residents participated in the broad environmental participation survey conducted by Hasselt University.
Furthermore, the episodes focuses on international macro and other dependencies and ongoing projects in the field of education. Gideon Koekoek of Maastricht University is interviewed extensively for that education podcast.
It is no coincidence that the launch of the latest episode in the final schedule is likely to coincide with Science Day in Flanders, in the weekend of 23 and 24 November.
Roadshow
Daniel Mayerson and his colleagues are currently finalising the organisation of the roadshow visiting universities in all Flemish provinces and in Brussels. With an exhibition about the Einstein Telescope and an interactive programme, they want to use this roadshow to make schoolchildren enthusiastic about the Einstein Telescope and the programmes from the STEM offering. In addition, there will be a programme for the general public in the evening.
STEM
By the way, the letters in STEM stand for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. ‘Not only because it is incredibly interesting, but also because it almost guarantees a job in this direction. Society is in great need of young people trained in a technological, scientific, mathematical or engineering field’, Daniel Mayerson explains, which applies not only to Flanders but to the whole of Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.
Want to learn more?
The podcast series will be available via etpodcast.be and via Spotify. The Instagram account @etvoordevrienden will continue to keep you updated about new episodes. More information about the roadshow can also be found on the website etpodcast.be.
