How the Royal Institution made science a seasonal spectacle

"For science enthusiasts in the United Kingdom, the Christmas Lectures at the Royal Institution (RI) are as much a part of the season's celebration as are Christmas trees and carol singing. These iconic talks for a young audience, celebrating their 200th anniversary this year, have introduced many people to the delights of science through captivating demonstrations. Space scientist Maggie Aderin-Pocock is the next speaker to take to the floor, delivering this historic lecture series this week."

"The RI was founded in 1799 by scientist Benjamin Thompson and botanist Joseph Banks as an organization to introduce new technologies and teach science to the general public through lectures and demonstrations. It soon also became a research institution with its own laboratories, in which chemist Humphry Davy, who was appointed director of the chemical laboratory in 1801, made groundbreaking discoveries about new chemical elements. Davy also presented many of the public lectures, and his flamboyant style brought them wide renown."

The Christmas Lectures at the Royal Institution are a long-standing British seasonal tradition that celebrate science for a young audience and mark their 200th anniversary. The lectures take place in the RI's lecture theatre on Albemarle Street in London and began in 1825 as a fashionable educational spectacle that attracted a well-heeled audience despite modest ticket prices. The Royal Institution was founded in 1799 by Benjamin Thompson and Joseph Banks to introduce new technologies and teach science to the public, later becoming a research institution where Humphry Davy and Michael Faraday made landmark discoveries.

Read at Nature