Feature: Rome Science Festival celebrates importance of 'unknown'

The topic was most intriguing and the audience's response surprising.

Thousands of people joined top researchers and experts at the 2015 Rome Science Festival, which run from Jan. 22 to Jan. 25 at the multifunctional Auditorium complex in the Italian capital.

Yet, instead of latest scientific findings or reassuring certainties, they were lectured on the role of chance, the value of uncertainty and on what science does not (yet) know.

The 'Unknown' was indeed the theme to which the 10th edition of Rome Science Festival was devoted. As curators explained, the event aimed to be "a celebration of doubt, uncertainty ... and the particular way to penetrate the unknown that is called scientific method."

Considering the feedback, the aim was reached. Over 20,000 visitors turned out over four days to engage with leading Italian and international scientists in meetings, lectures and debates.

"We are very happy with the public's response, and even more so because the topic of the 'unknown' could lead people to believe this event was about mystery or fear," Festival scientific co-director Vittorio Bo told Xinhua.

"On the contrary, the unknown is what gives boost to scientific research and drives men towards knowledge, and people understood it very well. We could tell from the questions they put to our guest scientists during debates and lectures," Bo said.

Physicists, astrophysicists, philosophers, historians of science, biologists and journalists developed topics both complex and fascinating for the public, such as 'Ignorance and knowledge,' 'Numbers and uncertainty,' or 'What we still don't know (and might never know) about the universe.'

The Festival opening conference was held by Italian theoretical physicist and writer Carlo Rovelli and focused on the theme "Can science give us certainty."

It went sold out.

Another large audience of mainly middle-aged spectators followed attentively a dialogue on 'The role of chance in evolution' between Italian philosopher of science Telmo Pievani and evolutionary biologist Bruce S. Lieberman from the University of Texas.

A clear notion emerging from the discussion was that "evolution remains highly unpredictable."

However, both experts said that if change and uncertainty remain dominant players in the history of life, scientists could still make some general predictions and find regular patterns in diversity, origination and extinction of species.

"This means evolutionary biology is predictive in a peculiar way: it is a unique mix of random events and regularities, producing patterns of chance," Rovelli explained.

Despite a clear and captivating exposition from all scientists and a lively interaction with the audience, conferences and debates provided concepts not so easy to grasp. Would spectators be leaving with an increased knowledge or just more doubts?

Eventually, this proved not to be a crucial point.

"The point of being here is not to end up with more certainties or more doubts. I did not come to receive assurances, but to get some food for thought," spectator Renato Crobu told Xinhua.

Being a regular follower of Rome Science Festival over the years and a passionate reader of scientific communication, the man seemed satisfied with the 'Unknown' as theme of this edition.

"Science must not be understood as a search for certainty, but rather as a way of life that feeds on doubts and takes every new acquired notion with caution," Crobu said.

As former scientific co-director of the Festival, philosopher Pievani could explain more in deep the approach that inspired the event since its inception and, seemingly, assured its success.

He said the festival's main purpose is not to pass on specific technical notions on science to people, but to create a framework for sharing knowledge.

"Thus, we do not focus much here on the arrival point of the science, its latest results and theories, but on the process by which scientists get to their conclusions. In short, we describe science from within," Pievani said.

In addition to debates, the Festival offered artistic performances mingled with scientific lessons, labs for schools, an interactive exhibit, and a dialogue via video link with Italian physicist Fabiola Gianotti, next director-general of European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva.

All events highlighted the importance of "accepting the uncertainty and learning to be comfortable with it," as the only way for human kind to advance. Endit