The 6th Science Festival in Kayseri made a significant impact on science on its second day.

The 6th Science Festival, traditionally organized every year by the Kayseri Science Center under the Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality, made a significant impact in the world of science on its second day with a conference by the famous astrophysicist Dr. Umut Yıldız and other booth activities.

Starting at Recep Tayyip Erdoğan National Park, the festival featured over 50 supporting institutions and more than 100 events with 124 event tents, welcoming citizens of all age groups. The Kayseri Science Center, one of the 6 TÜBİTAK-supported science centers in Turkey, organized this science-filled event. On the second day, Dr. Umut Yıldız, Deputy General Manager responsible for Science at Plan-S and INFINIA and a former NASA researcher, delivered a conference on the topic of “The Search for Life and Intelligence in the Universe.” During the approximately one-hour entertaining, curiosity-driven, and science-filled conference, Yıldız shared eye-opening and significant information that sparked curiosity among the audience. Kayseri Metropolitan Mayor Dr. Memduh Büyükkılıç hosted Dr. Yıldız, who came to Kayseri for the 6th Science Festival, at the Kayseri Cuisine within the national park, engaging in a science-filled conversation. Büyükkılıç also introduced Yıldız to the flavors of Kayseri cuisine. Dr. Umut Yıldız emphasized the incredible event held at the 6th Science Festival in Recep Tayyip Erdoğan National Park, expressing his gratitude to everyone involved in the conference, especially Mayor Büyükkılıç. Yıldız expressed his satisfaction with the conference conducted in a vast area without any vacant spots, wishing that every city in Turkey would host such events to spread this scientific fire. He presented a small model of the satellites sent into space by Plan-S Satellite and Space Company as a gift to Mayor Büyükkılıç.

Astrophysicist Yıldız stated that there was a tremendous crowd at the Kayseri Science Festival and mentioned that he gave a conference at the festival. He said, “We talked to the people of Kayseri about the search for life. There is incredible interest, and we faced dozens of questions, receiving great attention. We support science in Kayseri.” Adding that a massive organization was held there, Yıldız noted, “It would be wonderful if this incredible interest here is supported in the future with Teknofest; we also support that. The crowd here definitely deserves Teknofest to come to Kayseri. I think it should definitely come in the next year or the coming years.” Middle school student Cemre Gerçek, one of the visitors of the 6th Science Festival, shared that he found the festival interesting and expressed his satisfaction with it. The happiness of students like Efsan Aytekin, who were greatly affected by the demonstrations and loved the festival, was evident. Mehmet Alp Öztürk, another student, described the science festival as very fun and expressed his enjoyment. Visitor Serpil Akgöllü stated that they really liked the festival, which they could not finish exploring, saying, “We enjoyed it very much; the activities, promotions, whether for students or teachers. It is a wonderful opportunity for us, for our children, for Kayseri, and for our country. Kudos to those who organized it; thank you for their efforts.” Another visitor named Ferhat Saraç said, “I liked it very much. Our booths will especially inspire the new generation, broaden their horizons, and benefit their goals. I believe it will be useful for my children in their career choices and contributions to their country.” Student Atagün Durak, who opened a booth, explained that his drone has a very different function compared to other unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the world and can hit targets in the air rather than on the ground. He mentioned that he toured the science festival, saw many projects, and exchanged a lot of information.

University student Saliha, another visitor, described the 6th Science Festival as a very colorful and entertaining event featuring various scientific activities. She expressed, “I think it has added a lot to students, children, and people. There are many intriguing things because it is a very beautiful and significant opportunity. We would like to see such events held more frequently and in larger numbers.”