For the 2025 Science Festival, EBI introduced students to some facets of biology and artificial intelligence. Fun and immersive workshops offered a different way to experience science, from elementary to high school!

EBI, a committed partner of the Science Festival

For the past five years, EBI has actively participated in the Fête de la Science (Science Festival), a national event dedicated to promoting scientific culture. Each year, the school designs and leads original workshops directly related to the national theme, allowing students—from elementary to high school—to observe and experiment. This annual event illustrates EBI’s commitment to making science engaging, accessible, and inspiring for younger generations.

Science for all in Cergy-Pontoise

On October 6th and 7th, the EBI hosted the fifth-grade classes from Bury-Rosaire School. On October 10th, teacher-researchers from the school were at the Cerclades University Library to engage with middle and high school students. The week concluded on October 11th at the CY University Science Village with participatory workshops open to families. These activities allowed all participants to experience science in a new way, through activities adapted to each age and level of knowledge.

Three themes to explore forms of intelligence

The workshops offered invited participants to reflect on the concept of intelligence from three complementary perspectives.

• The plant cell: a miniature factory within the plant
  This workshop introduces cell biology by observing the chloroplasts of an aquatic plant under a microscope to understand how each cell becomes an energy factory. A first step towards the infinitely small and scientific research.
• Sensory analysis: how to trick the brain?
  Optical illusions, changing tastes, deceptive colors… Playful and unsettling experiences to remind us, in the manner of Descartes, that our senses, though essential, can mislead us.
• Artificial intelligence: machines versus humans
  An activity to compare human predictions and AI algorithms, in order to better understand the potential and limitations of these new technologies.

Experiencing science

These activities offered participants the opportunity to experience science in a hands-on way, through experimentation, observation, and discussions with the EBI team. The enthusiasm and curiosity of the audience, combined with the commitment of the teacher-researchers, made this 2025 edition a truly special moment of knowledge sharing. Through this initiative, EBI reaffirms its role as a key player in scientific culture in Cergy-Pontoise, promoting life sciences to the general public and inspiring future scientists.