The Epi-Centre of Science in Białystok is a unique and exciting place where science meets fun. It has been designed so that all visitors, regardless of age, can find something that interests them. It consists of two separate zones: the Little Explorers' Zone – a colourful educational space primarily for children aged 3-10; and the Main Exhibition, which contains around 100 experimental stations and is aimed at people of all ages.
- 29 October 2020
Visitors to the Białystok science centre can not only get to know, but above all experience, science and technology. When creating the Epi-Centre, we focused on the interactive nature of the exhibition. Our overriding goal was that the exhibition would invite people to actively discover, arouse interest in technical and natural sciences, stimulate creativity and provoke asking questions and questioning answers. All this to make it easier to understand the world around us and the laws that govern it.
The Little Explorers’ Zone has five thematic areas: discovering and knowledge, knowing your body, technology, the world of construction, and water energy. It contains the Little Explorers’ Laboratory.
Experimental stations in the Main Exhibition cover subjects including water, material properties, optics, transport, telecommunications, medicine, automation, mechanics, the human body and electricity. Other stations focus on exciting technologies and learning through fun.
Furthermore, the Main Exhibition houses laboratories for energy, electromobility and robotics experiments. Its entire 2 670 m² space can accommodate 200 people at any one time. Visitors decide for themselves in what order they visit each station and how long they spend there.
A unique meeting place
The Epi-Centre of Science is intended to serve as a meeting place where children, teenagers and adults can experience science and technology and increase their understanding of the world and the laws that govern it through independent experimentation. To this end, all the exhibitions at the centre are interactive.
In addition, the centre aims to showcase the natural sciences, innovation, advances in technical thought and development of modern technologies to a wider audience and ensure that visitors retain the knowledge they have gained. They should then be inspired to apply it in their everyday lives, whether at work, at school or in their free time.
Learning through play
All attractions and games in the Little Explorers’ Zone are adapted to children’s capacities for perception. It is not necessary to be able to read to use and fully benefit from most of the stations. The children are thus free to explore science in their own way.
At the same time, guided tours are available. These are led by two characters – Zmysłek and Majka Pytajka – who, along with their pet robot, Receptorek, show the children how to use the various exhibits. They include a large clock, an abacus both with beads and in app form, pipe mazes and levers. The guides explain complex phenomena and concepts in an accessible way. Much of the learning is done through play.
Organised classes and workshops that bring participants into direct contact with science are another feature of the centre, which is expected to welcome some 20 000 visitors in 2021.
Total investment and EU funding
Total investment for the project “Epi-Centre of Science” is EUR 5 889 831, with the EU’s European Regional Development Fund contributing EUR 4 056 504 through the “Podlaskie Voivodeship” Operational Programme for the 2014-2020 programming period. The investment falls under the priority “Research and innovation”.