All aboard! MS Wissenschaft on tour

Brain City Berlin

From 14 May, the floating science centre “MS Wissenschaft” will once again embark on a long voyage through Germany with an interactive exhibition on the subject of “Freedom”. The first stop on the city tour is Schiffbauerdamm in Brain City Berlin. As always, admission is free.

Freedom is a basic right and at the same time one of the oldest human rights. This year, the Federal Republic of Germany is celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Basic Law. And the Peaceful Revolution ushered in German reunification 35 years ago. Two important reasons for the MS Wissenschaft to carry the theme of freedom on its flag this year. From 14 May, the 102-metre exhibition ship will once again be sailing along German rivers and lakes and anchoring in various cities. The first stop for the floating science centre is Brain City Berlin. On 14 May, the MS Wissenschaft will depart from Schiffbauerdamm in Berlin-Mitte – between the Friedrichstrasse and Marschallbrücke railway bridges. You can visit it from 15:00.

Freedom has many facets

The hands-on exhibition on board features 30 exhibits. Visitors can explore different facets of freedom at the various stations. How free are we to make our own decisions? What about scientific freedom? And what can we learn from history about freedom? Researchers have addressed these and other exciting questions and invite interested parties to explore their projects on the basis of the exhibits, to share their own ideas about freedom and to engage with the topic of freedom: Be it with the freedom of personal choice, freedom of expression in social media, artistic freedom or the limits of the free decision of Artificial Intelligence in security-relevant systems. Discussion events, film evenings, readings and workshops are also part of the colourful, informative program of the MS Wissenschaft. For example, Sarah Bornhorst and Cornelia Thiele from the Berlin Wall Foundation will be asking what freedom meant for people in the immediate vicinity of the Berlin Wall at the “Meet the Scientists” event in Berlin-Tegel (German only) on 15 May. At some of the science ship’s anchorages, workshops (German only) will also be offered in which students can, for example, expose fake news or learn more about the history of our constitution.

In 2024, the tour will pass through nine federal states

After Berlin-Mitte, the exhibition ship will first anchor in Berlin-Tegel (15 to 19 May) and in Oranienburg (20 to 23 May). The MS Wissenschaft will then dock in Potsdam from 25 to 27 May. The entire ship tour leads from Berlin and Brandenburg via Saxony-Anhalt, Hamburg and Bremen, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate; the last stop this year is Aschaffenburg in Bavaria (12 to 15 September). In total, the ship will call at around 30 smaller and larger cities. It is also planned that it will then continue to Krems an der Donau, Tulln an der Donau and Vienna.

By the way: The MS Wissenschaft has been operating on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research since 2002. Each year, new exhibitions are put together with the help of scientists. The idea behind the floating exhibition and the entire Year of Science aims to encourage people to engage with scientific processes actively. (vdo)

MS Wissenschaft in Berlin-Mitte
14 May 2024
Schiffbauerdamm, between the “Friedrichstrasse” railway bridge and the Marschall bridge
From 15:00, admission free

MS Wissenschaft in Berlin-Tegel
15 to 19 May 2024
Greenwich promenade, pier for river cruise ships
Daily 10:00 to 18:30, admission free

MS Wissenschaft in Potsdam
24 to 27 May 2024
Potsdam marina, at the end of Kastanienallee
Daily from 10:00 to 18:30, admission free