On Friday 13 May, the students and staff of the University of Helsinki will get together to once again celebrate spring and this year’s Flora Day. This time the celebration, lasting from 3 pm to 8 pm, spreads the spring spirit to Kumpula, as Physicum (at Gustaf Hällströmin katu 2A) fills up with music, festive events, food and refreshments and, of course, the joys of academia.

The festival will have a band and a DJ playing music that will please the ear and have you dancing in no time. You will also have the opportunity to transform the contents of your brain into poetic form and to take photos in a photo booth. Additionally, the celebration will include miniature animals, tours of student rooms and many different academic activities in which the departments of the Faculty of Science peer into the future. To satisfy your hunger and quench your thirst, drinks will be served and food carts will be offering something to eat.

From 3 pm to 5 pm, you will have the opportunity to observe the secrets of Kumpula as expert led tours take anyone interested to visit the magnificent Kumpula Botanic Garden, the phenomenal ChemistryLab Gadolin, the Detector Laboratory and the Accelerator Laboratory. These tours have a separate sign-up process, so you can take part in them even if you do not join the actual Flora Day celebration!

For more information on the Flora Day programme, tours and refreshments, please visit the event’s website at www.hyy.fi/flora2016.

The event will have separate quotas of 250 guests for both staff and students, and you should sign up in advance. Signing up begins on Monday 25 April at noon when the sign-up link is published in Flamma. The link will also be published on the event’s Facebook page and at www.hyy.fi/flora2016.

The Flora Day’s official hashtag is #FLORA2016.

We extend our warmest welcome to everyone at the University!

MUSIC

TKO-Äly’s Tekis Houseband, straight out of Kumpula, and DJ Louise will be making people dance and helping raise the atmosphere.

PROGRAMME

Student room tours

Student rooms are at the heart of the campus. Every partygoer will now have the unique opportunity to take a peek at their secrets with students themselves acting as guides. Where would soft serve be available, how many stuffed pig toys can you fit into a single room and why are there bottles of sparkling wine in a certain fireplace? Join the tour and find out!

The tours start out at 3.00 pm, 3.20 pm, 3.40 pm and 4.00 pm, and one tour can take 10–15 participants. The exact starting location will be announced later.

Guided tours

At 3.00 pm and 4.00 pm, 20 people per group. Tour length is 45 minutes and you must sign up for the tour in advance.

The Botanic Garden and Kumpula manor’s geological collection, 3 guided tours: at 3.00 pm and 4.00 pm in Finnish and at 4.00 pm in English. Meetup in the garden, at Jyrängöntie 2. https://www.luomus.fi/en/kumpula-botanic-garden

ChemistryLab Gadolin, 2 groups, led by Veli-Matti Ikävalko: Finnish/English at 3.00 pm and Finnish/English at 4.00 pm. Meetup in the lobby of Chemicum (at A.I. Virtasen aukio 1). http://www.luma.fi/kemma-en/chemistrylab-gadolin

Visit to the Detector Laboratory, 2 groups, led by Timo Hilden and Erik Brucken, in Finnish at 3.00 pm and in English at 4.00 pm. Meetup in the lobby of Exactum (at Gustaf Hällströmin katu 2b).

Visit to the Accelerator Laboratory, 2 groups, led by Pietari Keinänen & co: at 3.00 pm in Finnish and at 4.00 pm in English. Meetup in the lobby of Exactum (at Gustaf Hällströmin katu 2b).

Brains on Art: Brain Poetry

The Brains on Art collective’s Brain Poetry (https://brainsonart.wordpress.com/2013/10/18/brain-poetry-2013/) is a work of art that has been exhibited at events such as the Frankfurt Book Fair. Through Brain Poetry, anyone can transform the mysterious contents of their brain into a more poetic form.

Future tube, in the Physicum-Exactum gateway

Visit the future and meet the people who help shape it! Scientific advances on display will include the 3D printing of organs, new energy technologies, particle research at CERN, atmospheric simulations, data processing and Pulmaario games.

Women’s Science Salon

Coffee and conversation! Coffee will be served starting at 3 pm, while the actual programme starts at 3.30 pm. The event, held in Physicum D117, will be hosted by Eija Tuominen & co.

The film Veden matka and the Lapin tähti map bingo

The visually magnificent Veden matka (“Journey of Water”, 52 minutes, audio in Finnish and subtitles in English, in Physicum’s auditorium D101) will take your breath away! The showing begins at 3.00 pm.

The Lapin tähti (“Lapland Star”) map bingo at the geologists’ corridor every fifteen minutes from 3.00 pm onwards.

FOOD AND DRINKS

To satisfy your hunger and quench your thirst, drinks will be served and food carts will be offering something to eat. The following carts will be offering tasty treats:

Fisu & Ranet offers the most authentic fish & chips outside of Great Britain: http://www.fisujaranet.fi/

You can grab Korean street food to go from Kimchi Wagon: https://www.facebook.com/Kimchi-Wagon-594426024037580/

Street Gastro offers premium-quality sandwiches: http://streetgastro.fi/en/

Follow updates to the programme and sign up to join the celebration!