A Coruña, October 01, 2024.– The Center for Research in Information and Communication Technologies of the University of A Coruña actively participated in G-Night 2024, a day dedicated to scientific dissemination that brought together hundreds of people interested in science and technology. With a diverse program aimed at all ages, the event, held last Friday, September 27, allowed participants to get a close look at the latest scientific advances and explore current technological topics.

Activities at CITIC: An educational experience for young students

The day at CITIC’s facilities began with a visit from a group of 2nd-year high school students from IES Rego de Trabe de Culleredo who participated in the 4th edition of Inclusive Talents. The young people enjoyed a lecture by CITIC researcher Susana Ladra González, titled “Musical Digital Footprints: How Songs Are Represented and Searched on the Internet,” where the fascinating process behind song identification using digital technology was explained.

After the lecture, the students participated in a guided tour of CITIC’s laboratories, where they had the opportunity to learn firsthand about the innovative research projects being developed in areas such as artificial intelligence, big data, and high-performance computing. The experience allowed them to interact with researchers and explore the multiple applications of technology in today’s society.

Activities at MUNCYT for all ages

Meanwhile, the National Museum of Science and Technology (MUNCYT) was another key venue for G-Night 2024, hosting talks and workshops for both adults and children. Scientific lectures were given by CITIC researchers Patricia Faraldo Cabana, José Ramón Paramá Gabía, Margarita María Alonso Ramos, Basilio Bernardo Fraguela Rodríguez, and Carlos José Escudero Cascón, addressing topics of great interest such as facial recognition and artificial intelligence applied to linguistics, computational challenges in genome analysis, and the history of positioning systems.

The “TuTIC” workshops, aimed at children aged 8 to 12, were also very well received. The young participants learned about electromagnetism, electrical circuits, and programming, guided by researchers Adriana Dapena Janeiro, Paula M. Castro Castro, Oscar Fresnedo Arias, Jonatan Enes Álvarez, José Manuel Andión Fernández, and Francisco Laport López. Interaction and hands-on learning were key to sparking the scientific curiosity of the youngest in a fun and interactive environment.

Astronomy, technology transfer, social networks, and mental health: science accessible to the general public

At the Afundación headquarters in Santiago, researcher Xabier Pérez gave a talk on the historic measurement process that established the “meter” as a unit of length, highlighting the participation of a key Galician scientist in this expedition. Meanwhile, at the Árnica bar in A Coruña, Miguel Anxo Pérez Vila spoke about the impact of social networks on mental health, analyzing how these platforms can help detect depressive symptoms through advanced natural language processing technologies. The activity also featured interventions by Paloma Piot Pérez-Abadín and Laura Hermo, who addressed topics such as hate speech on social networks and its psychological impact on young people.

Finally, at the La Olímpica bar, CITIC researcher José A. Iglesias-Guitián gave the session “From Cinemas to Consultations: How Visual Effects Technology Can Drive Advanced Medical Visualization,” presenting an example of technology transfer that originated in the field of special effects and animation for scientific or medical visualization.

G-Night 2024 was an excellent opportunity for the general public to get closer to the fascinating world of science and technology. CITIC, with its participation in a variety of activities, demonstrated its commitment to scientific dissemination and technological education for all ages, reaffirming its role as a reference in technological research in Galicia.