These liquids are some of the first examples of metallic gold colloids, made by Michael Faraday over 150 years ago. These liquids are the first examples of metallic gold colloids. They were made, ...

During school holidays we run a range of exciting hands-on workshops, bringing to life all areas of science – including mathematics, computing and engineering. All workshops take place in our building ...

In 2025 we’re celebrating 200 years of the CHRISTMAS LECTURES and Ri Discourses – both landmark moments in the Ri’s rich history of engaging public audiences with science – as well as the discovery of ...

An early example of a chemical battery made up of a stack of plates of two different metals on a wooden base held in place by three glass rods and sandwiched with blotting paper. To use the battery ...

When ChatGPT-3 crash-landed onto our computers in November 2022, you’d have been forgiven for thinking this massive leap in artificial intelligence had sprung out of nowhere. From one day to the next, ...

On the 200-year anniversary of the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures, the 2025 Lectures will see leading space scientist Dame Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock take audiences on an epic voyage through time ...

The Royal Institution was founded to 'introduce new technologies and teach science to the general public through lectures and demonstrations'. We've been connecting people to science for over 200 ...

Join mathematician Nira Chamberlain as he proposes how to better Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) as a pure science problem. Why are geniuses predominantly males? Why are board members ...

Humphry Davy was a chemist and inventor who invented the Davy lamp and a very early form of arc lamp. He was director of the Ri from 1801–1825. Born in Penzance, Sir Humphry Davy attended Truro ...

The Royal Institution is a charity that brings the public and scientists together to share their interest and passion for science. We've been doing it for 225 years and have an international reach, ...

Faraday created the first transformer in August 1831. A few months later he designed and made this simple piece of apparatus based on his ring, developing the first-ever electric generator. This is ...

The Ig Nobel Prize honours things that make people LAUGH, then THINK. Ten new prizes have been awarded every year since 1991 in topics from Astronomy to Entomology. At this special event, Ig Nobel ...