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The relaxing way to hear and chat about science in Oxford
The Cafe Scientifique is a successful UK community the idea for which was originally imported from France. The Oxford Cafe was the fourth to be started and there are now dozens of Cafes Scientifiques across the British Isles, while the concept is also now spread widely overseas. The point of the Cafe is to provide a public forum in which scientific ideas can be discussed informally involving scientists and non-scientists alike, aiming to inform, to entertain, and to provoke debate.
The Oxford Cafe Sci meets on the second Tuesday of each month except August. All are welcome and no scientific background is required. Visit the FAQ page for more information if you have never been to a Cafe event before.
The links on the left of this page give more details.
OUR VENUE IS THE OU DEPT OF PHARMACOLOGY ON MANSFIELD ROAD
See the Cafe audio page for streaming audio files of many of the older Cafe talks. These are usually the introductory talks plus some discussions, from the earlier years before we started recording videos Some talks have associated image or presentation files linked.
There is a private YouTube channel of Oxford Cafe Sci talks from the pandemic period onwards. The links for its playlists are only given to members of the mailing list (see below) and users are asked not to spread them publicly. A few videos go into the public YouTube playlist.
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| THIS MONTH'S CAFE SCIENTIFIQUE
Tuesday 13th October 2026 - Andy Clayton and Dr Alastair McGinness - Turning agricultural waste products into cocoa substitutes and helping the environment
Our speakers are from Fermtech, a company using agricultural byproducts such as cocoa shells and using fermentation to transform them into high-performance bakery, chocolate and food ingredients. The aim is to reduce the CO2 footprint of the food industry, increase supply chain resilience and lower environmental impact by making more of what has already been grown.
| FUTURE DATES
We always take a break in August of each year.
Note that from September 2026 onwards the online livestream of the Oxford Cafe Sci will stop, and though talks will be recorded they will only be uploaded twice a year.
Tuesday 10th November 2026 - Jenny Zaremba on Ageing and exercise - a tour through the latest science about how the ageing body works
Tuesday 8th December 2026
Tuesday 12th January 2027
Tuesday 9th February 2027
Tuesday 9th March 2027
IN PERSON DOORS OPEN, TALK STARTS 7:15pm, EVENING FINISHES 8:40pm. There is a bench outside the common room on the top floor where early arrivals can sit before the doors open.
If you are not already on our mailing list for updates, please see the foot of this page for how to subscribe.
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| VISITING THE CAFE
The Cafe is hosted by the Department of Pharmacology, off Mansfield Road (north end). This is in the centre of Oxford but does not have direct public transport to it. Please see the Pharmacology information page for full details of facilities and directions. There is disabled access to all parts of the building including the top-floor common room used by the Cafe.
Doors open at 6:45pm, with the talk starting at 7:15pm. The evening will end at 8:40pm latest, as we must leave the building by 9pm or earlier. There is a bench outside the common room on the top floor where early arrivals can sit before the doors open. Full venue information below.
There is no longer a hybrid option for the Oxford Cafe Scientifique. Talks will generally be recorded and then uploaded to the Cafe's YouTube channel twice a year, some on the public playlists and others on the private playlists. The members of the Oxford Cafe mailing list will be given links to the private playlists.
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THANKS AND DONATIONS
The assistance of Pharmacology and particularly Carolyn Thackrah and the night staff, for giving the Cafe a venue post-pandemic, is much appreciated.
Online donations
Those who wish to donate to the Cafe online may do so via https://paypal.me/CafeSci on Paypal.
Donations cover the refreshments, speaker expenses including their travel and taking them for dinner as a thank you (they are not paid), costs such as technology and equipment and occasional photocopying. There is absolutely no obligation whatsoever to donate but all gifts are greatly appreciated and without donations the Cafe would have to stop entirely. Our thanks to the many who have already donated this year.
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OxCafeSci on Twitter - jump to @oxcafesci
OxCafeSci on Facebook - jump to the page
Mailing list - The OxCafeSci mailing list sends out announcements about speakers and events. It allows automatic joining. To auto-subscribe to the Cafe mailing list please send an email from the address you want to use, to cafesci-subscribe@maillist.ox.ac.uk. To auto-unsubscribe, please email to cafesci-unsubscribe@maillist.ox.ac.uk. To add or remove other addresses instead of your own please email the organiser.
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