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Chamber and committees

Science Ceilidh Celebrating Gravitational Waves

  • Submitted by: Annie Wells, Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party.
  • Date lodged: Monday, 14 July 2025
  • Motion reference: S6M-18309

That the Parliament congratulates the University of Glasgow and Science Ceilidh on creating a new Scottish country dance inspired by the discovery of gravitational waves, marking the 10th anniversary of this ground-breaking scientific achievement; understands that the dance will premiere on 17 July 2025 at a ceilidh during the GR–Amaldi international science conference in Glasgow; recognises that organisers expect many of the conference’s over 800 global researchers and educators to join the first large-scale performance; notes that the dance was developed through workshops between Glasgow physicists and Science Ceilidh, depicting the life cycle of black holes from orbiting pairs to their collision, which produces the signal detected on Earth; further notes that participants will release a celebratory "whoop" at the climax, representing the astrophysical "ringdown" stage that sends ripples through spacetime, enabling detection; acknowledges what it sees as this creative fusion of science and the arts, and believes that the ceilidh promises to be a fun, joyful celebration, combining science, music, and dance in a uniquely Scottish way.


Supported by: Alasdair Allan, Jeremy Balfour, Miles Briggs, Tim Eagle, Meghan Gallacher, Dr Pam Gosal MBE, Dr Sandesh Gulhane, Craig Hoy, Bill Kidd, Douglas Ross, Alexander Stewart, Paul Sweeney, Beatrice Wishart