Science doesn't belong only in academic settings.
Ao longo de três noites em maio de 2026, pesquisadores da Universidade Federal de Uberlândia trocam os laboratórios por bares em quatro cidades do Triângulo Mineiro e Alto Paranaíba, levando ciência gratuita e sem burocracia a quem simplesmente aparecer. O Pint of Science — festival nascido na Inglaterra em 2013 sobre a premissa de que o conhecimento não pertence apenas às academias — chega pela primeira vez de forma simultânea a Uberlândia, Monte Carmelo, Patos de Minas e Ituiutaba. A expansão é um gesto de equidade: reconhecer que o direito de conversar com quem pesquisa não deveria depender do tamanho da cidade em que se vive.
- A ciência ainda chega de forma desigual ao interior: quem não mora no campus principal raramente tem acesso direto a pesquisadores.
- Entre 18 e 20 de maio, doze palestras em Ituiutaba e cinco em Uberlândia — sobre IA, abelhas solitárias, burnout e quadrinhos científicos — comprimem anos de pesquisa em conversas de bar.
- A entrada é livre, sem inscrição e sem pré-requisito: basta ter dezoito anos e aparecer depois das 19h.
- Vídeos curtos no Instagram — os 'Goles de Ciência' — funcionam como aperitivos digitais, atraindo público antes mesmo de a primeira cerveja ser servida.
- Ao realizar o festival simultaneamente nas quatro cidades universitárias, a UFU transforma um evento cultural em declaração institucional sobre a quem a universidade pertence.
Pela primeira vez, o Pint of Science acontece ao mesmo tempo nas quatro cidades onde a UFU mantém campi. Entre 18 e 20 de maio de 2026, pesquisadores deixam os laboratórios e ocupam bares e espaços culturais em Uberlândia, Monte Carmelo, Patos de Minas e Ituiutaba — sem cobrança de ingresso, sem cadastro prévio, aberto a qualquer adulto disposto a aparecer.
O festival não é novidade no mundo. Criado na Inglaterra em 2013, o Pint of Science parte de uma ideia simples: ciência não precisa de auditório formal. O ambiente descontraído do bar substitui a solenidade da palestra; o pesquisador fala, o público pergunta, e a conversa acontece entre goles.
Em Uberlândia, no dia 19, cinco pesquisadores se revezam no Florindo's Bar: filosofia como antídoto à desinformação, inteligência artificial detectando doenças pela saliva, comunicação química entre abelhas solitárias e biologia contada em quadrinhos. Ituiutaba concentra a programação mais extensa — doze palestras em três noites, distribuídas entre dois bares, cobrindo temas como vieses em sistemas de IA, parasitismo, burnout e autoria na era do copiar e colar.
Para ampliar o alcance além das noites de evento, pesquisadores publicam no Instagram pequenos vídeos chamados 'Goles de Ciência': fragmentos que funcionam como convite, apostando na lógica de como as pessoas consomem informação hoje — primeiro em doses curtas, depois, se algo fisgar, em profundidade.
O que torna esta edição significativa não é o formato em si, já consolidado globalmente, mas a simultaneidade. Ao levar o festival a todas as suas cidades universitárias ao mesmo tempo, a UFU afirma que o acesso à ciência não é privilégio de quem mora no polo principal — é algo que pertence a cada comunidade onde a universidade existe.
For the first time, the Pint of Science festival is arriving simultaneously across all four cities where the Federal University of Uberlândia maintains campuses. Between May 18 and 20, researchers will leave their laboratories and settle into bars and cultural spaces in Uberlândia, Monte Carmelo, Patos de Minas, and Ituiutaba, presenting their work to anyone who walks through the door after 7 p.m. The event is free, open to adults, and requires no advance registration—just show up and listen.
The festival itself is not new. Pint of Science began in England in 2013 with a simple idea: science doesn't belong only in academic settings. The format strips away the formality of the lecture hall. Researchers give informal talks about their discoveries, answering questions in an atmosphere designed for conversation rather than performance. The setting is deliberately casual. You can order a drink. You can sit with friends. You can ask whatever you want to ask.
In Uberlândia, the main campus city, the event takes place on May 19 at Florindo's Bar on Avenida Francisco Galassi. Five researchers will present that evening. Rafael Rios Moura will discuss philosophy as a tool against misinformation. Murillo Guimarães Carneiro will explain how artificial intelligence can detect disease through saliva samples. Amanda Danuello Pivatto will explore how solitary bees communicate chemically. João Agreli and Solange Augusto will present biology through comic strips—a format that makes the subject accessible to people who might never open a textbook.
Ituiutaba, the Pontal campus location, hosts the most extensive programming. Over three nights, twelve talks will unfold across two venues. At Brejaria Breja e Burger and Cervejaria Ituiutaba, researchers will address humor in history, the hidden biases embedded in artificial intelligence systems, health beyond the human body, changing consumption habits, the question of authorship in an age of copy-and-paste, parasitism, and burnout syndrome. The breadth of topics reflects what researchers at UFU actually study—not a curated greatest hits, but the real work happening in labs and offices across the university.
This expansion matters because it distributes access. Science communication has traditionally concentrated in major university hubs. By bringing Pint of Science to Monte Carmelo and Patos de Minas and Ituiutaba, UFU is acknowledging that people in those cities deserve the same chance to hear directly from researchers, to ask questions, to understand what's being discovered. The barrier to entry is deliberately low: no registration, no cost, no prerequisite knowledge. You just have to be eighteen and willing to show up.
The university is also using social media to extend the reach. On Instagram, researchers are posting short videos—what the festival calls "Goles de Ciência," or science sips—that preview what they'll discuss. These clips serve as appetizers, giving people a reason to come to the bar and hear the full conversation. It's a strategy that acknowledges how people actually consume information now: in fragments first, then, if something catches their attention, in depth.
What makes this moment significant is not the novelty of the format—Pint of Science has been running globally for over a decade—but the commitment to simultaneity. By holding the festival across all four campus cities at the same time, UFU is making a statement about equity and reach. Science is not a resource reserved for people who live in the largest city. It's something that belongs in every community where the university operates.
Citas Notables
The format strips away formality—researchers give informal talks about discoveries in an atmosphere designed for conversation rather than performance.— Pint of Science model
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why does it matter that this is happening in bars instead of, say, a university auditorium?
Because a bar is where people already are. They're not making a special trip to hear about science. They're having a drink with friends, and suddenly there's a researcher talking about bee communication. The formality disappears. You can interrupt. You can ask a stupid question. You can leave if you're bored.
But doesn't that risk trivializing the research?
The opposite, actually. When you strip away the academic theater—the podium, the slides, the jargon—you're forced to explain why your work matters. You can't hide behind credentials. You have to make it real.
Why expand to all four campus cities now, in 2026?
Because the university realized that researchers in Monte Carmelo and Patos de Minas are doing important work too. They weren't getting the same visibility. This says: your research matters enough to bring to the public, wherever you are.
What kind of person shows up to something like this?
Anyone curious. People who want to understand what's happening in the world. People who don't have a science background but are tired of feeling left out of conversations about AI or disease or the environment. The no-registration requirement means there's no barrier to just trying it.
Is this just entertainment, or is it actually changing how people think about science?
It's both. But the real change is subtle. When you hear directly from a researcher—not through a news article, not through social media—you start to understand that science is made by people, not handed down from on high. That changes something.