What to do at this year's Science Fest

Life in the Graveyard • With its picturesque grounds perched over the Schuylkill, Laurel Hill Cemetery is one of the loveliest places in the city — even if it is filled with corpses. Pay no mind to the dead underfoot as you learn about the plants, birds and mammals that live and thrive in the country’s first garden cemetery. While bird-watching (BYO binoculars) and conducting foliage surveys, you’ll hear stories about the cemetery’s more active population during this hands-on, interactive nature tour. Recommended for middle-school-aged children. Sun., April 27, 9:30 a.m. and 2 p.m., free, Laurel Hill Cemetery, 3822 Ridge Ave.

—Paulina Reso

Clothes of the Future: Wearable Technology • There exists on YouTube a hilarious video from the ’30s: “Clothing of the Future” purports to predict 21st-century fashion. They got a few things wrong — unless everybody’s wearing light-up wedding veils and clunky air-conditioned utility belts and I just don’t know about it. But there’s still hope. This event will explore “smart textiles” (like a sweater that can monitor your heartbeat) and other ways we’ll be dressing less like Project Runway and more like Back to the Future II. Sun., April 27, 10:30 a.m., free, ExCITE Center at Drexel University, 3401 Market St., Suite 100. 

—Mikala Jamison

Nerd Nite Brunch: Body vs. Booze • A Sunday brunch — where hungover diners are guaranteed — that doubles as a lesson on the science of a hangover? It’s poetic, really. You’ll learn “what’s going on in your body while you’re drinking” (bad stuff that’s fun) and “why your body feels the way it does after a night out” (because God likes to punish us for bad stuff that’s fun). The VIP price includes a pretzel and a bar ticket, so you can enjoy the hair of the dog and salty carbs while you learn the truth about reputed hangover cures. Let’s pray that a brunch beer and junk food aren’t debunked. Sun., April 27, noon, $5-$15, Frankford Hall, 1210 Frankford Ave.

—Mikala Jamison

Mess Fest • It’s exactly what it sounds like. Kids put on their Sunday worst and mess around with “make-and-take slime,” “Alka-Seltzer rockets” and an all-consuming, The Blob-esque “Soap Bubble Monster.” Sun., April 27, noon, pay what you wish, Smith Memorial Playground & Playhouse, 3500 Reservoir Drive.

—Patrick Rapa

Murder at the Mütter: Serial Killer • Wannabe detectives and murder-mystery enthusiasts can get closer to the action during this investigation of a fictional series of killings supposedly committed by one person. Over the course of three hours, study clues, make deductions and solve the mystery with the help of seasoned investigators and forensic experts while learning more about the process of cracking a crime. A cocktail reception following the event will provide stiff drinks to calm any jangled nerves. Sun., April 27, 2:30 p.m., $40, College of Physicians of Philadelphia, 19 S. 22nd St.

—Paulina Reso

Love, Lust and Loathing: The Science Behind our Strongest Emotions • One person’s celebrity heartthrob is another’s big meh. (For me? Justin Timberlake. I don’t get it.) Some of us are disgusted by sushi or tomatoes, while others have a taste for the bizarre — scorpions and balut are delicacies, after all. Behind what we covet and what repulses us are hormones and chemicals that will be explored here by local experts. One of the questions they’ll apparently discuss: “Do dolphins feel lust?” We’ve got a lot of questions about the research behind the answer. Wed., April 30, 6 p.m., $5-$15, Frankford Hall, 1210 Frankford Ave. 

—Mikala Jamison

To Veg or Not to Veg? The Science Behind Vegetarianism • Ah, if only there were a scientific workshop behind every dietary choice (or fad). No, not everyone needs to go gluten-free. No, an all-grapefruit diet is not good for you. But with the exclusion of meat being one of the more far-ranging food lifestyles, there are a lot of questions to be answered: Is it more expensive? Is it really healthier? Does it actually benefit anyone but you? This workshop seeks to eke out the science behind veggie life, from the psychological to the global. Vegetarian food samples are included, if you need to test whether you could stomach the routine. Wed., April 30, 6 p.m., $5, Pavilion at Franklin Square Park. 

—Mikala Jamison

D.I.Y. Science: Fermentation • Get in on some sweet, sour science with Amanda Feifer, the bacteria enthusiast behind Phickle, a blog celebrating all things fermented (pickles! kimchi! kombucha!). Di Bruno Bros., i.e., the house of cheese, is obviously the ideal place for a class tackling the culinary benefits of lactic fermentation. Feifer will guide her class through two edible projects: D.I.Y. yogurt and sauerkraut. And of course there will be plenty of samples of fermentable edibles. Thu., May 1, 6 p.m., $15, Di Bruno Bros., 1730 Chestnut St.

—Caroline Russock

Cure You or Kill You: 19th-Century Medical Science & Quackery • It’s a night for moonlit morbid curiosity, according to Laurel Hill’s Alexis Jeffcoat. “We’ll be testing hot toddies as a medical cure and exploring medical curiosities. The Franklin Institute Traveling Science team is bringing out the electrical experiments and demos on poison; and all the while you’ll need to keep your wits about you if you want to win our cemetery-sized game of life.” Thu., May 1, 6:30 p.m., $10, Laurel Hill Cemetery, 3822 Ridge Ave.

—Patrick Rapa