Will new communication technologies mean the death of science centres – as Bradburne predicted 12 years ago – or are they alive and kicking? If science centres do survive, what role could they possibly play in today's society? What mechanisms underlie the development of science centres? These are the questions driving this article. As a point of departure, we point to an outspoken plea for change at science centres, and a movement away from showing the wonders of science towards a context intended to engage visitors in debates regarding Science, Technology and Society issues. On a societal level, these tendencies seem to point in the same direction, such as the importance of facilitating scientific literacy and critical reflection. We argue that new communication technologies, such as mobile phones, hold the potential to accommodate these new trends and that science centres have shown to be enterprising in their use of such technologies.
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