Some of the world's youngest and greatest minds gathered last Thursday on the campus of Peking University to promote the future of science, education and research.

The event marked the opening ceremony of WISER Summer 2010.

The five-day meeting presented by the Interdisciplinary Research Center (CRI) in Paris and the Yuanpei School at Peking University is the first WISER-U global event.

WISER-U is a non-profit international association, created two years ago by students and scientists who are passionate to share ideas and develop projects for the future of science, education and research.

That is precisely what WISER stands for: World-Wide Interaction for Science Education and Research.

After the opening ceremony, the first session of the event called "Coopetition", a combination of cooperation and competition, began.

Eighteen teams consisting of the brightest young minds from the top-notch universities all over the world presented their innovative concepts or detailed project plans to a number of international scientists and researchers.

The students participate to compete and to win the prize, but more importantly, they are here seeking collaboration.

WISER Summer 2010 creates a perfect international platform for students, scientists and researchers worldwide to share their innovations. By working together, participants hope their ideas can be turned into reality -- ultimately shaping the future of science and education. There are also two more sessions for students to participate during the event: Out-of-box Brainstorming and the Creative Camp.

Furthermore, the TEDxWISER-U Conference will take place August 21, which will promote "Re-imagining Tomorrow's Education."

Ten speakers form different countries and various fields will be present to talk about their visions for scientific and educational exploration.

But the gathering doesn't come without a little fun. Two of the Nao robots, which were made famous at the Shanghai World Expo, also appeared as guests on the opening day and as always, delivered a fantastic performance.