18 Colchester County High School for Girls students from year 10 and 12 went to the annual Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition on the 4th July.
18 Colchester County High School for Girls students from year 10 and 12 went to the annual Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition on the 4th July.
The exhibition showcases state of the art UK science with the opportunity for students and the general public to take part in hands on activities and talk to the scientists about their work. It is truly inspiring. This is what some of the students made of the trip:
The Royal Society Exhibition was fantastic due to the variety of the exhibits. Although the 4 of us in our group had very different interests (2 biologists, a psychologist and a physicist) we all found areas of interest, from conservation to astronomy to quantum sensing and medical imaging of the brain.
There were 22 exhibitors on a wide range of topics from antibiotic resistance to sensing how dragonflies fly to make drones. Here we learnt about cutting edge scientific research, for example finding life on Mars. We were able to participate in a range of experiments, including a survey on dry eye disease with eye scanning and using new technology. There was a 3D printer that was printing the matrix for bone using stem cells to be used in bone transplants that is about to undergo trials in humans. We enjoyed working out which antibody was suitable for the malaria pathogen as part of a new vaccine development at the University of Oxford.
Two students were interviewed for BBC Look East News about their experience of the day. We also had a talk from the scientific communicator Huw James who described his research around the world about climate change and the evidence from glaciers, jungles and oceans.
The opportunity to speak to leading researchers and scientists in the field was great, as we could be taught by and have explanations from people who knew all the ins and outs of their projects. Furthermore, we learnt about practical and commercial application of these projects and were able to take part in demonstrations such as exploring a huge model gut and controlling video games by focusing very hard or trying to relax.
The entire visit was really inspiring to all of us and it allowed us to see the diverse range of science.
