Events

More than 120 year 12 students taking science subjects at Dane Court this year. All of them were busy last week carrying out research projects and creating presentations of their work for an impressive Science Fair on Friday. They were given a general theme and asked to define their own research topic within this. This year’s theme was “Energy” which gave rise to some brilliantly diverse projects; groups worked on topics as varied as the energy involved in lightning, the energy of chemical reactions and even how living cells use sugar to provide energy. The week aims to mirror how scientists work in the “real world” as members of a team and gives the students the opportunity see how their particular scientific skills can be used alongside others.

Pfizer, Thanet Earth, Fujifilm and the Mayor of Broadstairs and St Peter’s, Councillor Rosalind Binks, sponsored prizes for the best four scientific presentations. Vivienne Jenkins and Nick Elford of Pfizer and Sarah Quattroluni of Thanet Earth visited the science fair to judge the entries, along with Councillor Binks and Head of School Andrew Fowler. The deliberations were almost impossible this year. The quality of the work produced by all 18 groups was of the highest standard, and the enthusiasm of the students was inspiring.

Emily 17 years old from Broadstairs and winner of the Thanet Earth prize said: ‘The project was really interesting and I was able to work with other students that I don’t normally work. It was very useful to see how all the sciences related to each other and contributed to the overall outcome. I thoroughly enjoyed the week’
The Pfizer Science Prize was won by Ellen Whitehead, Zainab Mansoor, Sarah Burke, Dom Wallen, Nick Short and Lucy Mount for the research project “A comparison of energy generation from wind and water turbines.”

The Fujifilm Science Prize was won by Sabrina Latchman, Ellie Albone, Samuel Barrs, Jordan Potter, Valentine Goesel and Alice Price for the research project “An investigation into the chemical reaction behind glowing synthetics and bioluminescence.”

The Thanet Earth Science Prize was won by James Howard, Josh Edeki, Chris May, Maisie Bodemeaid, Emily Watkins, Poppy Attwell-Bushell and Shane Wells for the research project “Energy transfers in tsunamis.”

The Mayor’s Science Prize was won by Anila Viepadan, Maren Riseng, Jack Farley, Ria Sareen, Alexander Payne and Gregory Nocentini for the research project “To what extent does the kinetic energy of a meteorite affect the diameter of the crater?”