Biology Field Trip 2014

the Autumn Term, which will be the sixth issue for the society.

At the society gatherings every Friday, we have been privileged to hear from seven external speakers, who presented on a multitude of topics. First, Dr Tom Clarke from Imperial College London presented on ‘how the immune system recognises the presence of bacteria and protects us against infection’, discussing some of his biomedical research, and advancements in the understanding of immunology. March was a dynamic and vibrant period for the society, giving rise to the name ‘Science Month’. We heard from Professor Julian Evans from University College London, who gave a thought-provoking talk on ‘How do we nurture creativity in the science curriculum?’, capturing the imagination of many students and staff alike. This was followed by a presentation of astronomical proportions by Professor Carl Murray, titled ‘Saturn’s Rings from Cassini’, with some fascinating images from the space probe that Professor Murray had been working in close collaboration with for over 20 years. Next, Dr Philip Zegerman from the University of Cambridge gave a presentation titled ‘Beer, bread and frogs: the best recipe for cancer research’, discussing various aspects of cell biology and how they can be applied to the fight against cancer.

During the final week of March, former Olavian Asher Leeks presented on the topic ‘What makes us human?’, and Dr Julian Ma of St George’s University London gave a talk titled ‘Biomedical Research – what is the point?’, outlining how his team of scientists discovered the first ever vaccine against tooth decay, his latest research into using plants to create medicines against HIV and other sexually-transmitted diseases, and the importance of biomedical research in the future to ensure that treatment is accessible, affordable and up-todate for everyone around the globe. We also welcomed former Olavian Natsai Chieza in the summer term who presented on her research on genetically engineering bacteria to produce coloured dyes.

On top of this, we were delighted to give students the opportunity to present on widely ranging topics, including ‘The Science behind Dying’ by Isaac van Bakel, ‘The Game of Life’ by Daniel Barovbe, and ‘Mad Cow Disease’ by Ben McKechnie.

Thanks to the hard work of the three previous presidents of the society (Jenni Visuri, Fraser Boistelle and Harry Jenkins), the headmaster, and members of staff in the science department, the Olavian Lecture Series has continued with high levels of success. Students, staff, parents, friends and the local community have enjoyed presentations by Lord Professor Robert Winston, Sir Richard Friend, Professor Robert Freedman, Dr

Adam Rutherford and Professor Steve Jones during the Autumn and Spring terms.

We look forward to welcoming new sixth-form students in the forthcoming academic year to this dynamic, vibrant society that encapsulates the essence of science at Saint Olave’s.

Abhishek Patel, President of the Natural Sciences Society

Olavian Natural Sciences Society Magazine

Congratulations to Fraser Boistelle (13K), Harry Jenkins (13M) and Jenni Visuri (13H) for compiling Issue 4 of the Olavian Natural Sciences Society magazine. Researched and written by our students, this contains an array of fascinating articles from extremophiles to the Mandelbrot set, from parthenogenesis to dark matter.

Medics’ Society

The Medics’ Society has had a fantastic year under both the leadership of the new and previous leaders. I think I speak on behalf of all the Medics when I say thanks to Zeinab, Tolu and Skanda for their great leadership and dedication to the society...

With Ella Day, Matipa Chieza and myself being newly elected in February, we set out with the aim of creating a new identity for our society. Our aim was twofold: we wished widen our focus at medics to include further fields of medicine such as physchiarty and neurology and we wanted to create a way of distingishing the society from all the others. For the former, we have welcomed many riveting presentations from various experts in the medical field, held various sessions entirely focused on helping medics in their BMAT and UKCAT exams and we have even enjoyed trips to UCL seminars and lectures at The Royal Society of Medicine (RSCM) in London. For the latter, we pulled together to create the new society logo and have spent countless hours editing, designing and publishing the fantistic journals.

We have been very priviliged this year at the society, having a prominent best selling author/professor Nessa Carey come in to present on her field of epigenetics alongside lectures from the lead and in fact only professor of medical innovation at NHS England and the RSCM. The turn-out for these events was phenomenal and we hope to continue this success with more prominent medics such as Dr Henrietta-Bowden Jones, TEDX Medical lecturer and leading consultant psychiatrist due to attend the society in the coming weeks.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all the society members who tirelessly attend every week and never fail to contribute articles to the journals. I would also like to warmly welcome the new Year 12 members and hope you enjoy and fully immerse yourselves in what the society has to offer.

Experimental Chemistry Society

This brand new society extends interest through fun experiments such as deducing what a mystery substance is through a series of chemical tests. Congratulations to Year 12 founders Rebecca Daramola, Lucy Morrell, Avni Gupta, Sevenia Khandelwal, Effie Iossifidis, Simon Ng, Saarah Kaba and Pamela Tickell.

Chemistry Olympiad

Fuelled by biscuits from Dr Steel’s Olympiad preparation sessions, students took part in the 2014 Chemistry Olympiad. From a total of 5682 students nationally who entered the competition, congratulations to Year 13s, Fraser Boistelle and Isabella Inzani, who achieved Gold awards. Well done also to Year 13s, Uroosa Chughtai, Tomas Dean, Harry Jenkins, Caterina Hall and Ben McKechnie; and to Year 12s, Chandan Dodeja, Akhilesh Amit and Kush Banga, who received Silvers.

Salters’ Festival of Chemistry

Salters’ festival is a prestigious chemistry festival competition held every year in 36 locations by the Salters’ institute. On the 23rd of April 2014 a team of 2 Year 7 students and 2 Year 8 students attended one of these competitions of at University College London. This team consisted of Dylan Evans (7H), Shane Morris (7L), Marcus Finn (8H) and Conor Donohoe (8H). The team travelled to UCL with Mrs Morinan who was allowed to help a bit during the first challenge but not the second. This team competed very well with relatively few mishaps; however they did not win any awards. The experience was a brilliant one for all involved and we hope St Olave’s continues to attend next year.

Physics Olympiad

In another very successful year for the Physics Olympiad, Sixth Form students pit their brains against students from across the country in a very challenging examination going well beyond the scope of A level. Congratulations to Year 13s, Oscar Wilkins, Dominic Robson and Jenni Visuri, who achieved Silver awards; and to Aleksandar Ristic-Smith and Keir Bowater who achieved Bronze.

Science Challenge Winner

Congratulations to Rebecca Daramola (12R) who was declared the overall winner of the Royal College of Science Union (Imperial College) Challenge 2014, for her essay in response to a question set by Pallab Ghosh. She was presented with two certificates and a trophy at the final, held at the Imperial War Museum.

Cassini Scientist for a Day Competition.

We were delighted to hear from Dr Alison Hartshorn, (School of Mathematical Sciences, Physics and Astronomy, Queen Mary University of London) that Elena Rastorgueva (12S) was the 1st Prize winner of this prestigious Competition. Elena’s prize includes the opportunity to work with Professor Carl Murray at the

University, as well as having her entry published by the European Space Agency.

Year 8 trip to the Royal Observatory in Greenwich

Year 8 visited the Royal Observatory and Maritime Museum in Greenwich, on a beautiful day at the end of Activity Week 1. The students enjoyed a fun practical lesson on ‘Exploring Exoplanets’, and a visit to a show at the Planetarium, in addition to the hands on displays at the Observatory. After the show they were given the opportunity to quiz an astronomy expert. Staff at the Observatory were very impressed by the curiosity and background knowledge of the students.

Astronomy Club

This year, Kush Banga, Akhilesh Amit and I decided that the existing astronomy club which focused mainly on practical skills needed rejuvenating. The astronomy club we created is one which concentrates mainly on astrophysics (and occasionally general physics) through a weekly talk given by anyone with a burning desire to share some esoteric knowledge about the universe. We have had talks on everything from black holes to star formation and from alien life to the planets and moons of our own abode, the solar system. We have a loyal band of regular astrophysicists from Year 7 to 12 all of whom contribute to animated and informal discussions about the finer workings of the world around us. Black holes excite the most debate, with such poignant questions as ‘what would happen if you nuked a black hole?’ and ‘is it true that water is the only thing that can escape a black hole?’ Putting aside the disturbing obsession among the Year 7s with nuclear weapons, we were delighted to have the opportunity of remotely accessing the Haleakala observatory in Hawaii to take our own look at the subject of some of our debates, kindly organised by Loren Noble. All years are welcome so come and discover your inner astrophysicist at 1pm, Wednesday, S7. See you there!

Above: Experimental Chemistry

Below: Blowing Methane Bubbles

English & Drama