National Youth Science Forum

From Tuesday 5 to Friday 22 January, a group of students was fortunate enough to be selected to participate in the 2021 National Youth Science Forum (NYSF).

Traditionally held at ANU in Canberra, this program is available to students entering Year 12 who are interested in STEM and careers in science-related fields.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions this year the NYSF ran for three weeks and combined both online and in-person experiences with an adaptive hybrid structure. We absolutely loved our experience and had several highlights from both the online component and the in-person visits. In our first week, we received a virtual tour of CERN (The European Organisation for Nuclear Research) and were able to see inside the large hadron collider, the world’s largest machine. We also conducted some at-home experiments (including DNA extraction from fruit and renewableplastic creation from potatoes) inspired by Questacon. The highlights of our in-person visits included trips to the Adelaide University Health and Medical Sciences Institute, the Institute of Machine Learning and the Flinders University Tonsley campus, along with an exclusive tour of the Defence Science Technology Institute at Edinburgh. We loved meeting other students from local and interstate areas who shared similar passions and enjoyed the exposure to the many fields of science.

Despite the challenges of being run online, passionate and engaging presenters made the experience significantly more enjoyable. We were privileged with the opportunity to listen to not one, but two Nobel Laureates. Professor Barry Marshall and Brian Schmidt, ANU Vice-Chancellor, talked to us about their journeys, discoveries and challenges in navigating the STEM world. We also enjoyed listening to Dr Karl Kruszelnicki and Justin Clarke, a Rhodes Scholar and retired AFL player. As an additional part of the program, Nikita was lucky enough to attend a small in-person session at Lot 14, the centre of South Australia’s rapidly growing space industry. Unaware of the nature of the event, it resulted in a small surprise, as she ended up in the background of a press conference with Premier Steven Marshall. He was announcing the launch of Australia’s first satellite! This very exciting day also included a tour of Myriota and Inovor Technologies facilities, two companies that play an essential role in satellite development. A visit to the Space Discovery Centre’s construction site, which opened earlier this year was also enjoyed.

The program was an impressive, inspiring and highly enjoyable experience that presented us with an eclectic range of careers, opportunities and people.

We strongly encourage any girls with an interest in STEM to give it a go.

Nikita Page, Hamayel Abaid, Tasmia Alvi, Rhea Joshi, Lucy Percival, Bronte Sleath and Gauri Wechalekar.

CHILDREN’S HOLIDAY CAMP

Sunday 26 - Tuesday 28 September, 2021 St Peter’s College Boarding House Hackney Road, St Peters

Wilderness School and St Peter’s College are proud to be hosting the Sony Foundation Children’s Holiday Camp for children between 8 and 14 years of age with special needs. This camp is offered free of charge thanks to the Sony Foundation and the generosity of the school communities involved. The camp will offer a variety of activities including: • Art and craft • Dance and music • Aquatic activities • Mini fair

Year 11 students from Wilderness School and St Peter’s College have been selected as companions for the campers. They will be provided with training and assisted by the camp coordinating team including nursing staff.

Please contact Bess Smith at Wilderness School if you have a child who is interested in participating esmith@wilderness.com.au