My previous blog entry was an overview of my time at LIYSF 2013, and it was intended to give you a taste of what my experience was like on the whole, before I dive into the nitty-gritty of it.
As the name suggests, LIYSF was all about science. Science at an astounding level. The theme of the forum was "Crossing Science Boundaries", and it was centered around that particular idea: the importance of interdisciplinary scientific research and its potential for tackling global issues. The forum stressed the need for international scientific cooperation - knowledge and information should be freely accessible to all, and scientific research works best when it is a collaborative effort.
On every day in those 2 weeks, we attended brilliant lectures on research at the frontiers of science and engineering. The talks were conducted in Imperial College itself, often twice or thrice a day. They were incredibly though-provoking, and were designed to give us an idea of the work being carried out by eminent scientists and engineers all over the world. The discussions at the end of the lectures always threw up loads of interesting ideas! Of all the lectures that we attended, my personal favourites were: "The worldwide race to discover dark matter" by Professor Gianfranco Bertone, a session on "Crossing Science Boundaries" led by Sir Colin Terry, "Medicines for the developing world" by Professor Trevor Jones, "Engineering our lives" by Jameer Emamally and "Cross-over biology" by Professor Lord Robert Winston.
LIYSF would have been sorely incomplete without the programme of visits to various academic and industrial institutions in England, like Oxford and Cambridge Universities, Airbus and Boeing factories, Cranfield University, the National Physical Laboratory, and more. Participants had to choose which centres they wished to visit, and I was fortunate enough to get both my choices: the Mullard Space Science Laboratory and the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy. And boy, they turned out to be even better than I expected!
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The Mullard Space Science Laboratory (MSSL) is a research centre of the department of Space and Climate Physics of University College London (UCL). Nestled in the lap of probably the most gorgeous countryside I have ever seen, MSSL took my breath away. It was nothing like what I had imagined it to be - in fact, it was more like a cute B&B than UK's largest university space research department!
As someone who is seriously considering space science as a career path, I was thoroughly fascinated by the MSSL visit. The first item on the agenda there was a group of lectures, on topics ranging from Solar Plasma Physics to Enceladus, one of Saturn's moons that exhibits strange geyser-like formations. We also visited the Mechanical Engineering and Electronics labs at MSSL, where we could see first-hand the processes involved in designing and manufacturing space probes, and learn about the findings of the ESA's fleet of satellites.
The highlight of the day was definitely when one of the scientists took out from his pocket a piece of electronic equipment that had actually been in space! With the aid of a conjurer pulling out not one, but a bunch of rabbits out of his hat, he displayed it with a practiced flourish and then handed it out for us to see.
Needless to say, I returned to Imperial College from MSSL with stars in my eyes (space reference intended). The visit helped me realise that space exploration and astronomy really excite me, and I found a renewed desire to pursue a career in space research.
A couple of photographs depicting the natural beauty of the surroundings at MSSL:
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The trip to the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy was equally fascinating. At CCFE, we saw how physicists, engineers and technicians were actively pushing the boundaries of nuclear fusion technology and trying to make it a viable energy source. Located near Oxford, CCFE was a starkly different environment from MSSL - highly industrialised, and bustling with activity at all times. It was as exciting, however - this was the frontier of research in nuclear fusion!
The programme at CCFE included lectures on a range of topics - the theory behind nuclear fusion, advances in fusion technology over the years and the difficulties faced, and also about the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). We were then taken on a guided tour of the facilities at Culham, including the control centre, the MAST reactor and the JET reactor (the Joint European Torus, currently the largest facility of its kind in operation). It was incredible - I could barely restrain myself from acting like a teenaged fangirl!
At Culham, I realised how researchers in the STEM fields have the potential and the ability to work for the greater good, and to contribute towards solving pressing global issues. In a way, this was exactly what the London International Youth Science Forum was about, what it represented.
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Another fascinating event during LIYSF 2013 was the Student Bazaar Evening. It gave participants the opportunity to showcase their own research projects and present posters on them. The idea behind the Bazaar was to give students a chance to present their work on an international platform, while simultaneously allowing stimulating discussions to take place between participants. That evening was probably the most memorable of all the 14 evenings of LIYSF. The quality of the projects was simply mind-blowing, and I was amazed by the work of some of the participants. It was really exciting to learn about their work and throw ideas around, while learning about research spanning almost every field known to man - from taxonomy to human chemosignals, and from robotics to efficient OLED displays!
The LIYSF schedule also involved visits to the Science Museum and the Natural History Museum in London. In fact, both the museums were within walking distance of Imperial College, so it was pretty convenient as well. The museums themselves were awe-inspiring, definitely two of the most well-planned museums I have ever been to. The museum visits added to the science overdose that was LIYSF, and yet we enjoyed every minute of them! There was just so much to take in, so much to learn, so much to think about that it was unbelievable.
To round off this blog entry, I present some of the photographs I took at the Science Museum:
In the museums, I also came across some inspiring quotes which I would like to share:
1) It's human nature to stretch, to go, to see, to understand. Exploration is not a choice, really; it's an imperative.
- Micheal Collins (Astronaut, Apollo 11)
2) The Earth is the cradle of the mind, but we cannot live forever in a cradle.
- Konstantin Tsiolkovsky (Father of Russian Astronautics)
3) Freedom of thought is best promoted by the gradual illumination of men's minds, which follows from the advance of science.
- Charles Darwin.
As the name suggests, LIYSF was all about science. Science at an astounding level. The theme of the forum was "Crossing Science Boundaries", and it was centered around that particular idea: the importance of interdisciplinary scientific research and its potential for tackling global issues. The forum stressed the need for international scientific cooperation - knowledge and information should be freely accessible to all, and scientific research works best when it is a collaborative effort.
On every day in those 2 weeks, we attended brilliant lectures on research at the frontiers of science and engineering. The talks were conducted in Imperial College itself, often twice or thrice a day. They were incredibly though-provoking, and were designed to give us an idea of the work being carried out by eminent scientists and engineers all over the world. The discussions at the end of the lectures always threw up loads of interesting ideas! Of all the lectures that we attended, my personal favourites were: "The worldwide race to discover dark matter" by Professor Gianfranco Bertone, a session on "Crossing Science Boundaries" led by Sir Colin Terry, "Medicines for the developing world" by Professor Trevor Jones, "Engineering our lives" by Jameer Emamally and "Cross-over biology" by Professor Lord Robert Winston.
LIYSF would have been sorely incomplete without the programme of visits to various academic and industrial institutions in England, like Oxford and Cambridge Universities, Airbus and Boeing factories, Cranfield University, the National Physical Laboratory, and more. Participants had to choose which centres they wished to visit, and I was fortunate enough to get both my choices: the Mullard Space Science Laboratory and the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy. And boy, they turned out to be even better than I expected!
-
The Mullard Space Science Laboratory (MSSL) is a research centre of the department of Space and Climate Physics of University College London (UCL). Nestled in the lap of probably the most gorgeous countryside I have ever seen, MSSL took my breath away. It was nothing like what I had imagined it to be - in fact, it was more like a cute B&B than UK's largest university space research department!
 |
| The main building at MSSL. |
As someone who is seriously considering space science as a career path, I was thoroughly fascinated by the MSSL visit. The first item on the agenda there was a group of lectures, on topics ranging from Solar Plasma Physics to Enceladus, one of Saturn's moons that exhibits strange geyser-like formations. We also visited the Mechanical Engineering and Electronics labs at MSSL, where we could see first-hand the processes involved in designing and manufacturing space probes, and learn about the findings of the ESA's fleet of satellites.
The highlight of the day was definitely when one of the scientists took out from his pocket a piece of electronic equipment that had actually been in space! With the aid of a conjurer pulling out not one, but a bunch of rabbits out of his hat, he displayed it with a practiced flourish and then handed it out for us to see.
 |
| How amazing is that? |
Needless to say, I returned to Imperial College from MSSL with stars in my eyes (space reference intended). The visit helped me realise that space exploration and astronomy really excite me, and I found a renewed desire to pursue a career in space research.
A couple of photographs depicting the natural beauty of the surroundings at MSSL:
-
The trip to the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy was equally fascinating. At CCFE, we saw how physicists, engineers and technicians were actively pushing the boundaries of nuclear fusion technology and trying to make it a viable energy source. Located near Oxford, CCFE was a starkly different environment from MSSL - highly industrialised, and bustling with activity at all times. It was as exciting, however - this was the frontier of research in nuclear fusion!
The programme at CCFE included lectures on a range of topics - the theory behind nuclear fusion, advances in fusion technology over the years and the difficulties faced, and also about the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). We were then taken on a guided tour of the facilities at Culham, including the control centre, the MAST reactor and the JET reactor (the Joint European Torus, currently the largest facility of its kind in operation). It was incredible - I could barely restrain myself from acting like a teenaged fangirl!
At Culham, I realised how researchers in the STEM fields have the potential and the ability to work for the greater good, and to contribute towards solving pressing global issues. In a way, this was exactly what the London International Youth Science Forum was about, what it represented.
 |
| The assembly hall for the JET |
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| A replica of the entire JET assembly |
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| The MAST reactor at Culham |
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| Video feed of the plasma inside the MAST reactor |
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Another fascinating event during LIYSF 2013 was the Student Bazaar Evening. It gave participants the opportunity to showcase their own research projects and present posters on them. The idea behind the Bazaar was to give students a chance to present their work on an international platform, while simultaneously allowing stimulating discussions to take place between participants. That evening was probably the most memorable of all the 14 evenings of LIYSF. The quality of the projects was simply mind-blowing, and I was amazed by the work of some of the participants. It was really exciting to learn about their work and throw ideas around, while learning about research spanning almost every field known to man - from taxonomy to human chemosignals, and from robotics to efficient OLED displays!
The LIYSF schedule also involved visits to the Science Museum and the Natural History Museum in London. In fact, both the museums were within walking distance of Imperial College, so it was pretty convenient as well. The museums themselves were awe-inspiring, definitely two of the most well-planned museums I have ever been to. The museum visits added to the science overdose that was LIYSF, and yet we enjoyed every minute of them! There was just so much to take in, so much to learn, so much to think about that it was unbelievable.
To round off this blog entry, I present some of the photographs I took at the Science Museum:
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| Life-size model of the world's first particle accelerator. |
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| Replica of the German V2 rocket. |
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| Watson and Crick's model of the structure of DNA. I don't think this needs any introduction! |
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| Replica of the Apollo 11 Lunar Module |
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| The actual Command Module from the Apollo 10 mission. This wasn't a replica - it was the real deal! |
In the museums, I also came across some inspiring quotes which I would like to share:
1) It's human nature to stretch, to go, to see, to understand. Exploration is not a choice, really; it's an imperative.
- Micheal Collins (Astronaut, Apollo 11)
2) The Earth is the cradle of the mind, but we cannot live forever in a cradle.
- Konstantin Tsiolkovsky (Father of Russian Astronautics)
3) Freedom of thought is best promoted by the gradual illumination of men's minds, which follows from the advance of science.
- Charles Darwin.
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