ROCKETS, battery-propelled cars and liquid nitrogen were the order of the day as weird science took centre stage at New College yesterday.
Now in its fourth year, the college hosted 20 workshops and shows highlighting the diversity of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects.
The event was designed to encourage more students to consider STEM subjects in their future school life and careers.
More than 300 students from Dorcan Academy, Bradon Forest, Isambard, Nova Hreod and Highworth Warneford attended the special day.
Workshops hosted by town business including TE Connectivity, Dyson and Intel and BMW aimed to educate the year eight students on the career paths STEM subjects can lead to.
TV Science supremo Dr Jonathan Hare led a ‘Breaking Bad’ inspired science talk where he took plotlines from the hit show and showed students the science behind them. This included dissolving bodies in acid and the effects of drugs on the human body.
“There’s been a great reaction and a lot of enthusiasm from the students here today. There was a collective gasp when I showed them the really horrible effects of drugs, how it can make teeth and hair fall out,” he said.
“People need to realise science is all around us. Our phones, computers are all there because someone has invented it and worked hard to make it work. It’s only when our phones go wrong that we think about it.
“I hope more students are encouraged to take up STEM subjects and become the inventors of the future.”
The quirky side of STEM subjects came out with workshops on how to build a rocket, a fan-propelled car and medical mavericks where students got to perform health MOTs on their classmates, including taking photos of their eyeballs.
Nova Hreod student Kieran Hancock said he was enjoying learning something new.
“It’s very interesting to be here today and we’re doing things we never would have done before which is great,”he said.
Co-organiser and faculty manager Cilla Pajet said the event had shone a fascinating new light on STEM subjects.
“By seeing the different sides of science, technology, engineering and maths, it’s encouraging more of our students to take up these subjects and really progress in their chosen careers.
“We also want to encourage more girls to take STEM subjects up as historically it is more boys that study them. They have all really enjoyed themselves so far, there’s just a really fantastic learning environment here and they have loved the different workshops."
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