Franklin 6, Spring 2022, Bumper Edition

THE FRANKLIN

TheScienceMagazineofNottingHill&EalingHighSchool ◆ Spring2022

Scienc Wee Bumpe Editio

This week, the Science Faculty has organised a range of events to get involved in During their science lessons, Year 7 will be taking part in various forensics activities in order to solve a real crime On Tuesday there will be a Year 8 trip to Kew Gardens, a Sixth form vs Teachers University Challenge and a series of talks related to Medicine and Dentistry from Dr Bosco Li, Dr Elora Mukherjee and Hafsa Malik. The Oxford High School virtual Medical Conference is on Wednesday, open to anyone in Year 10 and above who is interested in pursuing a career in medicine and Year 7 will be participating in their ‘New Scientist Roulette’ challenge finals where they will be giving 3-minute speeches on various scientific topics inspired by randomly-allocated articles from the New Scientist Additionally on Wednesday, there will be talks from alumnae engineer Kate Crawford, cetacean expert Eliza Lindsay and female Engineering Undergraduate of the Year Phoebe Rylatt. There will be a fun science quiz with Harrow School on Thursday alongside a Year 11 vs Teachers Scientific Spelling Bee During Friday lunchtime, Year 8 will be showcasing their Bronze CREST projects and to finish off Science Week 2022 there will be a themed lunch in the canteen and a nail biting ‘Mothers and Daughters’ remote science quiz on Friday evening! And last but not least, we hope you enjoy this bumper edition of The Franklin, now in its fifth edition.

Brown, Editor in Chief

Ms

Ms Brown, Ms Copin, and selected Year 11 on the "Science Book Shopping Trip" expedition to Hatchard's. Pre-planning lunch in Picadilly!

CONTENTS

Glow-in-the-dark pigs and banana vaccines: Has human curiosity taken a step too far?

By Tilda Hardman Year 10

When a proposal is obviously absurd and never going to work, we often say ‘pigs might fly’ But what about ‘pigs might glow’? It’s not as absurd as you think In fact, it’s happening right now and it is just one of the by-products of amazing developments in genetic engineering. The idea of glowing pigs might instantly strike you as unsettling and unnecessary After all, who needs swine that can luminesce under HEV light? Scientists are divided on their efficacy with some claiming they provide invaluable insight into human disease and others arguing they’re just mutant monsters

These transgenic pigs are created by implanting jellyfish DNA into pig embryos, boosting stem-cell science and potentially producing enzymes to cure maladies such as haemophilia, for which there is currently no cure. Due to the stem cell’s unique ability to regenerate damaged tissue, scientists think they could be used for transplants and reformative medicine

But why take such measures to merge the DNA of two species so unalike? This is a question that has been spotlighted by the Home Office and is under increasing scrutiny with statistics revealing that in 2020, there were 1 44 million

experimental procedures on the breeding of genetically-altered animals.

Scientists have detected that the genetic material of pigs encodes a protein that lights up in a bright green hue As it is so easily identifiable, its stem cells could be injected into other animals so researchers can track how they develop without a biopsy. Similar experiments have been implemented on chickens to study embryo development The eggs of these fluorescent poultry can be incubated and studied by scientists whereas mammal foetuses gestate in its mother’s uterus, making it much harder to monitor its physiological developments. Yet combining invertebrate genetic material with mammals is clearly no easy job, and it ruffles the feathers of animal rights organisations However, it is also thought to be cost-effective as, in the words of Dr Stefan Moisyadi from the University of Hawaii's Institute for Biogenesis Research, “Wecanmake enzymes a lot cheaper in animals than a factory that will cost millions of dollars to build,” as treatments for Haemophilia and other diseases are expensive and involve a series of lifelong injections Nevertheless, this trend in genetic modification is disturbing; GeneWatch’s director Helen Wallace says “this blanket rise is worrying and bears little relation to reality” Animals such as mice and rats have been genetically edited so they succumb to human conditions like obesity and cancer Environmental issues also arise

from the widespread creation of such creatures as by introducing genetically modified animals, plants and organisms into the environment, we are devastating biodiversity What if in this welter of genetic remodelling, a current species

gets overrun by a new and dominant one? We may be saving human lives but are effectively saying our rights trump all those of the animal kingdom

It isn’t only animals who are subject to genetic intervention but even some freakish fruits and vegetables Perhaps in a few years time, your humble break-time banana will be an instrument of great medical influence as people could be vaccinated against diseases like hepatitis B and cholera from a simple snack. When an altered form of a virus is injected into a banana sapling, the virus' genetic makeup becomes permanently embedded in the plants cells, building up antibodies in the immune system of the consumer with life-saving potential Cancer-curing fruit salad? Pigs might not fly after all.

Sources

● theverge.com/2013/12/30/5256732/scientists-creat e-glow-in-the-dark-pigs-using-jellyfish-dna

● news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4605202.st m

● gov.uk/government/statistics/statistics-of-scientif ic-procedures-on-living-animals-great-britain-202 0/annual-statistics-of-scientific-procedures-on-liv ing-animals-great-britain-2020

Is time travel possible?

By Lollie Rabin Year 10

Although time travel is sadly not what is portrayed in sci-fi movies, science says that it is technically possible to achieve, but there is much dispute about how fast you can travel Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity states that time travel is possible but you can’t travel faster than the speed of light Indeed, modern theories about wormholes, cosmic strings and the "Alcubierre drive" mean one can travel faster than the speed of light This article will seek to explain these ideas and how they might make time travel possible.

What is Einstein’s theory of relativity?

Einstein published his paper on relativity in 1916 associating the force of gravity with the changing geometry of space-time Essentially, it states that insteadofgravity being an invisible force attractingobjectstoanother,gravityisthe curving or warping of space The bigger the objects, the more gravity warps the space around it This is the same principle that all the planets orbiting around the sun in our solar system follow This warping of gravity also affects the measurement of time We tend to think of time moving at a constant rate, but as gravity can warp space, it can also dilate time.

● treehugger.com/bizarre-examples-of-genetic-engi neering-4869360

Einstein says that the faster you travel the slower you experience time For example, when you are on an aeroplane, the clockwilltickata slower pace compared to when you are on the ground Many experiments have been carried out to prove Einstein’s theory For example, a satellite was equipped with sensitive gyroscopes (instruments which measure angular motion), to measure tiny twists and warps in space time made by the Earth as it moves and rotates through space This proved that Einstein's theory had physical manifestations

Why does modern day science say that you can travel faster than the speed of light?

Idea #1: Cosmic Strings

Cosmic strings are the ‘texture of the universe’ These strings are known as "topological

defects", meaning that they are not evolving or changing in any way: they are just there and cannot be removed They were first discovered in the 1970s when technology became advanced enough for scientists to detect them

When the universe was created, cosmic strings were formed 10-³⁵ seconds after the Big Bang went into the phase transition, a process similar to what happens with, say, water molecules when heated or cooled. However, instead of hydrogen and oxygenatomschangingshape,this change happened to the universe as a whole: where it cooled very quickly, spacetime "cracked" slightly into hairline fractures, not unlike the ones we see in blocks of ice These cracks are cosmic strings

Even though the strings are invisible to most of our advanced technology they hold great amounts of energy A key question is what happens when two cosmic strings pass each other: is the spacetime-warping so great that a person moving around them could take a shorter path, travelling faster than light, and thereby going back in time? If you circled the cosmic string wouldyou be able to meetyourself before youeverleft?

Idea #2: Wormholes

Wormholes are like tunnels in space, but they can also connect points that are vast distances apart via the warping of spacetime We know that they exist due to Einstein’s Theory of Relativity as if you solve it in a certain way, the mathematical answer will give you a structure like one of a wormhole Wormholes are formed through the gravitational attraction between objects from parallel universes competing against the resistance coming from the two different dimensions of our universe When the attraction is greater than the resistance, the dimensions or borders between the universes deform, and the objects touch, creating the wormhole. Wormholes are only a theoretical theory as an example of them hasn’t been found in space yet Creating a wormhole could be dangerous as to first create them, you need a black hole As scientists do not know enough about black holes, it is impossible to judge what they will do and if they are stable enough to control. To use wormholes for time travel, scientists would have to find a way to move the

mouth of one end of the wormhole in a specific manner, but there are risks associated with this.

Wormholes could suddenly collapse or bring amounts of high radiation into the atmosphere, both problems that we don’t have the knowledge to solve

The Alcubierre Warp

The theory of Alcubierre warp drives is based on the concept of stretching the fabric of spacetime in a wave-like shape which would cause the space ahead of the object to contract while the space behind it would expand The object inside the wave would be able to ride the area, known as the ‘warp bubble’ between the two warped areas of space. This concept is known as ‘Alcubierre Metric’ Linking back to Einstein's Theory of Relativity, it allows the warp bubble to appear in a previously flat region of spacetime and move effectively at speeds that exceed the speed of light. But there are a few problems with this theory. Namely, that there are no known methods to create a warp

bubble and no way to know how you would leave one once in a bubble. In conclusion, I believe that scientists could find a way to time travel at speeds that exceed the speed of light as new discoveries are being made every day, and with new technological advancements, time travel could be possibleHow exciting!

Sources

● nbcnews.com/mach/science/what-relativity-einst ein-s-mind-bending-theory-explained-ncna86549 6

● en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wormhole#Faster-than-lig ht_travel

● en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmic_string

● space.com/20881-wormholes.html#section-throug h-the-wormhole

● spaceplace.nasa.gov/time-travel/en/#:~:text=In%2 0Summary%3A,than%201%20second%20per%20sec onds

What lurks at the bottom of the ocean?

By Isabella Pagadala Year 9

If you ventured to the bottom of the ocean, what would you find? From lost relics to legendary creatures, the bottom of the ocean is a place of spectacular biodiversity much of which is undiscovered Oceanographers believe at least 75% is a region known as the “deep ocean” which extends from 1,000m deep to the ocean floor and receives no natural light In the deepest parts of the ocean, the ocean floor is composed of oceanic crust, rocks and minerals, specifically basalt. Basalt is the most common volcanic rock type made of magma and is created through the process of upwelling on divergent boundaries Oceanic crust is constantly forming at mid-ocean ridges, where

tectonic plates collide and rip apart As magma that wells up from these tears, it cools, and becomes a new section of oceanic crust meaning that the age and density of oceanic crust increases with distance from mid-ocean ridges The state of the crust and formations also reflect changes in water environments

The bottom of the ocean is also home to ruins and artefacts from the past, which reflect the lives of past humans, ancient climates, the evolution of our coastline and what life was like in the past In the deepest sections, ocean archaeologists can, with the help of new technology, excavate the remains of ships sunk from collisions, war and storms The deeper the

ocean, the colder water temperatures become, resulting in better preserved shipwrecks. An example is an ancient Greek wreck that sank in Antikythera in 100 BC Found here are some of the oldest and best preserved objects in the history of ocean archaeology These included the earliest computer, the Antikythera mechanism, a Greek device used to calculate astronomicaloccurrences. It uses the first set of scientific scales and 30 gears that resemble that of clocks built a millennium later. Incredible and spectacular creatures are also found deep in the ocean, in depths we have only just begun to explore From giant squid to tardigrades (water bears) creatures less than millimetre many of the creatures that lurk in the Deep ocean resemble near mythical creatures.

Until recently, scientists believed the deepest parts of the ocean to be inhospitable with no light and pressure 380 times greater than it is at the surface

The Humboldt Squid is one of the deadliest predators, growing up to 2.5m long. Each tentacle contains over 100 suckers that resemble barbed wire. Perhaps its deadliest attribute is the ability to hunt in packs, many of these over 100 squid in size Moreover, like many deep sea animals, Humboldt squid have bioluminescent organs for camouflage and communication in the dark. They also have a unique pigment cell called chromatophores meaning their skin can change texture and colour faster than the human eye can see

Another mystical creature, with astonishing capabilities is the Goblin shark, known for its ability to unhinge its jaw when feeding Marine biologists know very little about them as they have only rarely been sighted and and are almost never filmed while alive They are named after the mythic goblins in Japanese folklore and are found at depths of 1300m. Separating them from most deep sea sharks, they have smallish eyes with fully functional irises that contract and dilate suggesting they occasionally come into contact with natural light

With travelling to the deepest depths of the ocean, proving harder than travelling to the moon, we still don’t know for certain what lurks in the depths However, with scientific and

technological capabilities improving, maybe soon we will have a better idea of what exactly is down there and how it came to be And perhaps, in the future, we will be able to travel down into the depths for a holiday!

Sources

● worldatlas.com/articles /the-5-layers-of-the-ocean.html

● oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/facts/deep-ocean.html

● wonderopolis.org/wonder/what-keeps-the-oceanfrom-draining-through-the-sand

● scienceline.ucsb.edu/getkey.php?key=3657

● geo.mtu.edu/KeweenawGeoheritage/BlackLavas/ Basalt.html

● geology.com/rocks/basalt.shtml

● ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/sharks-rays/dwarf-lanter n-shark

● nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/crust/

● youtube.com/watch?v=53igmq2ntKg

● bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-56377567

● britannica.com/topic/Antikythera-mechanism

● whoi.edu/know-your-ocean/did-you-know/why-i s-pressure-different-in-the-ocean/

● youtube.com/watch?v=UxvzjrDE1Kk

● oceana.org/marine-life/goblin-shark/

● americanoceans.org/species/humboldt-squid/

Is Poo the Key to All Our Problems?

By Amelia Cayton Year 10

I will be exploring a few of the innovative and surprising new uses of poo such as its use as an alternate power source, paper and fuel for cars to name a few and whether these new uses will solve the problem of climate change taking recycling to a whole new level First of all, Poo Power. The UN has calculated that if all of the world's human waste were to be collectedandusedfor biogasgeneration, the valuecouldbeashighas $9.5 billion (or in other words enough to supply the electricity for 138 million households, the equivalent of powering all of Indonesia, Brazil and Ethiopia combined) So, it's possible in theory, but is it possible in reality? The water firm Thames Water has successfully been using human toilet waste to make electricity for the

past decade, from either burning sludge or methane derived from its 13 million customers' toilets. Northumbrian Water currently uses anaerobic digestion to capture the methane and carbon dioxide released by bacteria, digesting the sludge and using it to drive its gas engines to create electricity It also injects some gas directly into the grid It has two biogas plants, which together have reduced the firm's annual £40m electricity bill by around 20%. In total it has saved the firm £15m a year Rival UK water firms such as Severn Trent and Wessex Water are doing similar things to Northumbrian, and biogas production is common in countries such as China, Sweden and Germany. So… yes, we have the technology and poo-power is already in practice But what are the

problems, why isn't it in practice globally? There are not many issues with this unique source of energy, but the main problem in implementing poo power on a larger scale is that despite the obvious financial and environmental advantages, this may not be sufficient to overcome what people call the "ick" factor of using our own waste to power our homes. But it is not just human poo that could solve our problems and change the world Animal poo could also limit deforestation by providing an alternative paper source other than trees This tree substitute is not as smelly as may think or any different to your average piece of paper. Reportedly being the same quality and a similar price to regular paper Poo paper is being produced in Kenya already with 20% of their paper now being made from elephant poo This is obviously environmentally friendly, and saves indigenous trees from being destroyed But it's not just good for the environment; it's also good for the community, with 500 local people being able to pull themselves out of poverty with the new industry providing stable income and jobs for local people There is also more opportunity for this business to grow and help more people and the environment as 600 elephants pass through the sanctuary producing this unique paper, meaning resources are not in short supply 600 may not sound like a lot but an average elephant eats 250kg of food each day. Out of that amount about 50kg of dung is produced, making 125 sheets of A4paper The sanctuary

produced 2,809 tonnes of paper from animal dung last year, and it expects that figure to triple by the end of this year And this is not only happening in Kenya, but also in many other countries with elephant populations such as Thailand, Sri Lanka and India

Can this be generalised without elephants at every doorstep? Yes: this paper-making process can be applied to other animals with similar fibres found in their waste: cows, horses, donkeys, buffalos and others whose diets consist of grass This means this sustainable business can be performed in most countries and the business can happen on a more global scale further helping the environment and more communities To sum up, this poo paper could be a major contributor to the slowing down or even the stopping of deforestation and could help bring people out of poverty across the world To conclude, although the majority of the population believe that poo is pretty useless, in reality animal and human poo could be a large part of the future With cars and companies already being powered by this sustainable superhero and paper already being produced by it I'm sure this underappreciated waste product will be the star of many future innovations and the answer to many of our problems, also very probably will be a key player in the fight to save our planet

Sources

● bbc.co.uk/news/business-36162953

● bbc.co.uk/news/business-37981485

● corporate.uktv.co.uk/news/article/top-ten-bizarrescience/

What is consciousness?

By Nanthana Lathan Year 10

To this day, scientists and philosophers are still debating new ideas on what consciousness is, many of these controversial and puzzling Many agree that there is some sort of consciousness within humans and even mammals, the topic continues to baffle scientists and philosophers. The main debate is how and what needs to be explained and analysed to achieve the answer of what consciousness is Some may refer to consciousness as an aspect of "inner life" It could also mean a certain level of awareness, or refer to an individual's thoughts and imagination All these explanations have implications for our life as a society, as the idea of consciousness gives rise to the idea of conscience

State of Consciousness

The state of consciousness refers to the brain being aware of the internal and external environments in order to react to a situation or simply being aware of our surroundings There are times where consciousness is absent from our brain, for instance in dreamless sleeps or in comas There are also circumstances where the relationship between the mind and the world can be hindered, known as "altinerate consciousness". This can be produced through drugs, alcohol or can occur naturally.

Study

Scientists avoided researching the topic of consciousness for many years due to it being something hard to test, as it always seemed hard to define in measurable terms However, there have been experiments and testing on the brain exploring how consciousness can affect the brain activity

Neural

Correlates

This refers to an experiment where scientists examined the relationship between the subject doing the activity and what the brain is signalling in the scans when doing the activity simultaneously The aim was to determine if a particular part of the brain or a pattern was seen to associate it with the consciousness awareness that is occurring when doing the activities, using several brain imaging machinery such as EEG and fMRI scans

This led to the theory that consciousness was associated with the high-frequency oscillation of brain activity (repetitive patterns of the neural activity in the central nervous system) This idea came about in 1980 when Christof von der Maksburg and Wolf Singer stated gamma oscillation coils solve the so-called blinding problem, by linking information from different parts of the brain into a unified experience.

These experiments showed how consciousness is the state of being aware of situations and the surroundings in order for us to act accordingly. The brain shows different wavelength patterns when doing different activities therefore this could link to our consciousness and how we apply that to different circumstances we are in Although the origins of consciousness and how it came about still remains a mystery there are still more improvements and discoveries within this area of research

Philosophical Perspectives

“Consciousness” has often been described as the part of the soul, which defines morality and ethical choices. Many religious people believe that the conscience is the voice of God guiding humans through their life and aiding them to make good choices whilst providing free will. This is one of the beliefs in

Christanity, as well as other religions. It is believed that consciousness is the religious awareness of God. There are often many correlations between the soul and one's consciousness. Things that are ruled by your consciousness consist of being aware of the different outcomes from situations and the variety of feelings such as guilt or worry Other philosophers believe that the conscious cannot be defined Instead, they believe it is something that we have to co-exist with, without knowing the true explanation for what it is and why we have it

Concluding words…

In conclusion, the brain is a complex organ in our body with different functions and needs. Consciousness still remains an enigma within our body due to the testing difficulties. Yet, there are many theories associated with it By having many interpretations of the consciousness state, it opens doors to new possibilities and allows more room for research to be done to solve this problem In order to get a result and full explanation, new technology needs to be used and there will eventually be a breakthrough in this case Therefore, the question on what consciousness is still stands unresolved Nevertheless, there are many ideas and thoughts which are used to fill that space for the definition of consciousness.

Sources

● Wikipedia. 2022. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [ONLINE] Available at: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page. [Accessed 11 February 2022].

● Is consciousness a product of the brain or/and a divine act of God? Concise insights from neuroscience and Christian theology. 2022. Is consciousness a product of the brain or/and a divine act of God? Concise insights from neuroscience and Christian theology. [ONLINE] Available at: scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0259-94222016000400125. [Accessed 11 February 2022].

Hydrogen: Can it save our planet?

By Ishita Nadipalli Year 9

With the rising demand for clean energy due to climate change, people are searching for a new fuel that can be sustainably produced and burnt without polluting. Hydrogen amounts to 75% of matter in the universe and when produced correctly, it can be used as a versatile energy source with the only byproduct being water This could stop the production of the biggest contributor to climate change: greenhouse gases. But how does it work and how effective will it be?

Hydrogen poses a unique challenge when compared to fossil fuels which can simply be dug from the ground: it must be separated from another molecule before it can be of any use. Thankfully, there are many ways of doing this and these methods are categorised using colours Most hydrogen produced nowadays is grey hydrogen which uses natural gas and releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, but if you use carbon capture to bury the carbon dioxide underground it is classified as blue. Grey hydrogen is produced by reacting methane with steam, using nickel as a catalyst Other methods are dark green, pink and turquoise but ideally, most of it would be produced sustainably using electrolysis to split the hydrogen molecules from water and create green hydrogen, which makes up only 1% of hydrogen produced. Electrolysis works by using two electrodes separated by a thin membrane called PEM At

the positive anode, a current is sent through the water to split it into oxygen and positively charged hydrogen ions with the electrons flowing through an external circuit. The hydrogen ions pass through the membrane to the negative cathode, leaving the oxygen at the anode and joining with the electrons in the external circuit to form pure hydrogen While it is not perfect, the technology being used for these processes are ever-advancing. This rainbow of hydrogen extraction methods is very promising because if hydrogen is truly the key to powering our future, we will need as much of it as possible Due to its simplicity, there are infinite uses for this clean fuel and it can be an effective substitute for other energy sources which are currently polluting our atmosphere For example, the heating and hobs in your household which are probably fueled by natural gases can easily be replaced by burning hydrogen instead. Adapting power stations to run on hydrogen is not a significant problem either as they will not need much modification and since the technology is very similar to the engines of a plane, it is not unlikely that the abundant atmospheric gas could fuel journeys across the world. However, burning hydrogen is not the only way to obtain energy: it can also be converted into electricity using fuel cells This versatility is unique to hydrogen and broadens

all the possibilities for its usage. It can replace batteries and also has an advantage over them as fuel cells last far longer Fuel cells are a growing market especially sought after by data centres as a backup power supply, with an estimated two-thirds of data centres expected to have fuel cells by 2050 They also provide a way of decarbonising the transport industry, with hydrogen cars already available to purchase in the UK 1kg of hydrogen can keep a car running for up to 100km, impressive considering how new the technology is The applications for hydrogen are endless and there is no doubt that it will soon become a large part of the energy industry.

Given its potential, how soon will we see hydrogen used on a larger scale? The National Grid is taking steps to test and incorporate hydrogen into its network due to their pledge to go net-zero by 2050 Its engineers are building a testing facility called FutureGrid to understand how hydrogen will work with their current system, and it has already been confirmed that it can be transported through their pipelines, reducing the time and money required to reconstruct a compatible system Furthermore, Linde Engineering in Germany has developed technology which allows them to separate hydrogen from natural gas and they even built the world’s first full scale power plant for hydrogen extraction President Biden’s infrastructure bill also dedicates $9 5 billion to clean hydrogen research and a large section of it

will also go to carbon capture and building power systems. The concept of hydrogen energy is quickly gaining traction and developments are happening all over the world to speed up the process of incorporating it into our infrastructure

Despite consisting of only a proton and an electron, hydrogen provides hope for the world and a way of fixing the most pressing dilemma that our planet has been presented with yet It is an opportunity that couldn’t come too soon and is one of many methods to help make up for the decades of neglect of Earth Once the production process is finetuned and the necessary tests have been carried out, hydrogen will be able to spread through the energy system and allow us to consume power with less fear of the environmental impact and less dependence on the non-renewable fuels which helped cause this problem

Sources

● nationalgrid.com. (n.d.). What is hydrogen? | National Grid Group. [online] Available at: nationalgrid.com/stories/energy-explained/what-i s-hydrogen

● pv magazine International. (n.d.). The Hydrogen Stream: World’s first full-scale pilot plant for extracting hydrogen from natural gas pipelines. [online] Available at: pv-magazine.com/2022/ 01/21/the-hydrogen-stream-worlds-first-full-scalepilot-plant-for-extracting-hydrogen-from-naturalgas-pipeline/ [Accessed 10 Feb. 2022].

● ENERGY.GOV (2019). Hydrogen Production: Electrolysis. [online] Energy.gov. Available at: energy.gov/eere/fuelcells/hydrogen-production-el ectrolysis.

● Pillsbury Law. (n.d.). Hydrogen Highlights in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill. [online] Available at: pillsburylaw.com/en/news-and-insights/hydroge n-highlights-bipartisan-infrastructure-bill.html

● Alverà, M. (2021). The Hydrogen revolution : a blueprint for the future of clean energy. London Hodder Studio.

Witnessing death of a red supergiant for the first time

By Maya Murfin Year 9

For the first time in history, over the course of 130 days, scientists observed the collapse of a red supergiant star in real time. The star was a part of the galaxy NGC 5731, which is around 120 million light years away from Earth Most stars of this size end their lives in a massive supernova Stars burn huge amounts of nuclear fuel at their cores, producing mass amounts of energy, heating up the core of the star. This heat creates pressure that stops the star from collapsing in on itself Gravity is constantly battling to force the star to collapse, and when the star’s fuel runs out, it cools off and the pressure drops The star immediately collapses and the force of this explosion causes a supernova and will create nebulas or even a black hole Astronomers at the University of Hawaii were alerted to the star when they detected bright radiation around the star in the summer of 2020 The radiation was detected using the Astronomy Pan-STARRS telescope on Maui's Haleakalā and the supernova was named 2020tlf 130 days later, the researchers witnessed the star's collapse and the resulting supernova In a statement, senior study author Raffaella Margutti told CNN that "It's like watching a ticking time bomb.” She explained the significance of the study by saying, "We've never confirmed such violent activity in a dying

red supergiant star where we see it produce such a luminous emission, then collapse and combust, until now." The study revealed that the star had thrown off bright gases over the summer, and that this material was around the star when it exploded Researcher Jacobson-Galán said, "I am most excited by all of the new 'unknowns' that have been unlocked by this discovery.”

Sources

● CNN, A.S. (n.d.). Giant dying star explodes as scientists watch in real time — a first for astronomy. [online] CNN. Available at: edition.cnn.com/2022/01/06/world/red-supergiant -star-supernova-scn/index.html [Accessed 10 Feb. 2022].

● earthsky.org. (2022). EarthSky | Dying star’s explosive end seen by astronomers. [online] Available at: earthsky.org/space/dying-stars-explosive-end-su pernova-sn-2020tlf/ [Accessed 10 Feb. 2022].

● Physics World. (2022). Astronomers watch the death of a red supergiant in real time. [online] Available at: physicsworld.com/a/astronomers-watch-the-deat h-of-a-red-supergiant-in-real-time/ [Accessed 10 Feb. 2022].

Will Artificial Intelligence conquer the world?

By Abby Gherendi Year 7

Artificial intelligence has evolved over the last

70 years and is becoming a new world enterprise priced at approximately $57 billion in 2022, growing to a $190 billion industry by 2025 With AI spreading its wings across sectors, new jobs will be created in development, programming, testing, support and maintenance, to name a few (Duggal, N 2021). However, arguments have been raised as to whether this rather new technology will become self-aware Although Self-Aware AI does not exist yet, artificial intelligence can become much more intellectual than we thought and could become dangerous for humanity.

Artificial intelligence has already received a lot of buzz in the past decade, but it continues to be one of the new technology trends because of it’s notable effects on how we live, work and play are only in the early stages AI could be used for countless jobs such as waiters, helping elderly, dangerous jobs that humans can’t do, harnessing human knowledge to find the cure for dangerous diseases and many more With all these jobs that AI could do, it would make life easier for us AI has the possibility to accelerate global efforts to protect the environment and preserve resources by distinguishing energy emission reductions, CO2 removal, helping develop greener transportation networks, surveilling deforestation, and predicting

extreme weather conditions Artificial intelligence would also drive down the time taken to perform a task. It enables multi-tasking and eases the workload for current resources AI also operates 24 hours without any interruption or breaks AI also has the ability to do complex tasks, but with thorough code built in, artificial intelligence can do many things some humans cannot.

The enthusiasm for artificial intelligence has never been easy Many have come to fear the possibilities of what AI could become Elon Musk believes ‘AI is a fundamental risk to the existence of human civilization’ Stephen Hawking has a very similar opinion saying ‘I fear that AI may replace humans altogether.’ These great minds cannot be wrong Artificial intelligence can present threats if used in a specific way If artificial intelligence surpasses human intellect, it would become a major threat as to what it could do. Autonomous weapons are artificial intelligence systems that are programmed to kill In the hands of the wrong person, these weapons could easily cause many casualties Moreover, an AI arms race could inadvertently lead to an AI war that also results in many casualties. To avoid being thwarted by the enemy, these weapons would be designed to be extremely difficult to simply “turn off,” so humans could plausibly lose control of such a situation This risk is one that’s present even

with narrow AI, but grows as levels of AI intelligence and autonomy increase (Tegmark, M 2016) With more intellect and self-awareness, artificial intelligence can do anything, because they could have the vast and logical power to do so Elon Musk has said “It’s capable of vastly more than almost anyone knows, and the rate of improvement is exponential.” As progress continues rapidly in labs, the threat of this new technology becomes broader The debate about the benefits and threats that AI can bring can continue for sure as the technology evolves Both sides have good reasons as to why artificial intelligence is dangerous or useful. Although AI is technically in its infancy, it is growing smarter every day and it is all up to how artificial intelligence behaves Technology is still complex but being unsolved, if we know how to control artificial intelligence, the future might look brighter. The

raised argument is not about stopping AI, but about controlling its development. The fundamentals of controlling artificial intelligence is to ‘continuously assess and maintain control over sophisticated, evolving algorithms by putting in place methods, controls, and tooling that secure the trust anchors along the lifecycle, from strategy through evolution’ (Sokalski, M 2022). At every new thing, a regular pattern falls through humans, we may be fearful at the beginning, but as we become more familiar and proficient with interacting with artificial intelligence, we will see more of the benefits, and not that much of the threats We may encounter problems along the way with artificial intelligence but if we can gain trust with it, then we can control it.

Sources

● Duggal, Nikita (2021) - Top 9 New Technology Trends for 2022, as accessed on 20 January 2022 at simplilearn.com/top-technology-trends-and-jobsarticle

● Sokalski, Martin (2022) - Controlling AI. AI driving transparency, explainability and trust, as accessed on 20 January 2022 at advisory.kpmg.us/articles/2019/controlling-ai.htm l

● Tegmark, Max (2016) - Benefits and Risks of Artificial Intelligence, as accessed on 20 January 2022 at futureoflife.org/background/benefits-risks-of-artifi cial-intelligence/?cn-reloaded

Are there other universes?

By Romilly Clarke Year 7

Our Universe is part of a multiverse Meaning that we are part of a group that consists of many different universes According to physicists there are many different types of multiverses This suggests that, yes, there are other universes. More to my point: The multiverse is a hypothetical group of multiple universes. Together, these universes make up everything that exists including: all of space, time, matter, energy, and the physical laws These are also called ‘Parallel Universes’ According to Scientific American (who say that there is not just one universe but many parallel one) a multiverse could be a realistic idea Furthermore astronomers are able to see out to a distance of about 42 billion light-years We have no reason to suspect the universe stops there Beyond it could be many even infinitely many domains much like the one we see.

Sources

● New Scientist. 2022. Are there multiple universes? | New Scientist. [ONLINE] Available at: newscientist.com/question/are-there-multiple-universes/#:~:text=Well%2C%20as%20it%20happens%2C%20there,descr ibes%20different%20kinds%20of%20multiverse.. [Accessed 10 February 2022].

● Wikipedia. 2022. Multiverse - Wikipedia. [ONLINE] Available at: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiverse. [Accessed 10 February 2022].

● Scientific American. 2022. Why the Multiverse May Be the Most Dangerous Idea in Physics - Scientific American. [ONLINE] Available at: scientificamerican.com/article/why-the-multiverse-may-be-the-most-dangerous-idea-in-physics/. [Accessed 10 February 2022].

Fingerprints

By Esha Khakha Year 7

I will be writing about how we are all unique based on our fingerprints I was inspired to write about this because ever since I was quite small, I always wondered, “How are we all different if our fingerprints all look the same?” I put some research into it to solve the question I was thinking about and here’s what I found. What is a fingerprint?

Fingerprints are impressions left on surfaces by the friction ridges on the finger of a person Our fingerprint’s lines are made up of friction ridges (friction is the action of rubbing against a surface or object) ridges. Friction ridges are a raised portion of the epidermis, caused by the underlying interface between the dermal papillae of the dermis and interpapillary parts of the epidermis Here is a diagram to explain how this works:

The history of the fingerprint

Nobody really noticed the fingerprints and scientists assumed it was just a form of birth mark. In 1788, a German anatomist-the study of natural organisms and living things-called Johann Christoph Andreas Mayer was the first to find out every human had an original fingerprint Not much, unfortunately, is known about how he discovered this, but we do know he did carry out surveys, and other scientists plagiarised from him that many people have solid lines in their fingerprints that others may have, but other tiny lines that aren’t on others’ fingers.

How did we each develop unique fingerprints?

After a foetus is 17 weeks old, a baby’s surface layers of their skin begin to fold and, due to friction “ridges”, their fingerprint is set Many people query that identical twins mean identical fingerprints, but that is not the case So, although their shared DNA means their fingerprints look similar, they really aren’t, because a baby who’s in the womb with another baby will experience different sensations, i.e. one baby might experience more pain since they’re located on a different side to the other, changing the friction and the fingerprint This same fingerprint will stay with us through life, and if it disappears due to cuts, it will immediately come back exactly the same

The benefits of unique fingerprints

There are many benefits, but the main use of them is that they can help keep us safe. Since nobody has the same fingerprint(but the possibility of 2 people having the same is 1 in 64 billion according to sciencefocus com) police officers can identify criminals by examining something they have touched with their fingers Then the police use a brush to wipe away any dust and reveal a faint fingerprint They then stick the faint fingerprint onto adhesive sticky sheets keeping it preserved and send it off to a laboratory and work out who the criminal was

Sources

● BBC Science Focus Magazine. (n.d.). Why do identical twins have different fingerprints? [online] Available at: sciencefocus.com/the-human-body/why-do-identical-twins-have-different-fingerprints-2/#:~:text=Even%20identical %20twins%20%E2%80%93%20who%20have [Accessed 10 Feb. 2022].

● Wikipedia Contributors (2019). Fingerprint. [online] Wikipedia. Available at: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fingerprint

Are We Alone in the Universe?

By Amelia Dunlop Year 10

For over 50 years, scientists and astronomers have been trying to search the universe for any signs of extraterrestrial life outside Earth Currently, Earth is the only known planet in the universe to host life forms, but with the help of advancing technology and research, scientists are slowly discovering more answers of whether we really are alone in the universe.

The Habitable Zone

In order for any life to exist, an exoplanet must be inside the habitable zone (or Goldilocks Zone) - the area around a star in which liquid water can be maintained on the surface of a rocky planet. The exoplanet must also have an atmosphere with the correct percentage and ratio of gases in the air for life to be sustained To estimate whether a planet falls within the habitable zone, astronomers determine the distance between the exoplanet and the star, and the star’s size and energy output Earth is within the habitable zone in our solar system, Venus being slightly within the inner edge and Mars being near the outer boundary. Exoplanets that orbit stars in other solar systems are sometimes too far away to determine if they have an atmosphere or whether the conditions allow them to support life. According to the Habitable Exoplanets Catalogue in March 2018, 53 exoplanets could have the capability to support and sustain life, and 13 of those exoplanets could have the potential to be habitable Recently discovered rocky exoplanets Proxima Centauri b and c, and TRAPPIST-1 e, f and g, are all within the habitable zone of their red dwarf star and their size and position in their solar system resemble that of Earth’s

Fermi Paradox

The Fermi Paradox refers to the contrast between the high probability that intelligent extraterrestrial life exists, and the absence of evidence of such life It was first described by Sir Arthur C Clarke (the late British Sci-Fi author), who stated: "Two possibilities exist: Either we are alone in the universe or we are not Both are equally terrifying" Many doubt the fact that there are other life forms in the universe: if there really is intelligent life, why have we not heard from any? In December 2020, an unexplained radio signal was reported from the direction of the star Proxima Centauri: some believe this to be signs from other civilisations - especially as there is a potentially habitable exoplanet orbiting that star - but it most likely that the signal originates from humans or other natural causes...

The Drake Equation

In 1961, Frank Drake created the Drake Equation, to help find out whether there are other intelligent life forms in the galaxy and the amount of them It calculates the odds of life and communicating civilisations in the Milky Way by multiplying several variables The challenge for astronomers is to find numbers and values to fill the variables, so the output of the equation is usually only a rough approximation The more evidence of life in the solar system, the more useful this equation will be to scientists in figuring out how many intelligent life civilizations are actually in the Milky Way. In the 1960’s Drake also conducted a search to scan the skies for artificial radio signals (this was named Project Ozma) With more research into certain exoplanets, their properties and space exploration, scientists may be able to either find other life or discover why we (on Earth) are the only life forms in the whole universe It is more likely that one day non-intelligent life will be discovered, or new microbial life which could evolve over millions of years

Sources

● theguardian.com/science/2013/sep/01/20-big-questions-in-science

● space.com/25219-drake-equation.html

● exoplanets.nasa.gov/news/1675/life-in-the-universe-what-are-the-odds/

● astronomy.com/news/2020/11/the-lonely-universe-is-life-on-earth-just-a-lucky-fluke

● nationalgeographic.com/science/article/alien-hunters-detect-mysterious-radio-signal-from-nearby-star

● livescience.com/fermi-paradox

How did life on Earth begin?

By Maia Roman Year 10

When Earth was formed, it was: not too hot; not too cold; not too wet; and not too dry. This meant that liquid water could exist on the surface. Early on, Earth was most likely volcanic forming island arcs as well as dips in the ocean Places such as ponds or lakes in these volcanic areas are believed to be the environments that kindled the first life on Earth.. Many scientists have theorised that RNA was the first molecule on Earth to self-replicate and begin some form of evolution that led to more and more advanced forms of life, including human beings

So what is RNA?

There are two types of "nucleic acids": deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) RNA converts genetic information from DNA to proteins and is located in every cell DNA is first copied onto a strand of messenger RNA (mRNA) during a process called transcription Then, the code on the mRNA is "read" and used to create a protein during a process called translation. Translation is broken down into three stages: Initiation, Elongation and Termination

1 In Initiation the ribosome, mRNA and first transfer RNA (tRNA) all link together.

2. Next, in Elongation, amino acids are transferred to the ribosome by tRNA and are added to the growing protein

3 Finally, in Termination, a stop codon is reached, and the complex separates and releases the newly formed protein.

A codon is a sequence of three nucleotides in mRNA that codes for one amino acid, therefore a stop codon is a codon that signals the end of the translation process of the protein

These two processes are effectively summed up by the central dogma of molecular biology: DNA → RNA → Protein.

In the 1950s, the Miller-Urey experiment, which experimented on a mixture of water and simple chemicals with electric pulses (mimicking the impact of lightning), proved that amino acids are easy to make. (In case you’re wondering, amino acids are the very building blocks of proteins ) However, other molecules of life are actually harder to synthesise than we imagined, the central reason being the incredible versatility of RNA Not only can it act like an enzyme, but RNA can also store and transmit information. The catalytic activity of the RNA component in the ribosome synthesises all protein in all organisms This is what scientists say suggests that RNA dominated an early stage in the evolution of life

So how did the first RNA and DNA molecules form? When I was researching I found that a man named Nicholas Hud, a Georgia tech chemist, and his team say that they have discovered that “the molecule ethidium can

assist short polymers of nucleic acids, known as oligonucleotides, in forming longer polymers. Ethidium can also select the structure of the base pairs that hold together two strands of DNA" As it grew, the two ends of the growing polymer often reacted with each other as opposed to forming longer chains This faced the team with quite a challenge known as strand cyclization. Fortunately, Hud and his research team discovered that if they could use a molecule to secure in between two base pairs of DNA, called an intercalator, they could bring short pieces of DNA and RNA together This way, they could create much longer molecules. The team’s conclusion from the problem they faced was that "if you have the intercalator present, you can get polymers”, but “with no intercalator, it doesn't work” Apparently “it's that simple Midwife molecules are believed to be the molecular "midwives" that help “give birth” to RNA. This team tested how much influence a midwife molecule had on creating the

Watson-Crick base pairs that make up the structure of DNA. To clarify, the essential rule of the Watson-Crick base pairing system is that Adenine binds to Thymine and Cytosine binds to Guanine, forming base-pairs through hydrogen bonding Their findings were that the matching base pair was dependent on the midwife present during the reaction and that Ethidium was the most helpful for synthesising polymers with the specific Watson-Crick base pairs of DNA

Hud’s conclusion was that “the midwife molecules we used had a direct effect on the kind of base pairs that formed” "We're not saying that ethidium was the original midwife, but we've shown that the principle of a small molecule working as a midwife is sound" So in conclusion of Hud’s conclusion, although it is not absolutely 100% scientists have found how life on Earth was created

Sources

helped-give-birth-to-rna/. [Accessed 10 February 2022]publications.

Earth’s Artificial Moon

By Isabella Pagadala Year 9

China has built a 2 foot vacuum which uses magnets to recreate lunar gravity here on Earth Based on Andre Geim’s Nobel prize winning experiment, China aims to use the technology to test equipment in low gravity environments that mimic that of the moon In 2000, Andre Giem was awarded a nobel prize for making frogs levitate Many materials are diamagnetic, meaning that when placed near a magnet, their atoms fight the magnetic field, and the object tries to move away. If a material is placed in a strong enough magnetic field, it levitates This is the basis for China’s moon Then after discovering how to isolate graphene in 2004 he was awarded the Ig Nobel prize in

2010 He is the only individual, as of now, to have received both Nobel and Ig Nobel prizes

Giant magnets levitate the room approximately 2 feet high and inside are rocks and dust, formulated to imitate the moon's surface. It has the ability to 'make gravity disappear’ according to its designers Previously, low gravity technology could replicate lunar conditions for mere minutes, whereas this can supposedly intimidate low or even zero gravity conditions for 'for as long as you want,'. Although it is not big enough for astronauts; it is still an immense step forward

This technology could be used to “assess the viability of a human settlement there” and

determine how equipment would hold up in lunar conditions. A notable test are Creep tests which determine how much deformation a material experiences while under a constant stress and temperature This means the vacuum will be a significant advantage to researchers and essential for future exploration as well as allowing scientists to predict and prevent problems that may arise when in low gravity conditions It’s been called ‘the first of its kind in the world’ and will be vital for China to reach its lunar goals Chang’e 6, Chang’e 7 and Chang’e 8 are three missions with the aim to land on the moon's south pole. These will be steps towards establishing a joint International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) with Russia, identifying resources and conducting investigations into the presence of ice at the lunar south pole

Sources

● Yan, S. (2022). China builds artificial moons with low-gravity and rocky surfaces. The Telegraph. [online] 12 Jan. Available at: telegraph.co.uk/

● world-news/2022/01/12/china-builds-artificial-mo on-simulates-low-gravity/.

● China builds an “artificial moon” for gravity experiments. [online] livescience.com. Available at: livescience.com/china-builds-artificial-moon [Accessed 10 Feb. 2022].

● Morrison, R. (2022). China built an “artificial moon” on Earth with a low gravity environment. [online] Mail Online. Available at: dailymail.co.uk/ sciencetech/article-10394147/China-built-artificial -moon-research-facility-lunar-like-low-gravity-en vironment.html.

● ZME Science. (2022). China builds the world’s first artificial moon. [online] Available at: zmescience.com/science/china-builds-the-worlds -first-artificial-moon/ [Accessed 10 Feb. 2022].

● IndiaTimes. (2022). After Creating “Artificial Sun” Hotter Than Sun, China’s Making “Artificial Moon.” [online] Available at: indiatimes.com/technology/news/china-ariticialsun-moon-energy-project-559163.html [Accessed 10 Feb. 2022].

● Wikipedia contributors (2022) Andre Geim, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopaedia. Available at: en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Andre_Geim& oldid=1066356281.

● Cookie Absent. 2022. Cookie Absent. [ONLINE] Available at: physicstoday.scitation.org/do/10.1063/pt.5.010033/f ull/. [Accessed 10 February 2022].

How to grow a heart

By Maia Roman Year 10

Wha if I tol yo tha ther wa wa

yo coul regro you ow hea if i go

damage? I am actually going to talk about a certain species of fish that can already do this themselves

The species of fish is called Astyanax Mexicanus and its river dwelling form is able to self heal its heart tissue. When compared to its adaptation, the blind, cave dwelling Mexican tetra which is unable to self heal its heart tissue, studies showed that two genes, known as Irrc10 and caveolin, were much more active in the river fish following heart injury Scientists then experimented on Zebrafish, a different species with healing abilities, and turned off the Irrc10 gene They found that without this particular gene, the Zebrafish was unable to fully repair its heart without scarring Scar tissue prevents the heart from functioning properly because it reduces its ability to pump blood Irrc10 and Caveolin are present in humans, and Irrc10 is actually related to a medical condition known as dilated cardiomyopathy

Further research into these genes could seriously benefit the treatment of people with heart conditions At the moment the only treatment is a heart transplant which does not have guaranteed success because the body

could easily reject it and attack the new heart cells

The blind form of this incredible fish is also extremely important for future groundbreaking science Roughly 1 5 million years ago, some Mexican river tetras, living in the Northern Mexican rivers, got washed into caves by floodwaters and became trapped there So what did they do? They adapted. These tetras lost the pigmentation in their skin and they lost their eyesight due to the permanent darkness that surrounded them Some had only partial eyesight and others went completely blind or even without eyes They have even adapted to have a better sense of smell via taste buds all over their heads, which allows them to find food more easily These cave dwelling tetras are able to store four times more energy than the river dwelling tetras, and they store it in the form of fat This adaptation enables the fish to deal with inconsistent food supplies of algae in the cave more efficiently. Sources say that because of such a “sudden environmental change, their phenotypic (characteristic) evolution occurred more rapidly within about 20 000 years and is probably still ongoing” Although 20 000 years doesn’t seem very fast to us, when compared to other animals such as the giraffe, which supposedly didn’t fully evolve to be truly long necked until 7 5 million years ago, that is a very fast adaptation

Scientists are also very interested in this adaptation of the fish because it could lead to a medical breakthrough for people with type two diabetes A quote from an article in the National Geographic: “When people have high blood glucose, the sugars in our cells are essentially coated with sugar, causing them to malfunction.” “These cavefish have high blood sugar, but no sugar coated proteins” This is because they have uniquely adapted to be able to regulate their blood sugar levels, and when geneticists used the gene sequencing tool called CRISPR, they found that the fish had adapted to be Insulin resistant. As you may know, Insulin is fundamental in the process of turning blood sugar, from the food we eat, into energy In people with type two diabetes, their insulin is neither working properly nor is there enough of it being produced Likewise, these blind cave fish also experience elevated levels of blood sugar yet they have remarkably few health impacts from it According to sources I have found, hybrids have actually been made between the river fish and the cave fish, and sure enough the offspring turned out “expectedly chubby and showed high glucose levels.” Geneticists have also been able to insert this insulin resistant mutation into some Zebrafish Their results were positive and showed that the Zebrafish also gained weight and became insulin resistant Researchers believe that further information on how these

fish manage to live healthily with such high levels of blood sugar could massively benefit those affected with type two diabetes

So you have now read about how amazing the genetic information from these tetras could be, but how do you actually extract these genes and find out more about them? Well, as I mentioned before, scientists are now using a gene editing tool known as CRISPR Cas9. DNA is made up of 4 building blocks called bases which are strung together in special sequences that instructs each cell on what to do and forms the coding behind our every trait CRISPR technology actually originated from a natural process that has functioned as a bacterial immune system for millions of years, protecting single-celled bacteria and archaea against invading viruses

The first of the two components are short snippets of repetitive DNA sequences called “Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats”, also known as CRISPR. The second of the two components are Cas, also known as CRISPR - associated proteins, which cut up DNA like molecular scissors

If a virus invades a bacterial cell, the Cas proteins cut out a segment of the viral DNA and add it into the CRISPR region, almost like a scrapbook. These viral codes are next transferred into short pieces of RNA, which stands for ribonucleic acid, and binds to a special protein called Cas9 This composite latches onto free-floating genetic material and searches for a match to the virus so that if the

virus attacks again, the Cas9 can effortlessly destroy the viral DNA.

This defence mechanism works in many different types of bacteria, but in 2012, scientists figured out how to hijack CRISPR to target any DNA in almost any organism! In the lab, the scientists first design a “guide” RNA to match the gene they want to edit. They then attach the “guide” RNA to Cas9 which tells Cas9 which gene to target Cas9 then snips the DNA which matches the “guide” Just by attaching this “guide” RNA to Cas9, scientists can practically edit any gene in the genome. After the DNA has been cut the cell tries to repair itself by trimming the broken ends and joining them back together This type of repair process is called nonhomologous end joining

The population problem

By Katherine Marriott Year 10

and is apparently prone to mistakes such as extra or missing bases. This makes the gene unusable and usually gets turned off However, if scientists add in a DNA template, the proteins can carry out homology directed repair This guide allows the rebuilding process of a defective gene or even creation of an entirely new one.

Although CRISPR is such an amazing tool, it does not always make the exact changes that we want This makes it difficult to predict some of the long term effects that CRISPR gene editing will have and raises a lot of questions about what is ethically right and wrong. But, we should always try and explore further into the science behind things and this tool is potentially the key to creating cures for the genetic diseases putting many lives in danger

Scientists have spent decades pondering on how we can solve the world’s population problem Many questions arise when answering this, is it better to have overpopulation or underpopulation? Can we really solve this problem?In the world we live in today, there are numerous problems in the field of earth's population From insect colonisation of habitats, to poor living conditions, population can influence quality of life on any spectrum

A historical example of the problem with a country having a large population would have to be China’s infamous one child policy, which remains to be a staple in discussions on population, mainly due to the economic, social and political consequences By 1949, China’s government sporadically began promoting family planning and the use of birth control, until after the death of Mao Zedong in 1976 Around this time China’s population was close to the 1 billion benchmark, but then under the leadership of Deng Xiaoping, pragmatic steps were taken to “solve the population problem”, in 1978 a voluntary program was introduced, with the aim to encourage families to have no more than two children. This

escalated in 1979 the demand grew for families to stick to one child, however this policy was nationalised in 1980 on the 25th of September in the form of a public letter published by the central committee of the Chinese communist party Although there were several exceptions, this policy was applied universally (implemented more harshly in urban environments, if the first-born child was handicapped) Contraceptives were offered, and citizens who complied were treated better, and those who wouldn’t follow the rules were forced to have abortions and recieve sterilisations (primarily women) Subsequently, there were many consequences that went beyond the goal of reducing the population. The most notable reprecution is the sex ratio. There were between 3 and 4 percent more males than females living in China, as a result of males being the more prefereable sex and females being frequently aborted or adopted into families overseas This proved to be a problem as this became difficult as there were fewer females available for marriage Another major problem was the glowing elderly population which relied on the younger generations to survive The amount of people hidden from the government grew massively, although the exact number is not known, it is estimated to be around the hundreds of thousands to millions. This program came to an end in 2015, though the consequences left an impact for much longer. The dilemma of having an overcrowded population is that quality of life is almost always compromised and later deteriorates into poverty As the population increases, the per capita income decreases, which means that the country and its government is not able to supply all of its inhabitants with supplies and essentials that may be needed Unemployment also proves to be one of the biggest problems in an area

of high population, because there is not enough demand for workers, which ultimately causes the low GDP per capita. Overpopulation can also cause problems such as hunger, poverty, water scarcity and political instability Similarly Underpopulation is not positive either In an underpopulated society, there is not enough labour and there is an over demand, this leads to job positions not being filled and products not being made, leading to a general lower quality and fewer luxuries in production and circulation Taxes would be very difficult to obtain and collect as there becomes the concept of “strength in numbers” and in a society with very few members it would be difficult to provide basic necessities There are also biological factors such as low genetic variation, which means the communities would not be able to fight off diseases and viruses, and if a pandemic were to occur, they would not be able to handle it In conclusion, the only decent way to solve a population problem is to maintain the rate of the growth of the population The approach that China took in the 1970s was authoritarian and anti-democratic, an approach that would not be taken lightly in the western world Many faiths and religions would be against practises such as abortion, and many would morally object too. The solution to the population problem would not be a simple one to solve, as in some parts of the world overpopulation is the key issue and in others it is underpopulation To solve the problem you would have to take it on a case by case basis, in the occurrence of a society being overpopulated, the most prominent routes to take would have to be contraception, encouraging abstinence, and scientific focus on decreasing infant mortality

In conclusion, the path to solving the population problem is not looking at the problem generally, but rather more specifically and seeing if a certain country’s economy would be able to handle the process.

Sources

● Brittania.com, Wikipedia

Why do we dream?

By Maya Murfin Year 9

We have found evidence of Ancient Mesopotamians recording their dreams as early as the 3rd millennium BCE, and the practice of trying to interpret and understand our dreams has continued to the present day. We do not know for sure why we dream, but there are several theories that scientists have used to explain the phenomena of dreams

● The first theory is that we dream as a method of storing long term memories A study done in 2010 asked participants to try and solve a maze After their first attempt, some participants were asked to think about the maze whilst awake and the rest were asked to nap The participants who dreamt about the maze before their second attempt did almost 10 times better than those who did not dream of the maze and those who did not nap at all. This has led researchers to theorise that some memory processes can happen only when we are asleep, this would make our dreams signals that tell us that these processes are taking place whilst we sleep

● The second theory is called the Continual Activation Theory and it suggests that dreams occur because your brain needs to constantly create long term memories to function normally This theory states that when your brain activity drops below a certain level, for example when you are sleeping, your brain creates a sort of random mental screensaver made of memories that it has stored These memories are the reason for the thoughts and feelings that we experience when we dream In other words, we dream so that our brains never completely shut down

● The third theory is called the Primitive Instinctive Rehearsal theory and it argues that we dream to prepare us for possible dangerous situations Around 3 out of 4 dreams that an average adult will have contain threatening situations, with the most common themes being accidents and failures. Most of these threats were directed at the dreamer, suggesting that they are fuelled by a sense of self preservation. These dreams allow you to practice your flight or fight instinct and can help sharpen your reaction time in case you need to use them in real life situations

● The fourth theory is that we dream to heal psychological wounds Whilst we sleep, we emit significantly less stress hormones than when we are awake, even when we are dreaming about stressful situations This has led some researchers to believe that the purpose of dreaming is to help lower the trauma felt in a difficult experience. The theory suggests that viewing traumatic events in your dreams, with lower levels of stress can allow you to process the events better and aid physiological healing

While there is no clear answer to why we dream, new advancements in technology and a better understanding of our brain functions may allow us to answer this question with a more definitive answer in the future If you are interested in learning more about these theories, please use the links in the bibliography as they have more detailed information

Sources

● ed.ted.com/lessons/why-do-we-dream-amy-adkins healthline.com/health/why-do-we-dream#the-role-of-dreams ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3079906/ goertzel.org/dynapsyc/2005/ZhangDreams.htm psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/morbid-minds/202201/morbid-curiosity-in-your-d reams#:~:text=According%20to%20some%20studies%2C%20nearly,threats%20occur%20to% 20the%20dreamer ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2890316/

Science

SpeciaSixtForFeatur

The history of our DNA

TheYear12biologystudentshadthechancetowrite essaysabouttheworkofWatsonandCrickandtheir discoverieswithDNA SiaPatelandCharlottePons, bothinYear12, sharetheirideashere…

Take 1. How did the work of other scientists help Crick and Watson to develop their theory for the structure of DNA?

By Charlotte Pons Year 12

James Watson and Francis Crick claimed to have ‘found the secret of life’[1] when they discovered the DNA’s structure in 1953 This was one of the greatest discoveries in scientific history that has led to the modern knowledge of genetics and molecular biology. James Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine on 10 December 1962 for their discovery of the structure of DNA However, behind the scenes there were many other incredibly talented and curious minds who directly and indirectly aided this discovery and helped Watson and Crick make one of the greatest discoveries in scientific history

Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins played a key role in inspiring and aiding Watson and Crick to discover the DNA’s structure; in fact,

Wilkins received the Nobel Prize in 1962 alongside Watson and Crick Rosalind Franklin faced patronising attitudes and sexism during her career due to being a woman and was not awarded the Nobel Prize along with the men she closely worked with to discover the DNA’s structure Franklin and Wilkins worked at King’s College where they developed the technique of X-ray crystallography and studied DNA using X-ray diffraction. Rosalind Franklin took the first X-ray diffraction image of DNA:

‘Exposure 51’ [2] Wilkins shared this image with Watson and Crick which revealed to them the helical shape of DNA and allowed them to make the crucial advance in knowing that DNA is made up of two chains made up of individual nucleotide pairs These images provided by Franklin and Wilkins allowed Watson and

Crick to visualise what DNA looked like in real life and without it they would not have discovered, or certainly not as fast, that it has a double helix structure with a backbone and rungs Soon after Wilkins shared ‘Exposure 51’, Franklin’s image, with Watson and Crick, they published a paper [3] on Nature explaining the DNA’s structure, DNA replication during cell division and the idea of mutations This demonstrates that both Franklin and Wilkins’ work in the research of DNA was key and greatly aided Watson and Crick develop their theory of the structure of DNA Maurice Wilkins was not only involved in the initial development of X-ray diffraction images of DNA, but he also played a very important role in checking the validity of Watson and Crick’s proposed theories and models.

Erwin Chargaff was an American biochemist who discovered the ratios between the nitrogenous bases in DNA. Through investigating and comparing quantities of different bases in DNA, he concluded that the proportion of Adenine to Thymine and Guanine to Cytosine are equal, 1:1 These equalities between the proportions of Adenine and Thymine and Guanine and Cytosine gave clues and helped to propose theories on the chemical pairings of the double helix This 1:1 ratio allowed Watson and Crick to see how the bases fit together and had to bond in a certain way within the double helix structure, introducing

the idea of base pairs and complementary base pairs. This accurate measure of the amounts of each nucleotide in the DNA obtained by Chargaff was necessary to understand how the DNA could all fit together as well as aiding the discovery that one strand of the DNA acts as a template for replication Erwin Chargaff investigated the quantities of bases in the DNA not only in humans, but also in other species.

During his experiments he found that the proportion of bases in the DNA is different for each species, arousing theories that the DNA is the genetic material for life and codes for genetic instructions. Chargaff described in his book, ‘Heraclitean Fire’, that he ‘ran out of atoms and even more of patience’[4] when trying to build molecular models of the nucleotides which meant he did not manage to develop a model for the whole structure of the DNA however his discovery of the pairing of bases, their ratios and their unique proportions within each species was key information to allow Watson and Crick to make this discovery Despite his important and inspirational help towards the development of a theory for the structure of DNA, Chargaff’s contributions were ignored by the Nobel Prize Committee like Rosalind Franklin; however, he was recognised by the National Academy of Sciences in 1965 by being elected and has received many awards[5] Crick and Watson’s discovery of the DNA structure was also aided by the discoveries of

Friedrich Miescher and Phoebus Levene. Miescher was the first scientist to isolate nucleic acid During his research he separated the nucleic acid into its protein and acid components, leading him to name it deoxyribonucleic acid, more commonly known as DNA He determined that nuclein was made up of hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and phosphorus, with a unique ratio of phosphorus to nitrogen, which helped Watson and Crick have a deeper and more detailed understanding of all the different components within DNA The more information they had about the structure and layout of all the individual components of the DNA, the easier and clearer it became to discover the structure of DNA Phoebus Levene also played an important role in contributing to the discovery of the structure of DNA Levene discovered ribose sugar and deoxyribose sugar and the difference between them This distinction between these two sugars demonstrated that there is DNA and RNA separately within the nucleus This discovery made by Levene helped and allowed Watson and Crick to determine how DNA is transcribed during protein synthesis within the nucleus by suggesting that there had to be a way for the two types (DNA and RNA) to exist. In addition to this, Phoebus Levene also discovered that within each individual building block of the DNA there is a phosphate group, a sugar and a base and called this phosphate-sugar-base unit a nucleotide By isolating the nucleotides and

the sugars within the nucleotides, the structure of the DNA became clearer, and Watson and Crick had more information in order to determine the structure of DNA

Overall, the discovery of the structure of DNA was not solely due to Watson and Crick’s discoveries; the work, time and effort of many scientists allowed the development of the theory of the structure of DNA All the discoveries that each scientist made by specialising their work were pieced together by Watson and Crick who developed the final theory of the structure of DNA However, without these other scientists and their incredible work, this would not have been possible

Sources

● NobelPrize.org, ‘The Nobel Prize Award Ceremony 1962’, Sat. 9 Oct 2021

(nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1962/award-vide o/)

● James Watson and Francis Crick, ‘Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid’, Nature , 25th April 1953

● ‘The Discovery of DNA Structure’ (pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/06/3/l_063_01.ht ml)

● Fergus Walsh, ‘The most important photo ever taken?’, BBC News, 16 May 2012 (bbc.co.uk/news/health-18041884)

● Maurice Wilkins biography (whatisbiotechnology.org/index.php/people/sum mary/Wilkins)

● Erwin Chargaff, Discovering the rules of complementary base pairing (dnalc.cshl.edu/view/15251-Discovering-the-rulesof-complementary-base-pairing-Erwin-Chargaff.h tml)

● National Medal of Science, Erwin Chargaff (nationalmedals.org/laureate/erwin-chargaff/)

● Doug Stewart, "Erwin Chargaff", Famous Scientists 9 August 2016 (famousscientists.org/erwin-chargaff/)

● Kara Rogers, ‘Friedrich Miescher, The Encyclopaedia Britannica, 22 August 2021 (britannica.com/biography/Friedrich-Miescher)

● ‘Friedrich Miescher’, DNA From the Beginning (dnaftb.org/15/bio.html)

● Erik Gregersen, ‘Phoebus Levene’, The Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2 September 2021 (britannica.com/biography/Phoebus-Levene)

● ‘Phoebus Levene’. DNA From the Beginning (dnaftb.org/15/bio-2.html)

Footnotes

[1] ‘The Discovery of DNA’s Structure’ (pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/06/3/l_063_01.html)

[2] See the end of the paper for picture of ‘Exposure 51’

[3] James Watson and Francis Crick, ‘Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid’, Nature, 25 April 1953

[4] Erwin Chargaff, ‘Heraclitean Fire’, 1 June 1978

[5] Awards Erwin Chargaff received included: Pasteur Medal in 1949, Carl Neuberg Medal in 1958, Charles Leopold Mayer Prize in 1963, Heineken Prize in 1964, Gregor Mendel Medal in 1974, and the National Medal of Science in 1975

Take 2. How did the work of other scientists help Crick and Watson to develop their theory for the structure of DNA?

By Sia Patel Year 12

James Watson and Francis Crick reached a groundbreaking conclusion in 1953[1] , when they discovered that the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) molecule, which contains the hereditary information of cells, is in the shape of a three-dimensional double helix However, they were not the only people who had been working on this theory at the time, and were heavily influenced by other scientists of their era Without these other scientists’ research, it is

highly unlikely that Crick and Watson would have developed their pioneering hypothesis

One of the most influential scientists on Crick and Watson’s theory was English chemist Rosalind Franklin. After completing extensive research on the chemistry of carbon and coal, which allowed great strides to be made in the war effort, Franklin joined the Biophysical Laboratory of King's College, London as a research fellow in 1951 Whilst at the College,

she completed extensive X-ray diffraction work on DNA. This led to her discovering first the density of DNA as well as the fact that it could exist in 2 forms Franklin and PhD student Raymond Gosling (1953)[2] subsequently captured one of the most significant photographs of all time: an image of one of the forms of DNA that revealed its double helical structure, known as Photo 51 (left). Franklin (1953)[2] states that, according to her research, it is highly probable that the structure of DNA is helical Franklin’s image helped to confirm Crick and Watson’s hypothesis that DNA exists in a double helical structure, allowing them to continue their work and eventually build their model and making Franklin one of the most influential scientists on the double helical theory

Another scientist who greatly aided Crick and Watson in their work was New Zealand-born British biophysicist Maurice Wilkins. Following World War II, Wilkins joined King’s College London as Assistant Director of a new biophysics unit It was then that he and Ray Gosling began to use X-ray diffraction to obtain images of different forms of DNA, a technique that Rosalind Franklin later built upon to take Photo 51. Wilkins and his team (1953)[3] spent years confirming the accuracy of the Watson-Crick (1953)[1] proposal, and in 1962 he received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine alongside Watson and Crick Franklin, who had passed away due to ovarian cancer

four years earlier, was not included in this. Another way in which Wilkins contributed greatly to Crick and Watson’s research was by showing the pair Franklin’s (1953)[2] Photo 51

This was integral to the development of their theory, although Franklin was not informed of this and did not gain credit when their findings were published. Overall, Wilkins had a profound impact on Crick and Watson’s theory by both confirming its accuracy and by revealing the significant Photo 51 to them, clarifying their theory further

Although Crick and Watson worked directly with Franklin and Wilkins to advance their theory, they may not have reached this conclusion to begin with without the momentous discoveries of past scientists One notable example is Russian-born American biochemist Phoebus Levene After emigrating to the US at the age of 22, Levene was appointed to the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research, where he remained for the duration of his career Although it was known that nucleic acids existed in two forms, and that they contained the bases Adenine, Guanine, Cytosine and Thymine/Uracil, virtually nothing was known about the structure or function of nucleic acids. It was also found that one of the two types of nucleic acid was found in the thymus of animals and that the other was found in yeast Levene (1908)[4] made the discovery that the pentose sugar ribose is found in yeast nucleic acid, and subsequently established the

hypothesis. This hypothesis suggested that the four bases were present in approximately equal ratios in nucleic acids Levene, along with L A Mikeska and T Mori (1929)[5] , states that deoxyribose is the carbohydrate found in animal thymus nucleic acids Levene continued to work on his model for the structure of nucleic acids until 1935[6] , when he published a paper stating his improved model, in which the links of the phosphates between the deoxyriboses are correct Although Levene’s model of RNA contained some errors, his groundbreaking work allowed scientists of Crick and Watson’s time to further their conclusions as they knew the basic structure of nucleic acids and could focus on developing the existing models

Another scientist who laid the foundation for Crick and Watson’s discoveries was Austro-Hungarian-born biochemist Erwin Chargaff. At the time of Chargaff’s research, it was widely accepted that the carriers of genetic information were the amino acids, which could combine in numerous ways to form a complex basis for genes However, Chargaff’s research suggested that it was instead the DNA that carried genetic material, due to the fact that differences between the DNA of different species were discovered Chargaff then performed experiments on DNA involving the separation of the purines and pyrimidines using paper chromatography By doing this, he discovered that adenine and thymine exist in

roughly equal proportions in the DNA of all species, as do guanine and cytosine. However, he also discovered that the amount of the purines and pyrimidines varied across different species, giving the reason for genetic variation within species Chargaff’s work directly led Crick and Watson to determine their theory, as the two scientists reached the conclusion that, because adenine and thymine are always present in equal proportions, they must always bond together, and the same for guanine and cytosine This further allowed Crick and Watson to develop their model with the pyrimidine and purine bases bonding the two strands of DNA together.

In conclusion, the cumulation of decades of research done by other scientists allowed James Watson and Francis Crick to develop their theory that the DNA molecule has a double helical structure Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins confirmed the accuracy of the theory, whilst Phoebus Levene and Erwin Chargaff laid the foundation for the theory with their extensive research on components of the structure of DNA References

[1] Watson, J.D and Crick, F.H.C (1953) Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid Nature 171, 737-738

[2] Franklin, R E and Gosling, R E (1953) Molecular Configuration in Sodium Thymonucleate Nature 171, 740-741

[3] Wilkins, M.H.F, Stokes, A.R and Wilson, H.R (1953) Molecular Structure of Deoxypentose Nucleic Acids Nature. 171, 738-740

[4] Mandel, J A, Jacobs, W A and Levene, PA (1908) On Nucleic Acids. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 4, 92-94

[5] Levene, P.A, Mikeska, L.A and Mori, T (1929) On the Carbohydrate of Thymonucleic Acid Journal of BiologicalChemistry. 785-787

[6] Levene, PA and Tipson, R S (1935) The Ring

scientists themselves, and so are very reliable

sources to use in my research

Sources

● Nature Education (2008) Discovery of DNA Structure and Function: Watson and Crick Available from:nature.com/scitable/topicpage/discovery-ofdna-structure-and-function-watson-397/ [Accessed 09/10/21]

This is a reliable source as Nature is a world-renownedscientificjournal,inwhichmany of the scientific papers mentioned in the essay were originally published. The article was

Structure of Thymidine Journal of Biological Chemistry 110, 623-630

All of these are scientific papers written in collaboration with other scientists Scientific papers are also peer reviewed and so have a high reliability They are also primary sources, written by the

published in 2008, meaning that the information isup-to-date

● U.S National Library of Medicine. The Discovery of the Double Helix, 1951-1953. Available from: profiles.nlm.nih.gov/spotlight/sc/feature/doublehe lix [Accessed 08/10/21]

This is a reliable source as allcontent inthe U.SNational Library of Medicine is peer-reviewed and the webpage containsavastarrayofscientific publications]

Recen Scientifi Activit

We spoke to students throughout the school to see what Science Faculty activities they’ve been involved in this academic year…

UK Space Design Competition

Eliza Beresford and Lara Glenn Year 12

On Saturday 4th December, Korina Szyszko-Nicewicz, Pooja Pillai, Lara Glenn and Eliza Beresford took part in the UK Space Design Competition As part of the competition, we were divided into 4 teams of students from different schools and given a request for proposal which involved designing an Aldrin Cycler to allow business travellers to travel back and forth between Mars and Earth in 2052. We had no idea what to anticipate going into this competition because it was our first time, but we had a great experience Lara and I were given the responsibility of food production for the voyage, where we had to strike a balance between the luxury elements expected by our clients and the shortage of storage capacity, while Korina and Pooja were given the task of storage of resources After working on our project report for the day we had to present our proposals to a panel of judges form the UKSDC. Although it was a close competition, we were ecstatic to learn that our team had advanced to the Nationals heat, which will be held at Imperial College London in March A big thank you to Mr Yee for supporting us in this competition

PhotographybyShivaniParthipun, EvaHitchens, ShreyaGoverandAlexiaSuceveanu

CREST Club

Down and Morven Pearce Year 10 We have both taken part in ‘CREST’ club, which is a project that many young people take part in across the UK. It involves having to plan, perform, and evaluate a science experiment of your choice, with a topic that had to be centred around one of the ‘STEM’ subjects There was a wide range of topics that were chosen, including questions about music, food, and cleaning Alex and her partner did an experiment on ‘Does the music genre you listen to have an affect on your health’ The practical element of our experiment involved playing a plethora of different music genres to a wide group of people to see whether what they were listening to had an effect on their heart rate This had some interesting results, however it was as we expected. The music that tended to make people have the highest heart rate was ‘EDM’ because it was very high energy. The one that made people have the lowest heart rate was ‘Classical’ music which was also expected because the songs we chose were very calming Morven and Evie explored ‘What dish soap product has the best reaction when in contact with a fat based liquid?’ We did this by placing drops of food colouring in certain fatty liquids and then measured the distance they travelled when they were repelled by the liquid soaps. We found many interesting

Alex

things and were able to work out that some own brand soaps worked more effectively than specialised company made soaps. Additionally, we learnt how to structure a report and now know how to transfer these skills into future experiments

We both found that ‘CREST’ club was extremely rewarding and allowed us to work nearly completely independently and creatively It allowed us to work with our friends on a topic we were interested in, and we got to learn along the way because we would plan our experiments on our own

Imperial Engineering Project

Vysali Sivakumar, Eliza Beresford and Sia Patel Year 12

January 2022 saw the launch of an engineering and science project with Imperial College London that involves the year 12 physics students from NHEHS working in collaboration with science students from local schools, including Drayton Manor, Cardinal Wiseman and Greenford to solve the ever-growing problem of sustainable agriculture and how it can be put into practice around the world.

The aim of the project is to stretch students beyond the curriculum and provide networking and learning opportunities to wider groups of students

Our main task is to design a solution that can contribute to ‘a greener life’ by preventing loss of biodiversity and making agriculture and everyday life more sustainable. We had a lecture from an Imperial PhD student who spoke to us about her work in conservation that has taken her to various different countries Over the next few months we will be working in-person and online with our groups to produce a report and presentation explaining our proposal, which we will then deliver to academics at Imperial in April The winning team will hopefully have their design made into reality and possibly have the chance to present it along the Great Exhibition Road Festival next year. We all thought that this would be a great opportunity to develop our problem solving skills and provide an insight into the real-world applications of science and engineering Hopefully we can devise innovative solutions to a problem that is affecting so many countries around the world

Two Cambridge University offers for Medicine

Maya Shah and Isobel Thornton, both in Year 13, have recently received offers to study medicine at The University of Cambridge We asked Maya about her experience while applying for the university and why she applied in the first place….

Maya writes: "I think h i reason Iappliedto Cam the impression it ga friendly students I m visiting my sisterthere; reputationasoneofthe unisdefinitelyhelped!

For medicine, you have BMAT (BioMedical A Test) and then be in before you can receiv from Cambridge. Afte dedicating my summ UCAT(UKClinicalAptit wasn't thrilled at the p another admissions test but I knew I had to work hard if I wanted a chance of an interview, whichpaidoff The interview for Oxbridge is different from most medical schools as itis more science-based, rather than more skills/personality-based So Imade sure IhadreadaroundcertaintopicsIhadwrittenabout in my personal statement & and things that had been in the news: Alzheimer's Disease, medical inequalities, the Covid-19 vaccines You also needto knowyour A-levelsubjects wellas they may ask youquestionsonthisorneedthisknowledgetoanswercertainquestions. I also did a mock interview with my sister's friend who is a Cambridge medic whichwas extremely helpfulas itgotme usedto the style ofquestions asked&when Ididn'tknow the answershegaveme hintstohelpmegetthere

My actualinterview wasquite differentto whatIexpected, andthisthrewmeoffabitandafterwardsI actually thought it hadgone very badly &Ireally thoughtIhadlittle chance ofan offer, so Iwas very pleasantlysurprisedcomethe25thofJanuary"

From the Editors

We are both very grateful to be a part of the Franklin team this year We loved reading everybody’s articles and it was impressive to see such a wide variety of topics being covered This experience has broadened our knowledge and we hope that everyone can find an article that stands out to them A big thank you to everyone who submitted their articles and to anyone who was part of the team, we are delighted with the final product. We hope you enjoy!

SylvieReayandAditiAryal, Editors SophieAlexander, Illustrator Shivani Parthipun, Eva Hitchens, Shreya Gover, Alexia Suceveanu, Noushi Hirachand, Johanna KolawoleandLexieSwaine, Photographers M An

… Footage from NHEHS "Chick Cam", captured at 3pm on the 11th of March 2022, in advance of Science Week 2022.

Interested in writing for The Franklin?