Science schools

My experience of the 32nd Professor Harry Messel International Science School – Sydney, Australia

Jin-Woo Park

On the unsightly hour of 4am on the 4th of July – I departed from the National Model United Nations Conference held in Wellington to yet another gathering of elite students in Sydney – only this time it was in a global scale consisting of 140 students from Australia, New Zealand, the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. This was slightly intimidating for me personally because it was the first time I’ve participated in an international event such as this – and I didn’t know exactly what to expect. I guess in truth, what I expected was a group of stereotypical science students – the extremely ‘matter of fact’ individuals who didn’t socialise. What I found instead were the very sociable, top all-round students within their respective countries – mostly heads of schools, including the outstanding sportsmen and culturally gifted individuals who also happened to be excellent and genuinely interested in science. This realisation from the ‘day 1’ of ISS 2003 (International Science School, 2003), foreshadowed what was to be the most memorable and enjoyable two-weeks of my life so far.

To give the readers a background, the 32nd Professor Harry Messel International Science School is a biannual event that selects the top students from around the world to cultivate each individual’s interest as well as enrich their knowledge of science. One of the ways to achieve this was to expose us to lectures from outstanding scientists: including Physics Nobel Laureate (1990) Professor Jerome I. Friedman, the principal investigator of NASA’s Astrobiology Unit in California, Dr Vikki Meadows, Edinburgh Royal Observatory’s Professor John Peacock, as well as Australian science educator and broadcaster, Dr Karl Kruszelnicki – and other distinguished scientists from around the globe. The topics of lectures varied from the smallest field of particle science talking about the existence of quarks and neutrinos, to molecules, microbes, plants and animals (including the extremophiles) through to planets, stars, galaxies and on to the very largest - the study of the universe itself – including the birth of the universe. It was a truly mind-blowing ‘crash-course’ on a broad range of specialised topics – which infinitely heightened both our perception of science as it made us realise how minute yet incredibly sophisticated creatures we are in this infinite universe.

During the two weeks of our stay – we also had plenty of hands-on experiments with high-tech lab equipments such as the electron microscopes (both TEM and SEM) and touch-screen handheld Global Positioning Systems too keep us interested during the academic part of our stay.

Alright – so what did we really get up to? On top of the two 90 minute lectures each day, we had two 90 minute daily activity sessions; these consisted of college tours around the Sydney University Campus, problem solving sessions and science practicals. The remainder of the time was spent socialising – and we had a range of social options each night: whether it be going to the IMAX, the local cinemas, ice-skating, rock-climbing, trip to the aquarium or even bush walking! Generous free-time was also allocated for shopping around the Sydney during the weekends and special occasions such as bush-dancing, Science shows, Engineering challenge, a Sydney Harbour Cruise as well as a formal dinner followed by a ball on the last night of our stay drove us to a level of fulfilling exhaustion none of us had encountered before!

In conclusion – although how I came about knowing the existence of ISS 2003 was purely coincidental (as I found out for myself, 3 days before the due application date), it became the single most powerful event of my academic life at college, such that I wonder what I would have been without it. I feel as though ISS 2003 has dramatically increased my interest and knowledge of science because it provided a microscopic as well as a telescopic view of science in its coherent form. However, the most important thing I gained was the meeting of other students from all around the world. We all shared a common interest and it was amazing to see how like-minded yet extremely unique each individual had been. Through our blending we were able to realise – that no matter what nationality or culture we belonged to or what language we spoke, made no difference because we are all the same in the inside – the quality of the mind and the character of the person determined what and who we actually were. Upon this realization, I would like to thank all those involved in helping me attend this science school –Christ’s College staff and the Excellence Fund for assisting with the travel costs, Ms Debbie Woodhall for all the organisational work she has put into the six of us from New Zealand attending this conference and The Royal Society of New Zealand for their selection, funding and most of all for giving me an opportunity to attend ISS 2003. If any of you are interested in science, ISS in Sydney is definitely something to look out for – it’s truly a once in a lifetime experience and I guarantee that you’ll feel enriched by the experience of it.

The New Zealand Delegation: From left to right: Hester Goodwin, St Joseph's Maori Girls' College; Kylie Sedon, Hamilton's Fraser High School; Jin-Woo Park, Christ's College; Jargil Santos, New Plymouth Boys' High School; Ricardo D'Souza, Marcellin College and Tiam Maghsodi, Otago Girls High School