Announcement by the Royal Society of New Zealand

3 May 2005

Winners and finalists in the E=mc² video competition

Teams from Kaitaia College in Northland and Fairfield College in Hamilton have won the two big prizes – trips to the UK and Paris, and Switzerland and Italy – in the E=mc² video competition organised by the Royal Society of New Zealand and sponsored by Freemasons New Zealand.

The “Newtonian Chicks” from Kaitaia demonstrated Sir Isaac Newton’s laws of motion using an impressive line-up of local talent, including a dead possum. The Fairfield team chose New Zealand-born Nobel Prize winner, Maurice Wilkins, as the subject of their highly creative video. The competition was organised to celebrate Albert Einstein’s brilliant achievements a century ago, when the 26-year-old produced three papers which overturned the established view of the Universe and set a new course for 20th century physics.

The winners were announced at special school assemblies on 3 May, organised in collusion with the principals, who had to keep the secret to themselves and think of creative pretexts for the unscheduled assemblies.

59 schools submitted entries into the competition from which 12 finalists, including the two winning teams, were selected. Details of the winners and other finalists are at the end of this release. They are: Auckland Girls Grammar School, Birkenhead College, Fairfield College, Kaitaia College, MacLeans College, Nelson College, Pakuranga College, St Cuthberts College, Taradale High School, Tauranga Boys College, Timaru Boys High School, and Waitaki Boys High School. The finalists will have the opportunity of going on the first ever space camp at Stonehenge Aotearoa in the Wairarapa, in September.

The two winning teams will depart for the UK and Europe, courtesy of sponsor British Airways, on 3 June. The Newtonian Chicks will see where Sir Isaac lived and worked, and will visit the Royal Society in London, over which he presided for many years. The Fairfield students will go to Einstein’s beloved Switzerland, and to Florence and Rome, where Galileo initiated modern science. They will end their trip with a visit to Castel Gandolfo, the Pope’s summer palace south of Rome, and a privileged tour of the Vatican Observatory.

President of the Royal Society of New Zealand, Dr James Watson, who attended the assembly at Fairfield College, said “Announcing the winners of this competition was a great thrill. More than that was the thrill of seeing just how much fun all the entrants had putting their videos together. They’re all completely different, reflecting their individuality. We are going to try to visit the other finalists, too. These young people are worthy of recognition.”

Freemasons New Zealand Grand Master, David Mace, said “The results of the competition have more than fulfilled our expectations. All of Northland will be proud of the Newtonian Chicks’ success and what it shows about that community’s spirit. If only Sir Isaac were alive to see it! As for the Fairfield team, they have uncovered a very important wisdom that set Maurice Wilkins’ course in life: that a child should first be encouraged to discover the natural world – to feel the sand and grass beneath his feet, run and play, and observe and experience the life around him.”

The finalists’ videos may be viewed at www.e-equals-mc2.com , a website dedicated to the New Zealand programme for World Year of Physics and showcasing the work of New Zealand physicists. It shows the development of science from the times of ancient Greece.

For more information contact Glenda Lewis at the Royal Society of New Zealand, 027 210 0997, or Lynley Hargreaves, 04 470 5758, lynley.hargreaves@rsnz.org

DETAILS OF TWO WINNING TEAMS

Newtonian Chicks

Kaitaia College, Kaitaia

Team members: Taryn Getty, Donna Summers, Courtney Getty

Teacher: Paul O'Hallahan

Contact details: pohallahan@kaitaiacollege.school.nz, 09 408 0190

Judges’ citation: This video has to be seen to be believed. It uses some great local talent, including a dead possum, to illustrate that Newton’s three laws of motions apply, even in the far North of New Zealand. Add to this the stunning location and three Newtonian Chicks of exceptional talent, and you have a winning combination that will make you smile for a long time afterwards.

Maurice Wilkins and the Double Helix

Fairfield College, Hamilton

Team members: Katrina Hamblin, Ellen Clarkson, Jordon Roach

Teacher: Noema Watene

Contact details: noema@clear.net.nz, 07 855 2169

Judges’ citation: The viewer is hooked from the beginning of the video with its beautiful music. They strike on a very important idea expressed by Maurice Wilkins’ enlightened father, that children should be first encouraged to explore the natural world. This highly creative video is emotive, fast-paced, and powerfully contrasts the consequences of the two main aspects of Maurice’s work - the atomic bomb and DNA.

DETAILS OF OTHER TEN FINALISTS:

Impossible Is Nothing

Auckland Girls Grammar School, Auckland

Team members: Emma Whiley, Brittany Whiley, Emma Kippenberger

Teacher: Kerry Parker

Contact details: kparker@aggs.school.nz, 09 307 4180

Judges’ citation: An excellent explanation of time dilation, which is quite a challenge to present in 5 minutes. “I get it!” said one member of the judging panel. These girls do not shrink from the tough challenges. A couple of Lego figures were the only talent employed – apart from themselves, of course.

Galileo: The Man Behind the Telescope

Birkenhead College, Auckland

Team members: Minja Brkovic, Alex Koppenaal, Henrieta Tornyai

Teacher: Sian Frith

Contact details: fr@birkenhead.school.nz, 09 483 9039

Judges’ citation: What a clever idea it was to base the video on a documentary about the making of a video on Galileo. It provided a good structure for this very informative and nicely paced production. Their demonstrations and experiments were well set up and very clear to the viewer. They showed that this team had really got to grips with Galileo’s work.

The Road To The Future - Thomas Midgley Jr

Macleans College, Auckland

Team members: Lara Markstein, Gareth Boucher, Amy Castle

Teacher: Katrina Robbie

Contact details: office@macleans.school.nz, 09 535 2620

Judges’ citation: Lara and Amy have done it again (they were finalists in the Transit of Venus video competition last year), this time joined by the talents of classmate Gareth. Their video on the ill-fated Thomas Midgley Jr captured the irony of the disastrous outcomes for mankind wrought by the inventions of this brilliant scientist and inventor. A thought- provoking piece about the ethics and impacts of science and technology. Classy script, unusual narration style, and good mixing of dramatised sequences, interviews and archive material.

Sir William Hayward Pickering: "Rocket man"

Nelson College, Nelson

Team members: Rupert Bryant-Greene, Jeremy Newton, Finnian Lawrence

Teacher: Leigh Riley

Contact details: ry@nelcollege.school.nz, 03 548 3099

Judges’ citation: This team did an excellent job of researching the life, times and achievements of New Zealand-born space scientist William Pickering. They presented a very comprehensive account and included an impressive range of supporting images.

E=mc² - The Story of Our Universe

Pakuranga College, Auckland

Team members: Snady Tsai, Sarini Naidoo, Yasheen Sewnarian

Teacher: Gordon Lawrence

Contact details: glawrence@pakuranga.school.nz, 09 534 7159 Ext 735

Judges’ citation: This is a highly aesthetic production with an evocative script and voice over. Two of the members – Sarini Naidoo and Sandy Tsai - won one of three prizes in the Transit of Venus video competition last year. Superb use of animations and other visuals to support their ideas. The pacing of the visuals and narration is mesmerising in effect.

Beatrice Hill Tinsley: Queen of the Cosmos

St Cuthbert's College, Auckland

Team members: Kate Duggan, Shareena Lala, Haidi Leung

Teacher: Faye Booker

Contact details: faye.booker@stcuthberts.school.nz, 09 520 4159

Judges’ citation: This is a skillful and sympathetic account of (cosmologist) Beatrice Tinsley’s early years, in particular. The talented trio give us an insight into Beatrice’s remarkable career by telling us about her even more remarkable childhood. They had a difficult task, as there is very little photographic and other visual evidence to draw on. The essay submitted by this school is first class and worthy of publication.

Special Theory of Relativity and the Importance of the Speed of Light

Taradale High School, Napier

Team members: Daniel Koenders, Daniel Atkins, Hamish Thornton

Teacher: Brian Waller

Contact details: brianw@ths.school.nz, 06 844 2159

Judges’ citation: A simple, but extremely effective presentation. The boys have an understated sense of humour and rare ability to talk to camera. And they know what they’re talking about. Their explanation of three aspects of Special Relativity Theory - time dilation, length contraction, and mass increase, when travelling close to the speed of light, is very clear as well as creative. These are difficult concepts to get across in a year long physics course, let alone a 5 minute video.

Galileo Galilei

Tauranga Boys’ College, Tauranga

Team members: Paul Stegeman, Simon Williams, Daniel Teasdale

Teacher: Nigel Bateman

Contact details: n.bateman@tbc.school.nz, 07 578 4029

Judges’ citation: The Tauranga boys explain Galileo’s founding revelations with a clever mix of visuals. They use black and white and various dramatic devices effectively. A good script and voice over.

E=mc² - A Story

Timaru Boys' High School, Timaru

Team members: Omeed Howey, Thomas Westaway, Michael Price

Teacher: Tony Bunting

Contact details: tony.bunting@tbhs.schoolzone.net.nz, 03 688 8588

Judges’ citation: These boys really pulled E=mc2 apart, thought about its meaning, and put it into context by showing the developments preceding Einstein’s theory. There were some good dramatisations; these are very hard to pull off well. The team did their homework, and clearly put a lot of thought and effort into their production, making the most of local resources.

The Life, Times and Discoveries of Sir Isaac Newton

Waitaki Boys' High School, Oamaru

Team members: Jordan Horrell, Jacob Ingram, Richard Powell

Teacher: Robert Mace

Contact details: robertm@waitakibhs.schoolzone.net.nz, 03 437 0529

Judges’ citation: An arresting beginning and competent performances by some young Year 9 (third form) students. They chose to investigate the life and work of Isaac Newton, which they clearly did very conscientiously.