Six local projects on show in the RDS
SIX projects from five schools in county Wexford have qualified for this year’s BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition in the RDS, Dublin.
Meanscoil Gharman in Enniscorthy will present two projects at the show, while Creagh College in Gorey, FCJ Secondary School in Bunclody and St Peter’s College and Loreto Secondary School in Wexford will display one.
The nationwide event is in its 54th year and received an impressive 2,031 projects this year, with only 550 qualifying for the exhibition which will be held in the RDS in Dublin starting tomorrow ( Wednesday, January 10), until Saturday, January 13.
Students Conor De Rúit and Robbie Mac Giolla Dé from Irish-speaking school Meanscoil Gharman have investigated the effects of gender quotas on the makeup of Dáil Éireann before and after gender quotas were introduced in 2012.
Also from Meanscoil Gharman, Conn Caomhánach Ó Muiris, Con Ó Meachair and Jack Ó Nuallain De Fuitnigh are investigating how effective EM probiotics are in water treatment as a cleaning product and as a natural biological decomposer.
Pierce Ryan from FCJ Secondary School has created Madralert – a methane gas alarm for dogs. The Madralert is programmed using software programme Snap4Aduino and has an input and output sensor, which detects methane and emits a high pitched sound that deters dogs.
Loreto Secondary School student Amy Richards will experiment with the use of essential oils for the control of bacteria and is aiming to investigate the antimicrobial effects of plant essential oils in a natural soap.
Dia-beating Hypos project by Creagh College students Brandon Paisley and Sam Walsh aims to create a surgery drink that will effectively treat hypoglycaemic episodes in diabetics as opposed to current methods on the market at the moment.
Jack Hayden, Adam Mullins and Daniel McCarthy from St Peter’s College are aiming to look at the effects of waterborne contaminants due to climate change and pollution on plant physiology.
The winners will be announced at the awards ceremony which will take place on Friday, January 12 at 5.30 p.m., with Minister of Education and Skills Richard Bruton in attendance.