Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Pinelands pupils off to International Science Fair
MATTHEW Collier-Reed and Athra Toffar from Pinelands High School have been selected to represent Cape Town at the International Science Fair in Johannesburg next month.
The pupils got the opportunity after competing at the Cape Town Eskom Expo for Young Scientists, held at UCT in August.
Pinelands High School entered 16 projects between 24 Grade 11 students.
The students worked hard over many months and excelled, earning one highly commended certificate, six bronze, seven silver, and two gold medals, as well as four special awards (three Best in Category).
Athra’s project, “Hydropower From Household Water
Supply”, and Matthew’s project, “Empowering Communities: Connecting In-need Individuals with Essential Resources and Services”, earned gold medals and Best in Category awards.
Matthew also won a HighPerformance Computing special award.
After their outstanding performance at the Expo for
Young Scientists, they were selected to represent Cape Town.
Matthew and Athra now work with an assigned industry expert, specific to their study, to upgrade their projects for the upcoming International Science Fair.
Athra said she was very excited to represent Cape Town at the International Science Fair, and was extremely grateful for the opportunity.
“My project extracts energy from flowing water in household systems.
“It shows how energy can be harnessed from unexpected sources.
“I hope it inspires others and encourages them to make use of renewable energy,” she said.
Athra said in preparation for the fair, she was working on improving her project report, abstract, journal, model and presentation. and ensuring she was up to date with deadlines and preparations.
“I want to ensure that I present the best version of myself and my project at the International Science Fair,” she said. Matthew said he developed his app, “Community Support”, to promote the crucial connection between people and the support they needed.
“It has shown so much potential and has the ability to make a difference in the lives and communities around us,” he said.
Matthew said he hoped to make a long-lasting difference to communities, especially those often overlooked.
Pinelands High School principal Dave Campbell said the school was extremely proud of its students who had worked hard to grow their scientific knowledge and solve problems that affected us as a society.
“Thank you to our extended Science Department that continues to nurture curiosity and a love for science and scientific method,” he said.