Nuffield Curriculum Centre

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Success for Nuffield Science bursary students at Science & Engineering Fair at Imperial College
Fri, 2 November 2007

The Nuffield Foundation.

Dev Joshi and Katie Robertson, winners of the Exscitec Science & Engineering Fair at Imperial College London, pictured with Professor David Phillips, OBE, Senior Science Ambassador for Schools at Imperial College. Over 50 young people with particular talents in science and engineering headed to Imperial College London last Thursday to take part in the university’s Exscitec Science & Engineering Fair.

Students who have been involved in educational courses at Imperial College throughout the year came together to have their projects judged by a team of academics. Amongst these students were those who had completed a Nuffield Science Bursary placement in the London region in Summer 2007. A range of category prizes were awarded with the winning students flying to Atlanta Georgia, USA in May 2008, to compete in the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF).

Katie Robertson and Dev Joshi, both 17 years old, gained the top prizes and will take part in ISEF next year. Katie, who is in Year 13 at Wells Cathedral School in Somerset, completed her research project on New Routes to Nylon Synthesis at the Davy Faraday Research Laboratory, The Royal Institution of Great Britain which is now officially part of the Chemistry Department at UCL. Katie's project was supervised by Malek Deifallah. On winning her prize she said: “I’m so excited and would like to say a big thank you to all of the supervisors at the lab. I’ve been part of real scientific research which has been a fantastic experience.” Katie has applied to Oxford University to read Physics and Philosophy.

Dev Joshi, currently in Year 13 at Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School, said, “The five weeks I spent examining the DNA in one gram of soil is the most interesting work experience I have ever done!” Dev’s project title was The Construction and Screening of a Metagenomic Soil DNA Library. He carried out the research in Dr John Ward’s laboratory in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at University College London. Dev is hoping to study Medicine at university.

Both Katie and Dev are Nuffield Bursary students.

Professor David Phillips, OBE, Senior Science Ambassador for Schools at Imperial College, said: "The projects presented at this event are the result of hard work and initiative by students with the support of teachers, parents, and scientists and academics within a wide range of research institutions. It’s been a real pleasure to meet such exceptional young people."

With thanks for Kate Frost, Communications Manager from Exscitec for providing the text for this news item.