NATIONAL YOUTH SCIENCE FORUM
Wendy Shan:
I was honoured to attend the 2022 Year 12 NYSF Program that ran from January 10th to 25th, 2022. I am a Year 12 student at The Mac. Robertson Girls' High School. I have always been more academically inclined and aspiring to pursue a career in the STEM field after I graduate from high school. Last year I completed Chinese and Maths Methods 3&4 and this year I will be completing, biology, specialist maths, chemistry and English.
We used a variety of communication channels, like the Whova app for webinars, task assignments and communication, discord for group networking and Zoom for smaller meetups. The options were abundant, ranging from coral reef preservation to defence drones, even Nobel Peace Winner speeches. There was a chat and Q&A function under each session too, meaning we all got the chance to make interactions with speakers, no matter if they were located in Australia, USA or Antarctica.
HIGHLIGHTS
Among the many memorable activities I engaged in, the highlights were undoubtedly the career expos, the charismatic presenters and the science challenges.
Career Expo
The career expo was a series of 2hr sessions, delivered by 10-15 speakers from a variety of different fields in STEM, there to give insight into their daily lives in their work positions. I found this especially applicable for me, because as I'm approaching subject selections, I have been very intrigued and overwhelmed by the endless paths that could await me. I could barely fathom the idea that this one decision could essentially shape the course of my whole life. Perhaps it was this confusion that made the National Youth Science Forum such an enticing and must-attend opportunity for me.
With the speakers, we embarked on journeys through live tours in laboratories, analyses of data collection and mathematical formulas, as well as life stories that seemed to have a dozen twists and turns. I felt inspired by the passion each speaker seemed to contain for their job. There was a speaker meeting with us from a research camp located in Australia. She was the general medical practitioner there, covering all ailments whether it was tooth ache, fractures, or high blood pressure. She even acted as the chief veterinarian for the seals and penguins that could find themselves in a pickle. Just by looking at the shelves and shelves of medical equipment she managed, I could imagine the grand supply of knowledge she must exhibit to cover so many medical practices. But unlike many of us may assume, she did not feel at all tired or pressured by all this responsibility, instead she appeared to really love what she was doing and fulfilled knowing that there was more for her to learn and do. This sparked an epiphany in me. I realised that this is what it looks like to be chasing a dream!! Each new task brings her closer to attaining that.
Now each time I'm studying for an exam, reading a new book, or encountering a new idea, I like to think back on this story and ask myself: "What is my dream?". Even though I have yet to come to a definitive answer, I am no longer in a rush. Because another thing I learnt from the career expos is that the future does not need to be linear and that passions come naturally with age.
One of the scientists at the convention, Professor Mike Rogers taught me that in our lives, we should never do anything that limits our options, and instead always aim to be general then specific. He himself went from being a medical practitioner to being a medical research scientist, then a university lecturer. He assured us that none of this was in his original plans, yet the process of exploration has fostered so much growth with the realisation that medicine practice and theory are not mutually exclusive. We also met engineers who became entrepreneurs of scientific innovation, psychologists who became science news broadcasters.
Hearing all this offered me an inner solace to take my time and not rush into a career, to focus on the learning process rather than the eventual outcome, to purely love science like everyone else attending this program.
Charismatic Presenters/Challenge
The many whimsical and unique presenters at the event really made it even more remarkable and engaging.
A very notable guest was Dr Karl Kruszelnicki. I have always enjoyed his entertaining science books, so I really looked forward to finally meeting him and he did not disappoint. With his humorous presentation skills, he captivated the hearts of all the students attending this program. With colloquial language and occasional sarcasm, he was able to bridge the gap between us, as members of the public, and the professional scientists. Without all the complicated lingo, he took on the role to inspire and not only educate, introducing me to the idea of scientific communication.
This was solidified by a challenge where we as participants were given the opportunity to construct a form of scientific communication ourselves. The entries were blooming with creativity. Students used Tik Tok as a telecommunication pathway, made stop motion videos, wrote songs and raps. Accustomed to the duller side of science in the school curriculum, it was eye-opening on simply see how fun learning can be!
