Years of lessons under Dr Frizelle and Mrs. Reid, years of hard work, experiments, tests and conclusions brought young scientists Shreya Ghaie and
Jonathan Green to the point when they were equipped to take on the prestigious BT Young Scientist Award 2018.
A thorough application process filtered the 4251 applicants to a refined 550 successful projects.
Shreya and Jonathan’s projects clearly identified and questioned relevant problems and applied rigorous scientific research techniques to problem
solve. Having been successfully selected for the competition, Shreya and Jonathan then had to prepare to present their work to the highest standards
ready for the national presentation.
So in January 2018, Dr Frizelle, Mrs. Reid, Jonathan Green and Shreya Ghaie loaded up their projects and headed for the four-day event, the “Young
Scientist of the Year 2018” in the RDS Dublin.
Over the first three days, Shreya and Jonathan presented their projects to expert Judges.
Jonathan’s project titled “Could The Antimicrobial Effects Of Plants Be Used To Combat The Overuse Of Antibiotics” in the Biological and Ecological
sciences category was scrutinized by Professor Liam Dolan of Botany at Magdalen College, Oxford. Dr Tadhg Ó’Cróinín, Lecturer in the School of
Biomolecular and Biomedical Science, University College Dublin. Professor Michael Doherty of Veterinary Clinical Studies, University College Dublin.
Shreya’s project titled “Reducing particulate pollution using ionisers” in the Chemical, Physical and Mathematical Sciences category was scrutinized
by Professor Orla Feely of electrical engineering, University college Dublin. Dr Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin, member of University College Dublin and 2005 rose of
Both students presented their work to several VIP’s, including Derek Baker, Secretary for Education Northern Ireland, James Reilly, Former Health Minister
and Former Deputy Leader of Fine Gael as well as numerous representatives from industry, research, the civil service and government. The media
also interviewed, quizzed and scrutinized their projects.
Awards night saw Jonathan Green achieve Highly Commended for overall research and Best Presented Project Award. A tremendous achievement from a pool
of outstanding students across Ireland.
On the final day, the young scientists spent the day engaging with the public and inspiring the next generation of young scientists as well as enjoying
the events and shows.
Both Shreya and Jonathan would like to thank their dedicated, inspirational teachers who equipped them to represent the school in the highest of standards
at the most prestigious science competition in Ireland with outstanding results.
Jonathan Green.
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