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Day 2 of STEM Visits - feature image, used as a supportive image and isn't important to understand article

From exploring the world-class agriculture and plant science facilities at the University of Queensland Gatton campus, to coding their own battle robots with Micromelon Robotics, the day was filled with insightful STEM experiences.

In another day at the NYSF 2020 Year 12 Program, students visited a wide array of science research facilities across the Brisbane region. From exploring the world-class agriculture and plant science facilities at the University of Queensland (UQ) Gatton campus, to coding their own battle robots with Micromelon Robotics, the day was filled with insightful STEM experiences.

Our ecology and biology focused groups were fortunate enough to travel to the Gold Coast, where they spent the day exploring the mangroves and learning to identify trees as well as different species of crabs and birds. The groups also visited the Coastal Management Centre at Seaworld, where they were taught the value of diversity in plant species growing in sand dunes. The students were also lucky to be given a behind the scenes tour of the Griffith University Sea Jellies research labs, which they loved seeing.

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Other biology students also went to some phenomenal institutes, such as the Queensland University of Technology’s Contact Lens and Visual Optics Lab. Through interactive workshop activities, they learnt about the anatomy of the eye and the development of adaptive optics, after which they were able to gain experience with eye-tracking technology. Another group visited the Integrated Pathology Lab at UQ, where students learnt about human diseases through the observing human specimens, while others went to the Griffith Campus for an insight into the science behind forensics.

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Chemistry-focused students also had the opportunity to see some incredible sites, with one group spending the day at the Griffith School of Science and the Environment lab looking at soil and analytical chemistry. Others toured the UQ Institute of Molecular Biosciences where PhD students spoke to them about their research, as well as visiting the UQ Centre for Advanced Imaging. Here, students learnt about different forms of imaging before engaging with some virtual reality technology which took them into a human cell, as well as having the awesome opportunity to use NMR Spectroscopy and a CT Scanner to look inside various fruits.

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Our physics-oriented students visited the UQ Centre for Hypersonics, where they learnt about current research, experiments and design regarding the advancement of sustainable hypersonic flight technologies. They were then guided though their testing facilities, where students were excited to get close enough to touch the expansion tubes and shock tunnels involved in SCRAMject (supersonic-combustion ramjet) research and development. Others were taken to UQ’s Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems, where they where guided through the world-class facilities and introduced to quantum mechanics.

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As well as all these insightful visits, computer science and engineering students attended a heavily interactive workshop run by Micromelon Robotics. Here they learnt how to code movement to the robots, and as they built their confidence and skill in coding complex commands, they were able to code their robot to navigate obstacle courses.

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Our Brisbane students are extremely appreciative of the opportunities the program has granted them and are very excited for the remainder of the program.

Written by Maddy Thompson, Session B Communications Intern