From left: Rosheen Sharma from Rockford Manor Secondary School, Blackrock, Dublin and Luise May Luxardi from Loreto High School Beaufort, Rathfarnham, Dublin. Image: Fennell Photography
Now in its 60th year, the annual science exhibition will showcase 550 projects from 219 schools across Ireland in the RDS this week.
Ireland’s principal science and technology event for school students aged 12-19 gets underway today (10 January) at the RDS in Dublin.
Now in its 60th year, BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition (BTYSTE) has become one of the leading science and technology exhibitions in Europe. Running until 13 January, the exhibition opens to the public from tomorrow (11 January).
The exhibition includes 550 projects from 219 schools across five subject categories: technology; biological and ecological sciences; chemical, physical and mathematical sciences; social and behavioural sciences; and health and wellbeing, a new category for 2024.
BT Ireland estimates that since its foundation, about 150,000 young people have taken part in BTYSTE. In the past 35 years, 17 of the overall exhibition winners have gone on to win first place at the European Union Contest for Young Scientists (EUCYS), one of the largest science fares in the world.
President Michael D Higgins will officially open proceedings at a ceremony this afternoon. Speaking ahead of the event, Higgins said there has never been a better time to be a young scientist.
“Yes, it is a challenging time, but it is so potentially fulfilling to know that the choices you make will have effects that are important, not just for your own time, but for the very possibility of life itself,” Higgins said.
“It is my hope that the experience of [BTYSTE] will further drive the interest and determination of all those participating to continue to play a role in science, its application and to deliver their energy to where it is most necessary for the benefit of all of society.”
The annual exhibition was set up by two physicists from University College Dublin. While conducting research in the US, Fr Tom Burke and Dr Tony Scott witnessed science fairs for school students and brought the idea home with them. The first exhibition was held in 1965 in the Mansion House with 230 participants. The following year, it moved to the RDS to accommodate the growing interest and has remained there ever since.
Winning projects
A panel of judges will choose winning projects across the subject categories and an overall winner will be announced at an awards ceremony on Friday, 12 January at 5.30pm.
Last year’s overall winners were Shane O’Connor and Liam Carew from The Abbey School in Tipperary. They impressed the judges with their survey of more than 2,000 secondary school students to investigate the impact of school on students’ social, physical and mental wellbeing.
Other past winners have gone on to successful STEM careers. Stripe co-founder Patrick Collison won in 2005 with a programming language he had developed at the age of 16.
The competition’s youngest ever winner was Emer Jones, who was just 13 when she won the accolade in 2008 for a project about developing emergency sandbag shelters. Jones went on to study for a PhD in machine learning and cognitive neuroscience at the University of Cambridge.
Shane Curran won in 2017 for a data security platform. Curran went on to found security and compliance company Evervault.
To visit BTYSTE, book tickets on the exhibition website.
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