“YouTube Space Lab” is an international competition in which teams of students submit a space experiment idea on video, and the judging panel includes Stephen Hawking and other leading scientists.

The winning experiments will be conducted in space on the International Space Station, streamed live for the world to see via YouTube.

The European finalists will win a visit to the training facilities of the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne in Germany.

The global winners will choose either a trip to Japan to watch their experiment blast off on the HTV cargo vessel, or a trip to Russia for space training at the facilities where Yuri Gagarin became a cosmonaut.

Find out how to take part on the competition’s home page.

2011 is the International Year of Chemistry, and with some exciting demonstrations the W5 team will demonstrate why fire is an important part of chemical reactions, how to create fire tornadoes, how different chemicals produce different reactions (fireworks) and, most importantly, the risks of fire and why it should be treated with respect.

Relevance to the Curriculum:
Junior Certificate Aged 12 – 15, Transition Year

This demonstration will be suitable for both Junior Certificate and Transition Year students and will refer to aspects of the following parts of the Junior Certificate Science Curriculum:

- 2A1 Materials and states of matter
- 2A4 Metals
- 2A7 Water and solutions
- 2B1 Air and oxygen
- 2C2 Bonding
- 3A6 Conservation of energy
- 3A7 Conversion of energy
- 3B1 Heat
- 3B2 Heat transfer

The 12 to 14-year-olds took part in competitions that tested their analytical chemistry skills. In the morning they were challenged to a game of “Chemical Cluedo” – working in teams to solve the crime of who murdered Captain Salter by using forensic science techniques such as chromatography, and analysing evidence collected from the crime scene.

In the afternoon they took part in the “University Challenge”: using a number of hands-on, practical activities using Bunsen burners and other lab equipment, the students raced to decipher the exact chemical recipe necessary to produce a range of coloured solutions.

Read more about the Salters’ Festival of Chemistry

A second engineering summer school will take place on 24 June, offering a taste of experiences as wide-ranging as remotely controlling a wastewater treatment plant, building an eco-house and designing a go-kart. The initial session on 23 June is already fully booked.

Limited places are still available for the Computing Summer Camp, which runs from 13 to 17 June. Activities include constructing and controlling robots, and directing a virtual “mini-movie”.

On 27-28 June the Science Experience Summer Event will also offer students two days to delve into a wide range of scientific disciplines, including Biology, Chemistry, Maths and Physics.

Aimed at students in transition, fifth and sixth year, summer schools at Irish third-level colleges are designed to give prospective students a taste of college life through a wide range of hands-on practical activities.

Places for NUI Galway’s summer schools are allocated on a first-come first-served basis. The last date for receipt of applications is Tuesday, 31 May. Find out more about the summer schools on the NUI Galway website.

Patrick Collins of the Ryan Institute discovered this Benthoctopus living at a depth of 1,500 metres at a vent system near Papua New Guinea

It’s a competition where the winner goes down in natural history: at a newly discovered hydrothermal vent ecosystem in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, you could have a deep-sea creature named after you!

A group of marine scientists have come up with this unique prize in a competition for secondary school students across Ireland.

This summer the team will be checking out the ecosystem as part of the Vents & Reefs (VENTuRE) expedition. The project involves scientists from University College Cork, NUI Galway, the Geological Survey of Ireland, the University of Southampton and the National Oceanography Centre in the UK.

At a depth of almost 3,000 metres, the Marine Institute Holland I ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) will be beaming images up to scientists at the surface on board the RV Celtic Explorer.

This new ecosystem is such an exciting discovery that National Geographic will also be filming the project.

The competition

“This is an extremely important discovery, and one that we think people will be very excited about,” says Patrick Collins, a researcher with the Ryan Institute at NUI Galway.

Over the course of the 25-day cruise, he and the other scientists will be collecting and identifying many previously undiscovered animals.

“We are asking secondary school students across Ireland to use their imaginations and understanding of the sea to design their own deep sea creature,” Patrick says. “We’d like to see carefully thought out illustrations, along with a description of the creature’s habitat, diet, life and evolutionary history, and whatever else you think is important.

“One lucky winner will actually have one of the new species that we discover at the vents named after them.  It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

The rules

Entries must contain at least one clearly labelled, hand-drawn or computer illustration, along with a separate A4 page containing a description (maximum 400 words) of the creature’s name, its habitat and diet.

Completed entries should be posted to:

Sarah Knight,
The Ryan Institute,
Orbsen Building,
National University of Ireland, Galway

The deadline for entries is 3 June, 2011.  Read the  full competition rules on the Ryan Institute’s website

The workshop will give secondary school science teachers practical skills to enhance their teaching of science subjects, and will present innovative and inspiring tools and methods that use space as a means for attracting students to science.

Teachers will participate in a programme of activities that will take them on a voyage through the solar system. They will look at how humans explore space, the science of the Sun, and the study of Earth from space.

The working language of the workshop will be English.

How to apply

A limited amount of financial support for travel cost is available to teachers from EU Member States. Accommodation will be organised and covered by the European Space Agency directly. There is no fee for the workshop.

Places are limited, and the deadline for applications is 5 June 2011.

Find out more about funding and how to apply

Frog Blogger Humphrey Jones talks to teachers about tackling each paper, and there are podcasts for each of the four Leaving Cert science subjects: Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Agricultural Science.

Listen to the Exam Preparation Podcasts.

The team from Coláiste an Phiarsaigh persuaded a panel of judges that “the procurement and use of embryonic stem cells for scientific research is unethical”.

Debating Science Issues is co-ordinated by research and discovery centres and is funded by the Wellcome Trust.  The competition encourages young people to engage in debate on the cultural, societal and ethical implications of advances in biomedical science.

Teacher Sian Joyce from Coláiste an Phiarsaigh said: “It is a fantastic opportunity to discover the many facets to a career in science whilst also introducing the students to valuable skills such as public speaking and scientific research methods.”

Other regional winners include St Catherine’s Vocational School, Killybegs (Ulster finals).

The national finals will take place in the Science Gallery in Dublin on 14 April 2011.

Learn more

Find out more about the Debating Science Issues competition

Follow the DSI competition 2010-2011 on Twitter @DebatingScience

To discover the reality behind real careers in science and mathematics, all you have to do is pick a career that interests you, explore why science or maths is important for that career, then present your findings on a large poster (A1 sized – that’s just under 3 x 2 feet) or in a PowerPoint slide.

The posters and slides will be displayed at a SciFest 2011 exhibition, and a panel of judges will determine who will get the prizes.

The competition is being run by CareersPortal.ie with the help of Discovery Science & Engineering, Scifest and the National Centre for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching and Learning.

The closing date for receiving entry forms is Wednesday 9 March 2011.

Learn more

Read more about the competition rules and how to enter on CareersPortal.ie

This European Commission initiative is the first pan-European competition of its kind, involving primary and secondary schools across the EU27 as well as several other European countries.

The winners at national level will compete in a regional selection with neighbouring countries, followed by the grand finals at European level – and a trip to the award ceremony in Brussels for the overall winners.

How to take part

The first competition cycle, 2010-11, was launched last September, and in this current round you have until May 2011 to submit your projects. You can submit your entries on the U4energy website, and choose from three categories:

• Category A: Energy efficiency measures at school
• Category B: Best pedagogical actions to raise awareness on efficient energy use
• Category C: Best awareness-raising campaign on energy efficiency

There are plenty of prizes in each category, as well as certificates of participation.

The initiative aims to raise awareness in schools across Europe about responsible energy use, and the U4energy website has plenty of resources including videos, experiments, games, lesson plans and useful links.

U4energy is coordinated and managed by European Schoolnet, and is funded through the Intelligent Energy Europe programme.

Learn more

Visit the U4energy website