BT Young Scientist
The BT Young Scientist and Technology exhibition is an event held in the RDS every year where students apply, qualify and showcase their projects, inventions and investigations to both the public and a large panel of judges over four days. Here at Maynooth Post Primary School we have had great success over the years at the BT Young Scientist. Each year students from the school qualify for the showcase in the RDS which is a huge achievement and on several occasions students from the school have won prizes. It is a great experience for any student and we would encourage anyone who has an interest in STEM to get thinking and enter a project.
This year Caolainn Hanlon represented Maynooth Post Primary School at the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition. Caolainn’s project, entitled , “An investigation into the effect of toothpaste containing hydrogen peroxide on tooth health,” involved research and experimentation to show the effects of hydrogen peroxide, a chemical which is becoming an increasingly popular at-home tooth whitening technique, on tooth health.
We are extremely proud of Caolainn and all her hard work, it is a great achievement to be selected out of thousands of entries across Ireland to present at the National Exhibition. We have no doubt that Caolainn has a bright future ahead of her.
The BT Young Scientist was once again a huge hit this year in MPPS as numbers of applicants continue to grow year on year. It is our hope that we can again increase our number of representatives from the school at next year’s finals and hopefully bring some prizes back to the school. If interested in participating, please contact Mr Dixon or Ms Roche.
Please see below Caolainn’s account of her BT Young Scientist & Technology experience.
The BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition ran from the 10th to the 13th of January 2024. It was held, as always, in the RDS and showcased 550 projects from across the island.
I began planning for my project towards the end of third year and commenced work on the project itself in September. The project, entitled, “An investigation into the effect of toothpaste containing hydrogen peroxide on tooth health,” involved research and experimentation to show the effects of hydrogen peroxide, a chemical which is becoming an increasingly popular at-home tooth whitening technique, on tooth health. I performed an experiment using duck eggs, which have a similar composition to human teeth. The results showed that the use of oral products containing the chemical caused breakdown of the enamel, which can lead to cavities and nerve pain.
On the first day, after the stand was set up, there was a welcome ceremony, including a speech from President Michael D. Higgins and included many other special guests.
From Thursday to Saturday, the exhibition was open to the public. Each day, different judges reviewed the project and asked me to explain it to them, and I often was asked to explain the project to people visiting the exhibition which was another great opportunity. As well as this, I had free time to explore the other projects, food court, primary school science fair and industries hall.
On Friday evening, there was a lengthy awards ceremony, featuring more guests, including Minister for Education, Norma Foley. It declared Seán O’Sullivan, from Limerick, the BT Young Scientist of 2024.
Overall, the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition was a wonderful experience, and the support of Ms. Roche and Mr. Dixon made the whole thing possible. I would definitely recommend that anyone with any interest in science and technology consider applying in the future.
~ Caolainn Hanlon (TY 2024)