When I was in Grade 8 at Ogilvie High School my Science teacher suggested that I should enter a Science competition. I took a look at the suggested topics, and chose a comparison of powder and liquid washing detergents. I chose this because I had a bit of experience with LEGO robots (two world firsts in RoboCup) and I thought I may be able to use Robots to help me measure the differences between the washing results.
I used a LEGO NXT-controlled winch to draw the washed and unwashed sample under a LEGO sensor, and used LEGO data-logging software to record the readings. This made comparing the results and differences much easier than if I had had to do the whole lot by hand.
I sought help to be able to put my results in something like the proper scientific format, submitted my report, and was lucky enough to receive several awards including “most promising young scientist” in Tasmania for 2010, in competition with students up to Grade 12. This was an enormous boost to my confidence that helped me to go on and have lots of fun with other competitions, something I probably would not have done without this early success, as Science and Engineering are not areas that schools to encourage girls to enter.
I am now (2015) just about to enter University, and I am making this report (and two others listed in the “Other Books by Yaya Lu” section at the end of this report) available in Kindle format in the hope that they may help inspire other students. Competitions can take chunks of your spare time, but I learnt a lot that I would not have leant in class about real world engineering challenges and how to make things actually work in real life, and I had a lot of fun on the way. If I have any advice for you, it is to start early, don’t leave things until the last moment, because then everything becomes urgent and there is no time for fun. But don’t delay – talk to your friends, parents and teachers, and start your own project! Believe me, it will be fun!
Yaya Lu.
I used a LEGO NXT-controlled winch to draw the washed and unwashed sample under a LEGO sensor, and used LEGO data-logging software to record the readings. This made comparing the results and differences much easier than if I had had to do the whole lot by hand.
I sought help to be able to put my results in something like the proper scientific format, submitted my report, and was lucky enough to receive several awards including “most promising young scientist” in Tasmania for 2010, in competition with students up to Grade 12. This was an enormous boost to my confidence that helped me to go on and have lots of fun with other competitions, something I probably would not have done without this early success, as Science and Engineering are not areas that schools to encourage girls to enter.
I am now (2015) just about to enter University, and I am making this report (and two others listed in the “Other Books by Yaya Lu” section at the end of this report) available in Kindle format in the hope that they may help inspire other students. Competitions can take chunks of your spare time, but I learnt a lot that I would not have leant in class about real world engineering challenges and how to make things actually work in real life, and I had a lot of fun on the way. If I have any advice for you, it is to start early, don’t leave things until the last moment, because then everything becomes urgent and there is no time for fun. But don’t delay – talk to your friends, parents and teachers, and start your own project! Believe me, it will be fun!
Yaya Lu.
