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QE has maintained its strong record of success in a national team competition that challenges young people to devise innovative ways of powering the cities of the future.

 

Having won the Shell Bright Ideas Challenge last year – the first time QE had entered – the School took second place in the 2017 competition, winning prize money of £4,000. In addition, the boys each received a tablet computer.

 

Technology teacher Shane Ryan said: “This represents a great achievement for the School and I congratulate all five boys in our team. The prize money will be invested into teaching resources for Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths – the STEM subjects.”

 

""Competition entrants were given the task of using their STEM skills to devise creative solutions to the energy challenges that cities will face in 2050.

 

The QE team, called TRACESE, came up with the idea of bacteria generators stored under every home that would break down food waste. This process would allow electrons to be extracted, which would, in turn, power households.

 

As competition prize-winners, they were treated to a VIP experience at Make the Future Live, a four-day festival of ideas and innovation, hosted by Shell at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, which featured science shows, hands-on activities, interactive exhibits and careers experiences. They received wristbands allowing them to queue-jump at the exhibits and were given a free lunch, while also enjoying the opportunity to talk to Mathematics expert and TV celebrity Rachel Riley.

 

The team, all from Year 9, were, Gabriel Bednarkiewicz, Kaustubh Bhatnagar, Agsathan Ilamurugan, Janujan Satchi and Rukshaan Selvendira.

 

Devoted to geology

Having built a successful career in geology, Nicholas Holgate is now devoting himself to spreading the word about the subject among the rising generations.

Since April 2016, Nicholas (OE 1995–2002) has been volunteering as a STEM Ambassador, working with schools, colleges and employers to encourage young people to enjoy and pursue the STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).

Four months later, he became a member of the Young Professionals Committee of PESGB – the Petroleum Exploration Society of Great Britain – for which he co-ordinates the society’s Young Professionals Mentoring Scheme.

And during the 2016 Autumn Term, Nicholas returned to QE as one of 15 old boys who gave an overview of their careers at QE’s annual Careers Convention, which is for Year 11 boys and their parents.

""His fascination for geology first took root while he was studying it as part of his Geography GCSE. “Whilst I was studying for my A-levels, I discussed this interest with a number of teachers, who helped me identify ways of exploring the discipline further outside of QE. I took it upon myself, with help from others, to go to local geological societies to explore more about the subject.”

He paid tribute to teacher Malcolm Russell (Head of Chemistry and Head of Science): “Without his guidance and support, I would not be where I am today, and I owe Dr Russell in particular a huge debt of gratitude for everything that he did.”

After leaving School, Nicholas went to Bristol University, where he took an MSci in Geology, graduating in 2006. He also served as secretary to the university’s Geological Society.

""He then worked for a coal-mining company based in Australia for a year, before taking an internship with Statoil in Norway. In 2009, Nicholas returned to education to study for a PhD at Imperial College London, which he completed four years later.

Since April 2014, he has been with Shell and is currently working as a London-based Exploration Geoscientist with the energy giant’s Global New Ventures operation. His work for Shell involves conducting exploration through regional geological and geophysical studies to identify new petroleum-bearing territory and guide future investment.

He explained that it is partly because of the support he received from QE teachers and partly because of the efforts he had to make as a teenager to find out about geology beyond the School walls that he is now so keen to help young professionals and students discover more about the discipline and its attendant career options. “I try to highlight and publicise the subject when I can, just in case there is a budding geologist who is fascinated by the subject and wants to know how to get into it as a profession.”

Out of this world! QE pair in space competition hosted by NASA

QE sixth-formers Aadil Kara and Brian Kong enjoyed a once-in-a-lifetime experience when they competed alongside other young engineers from across the world in a competition hosted by NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.

The Year 13 pair were part of a 12-strong European Union team who joined up with other finalists from India, Argentina and the USA to form a 60-strong fictional company, Rockdonnell, in the 24th International Space Settlement Design Competition.

Working against tight deadlines over a long weekend, the companies had to produce a proposal to win a contract to build a settlement in space for 10,000 full-time residents on the surface of Venus in the year 2092. The settlement’s role included harvesting raw materials from the planet’s surface, taking advantage of the extreme conditions for specialist manufacturing and beginning work on terraforming – the process of making changes on the planet to make it more hospitable for humans.

During a break on the final day while the judges were deliberating on the results, competition participants were treated to a tour of the vast Cape Canaveral site. The tour took in sights including:

  • The Vehicle Assembly Building – the largest structure in the world when it was built in 1965
  • One of the Saturn V rockets, which remains the tallest, heaviest and most powerful rocket ever to have flown
  • The retired Space Shuttle, Atlantis.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “Aadil and Brian worked tremendously hard to reach this international final and I congratulate them on their achievement – what a singular opportunity!”

Brian said: “This was one of the best experiences of my life so far, giving me insight into different cultures from around the world and the way business and company management works. I managed to gain so much experience in leading a team of over 60 individuals from different backgrounds, and definitely came away with many new friends.”

The pair’s company finished as overall runners-up in the competition. “The judges praised our design for its expandable, modular structure and for a water distillation system using external heat from the Venusian atmosphere,” said Aadil.

Brian and Aadil were chosen for the EU team following the UK Space Design Competition, which saw a QE team of 12 win the regional round, before the QE boys then participated in the national finals held at Imperial College, London.

Brian, who was the EU’s team student leader, explained that after arriving in Florida, he and Aadil spent an afternoon and evening meeting participants. “We got to know everyone that evening and the night was finished with a Rockdonnell company meeting, where we decided managerial positions of the company. I was voted in as the vice president of the company, looking after marketing and sales.”

For his part, Aadil worked within the operations engineering department to design emergency procedures in response to disaster scenarios.
The following morning, they headed off to the Kennedy Space Center and received technical briefings specific to each department (automation, human, operations, structural and management).

They then set to work. “From this point, it was a race to meet the RFP (request for proposal),” said Brian. “We worked flat-out, before heading to bed for a few hours at around midnight. The following morning was an early start from around 7am and we worked in the hotel in the early morning and late night, and at the Kennedy Space Center throughout the day.

“I was in charge of putting together the presentation and organising the speakers for the final day and so, along with a few members of each department, I stayed up throughout the night to finish our settlement proposal to meet the 7:30am deadline.

“We were first to present to the panel of judges, an array of aerospace experts and business individuals in the industry. Both Aadil and I were presenting.” After the 35-minute presentation itself, there were questions from the judges before the final results were announced several hours later.