Erkan Altun took part in the Science Experience in 2008 and was invited back in 2009 to act as a Staff Student Assistant during the week. Below is an article written by Erkan on his experience.
Another year has gone by, with another Science Experience. The Science Experience, formerly known as the Siemens Science Experience, is a fun packed three days of science which ran at The University of New South Wales. As part of the organization YSA (Young Scientists of Australia) I had the opportunity to staff the event. In the previous year I was just a student at this event as well.

Erkan carrying out an experiment in front of the class

The Science Experience is run for year nine students over three days. It is packed full of interesting lectures (which are never boring), activities that you will never have the chance to do at school, various workshops and intriguing excursions.
On day one of the event students registered and were given a debrief of the event. The students were separated into groups and assigned their staff. The students examined the salt extraction in mangroves in the first activity which involved high tech equipment. Following the workshop the students moved on to the DNA workshop in one of UNSW’s biology laboratory’s. The students learnt that the DNA in a person, if unwound, can go from earth to the sun six hundred times over. The students also created their own samples of pea DNA which they were allowed to keep. After lunch the students moved on to the STARLAB, an Astrophysics related topic. They experienced a simulation of the universe and the various theories. The students discovered that the light from the stars we see are many years old, with the closest star to earth being four light years away. “Physical structures” was the next activity for the day which involved students building a bridge with limited resources to withstand a certain amount of weight. After the fun physics workshop the students were given a campus tour which gave them an insight of the university.