About this day
Welcome to GCSE Science in Action!
Join us for the ultimate science enrichment day for KS4 students! Through five interactive and highly engaging sessions your students will deepen their understanding of key scientific principles and discover the wonder of science.
Our talented speakers from academia and industry will wow audiences with incredible insights into their work and inspire students to become the scientists of the future. A special session on examination success will ensure students are equipped with the tools they need to excel in their GCSE Science exams.
There will be plenty of interactivity throughout the day, with polls, quizzes and (of course) your chance to question the scientists – join us at GCSE Science in Action and prepare to be amazed.
“A brilliant day full of great examples of real-life science”
Science Teacher, March 2023
Programme & speakers
An ocean of physics Helen Czerski, University College London
Earth’s ocean is a liquid engine, a spherical machine that surrounds our planet and dictates conditions on our planet. This talk will cover how much physics there is in the natural world, and discuss a recent research expedition to the North Atlantic to watch the ocean breathing.
About Dr Helen Czerski
Helen is a physicist, oceanographer, broadcaster and writer. She is an Associate Professor in at University College London, and her TV programmes, columns, stage work, podcasts and books focus on the physics of everyday life and Planet Earth. (Image credit: Emma Gibson)
Worth Dyeing For - The Colourful Creation of Organic Chemistry Alex Baker, University of Warwick
Dyes and paints have been used for millennia, but where do the chemicals that make colours come from? How has their use shaped history and how did a few chemists change the world forever? From cave-paintings to blue jeans to antibiotics, let’s journey through history and explore how organic chemistry laid the foundations for the modern world.
About Dr Alex Baker
Alex is an organic chemist with a particular interest in carbohydrates, polymers and nanoparticles. His work is used to design medical diagnostics with a particular focus on the developing world and fighting health inequalities.
How to build an atmosphere from scratch Simon Clark, Author and Science Communicator
What is an atmosphere, and how does it work? To answer those questions, I’ll rebuild Earth’s atmosphere from scratch and simulate how it will behave using a realistic computer model.
About Dr Simon Clark
Following a PhD in atmospheric physics, Simon became a full-time science communicator, specialising in YouTube videos about topics in Earth science, such as climate change. He regularly livestreams on Twitch, lectures on science communication, and wrote a book, Firmament, as an introduction to and history of atmospheric science.
A Solar Symphony: Unearthing the secret vibrations of our Sun Tishtrya Mehta, University of Warwick
Helioseismology is the science of Earthquakes on the Sun. In this session we will discover the harmonies that orchestrate the celestial dance of our own star, revealing insights into its composition, structure, and evolution. Prepare to be mesmerized by the captivating melodies of our Sun and other stars.
About Dr Tishtrya Mehta
Tish is an astrophysicist who specialises in helioseismology, the study of the ‘music’ made by stars like the Sun. She also investigates the subtle variations in star brightness, which could unlock insights into space weather and potential threats from the cosmos.
MicroAge Mission: Harnessing Space to Study Muscle Ageing Samantha Jones, University of Liverpool
In December 2021, a set of laboratory-grown muscle cells were launched to the International Space Station. Why? To piece together how muscles responded to exercise in space and how this relates to age-related loss of muscle mass on earth. In this session, Samantha Jones will be sharing more about this quirky research and how the experiments are going.
About Dr Samantha Jones
Samantha is a bioengineer based at the Institute of Life Course and Medical Sciences, University of Liverpool. She coordinates the MicroAge Missions, a series of experiments performed on board the International Space Station examining the effects of microgravity and spaceflight on the function of lab-engineered human muscle.