ARTICLES
REPORTS
Australian Institute of Physics NSW Annual Chairs Report (continued)
Congratulations to the
projects as our winners:
following
student Physics as our fifth-year winner of the Community Outreach
to Physics Award in 2018.
1 st prize: Callum Predavec, Mosman High School, Planetary
Transfer Calculator This year’s AIP Industry Day on Thursday 8 th November explored
the Theme of Elevating Australia’s Industries in Space,
Aerospace & Defence.
Callum developed software that will calculate the required
trajectories for transfers between planets, displaying the path in
a display that can be manipulated by zooming and rotating. The
Calculator offers a way to accurately model the motion of objects
in the Solar System in real time.
The space, aerospace and defence industries are prompt
adopters of science and technology – and with swelling national
aspirations in these areas, it was a perfect occasion for the AIP
Industry Day to explore their intersections with physics community
and physics-based technology.
2 nd prize: Ashleigh Nicholls, Ravenswood School, Drones: Do
they work better in hot or cold? Drones are used in a very wide
range of environments, and so Ashleigh investigated the effect of
temperature on the operation of a drone motor. She found that the
motor worked most efficiently at temperatures of 27-45°C, with
the worst results at freezing temperatures. This has implications
for uses of drones in very cold environments, particularly in terms
of potential flying times.
The themes of the speakers included:
• Technology pull from the three sectors – with guidance on
partnering and funding;
• Technology push – reflections from companies translating
technology into products;
• Partnership opportunities – large organisations/primes with an
appetite to partner;
3 rd prizes: Anthony Guirguis and Gleb Kozlov, Redeemer
Baptist School, A Self-navigating Drone in a Building: Is it
Possible?
• Government agencies – providing the initiative and funding to
ignite collaboration.
Structure fires can cause death or injury for any people trapped
inside, and firefighters risk their own safety in any rescue operation.
Anthony and Gleb saw the possibility to reduce this risk through
the use of an autonomous drone that could navigate around and
through the structure. With the use of ultrasonic sensors their
drone successfully identified a doorway and navigated through,
as a first step in this endeavour.
Our thanks also go to the CSIRO and Linfield Collaboration Hub
for hosting this event and our wonderful sponsors which included
Schott, LCU, AXT, and WRAYS.
Sponsorship from this event enables the Australian Institute
of Physics to recognise excellence in physics through awards
programs and travel scholarships. We thank all of our sponsors
for being involved with the 2018 Physics Industry Day. This event
was once again organised and led most professionally by Dr
Scott Martin. Therefore the Australian Institute of Physics thanks
Scott for his outstanding leadership to host and drive this event
for 2018.
My congratulations also go to all our award winners in NSW
Physics during 2018.
The Australian Institute of Physics in New South Wales has
instituted this annual prize to recognise the work of “AIP NSW Best
Graduating Students” nominated by each Physics Institution in
New South Wales. We were privileged this year to acknowledge
prizes of $250, and a certificate citing the achievement of ‘AIP
NSW Best Graduating Student’ in recognition for outstanding
performance in the Physics undergraduate program from the
individual institution. This initiative has been set-up to recognise
and target students to be involved in future AIP initiatives. The
AIP congratulates all the winners on their achievements.
Finally, I was privileged to again host the NSW Branch
Postgraduate Awards Day on Tuesday 13 th November, 2018
at the University of New South Wales. Each New South Wales
University was invited to nominate one student to compete for the
$500 prize and Postgraduate medal on that day.
These awards have been created to encourage excellence in
postgraduate work, and all nominees who participated in the
Postgraduate Awards Day also received a special certificate
recognising the nominee’s high standing. Once again, we would
like to thank the generous support of The Royal Society of NSW
as the co-sponsor in awarding the Jak Kelly Scholarship
prize of $500 as a separate award category for this event.
In its fifth year, the NSW Branch recognised the work of individuals
for community outreach to the discipline of physics in New South
Wales. The Award seeks to acknowledge an individual, with a
clearly notable record of work in contributing to outreach and
physics education, and demonstrated passion for the study of
physics in New South Wales. The AIP congratulates Dr Scott
Martin, Site Leader, CSIRO Lindfield Site, Group Leader – Applied
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SCIENCE EDUCATIONAL NEWS VOL 67 NO 4