2015

READ THE FULL REPORT The Drug Synthesis Zone was funded by the Royal Society of Chemistry for schools in Ireland and, of the scientists, Sinead, Mark, Florence and Neil were members of the Society. It was a themed zone where the scientists had a link to the processes of producing and synthesising pharmaceuticals, for example researching catalyses to improve drug synthesis, leading a team that analyses drugs during their production, or lecturing in Pharmaceutical Chemistry. Discussion in the Zone was overall broader than the theme of synthesis, and questions from students covered many areas relating to drugs. Most of the scientists engaged well with students, especially when asked about complex issues. The final two, Florence and Sinead, accounted for two-thirds of lines of live chat and answers in ASK between them.

READ THE FULL REPORT The Food Science Zone was a themed zone funded by the Royal Society of Chemistry for schools in Ireland, and Andrew, Emma and John were members of the Society. Ruth and Dilip work at Teagasc, the agriculture and food authority, John and Emma are researchers at the Institute of Food and Health and Andrew is studying the vitamins and fatty acids in milk for his PhD. It was a busy zone where many questions focused on the theme of food research, and the scientists were engaging in live chats. Emma, the zone winner, was particularly active in live chats, contributing nearly half of the total chat by scientists.

READ THE FULL REPORT The Nanoscience Zone was funded by the Science Foundation Ireland’s Discover programme and involved five scientists whose research involved science done at the nanoscale. For example, Anil researches tiny transistors and Micki is using nanotechnology to develop new tests for infectious diseases. Discussion in live chats was busy, especially in the many where 3 or 4 scientists attended. Overall, the zone was quiet in ASK, and most questions from students asked generally about working as a scientist, rather than the theme of nanoscience. In ASK there was a very even spread of answers from the scientists, while in the live chats Anil and Claire contributed the majority.

READ THE FULL REPORT The Nitrogen Zone was a general science zone for primary schools funded by the Science Foundation Ireland’s Discover programme. It included five scientists from a variety of backgrounds: laser imaging, genetic statistics, marine research, haematology, and microbiology. Questions from students ranged from covering these areas of research, to questions about the scientists’ lives, to more general science topics like space and cancer. Some live chats were fast-paced and lively and some were slower when conducted through a teacher account.  This zone saw the highest number of submitted questions, comments and votes from students, and the most answers from scientists in ASK, reflecting a diverse and engaged zone.