IRELAND’S FUTURE SCIENTISTS PREPARE TO SHOWCASE THEIR TALENTS AT THE 56th BT YOUNG SCIENTIST & TECHNOLOGY EXHIBITION
- Exhibition opens to the public from Thursday 9th – Saturday 11th January
Dublin, Tuesday 7th January 2020: Over 1,100 students will take their place at Dublin’s RDS tomorrow as the 56thBT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition kicks off. The event brings together some of the country’s brightest young minds as they compete to take home the coveted title of the BT Young Scientist & Technologist(s) of the Year 2020.
An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar will officially open the Exhibition at a special ceremony tomorrow, Wednesday 8thJanuary, attended by students, teachers, exhibition partners and stakeholders, and presented by BT Managing Director Shay Walsh. The ceremony will be streamed live on Facebook from 2pm.
Speaking ahead of this year’s exhibition An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said, ““The BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition is a brilliant event; it showcases our best and brightest, and as we have seen in recent years, the winners often go on to have very successful careers in their chosen fields. It’s inspirational for me to see the immense talent and new ideas being brought by our second level students. They are the change makers and problem solvers of tomorrow. I wish everyone involved the very best of luck for this year’s event and for the future.”
In what will be an exciting time for competing students, this year’s winner(s) of the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition, to be announced on Friday 10th January, will be presented with a cheque for €7,500, the BTYSTE perpetual trophy and will represent Ireland at the 32nd EU Contest for Young Scientists when it is hosted in 2020 in Santander, Spain.
Leading communications and IT services company, BT, in their 20th year as organiser of the Exhibition is set to deliver another spectacular event for competitors and the visiting public. At the heart of the Exhibition are the 1,100 students representing 244 schools across the island of Ireland.
This year’s projects cover a wide variety of topics, from climate change to gender diversity and the effects of social media, and everything in between. Judging begins tomorrow afternoon, and the Exhibition opens to the public from Thursday 9th to Saturday 11th January, with approx. 50,000+ visitors, young and old, expected to visit the event over the course of the three days.
Speaking at today’s launch, Shay Walsh, Managing Director, BT Ireland said: “I am delighted to welcome the next wave of future scientists and entrepreneurs to the RDS this week for the 56th BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition. Over the next few days, they will have the experience of a lifetime. They’ll get the chance to present their projects to not only the public but also to some of Ireland’s most renowned scientists & technologists.
“Since its inception in 1965, over three quarters of a million people have visited the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition. This figure highlights just how fascinated people are with the endless possibilities of science and technology. BT Ireland is very proud to both organise and sponsor the Exhibition for the past 20 years – providing so many bright students with a platform to pursue their interests in science and technology. We wish all participating students the best of luck this week.”
Also taking place alongside the BTYSTE is the 17th annual Primary Science Fair, which runs from 9th -11th January 2020. The Primary Science Fair plays a pivotal role in the primary academic calendar in Ireland and allows our very young scientists to tackle issues with science and technology and develop their love of discovery too.
As well as the projects on display, there is a thrilling line-up of science shows guaranteed to blow the mind, including “Airmazing”, “The Physics of Breakdancing”, “3D Space Challenges & Exploration”, World of Robots and a show fromMorgan & West that will be filled with phenomenal thrills, chemical spills and risk assessment that gives their stage manager chills. Airmazing with science demonstrations to amaze and entertain all ages. Bonnie Greer, OBE, the UK-based novelist and playwright who won widespread acclaim for her positive comments on Ireland on a BBC Question Time debate on Brexit recently, will headline an ‘Enterprising Minds’ leaders’ lunch on Thursday 9th January in partnership with Future Human. Also speaking is Shane Curran, CEO of Evervault and former BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition winner.
Renowned physicist Professor Brian Cox will provide the keynote speech at Nextipedia, a business leaders symposium taking place on Wednesday in the RDS. Hosted by Liz Bonnin, a fantastic line up of speakers will share inspiring stories and valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities that technology innovation offers, with a specific lens on sustainability and Ireland’s 2050 carbon neutrality objective.
Visitors can plan their visit to the RDS in advance by downloading the free BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition app, available on Android and Apple devices. Full of helpful information, the app includes an exhibition map, a search tool for student projects and exhibitors, a schedule of events, as well as links to the BTYSTE social networks for live updates throughout the event.
- Open for visitors: January 9th, 09:30am – 5:30pm; January 10th, 09:30am – 5:00pm; and January 11th, 09:30am – 5:30pm
- Location: RDS, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4
The BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition is a must for anyone with a passion for science and technology. For information and tickets, log onto www.btyoungscientist.com or follow the exhibition with #CreateTodayShapeTomorrow and #BTYSTE on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat @BTYSTE.
[ENDS]
Contact Details:
Karl Picard, Hanover Communications – 085 814 6576 / kpicard@hanovercomms.com
Sinead Reilly, Hanover Communications – 085 85 842 1970 / sreilly@hanovercomms.com
Catherine Dunne, Hanover Communications- 0864002985 / cdunne@hanovercomms.com
About the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition (#BTYSTE):
The BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition is much more than a competition – it is the experience of a lifetime for the students and teachers who take part. Designed to raise schools’ engagement in the critical subjects of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM), the Exhibition calls upon students aged 12-19 years from all over the island of Ireland to showcase innovative science and technology projects to approx. 50,000 visitors each year. The BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition is supported by several valued partners including the Department of Education & Skills, Analog Devices, CISC, Perrigo, RTE and the Department of Education, Northern Ireland. Learn more at www.btyoungscientist.com.
About The Primary Science Fair:
The Primary Science Fair, founded in 2003, will take place at the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition from the 9th-11thJanuary 2020. Bringing together inquiring minds from primary schools across the country, The Primary Science Fair will give young students the chance to discover and learn about the possibilities of science, technology, engineering and maths by working on their own projects in a non-competitive environment. The Primary Science Fair supports the curriculum and gives these students a platform to learn more about the scientific method and showcase their hard work on a national stage. The aim of the event is to foster a love of science early, and help students develop their math and science skills.
About BT:
BT’s purpose is to use the power of communications to make a better world. It is one of the world’s leading providers of communications services and solutions, serving customers in 180 countries. Its principal activities include the provision of networked IT services globally; local, national and international telecommunications services to its customers for use at home, at work and on the move; broadband, TV and internet products and services; and converged fixed-mobile products and services. BT consists of four customer-facing units: Consumer, Enterprise, Global and Openreach.
For the year ended 31 March 2019, BT Group’s reported revenue was £23,428m with reported profit before taxation of £2,666m.
British Telecommunications plc (BT) is a fully owned subsidiary of BT Group plc and encompasses virtually all businesses and assets of the BT Group. BT Group plc is listed on the London stock exchange.
For more information, visit www.btplc.com
