Westmeath has 29 projects in BTYSTE final
Westmeath is continuing to punch above its weight in the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition (BTYSTE). The county has had a phenomenal 29 projects selected for participation, at the RDS in January, placing it in joint fourth place in terms of entries.
Topping the list is Cork with 134 entries, followed by Dublin, with 96. Limerick is in third place, with 33 entries, and the fourth place position is shared by Westmeath and Galway. In total, nationally there are 552 entries.
Last year, Westmeath had 40 entries, putting it in third place, behind just Cork (132 projects) and Dublin (94) entries.
Eight schools in Westmeath are participating, and there eight entries apiece from Coláiste Mhuire in Mullingar and Moate Community School; four from Athlone Community College, three from St Finian’s; two apiece from Marist College and The Bower in Athlone; and one apiece from Mercy Kilbeggan and Wilson’s Hospital.
Westmeath entries examine subjects such as cyclist safety and whether there is a better way for individuals in wheelchairs to evacuate high rise buildings alone in emergencies.
Seven of the entries are in the Social and Behavioural Sciences field and questions scrutinised include whether artificial intelligence is ‘a friend or foe’ in education and what effect early musical training has on IQ.
Under Health and Wellbeing (four entries) issues studied include the use of banana bandages as a sustainable tool in wound care, and also, how successful the HSE is at treating girls with endometriosis.
In seven entries in the Biological and Ecological Sciences category one examines the possibility of harnessing woodlice for water and soil clean-up in developing countries; another looks at whether 5G radiation is a help or a hindrance to biological processes,
Two entries – both from St Finian’s – are in the Chemical, Physical and Mathematical Sciences category; an analysis of students’ daily inhaled dose of PM2.5 particles, and examining the thermodynamics of crop photosynthesis.