Getting the Irish physics show on the road

With 'The Physics Roadshow', Declan Holmes plans to wake up students to the excitement of science, reports Louise Holden.

We don't normally associate science with entertainment, but well- presented TV documentaries on scientific subjects attract high audience figures. It was with this in mind that Declan Holmes devised The Physics Roadshow. He believes that students have for too long experienced science as a dusty old subject in a book, and have not had the thrill of hands-on scientific experimentation and interactive learning.

The idea of The Physics Roadshow, sponsored by Analogue Devices, is to introduce students to the most exciting aspects of physics before they get down to the inevitable task of wading through the curriculum.

"Very often when students start on a topic like optics or measurement, there is very little time dedicated to explaining why they are learning these concepts. It's impossible to learn anything effectively if you don't know what it's for. Unfortunately, teachers are under immense pressure to get through the curriculum and don't have time to contextualise science for the students," says Holmes.

Holmes's roadshow is designed to put a bit of pzazz into the subjects before the book-learning begins. For example, before students embark on optics, Holmes exhibits lasers, giving students a glimpse of the potential end-product of their learning. He also examines some of the interesting scientific work that Irish physicists are involved in.

"Not many Transition students are aware that there are college students in this country working on aspects of time travel," he says. "It's a very realisable goal for a 16-year-old with an interest to be at the cutting edge of scientific research within 10 years of leaving school."

Holmes is currently working on a module that examines the history of measurement. Sounds boring? You'd be surprised how a little historical context can put scientific experiments in perspective.

"So much of physics is about measurement, and attention to accuracy," says Holmes. "But all of these measurements developed from simple things: an inch is the distance between the top two joints on the index finger; shoe sizes go up in barleycorns."

Holmes demonstrates how inattention to accurate measurement can end in disaster.

"In 1998 the NASA Mars probe was lost because NASA was using metric measurement and Lockheed Martin, the rocket manufacturer, was using imperial," he says.

Ireland is gradually waking up to the excitement of science. A new science museum, the Exploration Station, is planned for Dublin, and schools, colleges and companies are working hard to draw Irish students back to physics and chemistry. The Physics Roadshow, which uses sound, animation and interactive learning to bring scientific concepts to life, is just one example of how science in schools is becoming more interesting.