Stepping from the audience onto the stage, my Science Week has been filled with a profound sense of happiness despite the busyness. I enjoy every second roaming around the realm of science, in which the joy might have originated from the admiration for Tom Knight and Randy Rettberg’s bold imagination – the two electronic engineers at MIT decided to transform the concepts from engineering into biology by proposing “BioBricks” to unlock the grand gate to synthetic biology. The joy might sparkle due to being moved by the occasional meetup of Jennifer Doudna and Jillian Banfield in a local café in Berkeley, where they associated CRISPR with Cas proteins for the first time ever in the history of genetic engineering, splashing bright colors on the chronology of science…
Such courage, such zeal, such innocence.
It is such innocence that makes science so appealing to generations and generations; hence, perceiving this respectful innocence became the theme of this week. Passing by the dark grey pendulum hanging next to the colorful climbing wall, I quietly awaited Dr. Neto’s reproduction of Walter Lewin’s classic human pendulum demonstration, so as the pendulum itself. Between the lecture hall on the other side of the Pacific Ocean and the open space right in front of me, it is the repeated verification that turned the past conclusions into the present theories, and it is the shortening distance that made the depth of science increasingly tangible. “I’ve told you, physics works!” This was what the two scientists declared after precisely recording their experimental results.
While in the Halo Theater, the science teachers and student ambassadors were anticipating igniting thunderous claps and wows with their gorgeous STEM shows. The flickering flames burst and faded within seconds, yet the delicately mixed senses of fear and thrill lingered; the pendulum released from height no longer returned, but the image of energy conservation got vividly clear; chasing the scalpel holding in Dr. Alirio’s hand, each breath became smooth and peaceful.
Witnessing these wonders for years and years, there came some moments when the technical terms once foreign became familiar to me, as well as some moments when I was able to explain the core reaction or mechanism behind the experiments. Perhaps these moments were what had been intensifying my excitement in the past into an insatiable curiosity.
Yet, we had been fortunate enough to hear from the researchers dedicating themselves to the intersection of the known and the unknown. Dr. Sun Kun from Shenzhen Bay Laboratory conveyed his achievements in applying the cell-free DNA (cfDNA)-based non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT), invented by Professor Dennis Lo, into the early cancer screening process through liquid biopsy. His confidence in the future of his products was growing, accompanied by the successive clarity of the fragmentation patterns of cfDNA. Dr. Rafael Marzo from Oxford University illustrated the DNA origami technique derived from conventional DNA nanotechnology. Taking advantage of the in vivo stability and Watson-Crick base pairing rules of DNA itself, Marzo believed that the potential application of DNA origami in artistic exploration and drug delivery would be promising.
Thus, I was dying to share my uncontrollable delight with my peers during the synthetic biology practical sessions I had designed and organized. What captivated us the most were not only the concepts of “Biological Parts” in synthetic biology or the essence of “reporter genes” in molecular biology, but also the lovely patterns outlined by our participants using E.coli engineered to express different types of chromoproteins, alongside the 3D protein structures predicted by the bioinformatic tool AlphaFold.
It would be difficult to depict how stunning it was to me while recognizing the creativity and accomplishments of my peers. At that moment, the beauty of life blended freely in the nurture of nature, while the texture of life shone brightly in the luminescence of technology.
I was sincerely grateful to the Biology faculty, which had given me lots of support since I emailed my two plans for the practical sessions to Ms. Sonia, Head of Biology, in early September. Ms. Ellie, who supervised my preliminary experiments in B731 almost every day over the past two weeks, joked that we had been “exploiting each other” – well, we biology students just enjoyed being crazy with biology.
In my presentation in the Halo Theater, I said, “Love is my driving force”. Afterwards, Mr. Ian, Head of Science, told me that he had once written the exact same sentence in his notebook during his formative years.
Time tests the innocence of love; the innocent love motivates us to take steps forward in the journey of science. This has been true in the past and definitely will be true in the future.
Students’ Sharing
- Steven Li
To be a STEM student at SCIE
“There is geometry in the sound of strings, and music in the spacing of the spheres.” To most people, Pythagoras is remembered primarily as a mathematician, known for the Pythagorean theorem. It’s hard to imagine that this theorist, who laid down such cold, rigid principles of geometry, could have also bridged the worlds of science and music. Yet, our daily lives are filled with similar examples: the Fibonacci sequence and the arrangement of piano keys, the golden ratio in Debussy’s compositions, the dynamic waves of sound created by Fourier transformations in electronic music. Through music, it seems possible to merge science—a field often seen as purely logical—with human emotion. For me, this combination of feeling and reason has always been fascinating.
Before I transferred to SCIE, all the physics I learned felt like nothing more than cold, hard equations. Even though textbooks and teachers tried to relate theory to everyday life, these examples ultimately ended up as just another line in my notebook. However, during the recent Science Week at SCIE, I found the chance to combine two of my favorite things—guitar and physics—by exploring the sparks that fly when they intersect. Specifically, I delved into the connection between standing waves and harmonics.
The idea for this exploration actually came from a frustration I experienced while practicing guitar. In many of the pieces I love, both artificial and natural harmonics (A sound effect created by lightly touch the strings instead of fret it to create a higher pitches) are frequently used techniques by guitar masters, and the ethereal sound they create has always captivated me.
But as someone without formal music training, mastering these techniques became a source of struggle. So, I began researching the scientific principles behind these enchanting harmonics, hoping that understanding the physics might help solve my technical challenges. As luck would have it, our A1 physics course included a small assignment: everyone had to give a brief presentation on a physics-related topic. I seized this opportunity to share what I had learned about standing waves, sound waves, and their relationship to harmonics.
I originally thought this small project would be the end of my exploration. But to my surprise, my physics teacher, Mr. Allen, found the way I used an electric guitar to demonstrate standing waves and harmonics fascinating. He encouraged me to team up with Jayden for further research and to present our findings during Science Week’s Physics Demonstration Day.
This additional task definitely added to the workload that week, but with Jayden’s help and Mr. Allen’s guidance, we successfully completed our preparations. On the Thursday of Science Week, Jayden and I stood on the stage of the Halo Theater, microphones in hand, explaining the various physical properties of standing waves and sound, while I strummed the guitar strings to illustrate the theories in the most direct way possible.
The concept behind the presentation was actually quite straightforward. A guitar string, anchored at both ends by the bridge and the neck, vibrates to form a standing wave. The frequency of this vibration is what we hear as the pitch, referred to as the fundamental frequency. However, if I lightly touch the string at a specific point while it’s vibrating, dividing the wavelength into whole-number segments, the wave’s frequency increases in multiples. These higher frequencies are known as harmonics, producing distinct overtones that enrich the sound.
Each time I plucked the guitar strings, the vibrant notes flowed from the amplifier like a gentle stream. These notes seemed to flow over every equation in my textbook, bringing them to life and stripping away their rigid formality.
Although Science Week is now behind me, the way I engaged in this project left a lasting impression. I’m convinced that in my future studies, knowledge will no longer be confined to paper and calculations. It will become a flashlight, illuminating the beauty of life for me to explore. As a STEM student, I believe my mission is to break down barriers, and events like this at SCIE are helping us pull out the nails that hold us back.
- Allen Xu, Vincent Liang
This year’s Science Week was truly amazing and we experienced an unforgettable journey through the fascinating world of chemistry. A series of exciting demonstrations ignited the curiosity and desire to explore in each of us, with each experiment revealing the beauty and power of chemical reactions. One of the most memorable scenes was the launch of a hydrogen rocket. Watching it ignite and spray was an exhilarating experience – the violent chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen propelled the rocket forward, and the audience was blown away by the power of science.
Equally fascinating was the traffic light reaction, where a simple solution caused the colors to change back and forth like visual magic. This fascinating display demonstrated the complexity of chemical reactions, immersing us all in the changes before our eyes.
The Elephant Toothpaste experiment provided another visual feast as the foam gushed out, overflowing the container. It felt like a genie had been released from the bottle, a magical reaction caused by the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide.
Other exciting highlights included a lava lamp demonstration where colorful acid dyes were mixed with baking soda to create colorful bubbles that danced before our eyes. A flame test rounded off the event, where metallic salts were sprayed into the flames, revealing a stunning array of colors – each of which was a different color from the other, showing the unique properties of different ions.
These exciting experiments not only entertained the audience but also inspired them. They give us a glimpse into the fascinating world of chemistry and inspire long-lasting interest and curiosity.
- Howard Li
The stage was incredibly large, looming over me as I sat in the front row, just like the huge inquietude looming over my mind, pulling my anxiety to the surface, acting as a hurdle preventing me from going on stage. What if I said something wrong? What if I forgot what I was supposed to say? What if… I stopped myself from thinking that. The more I thought about it, the more anxious I became.
Focus, focus! I reminded myself to concentrate on the simple lines I needed to deliver. Relax, relax! I told myself to calm down about the Biology experiment in front of us—it was an organ dissection experiment, something I genuinely enjoyed because it was amazing to learn about organs that related to our own bodies. Despite trying to relax, I still felt an enigmatic sense of unease about what might happen. Although my lines were simple, I was still very afraid I would fail in presenting what I wanted to convey.
Time passed in a flash, and suddenly, it was our turn to present our Physics experiment. I felt both confident and worried—confident because I was familiar with what I was doing, and worried because I was still very anxious about going onto the stage – millions of eyes starring at me like wolves in the dark hunting for preys.
I walked onto the stage with my eyes closed, slowly opening them once I was up there. Instead of the piercing stares of wolves, I saw many kind, curious faces looking back at me, uncertainty in their eyes, eager to learn from me. I took a breath and began to speak, gaining confidence as I went. Despite a few mistakes and unintentional pauses, I finished my presentation and earned a huge round of applause!
It turned out that going onto a stage wasn’t such a big deal after all!
- Joy Ma
In Science Week on Thursday, I served as an assistant to stand next to the dissection teacher, operating the visualizer to display every detail of the dissection in real-time on the big screen.
During that, I closely observed the dissection process and structures of pig’s and cow’s eyes, such as the cornea and lens; lungs; trachea; and hearts (the intricate four chambers and blood vessels). When the teacher used a tool to inflate the lungs, I witnessed its rhythmic expansion and contraction, which is a tangible reflection of the breath of life.
Additionally, what is interesting is , the teacher placed pieces of the hear and lung into water simultaneously. The heart quickly sank, while the lung floated due to its internal air-filled alveoli, demonstrating the intersection of anatomy and physics.
Through this experience, I realized that science is not just about cold data but also about the passion and curiosity to explore and understand the essence of life. I hope more students will find inspiration in their studies, fueled by a curiosity for the unknown. Science Week is not merely a celebration of science but also a key to unlocking the doors of exploration.
- Andy Ren
The science week is certainly a memorable event that I participated in ever since I joined the SCIE family. As a part of the physic demo team, I learned a great deal during the demo and the preparation process.
Firstly, while preparing the PPT for the presentation, I met different technical problems such as the transition between the slides, as well as arranging the format of words and graphs. After finishing the PPT, I felt that my PPT-making skill has jumped significantly.
Another important technical the project has brought to me is the ability to speak in front of the crowd. At first when I was on stage, I was extremely nervous, yammering on the words, struggling to search for the correct terminology which I was so familiar with during my rehearsal. But as I calmed down and focused on the talk itself rather than the pressure the crowd has brought to me, the wording magically came back to me. I am sure the next time I go on stage, I will much more confident than before.
