University of Southampton had organised a lecture about the different sciences. A group of year 8 students participated in this event. We learned a lot about what goes on at the university and some of the various career options and trips that the university offer. They introduced many new experiences and options to all of us. 

They first talked about some research the Biology department was doing and how they were learning about the animals in Australia such as the Tasmanian devil and how they are working to keep them safe from disease. They explained what various students had done to explore and examine these animals and how they had had a lot of fun during this experience. 

Next, they started to do some chemistry demonstrations of experiments we wouldn’t normally be able to see in school.  They were engaging and exciting. We learnt about many different types of elements and compounds and what capabilities they had. At one point the lecturer showed us a demonstration where he dipped a rose into a bucket of liquid nitrogen. After a couple of seconds, he took the rose out and hit it against the nearby lab bench. It completely smashed, going in every direction. 

Everyone in the room was excited. We learnt a lot about biology and chemistry and were very motivated at the end to go away and learn more about these amazing subjects. On the way home we couldn’t stop talking about how great it was and about everything we had learnt.  Many of the students really wanted to go back and see it all again.  

- Martha (Year 8)