On Monday 25th January, 13 girls from the LV Form, accompanied by Mrs Bolton and Mrs Brown, attended a Gifted and Talented Study Day in Yeovil, Somerset. The day was organised by Richard Huish College, with the help of London University. The lectures, which were led by Dr Peter Vardy and Julie Arliss, commenced with a short lecture on ‘The Reality of Mathematics’. We examined how the laws of Mathematics are present in nature, and this enabled us to look at Maths from a different perspective and appreciate the workings of the world around us. This was followed by a talk on ‘Nanotechnology’, a very new area of science which has huge potential: it could lead to the development of new drugs, new food and supplies for the military. After a short break, which allowed us to discuss what we had learnt, there was a third lecture which covered the topic of ‘Business Ethics’. This was a completely new topic to us and encouraged us to think about the motives of a business and aspects they have to be aware of. ‘Evolutionary Psychology’ was our final lecture. Dr Vardy put forward the argument that we do not make free decisions, as everything is influenced by mechanisms in the brain which have been there for millions of years. After lunch, we witnessed a debate between Peter Vardy and Julie Arliss on the topic of abortion. They put forward two interesting cases and once they were finished, we were allowed to come forward with our contributions. The day was very interesting and really broadened our horizons.
Rachel LV Form
