Sudoku Project 2015 Isha Patel Santa Maria College Introduction The Sudoku Project is a model that exhibits the iteration method that had the purpose to replicate the process of solving diffraction problems by using a set technique and taking into consideration the available information. Diffraction and the understanding of light is a very valuable teaching as it provides the understanding as to how every day instances are visible to the human eye. Not only does this benefit the visibility of features to the naked eye, but through advanced technological advancements such as coherent x-ray imaging and holograms, we are now able to see things that were previously a mystery. Physics in general is an area of science that influences the understanding of matter and energy and the format in which things in our surrounding move. When starting the experience, my aim was to learn more about physics and relate the knowledge received to every day instances in order to ask the simplest of questions such as; why is the sunset red? And why are the rainbow colour the way that they are? Aim/Motivation Our aim in the completion of this experience was to identify the iteration method through which many scientists are able to solve and further develop on their theories and discoveries. Physics is an area of science that motivates many scientists as it investigates various energy sources and provides reasoning as to why things move, work the way that they are or what it is that powers them? Diffraction in particular was an area that provides the understanding of light and how we see things. Not only is the knowledge received through physics able to explain several natural occurrences, but excellently compliments the other areas of science such as biology and chemistry as it explores that energy sources that power certain reactions to occur. How has being part of GTP changed my appreciation for physics? Being a part of the Growing Tall Poppies program has been a very enjoyable and educational experience as not only have I learnt so much new information and increased my knowledge in relation to physics, but have been able to apply the knowledge and present my learning through a practical method. Physics was an area of science that I did not appreciate much due to the mathematical implications, however, now that I have completed the GTP work experience, I have been able to identify that unlike my perspective of science, it does not require a lot of mathematical skills to be able to understand the knowledge. I have now been able to understand that physics is a very significant part of our lives and has several applications that prove how it benefits us through different means. Likewise the other areas of science, physics is able to provide reasoning behind the motion of objects and explain the energy that is used to essentially operate everything. Whilst completing the experience, my perspective of science and my understanding changed a lot as by the work completed in the lab and the explanations provided, I was able to relate and apply the knowledge attained. Everything that had been taught was required to be expressed through a fun and interactive format through which we were able to understand the information to such an extent that it greatly assisted in identifying career pathways. The information that we have learnt is all pretty relevant, as it provided answers to several questions and wonders of natural instances. One of these questions was to be able to understand why the rainbow was in the colour order from red to violet? Throughout the experience, the knowledge obtained allowed me to come to the conclusion that red is featured on the to as it is the light that bends the most where as a colour like green or blue would bend relatively less in comparison to red light for which they are featured in the centre portion. Conclusions In conclusion, this experience has been successful in guiding me towards the area of science that I wish to pursue which is biomedicine. Whilst starting the program I was not able to identify the connection between physics and biology but now I can acknowledge and identify the similarities in the process that is used to analyse data. My perspective of physicists has also changed as I have now been able to understand that not all physicists are as portrayed in previous photos to be old and white-haired and that their discoveries has had major implications on our lives. Physics is an area that I would like to continue till Year 12 as it will compliment and provide an in depth understanding of my career aspiration of Biomedicine. or stay in physics to the end of year 12 or beyond. Acknowledgements - The name of department you have been working in: School of Physics -The Growing Tall Poppies Science Partnership Program : -Dr. Barone – Nugent -Professor Harry Quiney -Hayden Bowers -Olivia Hides Reflection about the job opportunities that physics can open up for me. The job opportunities that can be presented in this area of science include: - Engineering - Astronomy -Architecture - Biomedicine -Teaching -Further Research and many more… How important is it to know the types of jobs you can follow to the subject choices you make? It is never certain as to whether you would want to complete a career based on the subjects you select as there are multiple opportunities present in which you can complete a career in a completely different field. Briefly describe what you did and how. How was working with scientists different from the usual investigation and inquiry you do at school? What data did you collect and what did it mean? The GTP work experience was a hands on experience in which we were taught about the areas of science and focused greatly on the physics behind why things are the way that they are. Focusing mainly on diffraction, we created a Sudoku board to acknowledge the Group Members: Tina Wu, Hayley Turnham, Jacinta LiDonni, Emily Cvetanoski, Amelia Kustra School Name: Santa Maria College How is this project related to a real world problem? The Sudoku project relates to several real world applications and explores the iteration method through which by following a strategic method, we are able to use the constraints and work around them to come up with a solution. This method would be successful in not only the aspects of science, but would be able to solve several other situations. Challenging Stereotypes of what I thought physicists were like There are several challenging stereotypes that come to mind when analysing physicists with one of then being the gender stereotyping between male and female. Considering previous physicists, it can be identified that most of the famous and highly acknowledged scientists were men. Women have made several significantly beneficial discoveries such as Rosalind Franklin who was a female physicist that was the first to obtain a photographic image of DNA. Unaware of what she discovered, her research was used by other physicists to then develop upon the image and receive a Nobel prize. Apart from the gender stereotyping, there is another very common format through which physicists are categorised and this is thorough the way they look. When the term ‘physicist’ is discussed, an immediate image is is created in my mind of a scientist with a similar appearance of Albert Einstein. However, now that I have been able to understand physics and physicists, I can conclude that these stereotypes are irrelevant. This program had most definitely been beneficial as my initial aim whilst entering this program was to be able to understand physics to such an extent that I would be able to consider it as a guide into choosing a future career pathway. similarities between the problem solving method. In this experience we were able to work with scientists and actually be able to apply the knowledge that we have learnt through a very interactive method whether it be creating board games or even see the light emitted by different gasses. The experience is very different compare to the school program as we were now able to focus on one specific area and explore it in depth along with being able to relate the knowledge to world around us. How has our understanding of science, scientists and career opportunities changed through this experience. Relate to the work that you have experienced in the lab or the department.