Year 12 Physics go to Uni!

03 Jul

Recently our Year 12 Physics class had the opportunity to visit the University of Canterbury.

The first thing we did on the trip was visit the Arts Centre in Ōtautahi, Christchurch, where “the father of Nuclear Physics,” Lord Ernest Rutherford, of Nelson studied for his undergraduate degree. We saw the old lecture hall of Canterbury College and the small room assigned to Rutherford for his research work.

We explored some physics concepts through activities like ice skating and go-karting. During the ice skating session, students experienced Newton’s laws of motion and the conservation of momentum. While go-karting, we observed the relationship between the speed of the go-karts and the radius of the track. We also saw some applications of physics laws in the safety features of the go-karts.

On the second day, at the University of Canterbury, students had the opportunity to do some hands-on activities in the radiation lab, where they conducted experiments using different radioactive sources. Students also experienced some fascinating mechanics phenomena with the apparatus set up by the university team for us.

The students all had a great time over there, it was a fantastic experience for everyone involved.