A summer of science

The Institute for Mathematical Sciences opened its doors to 30 budding secondary school mathematicians as it hosted the Institute’s second Summer School in July.

The Summer School initiative was founded in 2006 following a generous donation from The Sutton Trust. "The Sutton Trust are much more than just a generous donor," said Summer School Director Phil Ramsden. "They have provided real leadership and helped us to understand exactly what we want to achieve from this."

One of the aims of the Summer School is to raise awareness of mathematics among the group, encouraging them to think innovatively about the subject, as well as to improve the College's links with secondary schools. "Our aim is to push back the horizons a bit," says Phil. "We want the students to see from us, the people who love mathematics, what there is to get excited about and give them a sense of what mathematics means in the real world."

Chairman of the Sutton Trust, Sir Peter Lampl, echoes Phil's views. "Summer schools like this are a very effective way of breaking down the barriers that deter young people from non-privileged backgrounds from applying to elite universities and giving them the confidence to aim high," he said, "so we are delighted to be working with Imperial College on this initiative."

The class was made up of pupils with no history of higher education in the family from the maintained sector in London and the south east of England. "It is important for these kids to have the aspirations that their abilities warrant" commented Phil Ramsden. "We hope that this is a place where students can think and express themselves freely." An exciting programme of events was put together for the week-long Summer School featuring topics including Space Science, Physics, Cosmology and Cryptology and consisting of lectures and visits to the Royal Greenwich Observatory and the Science Museum.

On Wednesday, the students were treated to two lectures from Imperial alumnus, best-selling author, BBC producer and co-founder of The Undergraduate Ambassador's Scheme, Simon Singh MBE. He opened by stating that he wanted each of the students to understand that "Maths isn't always about numbers and shapes; it's about thinking creatively and differently by looking for the things that not everyone will see."

The first lecture entitled "The Big Bang" looked at how the universe was created, discussing the conflicting theories of Sir James Jeans and George Lemaître, before introducing students to how the motions of galaxies are measured; a concept that was demonstrated by sending a 240 volt current through a gherkin! He went on to explain how critics of the Big Bang theory had used the evidence for the concept to favour their own criticisms, incorporating Led Zeppelin's 'Stairway to Heaven' to explain his argument.

Simon then opened the lecture theatre to questions and students exchanged ideas on topics ranging from religion and evolution to global warming. The lecture was a hit with each of the students. Daniella Harris, 15, from North London said, "I really enjoyed it. He got everyone involved in what he was doing and made the whole thing really fun and interesting."

The week drew to a close on Friday when the class came together for one last time to evaluate their week and discuss what they had achieved. "I think that the Summer School has really challenged the stereotype of maths for young people like us," commented 16 year old Farhaan Saraf, "We've learnt so much and it just goes to show that maths isn't boring as a lot of people think. It's like we've broken the stereotype and revealed the truth."