Approximately 1,000 secondary school students have braved the cold weather to display their scientific and technological prowess at the BT Young Scientist and Technology exhibition this week.
The winners of the national accolade will be announced tomorrow in the RDS.
On Breakfast Business, BT Ireland Chief Executive Shay Walsh said that this year’s group of young scientists are “an amazing group”.
“1965 was the first Young Scientist and Technology competition - this is the 61st and [BTs] 25th year as the sponsor and organizer of it,” he said.
“We have over 1,000 of the best and brilliant minds of secondary level school students there today.”
Health and wellbeing is a new category in the competition this year after the social behaviour category had been made too large, Mr Walsh said.
“It very much reflects the students interests in issues that are facing their families, their neighbourhoods, their communities, elderly parents, health in the farm space, agricultural as well as mental and physical health, the impacts of Covid-19, the impacts of the pandemic in terms of students, mental health, and of course, the use of AI and the threats of AI,” he said.
Artificial Intelligence
With the average age of competition entrants being 14, it’s surprising that there is such an interest in AI, however, Mr Walsh has said the competition entrants around AI are extremely interesting.
“Obviously, there's very technical ones, from looking at cyber-attacks and how to improve the ability to detect cyber-attacks right through to the very pragmatic ones like the use of AI in terms of like using cameras, both for in the agricultural sense, and in your fridge,” he said.
“Fridges [with cameras that can detect what's in your fridge] are available, but [this uses] AI then to look at the different [recipes] that you could make - you can come home, press the AI button and it'll say, ‘Why don't you make a ratatouille? Because you've loads of peppers and onions in the fridge, or cheese’.”
"A lot of talk and not as much action"
The BT Young Scientist and Technology exhibition comes as Ireland's dependence on technology comes into sharp focus ahead of anticipated major policy changes when Donald Trump assumes power in the US.
“I mean, it’s always a worry when there's a change of administration and there's a lot of noise as well in the system,” Mr Walsh said.
“I think it's probably a little bit overplayed - there's a lot of talk and not as much action.
“I think Ireland's in the unique position because of the capital investment that these companies have put in, like the likes of Google and the pharma industries.
“It takes a long time to put these in places, a lot longer than a four year term of a new president.
“But I think back to kind of the young scientists, large organisations are coming here is really [for] the talent that we have.”
Mr Walsh said that events like the BT Young Scientist and Technology exhibition are “a great feeder pool into that talent”.
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BT Young Scientist Exhibition 2024. 11/01/2024 Photograph: Sasko Lazarov / © RollingNews.ie
