SINCE 2017 CaféScientifique (CaféSci) in Launceston has been holding its “Young Scientist of the Year” competition, giving a stage to young people from across the county to talk about their science and engineering passions.

2024’s event was hosted recently at Eagle House Hotel with competitors from coleges in Bideford, Liskeard and Launceston. 

CaféSci members who attended in person or via the livestream were treated to 11 talks on a variety of topics. 

From Bideford College’s, Krystian Baxter: “Using AI to develop new materials” and Lily Haste: “The Pursuit of Happiness”, to Florence Castleden’s - Liskeard College - talk on “Alexithymia: could this be you?” and Launceston College’s Abel Abraham: “The effect of stress on physiological processes”; Mia Duckworth: ”The Flourishing Fundamentals behind our Fabulous Felines” and many more to get the cogs turning.  

As well as providing talks, entrants were also offered the opportunity to create scientific posters to express their creativity. One poster was even was 3D, interactive and illuminated.  

Judges for the two main competitions were CaféSci chair, Professor Steve Rowland FRSC C Chem, CaféSci founder, former mentor for the Aspire Programme, Professor Emeritus Colin Webb MBE FR , Dr Alan Malvern MA D Phil M Inst P C Phys AFHEA, Meg Walker BSc Microbiology and Genetics London PGCE and Marion McCullagh MVB MRCVS.   

All prize winners received a monetary prize and a certificate by Aspire mentor, Professor Fenella Wojnarowska.  All competitors who did not win a prize were awarded a CaféScientifique, Launceston Certificate of Participation in acknowledgment of all the hard work they had done to take part in the competitions.  

Competition results were:  

Winner – Seth Taopo: “How beneficial would CRISPR (genetic engineering) be to sickle cell treatment in medicine?” 

Joint runner up – Florence Castleden: “Alexithymia: could this be you?”  

Joint runner up – Callum Shovell: “Bioluminescence within marine ecology”  

Winner – Adam Hazucha: Moon 3-Helium Energy 

Runner up – Lily Haste: Psychology: Human v AI 

Winner – Florence Castleden: “Alexithymia: could this be you?” 

Runner up – Callum Shovell: “Bioluminescence within marine ecology”  

Winner – Adam Hazucha: Moon 3-Helium Energy 

Runner up - Lily Haste: Psychology: Human v AI 

Following the event, after stimulating and informative evening, many members admitted they could not have done what all the entrants had done when they were their age.  The future of science is in safe hands. 

CaféSci Launceston’s next meeting will be on Tuesday, September 10, when Dr Fred Mou of the University of Exeter will be giving a talk entitled: “Genomics of aggressiveness in prostate cancer”.