Biology & Chemistry

News from Biology & Chemistry...

Biology

With increasing focus being placed upon conservation and the importance of biodiversity, we have seized upon the appointment of Jack Robins (Head Gardener) in order to help increase the biodiversity surrounding the Turing Laboratories and The Grove. This is already the site of an active pond, which we were delighted to see the boys and girls from Sherborne Prep School making excellent use of this term, when they carried out some wonderful pond dipping exercises. It is our hope that a rewilding project within this area will hopefully increase both the numbers of different species which are attracted to this area, and also their relative abundance. With the work yet to be undertaken, we saw this as an opportunity to apply part of the A level Biology course in order to measure the biodiversity now and make comparison in the future. To do so the boys used the Simpson’s Index of Diversity, a mathematical formula, which will eventually be able to ascertain how much the biodiversity of the area has increased. This is just one of the tests the boys have been able to put into action, following their field trip to Holway Wood. 

Jon-Paul Manning, Head of Biology 

Chemistry

It is exam season, and they are all at it, be they sitting internal exams for the Third, Fourth and Lower Sixth Form or public exams in the case of the Fifth and Upper Sixth Forms. One special treat, reserved for the Lower Sixth Form, is the Cambridge Chemistry Challenge. This is a brutally difficult paper which the boys sit at the end of the summer term, and they do it JUST FOR FUN! The paper aims to take candidates from the brink of AS level to a place far beyond this and it really does make the brain hurt. This year’s paper explored double bond equivalents, aluminum, anti-perspirants and honeystone (also known as mellite) over just two questions and 90 minutes. Much sucking of pens, sharp intakes of breath and sighing later, the papers are finished and ready to be marked. In previous years the boys have done well in this competition, scoring sufficiently to be awarded copper (not bronze, this is an alloy), silver and gold awards. Twice in the recent past Shirburnians have been awarded roentgenium awards which qualified them for a course in Cambridge and the chance to represent the UK in an international competition. So, what next for the Lower Sixth? As they enter the Upper Sixth, we find more ways to test them, one of which is the Chemistry Olympiad… now that really is a hard paper. 

William Buckley, Head of Chemistry