TSSG at Young Scientists 2004

The TSSG's Martin Feeney and Gary Gaughan meet Minister for Education, Noel Dempsey

Saturday the 25th of September 2004 saw the gathering of young scientists from all over Europe for the 16th European Union Contest for Young Scientists in Dublin. Some 25 Member States of the European Union, plus 10 associated states: Belarus, Bulgaria, Georgia, Iceland, Israel, Norway, Russia, Switzerland, Turkey and the Ukraine put on display almost a years work in UCD's O'Reilly Hall. As these young scientists set up there stands colleges and other scientific groups set up colorful and interactive stalls for the public and the contenders of the contest.

O'Reilly Hall came to life midday Sunday. The judging began and the doors were open to the public. Families and contenders alike roamed the hall, visiting stands, questioning the contestants on their work and sharing their own understanding on certain scientific work. As the visitors approached the TSSG stand the most commonly heard phrase was "Ahhh look", the usual response to the one and only robotic dog Aibo. Aibo is part of the O2 TSSG Home of the Future concept, which demonstrates the convergence of mobile technology and every day life. It illustrates the possibilities for the standard home, using technologies of today. On display at the TSSG stand was the control of a remote home in the TSSG research building in Waterford via web interface from Dublin. For example the lighting and heating in the office in Waterford could be turned on from Dublin via the web, a convenient facility for anyone heading home from work on a cold winter evening.

The guest star of the TSSG show, the Sony dog Aibo sporting camera, wireless equipment, email functionality and advanced human interaction was an integral part of the demonstration supplying the user with a live web cast of their home. All this served as an excellent demonstration of the worked being carried out at the TSSG, the interaction of multiple communication protocols and the possible services revealed by this new and interesting environment. As some of the O2 home of the future concepts were explained, people showed great interest and had countless questions.

Monday saw the arrival of students of all ages with great interest in viewing the leading young scientists of Europe and what insight they had to offer. The atmosphere was energizing. The level of enthusiasm and pride never waned as contestants repeated their introduction again and again for the public. Their dedication and excitement was visible in each participant across O Reilly hall. Tuesday the 28th was the last day for public viewing, which showed a continuation of interest from the public bringing meaning to the phrase "Science is fun".