OSA Ambassador - Patrik

How did you first get involved in OSA?
I first heard about the Oliphant Science Awards from my science teacher at school in Year 1, and I thought, why not? After all, the world around us is all science! I wanted to research a topic that I was interested in.  At the time, I had just returned from a skiing trip, and so my multimedia entry The Science of Skiing was born!  Since I was successful and learned so many things creating my submission, I have kept entering in OSA and have entered seven times to date!

Why do you participate?
I love exploring new things and delving deeper into subjects that interest me. It is great that in some OSA categories you can do anything you want, and you can choose something you are interested in. I have done entries on a wide range of things like swimming, bikes, violins, bioluminescence, and species survival. All this research and reading has got me really interested and engaged in areas like sports science, physics, biology, and botany. Through the OSA, I have learned so many things, became so engaged in STEM, and, most importantly, had fun!

What advice would you give to other OSA entrants?
You should definitely choose a subject that you enjoy. For example, I have entered OSA entries exploring the science in some of my favourite hobbies like skiing, cycling, playing the violin, and swimming. Or you could choose a new topic that you think sounds interesting, like bioluminescence, or conservation and rewilding.

What is your favourite project that you have submitted?
My favourite project that I have ever submitted is Bioluminescence, an educational comic that I wrote and illustrated when I was in Year 3 (2022). It was very interesting learning about this new subject, and to communicate this in a comic, a new medium for me to use. I got the idea from watching the David Attenborough documentary Life That Glows, and wanted to learn more. Bioluminescence won me a 2^nd place in the Science Writing category, but the learning and the fun in preparing an OSA entry far overweighs any result.