On Wednesday 18^th October, 22 students from Key stage 4 & 5 were accompanied on a trip to the Chelmsford Science Festival at Anglia Ruskin University.

Students were able to take part in a varied number of hands on experiences as well as lectures at the event. The day started with a hands on experience exploring the use of AI models in state of the art electric vehicles. This was possibly the most enjoyable part for some as they got to ‘play’ inside several different TESLA cars. Afterwards we were whisked away to a lecture from Prof Graham Ball on computational Biology including the use of AI to create models which can be used in drug development and disease treatment and management. The content and potential application of AI here was mind blowing!

Students then took part in a session where auditory and visual perceptions were changed, exploring what it may be like to live life with deaf/blindness. Students really engaged well within the session and will look at the world in a different light because of it.

After lunch, students took part in a hands on A&E trauma response exercise. This small session taught them what paramedics would do when attending the scene of an injury and then what happens as the patient is taken into to A&E. The group then also had time to practice their midwifery skills and discussed public health.

Finally, students rounded things off with sessions on engineering where they put their maths skills to good use and then a lecture on understanding the use of AI in business models.

The students really enjoyed the day and hopefully it has given them some experiences to consider where they might like to take their own career in the future, making STEM relevant to the everyday.