Young girls give solar science a go (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Young girls give solar science a go

GIRLS at Malmesbury School learnt how to power a calculator using no more than a few plants this week.

A selected group of Year 9 girls worked with a professor from Bristol University and a doctor from Loughborough to make solar cells out of vegetable dyes.

Kits were provided and the youngsters were able to see green electricity made in front of their eyes.

Lab technician Lynn Hill said: "We measured how much power each student produced before connecting them all together to run a calculator.

"We are trying to get more girls into science and engineering, and they all very much enjoyed it - they really got into it.

"The experiment involved the three main branches of science, chemistry, physics and biology, so it was science with a capital 'S'. It was also a chance for them to look at renewable energy, which is obviously a very important issue today."