this is just a quick question really. I'm doing a presentation soon and I just wondered if any of you could tell me what inspired you to study science? I'm really hoping it was something practical - not that I'm fishing of course.

for me there were two things, one was the first time I saw the collapsing can experiment - the one with that you boil the water in, turn of the heat source and screw down the top. The other was when my teacher decided to show us how carbon dioxide will put out a fire, he started the fire in a waste bin, then generated his CO2 - only he didn't make enough and had to use the real fire extinguisher to put out the now considerable blaze - health and safety was obviously not his top worry when he decided to do this, but it was quite exciting. I ought to add that a visit to the planetarium also had a part in it, but you can't hug a planet can you?

hi joyce this is a nice question but I dont have a nice answer :-) :-) :-)
I studied science because I was goaded into it. As children we were somewhat "told" that Science and Mathematics were superior to Arts subjects; Where I come from, we were all brainwashed into the Science stream. HAHAHA

Boo!!!!
I need a good story, I've got one from someone I work with, but this will be mostly to humanities people so I need wow factor ones - although one of the people coming pleaded with me to do a presentation...as she said she couldn't wait to learn some more science, this time I'm taking along, amongst other things a gold leaf (well, aluminium leaf really) electroscope that is made out of a 2l pop bottle and a knitting needle, and a huge periscope which was made out of a box that some burettes came in

For me it was thinking of all the different living things on the planet, how they sprung into being all on their own, and how I am related to them all! I did a school holiday activity where we extracted DNA from some leaves, and when I saw all the silvery threads appear like magic I thought wow, this is what life is made from. I study life sciences obviously :-)

haha! it is faaarrr superior to arts, although I like that too! for me I had no choice, father was that way inclined! geekism runs through my dna!

Science is all about curiosity...and I was a child who was always asking why?

hmm I did social science because everyone assumed I would be a performer, all my family are and I got stubborn because everyone assumed it! So I have become the 'black sheep' of the family.

Hi Joyce, I was always interested in a bit of everything in school although I really loved english and reading! Then suddenly I discovered I hated the A level English class and transferred into Biology where the rest of my friends were and loved it! I went on to uni and found myself standing on a beach hunting for dogwhelks in the lashing rain and cold on a field course, and thought 'I'm LOVING this!!' :-) So I thought if I can enjoy science like this, then that's for me!
I also loved when things like flowers were frozen in dry ice in chemistry demonstrations years ago and then smashed into pieces! :$