Watch little geniuses at work

The Hindu

Mangalore, 04 February 2011: The science exibition at St Aloysius College was a big hit with students in Mangalore on Thursday. Gautam, a second year biotechnology student, has set up a model which shows a balloon inflated with carbon dioxide produced during wine making. Sushmitha, Deeptha and Sudha, also from biotechnology, have shown how oilseeds can be used for making bio-fuel.

 

Models such as these were part of the two-day science exhibition that began at St. Aloysius College here on Thursday. The exhibition is an interesting way of acquainting oneself with science issues in everyday life. The models are relevant to contemporary issues and the effort put in by the students shows.

 

Karthik, for instance, has a system that harvests rainwater, from collecting the runoff to purifying and turning it into potable water. Anupama, Amoolya and Prathibha, from second year biochemistry, have shown how a gobar gas plant turns biological waste into useful energy.

 

Shahini and Jagriti and Priyanka, from biotechnology, have used “smiley” faces to demonstrate antigens and antibodies. Saroj and Srilatha have a model on kidney stones and what people should to avoid them.

 

Some models have taken the latest in current science and related them to the ancient. For instance, the one developed by Vindya of Poornaprajna College, Udupi, can store foodstuff using salting, smoking, drying, pickling and underground storing. That has been compared to today’s more expensive and shortcut methods of storage.

 

There are subjects that are of interest to ordinary people. Devdas Shenoy, a third year student of biotechnology, St. Aloysius, says even sugar bagasses, which is disposed by sugar cane juice shops, can be used as excellent growing material for mushrooms. He has showcased different types of mushrooms such as “milky mushroom”, “white oyster” and “paddy straw mushroom” which is white when cultivated in the dark but gets shaded if exposed to light.

 

Some mushrooms are edible and some have medicinal properties. Not many people know that “wood ear” mushroom, which grows easily in Mangalore, is edible. However, he cautions against growing certain mushroom varieties that are dangerous parasites.

 

The exhibition has 50 models by students of St. Aloysius College and 10 models by students of other colleges, all focusing on issues in science.