News From Student Chapters

UNICAMP Student Chapter Update

OSA member gives awards on a National Science Fair

This year, three OSA members were invited to be evaluators of a National Science Fair for high school students called FEBRACE, the second week of March in Sao Paulo. The event gathered hundreds of students coming from several states of Brazil divided in groups based on their schools and with an advisor per group. The members of the chapter evaluated all the physics-related experiments. The awards were given to the three best groups. The evaluation was based on the scientific method used on the work, the innovation proposed, and the physics behind the experiments. The awards consist of guarantee of vacancy and free subscription for the VI Physics on Vacation, an annual event organized by the OSA Student Chapter at UNICAMP.

Felipe Vallini,  president of the chapter, presents certificates to one of the groups bestowed with the award.

I Olympiad of Physics of UNICAMP – OSA

On October 20th 2007, the OSA-SCU (Students Chapter at UNICAMP), organized the I Olympiad of Physics of UNICAMP. Many Brazilian institutions organize their own Olympiad of some disciplines, but until now UNICAMP (Universidade Estadual de Campinas) had never organized an event like it, focused on Physics. Knowing this, members of the chapter organized and implemented the first Olympiad of Physics with the sponsorship of OSA, CePOF and IFGW.

The greater part of the questions submitted to the students made a relation between modern physics and the basic Physics known by them. What does it mean? The students needed to use their basic knowledge of Physics to solve classical problems of the modern Physics, like Compton Effect, Ising model, etc.
About 100 students of the Campinas region participated. We prepared two types of tests: one for the students attending the first year of high school and another one for students attending the second year. Helping us on the test corrections we had the collaboration of the IFGWs faculty, whom we owe much thanks. The winners of the two modalities received an iPod and a medal as awards. The second and third places received some Physics books and medals.

This year the chapter has already started the organization of the II Olympiad of Physics at UNICAMP, including students from the third year of high school and more cities of the Sao Paulo state, with the goal of trying to expand it to a national event in the future.

Students receiving the last recommendations before the test.