EngineeringUK has announced the winners of the Big Bang UK Young Scientists & Engineers Competition, including the top awards of UK Young Engineer and UK Young Technologist of the Year.
The Big Bang Competition is a nationwide competition for young engineers, scientists and technologists aged 11–18, which recognises and rewards talented young innovators. There are a range of awards and prizes up for grabs, with the top three winners each receiving £1,000 prize money.
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Aaron Lord, a Year 12 student from Greenhead College in Yorkshire, has been crowned UK Young Engineer of the Year for his project Autopill. Inspired to support those taking regular medication, particularly people with dementia and memory difficulties, Aaron created an automatic pill dispenser. Using mechanics, electronics and computer-aided design, the Autopill allows users to insert their pills for the week and includes a pulsing light and bleeping noise to signal that pills are ready to take. The impressive device also includes a health-monitoring component that can track users’ heart rate and oximetry when they place their finger on a sensor.
‘I’m thrilled to accept this award – it’s incredible!’ Aaron said. ‘The competition has been a brilliant experience from start to finish. It allowed me to take something that I thought was a good idea and turn it into something tangible.’
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Gayatri Thiru, Year 8 at Invicta Grammar School, Kent, is the Junior Engineering winner for their design for a solar-powered, remote-controlled machine that harnesses nanotechnology to clean oil spills in the ocean. It uses magnetite nanoparticles, which are tiny particles that attract oil and repel water. Once these particles soak up the oil, magnetic fields will be used to pull them back out of the water for recovery.
Om Kuravinakop, from St Olave’s and St Saviour’s Grammar School in London, is the Intermediate Engineering winner. Om, Year 11, created a hand-held air-quality monitor for asthma patients that tracks fine particulate matter, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and humidity. It also syncs to a smartphone to help people with asthma monitor risk levels with a view to preventing attacks.
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Grace Palmer, in Year 12 at WMG Academy for Young Engineers Solihull, is the Senior Engineering winner for her project Thrive Transfer Aid. Inspired by the challenges faced by her young cousin, Grace wanted to find ways to improve the lives of disabled children and their families. She has created a new product to help transfer children comfortably, whether from their bed to a desk chair or from a wheelchair to a rollercoaster. Providing a more affordable and inclusive solution, the aid also allows young children to be comfortably carried and enables them to sit at a restaurant table.
Muhammad Shah, a Year 13 student from Queen Elizabeth’s School Barnet in London, was named UK Young Technologist of the Year for his project Icarus. Inspired by his love of the outdoors and trekking, Muhammad created an alternative telecommunications system for low-cost and effective emergency communications in remote areas.
‘Congratulations to The Big Bang UK Young Technologist of the Year, supported by Siemens!’ said Mark Wood, social sustainability lead at Siemens GB&I. ‘This year, the competition was intense, but Muhammad stood out with his decentralised communication system, which avoids reliance on cellular or satellite networks, and has great opportunities for search and rescue, leisure and other business uses. Muhammad demonstrated independent learning and great communication and presentation skills and is a worthy winner of the prize!
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‘The Big Bang Competition is a great opportunity to demonstrate ingenuity and creativity within technology and how technology is essential across business and our lives, including to support digitalisation and sustainability,’ he continued.
‘Huge congratulations to all our winners, who have shown impressive creativity, knowledge and drive as they have worked on their projects,’ said Hilary Leevers, EngineeringUK chief executive. ‘I hope they, and all the runners-up, are proud of their achievement. There are so many opportunities for them to continue with STEM in education and training and then in the workplace. I’m sure they have a bright future ahead.’
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Alice Morrish, a Year Ten student from Invicta Grammar School in Kent, was crowned UK Young Scientist of the Year for their project Quantum Karate. Other winning projects across the competition included an AI-based programme for cancer diagnosis, a menopause cooling stick and a facemask that converts pollutants.
More information and a full list of winners can be found here.