The following article was jointly written by Montrealer, Michael Luger and Torontonian, Isabel Hazan about their recent experience at the Technion’s SciTech 2015 summer program.
My name is Michael Luger, from Montreal, Quebec. I am 17, have just recently completed my secondary school education at Bialik High School, and am beginning my career at Vanier College where I am studying computer science and mathematics.
Over the past few years, I’ve had various community-volunteering opportunities, including with the Friendship Circle and JPPS-Bialik. These experiences have allowed me to strengthen my relationship to the communities around me.
As a student, I am very passionate about mathematics and sciences, particularly physics, as well as, to a lesser extent, chemistry. In a bid to further my understanding of these subjects, I sought out to work with high-temperature superconductors at the Physics building of the Technion campus in Israel.
To be honest, the idea wasn't initially too appealing. Traveling all the way to Israel to live on a campus (with my picky tastes in food, no less) with people I've never met before was a scary proposition. But considering that I had nothing else to do over the summer, I applied, and eventually found out that I had been accepted with a full tuition scholarship with the help of the Wolf Family Foundation. With that settled, it was time to get to work.
My time at the Technion was devoted primarily to working in two labs: one on the first floor (which is technically two floors below the main entrance) and the other on the fifth floor. Our goal was to see if a certain material – Ferrum Selenium Tellurium – would super conduct at higher temperatures when applied with pressure. In the fifth floor's lab, we would prepare the necessary tools for measuring the pressure applied on our sample and what its resulting electrical resistance was at the same time.
We ran into many difficulties, but we managed to deduce that the pressure we applied – mechanical pressure – would be an apt substitute for hydrostatic pressure, with which other researchers have already experimented. Unfortunately, hydrostatic pressure was out of the question due to a device we would use in conjunction with our sample that required a vacuum 10-100 times more perfect than the vacuum of space.
In the end, the program was an incredible experience, and we worked hard to generate new data in high-tech labs. We learned how arduous and error-prone the scientific process is, and all the participants in the program developed great friendships, both within and between the research assignments.
My name is Isabel Hazan, and I am from Toronto, Ontario. At 17, I am going into my senior year of high school, studying at TanenbaumCHAT. I have been in the Jewish education system my entire life, and consider myself extremely lucky to have had many unique opportunities that allowed me to grow as an individual. Because I believe in the importance of contributing to the Jewish community, I have volunteered at my elementary school, Bialik Hebrew Day School, as well as at the Lodzer Synagogue. Both experiences have been truly rewarding.
Academically, I thoroughly enjoy studying the sciences, especially biology. I found that this past year of learning was especially interesting for me because I got to study biology, chemistry and physics simultaneously. I took a real interest in biology, which is why I chose to research the medical project that involved the study of stem cell biology at the Technion’s SciTech program this summer.
I chose to apply to the Technion SciTech program because of the unique opportunity that it provides for students interested in the sciences. At SciTech, participants were able to engage in hands-on research regarding specific topics we were interested in. In my case, I studied the applications of human amniotic epithelial cells in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine.
During our research, we were able to actually work with a real placenta, extracting the cells we needed, and then culturing them and observing them under a microscope. This was an extremely interesting and educational project, which I learned a great deal from. In addition to the incredibly educational and advanced level of research we were doing, SciTech provided a fantastic social atmosphere where we were able to develop relationships with a fascinating group of students from all over the world. We had social activities every night, as well as a few overnight trips around Israel to places such as Jerusalem, a kibbutz and the northern part of Israel. I have now made friends in several countries including the U.S., Australia, Italy, and Israel, and plan on visiting many of them in the future.
I am extremely grateful that I was able to have the incredible experience of attending the Technion SciTech program. I would highly recommend the program to other students, as I think it was one of the most interesting and unique experiences I have ever had. I was extremely lucky to receive the Wolf Family Bursary, which allowed me to be involved in this wonderful program. I encourage anyone who is interested in the program to look into it, and apply, so we can have some more Canadian representatives there!
If you live anywhere in Canada, and are a science-oriented high-school student in the 11th or 12th grade with a proven record of academic excellence, then the SciTech International Summer Program may be for you. The program is intended for all those with a keen interest in science and a commitment to high performance standards. Those who can benefit the most from the Technion's atmosphere of excellence will be selected.
Please e-mail Technion Canada at: [email protected] or call: 416-789-4545 for more information about the Wolf Family Scholarship.
More detailed information on the program can be found here.
