ANSTO

Last Thursday 13 Year 12 students from UHS and 3 from SHS travelled up to ANSTO (Australia's Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation) in Sydney. The students are completing their last HSC module in Physics 'From the Universe to the Atom' where they learn about how energy of the atomic nucleus can be harnessed. At ANSTO, uranium is used to produce neutrons in their research reactor. The neutrons are used for a range of applications, the main one is to produce medical radioisotopes for diagnosis and treatments but others include industrial usage such as doping semi-conductors, testing material structure and strength, observing fossils in rocks and finally PhD researchers can use the many instruments for free to support their research. UHS wishes to thank Mr Colin Hunter (Head Science Teacher of Shoalhaven High School) who kindly drove the students in SHS school bus, which made this excursion possible. Thank you to all the students for their participation and great Q&A sessions. Dr Kneeshaw