Chiba Team Wins the Fourth JHSSC

Department for Promotion of Science Education http://rikai.jst.go.jp/koushien/index.html

For the first time in Tsukuba, Ibaraki, JST hosted the fourth Japan High School Science Championships (JHSSC), which were held for four days from March 20, 2015. Forty-seven teams consisting of 370 students representing each prefecture competed in math and science competitions making full use of scientific ability and teamwork. The participating students attempted to determine water hardness with chelatometric titration in the experiment titled “Famous Water in Tsukuba.” In the manufacturing skill test titled “Climb Mount Tsukuba!” they created model ropeways using electric double layer capacitors and competed with ropeway speeds. These competitions were a tribute to the new JHSSC venue. JST staff has strived to improve this tournament so that the audience can also enjoy it as a science festival, and taken various steps, including offering explanations on practical tests with receivers and providing a live video feed online.

At the special symposium - “You change the world!” - Dr. Hiroshi AMANO, professor at Nagoya University and 2014 Nobel Laureate in physics, provided the science-loving students with encouragement. He said, “It is important to expand your views to watch what happens in the world and think about what issues you need to address. And then, you’ll be able to find inspiration for a new theme of research that can change the world.”

The winning team is Makuhari Senior High School from Chiba Pref. That was the team’s second challenge at JHSSC following the last year’s entry. They are going to participate in the 2015 Science Olympiad National Tournament this May in Lincoln, Nebraska.

The fifth JHSSC will be held again in Tsukuba, Ibaraki, in March 2016.

• - This is an English translation of NEWS 4 in TOPICS, which was published in the May 2015 issue of JST news.
  http://www.jst.go.jp/pr/jst-news/pdf/2015/2015_05_p14.pdf