Sigh-ence.

I didn’t think much of science in secondary school and was very lucky to get a C grade.

I mean, there were the odd classes that stuck out. Like when we had to make a structurally sound paper boat, that was judged by how many coins could sit in it without sinking. And there was that time we went outside to record data on different leaves we collected. Making circuits out of cables, lights and switches was also fun, but it was a bit of a dead end. OK, so that’s how lights work. I think that’s what the curriculum, for me, was missing. Building excitement when you’re not in class.

I have a memory of a man talking to us kids on stage after we had watched a play as part of a school trip. It was so out of context and I didn’t know who he was. But he was keen to say his piece. “There’s science in everything you can think of!”. Someone shouted “even in a sock?”. He said, yes, even in a sock.

Out of all my schooling years, that dialogue is the only thing that actually got me excited for science. When I study science in my own time as an adult, the spark I feel is a familiar one, and it’s all because of that out-of-context man. Thanks to you, and I hope you are well.