Marwa shoots straight to the top of the class as experiment proves a winner

Feb 11 2010 by Jeff Holmes, Paisley Daily Express

A BRIGHT spark blew away the competition to become one of the top school physicists in the UK.

Marwa Allam, from Ralston, came out on top in the British Physics Olympiad Experimental Project.

The 15-year-old pupil, who attends Hutcheson Grammar School, teamed up with friend Natasha Britton, 16, to grab a silver medal – the highest award available to competitors.

Jubilant Marwa, a former pupil of Ralston Primary School, said: “It was a fantastic feeling to come out on top.

“My physics teacher, Miss Boyle, brought our attention to the event and invited us to enter.

“It was a great experience – extremely enjoyable.”

Marwa and Natasha’s project was based on Newton’s Law of Cooling, which has applications in forensic science and food technology.

The experiment took place in the science room at their school and, using a hairdryer to blow cold air onto a beaker of hot water, they investigated how the rate of cooling was affected by the distance from the hair dryer.

They then analysed their results in Excel and wrote up the findings in the style of an academic paper.

Marwa, who counts squash and reading among her hobbies, said: “The Board handed out an instruction sheet and we had guidelines to follow.

“We then had to construct our experiment and, thankfully, we got the results we thought we would get.

“And we also showed what could’ve gone wrong with this type of experiment.”

Teacher Julie Boyle added: “The judging panel described the girls project as ‘outstanding’ and the competition certainly provided them with the opportunity to highlight their tremendous organisation, practical abilities and ICT skills.”

Marwa is hoping to follow in the footsteps of her parents, dad, Mohamed, and mum, Mahaelgoweini, who are both in medicine.

But the single-minded teen, who is older sister to 14-year-old Mazen, is eager to do it all on her own.

She said: “While my parents will always be there to give me advice, the decision on my career was always mine to make.

“I’m enjoying finding my own way through my chosen subjects, which are English, Maths and the three sciences.

“Engineering is also a field I would consider but for the moment I’m keeping my options open.

“I’m a willing learner at school and find the sciences fascinating.

“I suppose it helps when you have good teachers and Miss Boyle is fantastic.”