Fresh off the fantastic achievement of the Irish schoolgirls sweeping the top prize at the Google Science Fair - beating 5000 entries from 90 countries - we get the news of another significant scientific achievement by one of our younger citizens.
Paul Clarke of St. Paul’s College, Raheny, took home the second prize in Mathematics at the European Union Contest for Young Scientists in Warsaw today. Paul can add this to the first prize his number crunching won him at this year’s BT Young Scientist competition in Dublin.
It’s great news for Ireland and science, and a hearty congratulations to these four young people flying the flag for the country’s kids.
But, of course, it should come as no surprise, as we Irish have had a rich – and in some cases, groundbreaking – impact to the world of science. Allow us to take you through some of the greatest scientific contributions we’ve made to the world…
The hypodermic syringe:
Got a needle phobia? Well, you’ve Irish physician Francis Rynd to thank for the waves of panic you feel. Although syringes date back to the Roman Empire, Irishman Frankie invented the hollow needle that allowed the first subcutaneous injection.
(Image: Smokingmeatforums)
The portable defibrillator:
The heart-starting shocker found in most modern ambulances was first designed by Prof. Frank Pantridge in Belfast.
(GIF: Tumblr/TheScienceLLama)
Why the sky is blue:
The answer to this question of why light refracts as blue in the sky was answer by Carlow scientist John Tyndall, who shed light on the matter in 1869.
(GIF:Tumblr/MyDreamsAreMyWiings)
The electron:
Well, at least the concept of the electron. That was physicist George Johnstone Stoney, born in Birr, who formally introduced the electron to the world as the ‘fundademental unit of electricity’.
(Image: QuickMeme)
The submarine:
Invented in 1899 by a Christian Brother from Co. Clare by the name of Phillip John Holland.
(GIF: Gifbay)
The aircraft ejector seat:
The legend goes that Co. Down’s James Martin thought up the escape mechanism after being sat next to a nagging woman on a plane journey. Even if that isn’t true, James Martin’s invention earned him a place on the back of the Northern Bank’s £100 note.
(Image: Banknote.ws)
Colour photography:
TrinityCollege’s geologist John Joly invented the world’s first system of colour photography in 1894. Then when he got bored of that, he invented radiotherapy, because why not.
(Image: mhs.ox.ac.uk)
Split the atom:
Ernest Walton is the country’s only Nobel prize-winning scientist, after claiming the 1951 physics medal for his work on splitting a lithium atom in the 1930s.
(GIF: Challenger23.com)
A more humane way of hanging people:
In 1866, an Irish doctor named Samuel Haughton proposed the ‘Standard Drop’, which was considered a better way of hanging prisoners sentenced to death. The method was considered an improvement because it (theoretically) ensured the neck was broken, caused immediate paralysis and immobilisation, and immediate unconsciousness.
(Image: Imgur/JustinRyan20)
And… chocolate milk, apparently:
Hans Sloane, who arguably has the least Irish-sounding name on this list, apparently invented chocolate milk in the 1680s. Sadly this pre-dated the Nobel Prize.
(Image: Imgur/Lov3Lif3)
So here's to Irish scientists, young and old...
