Brentwood Newsletter

Around The College / Excursions

Teachers' vs Year 12 Dodgeball

On Wednesday the 11th of October, the Year 12 Vs Staff Dodgeball Tournament took place. For the thrilling 3 game competition, almost the entirety of the year 12 cohort turned up to witness (or play in) the battle of the ages. 

The first game was a quick one, with the Year 12s eliminating the competition in a matter of minutes. A surprise star turned out for the Staff team, a year 11 student had crashed the competition and kept the game going a little bit longer before finally being taken out by one of the 12s. 

After a minor rule change, the second game was much closer with a 10-minute matchup where the staff team began to shine. Defense and attack strong, both teams fought a hard game until the end, with the students taking this one too. Then it was the final game. The game to rule them all. Cheering roared throughout the gym as competitors on both sides got hit or came back in. 

Everyone knew that this final game would be the toughest yet with staff and students alike holding their ground and not giving in to the might of the competition. Ending in a draw, teams congratulated each other and the day was done. 

I would like to thank all the staff and students who came out to participate, this tournament would not have been possible without your sportsmanship and passion for the competition. 

 

Further, thank you to those who showed up to watch and cheer on their team. 

To Mr Davatzis for stepping into the role of referee (and doing an amazing job at it), it is because of you that this was able to run smoothly. 

And finally, thank you to Ms Saathoff for her unwavering support in my idea and helping me bring it to life.

 

Dominique Elliot

Year 12 Waratah House Captain

Inspiring Young Women in Science program

 

On the 9th to the 13th of October, three year 10 Brentwood students (Ellie, Audriana, and Tharuki) completed work experience as a part of the Inspiring Young Women in Science program at the Hudson Institute of Medical Research. 

As a part of this experience, we were assigned to different mentors that worked in various departments at the Hudson Institute and spent the week learning from them and observing their research process. We were also able to engage in numerous planned enrichment activities such as tissue staining of various tissue samples such as endometrial tissue, rat brain, and sheep lung; and we also went on a guided platform tour of the imaging and cell therapy facilities at the Hudson. 

We also had the opportunity to interview the director of the Hudson Institute, Elizabeth Hartland, about her academic journey and her earlier achievements in microbiology. To end the week, we were invited to speak about our work experience week in front of the rest of our work experience cohort, our mentors, the director of the Institute, various distinguished researchers, parents, and teachers. The following are our individual recounts of our unique experiences in our various departments.

 

Hi, I'm Audri and over my week in the Hudson Institute, I was placed with my work experience group in the cancer research centre with three mentors (two were in a lab group researching pediatric cancers while one was researching colon cancer) and spent my work experience in and out of the research labs assisting in and completing basic tasks such as cell counts and growing bacterial cultures on agar nutrient plates. I completed cell counts of cancer cells NB69 (neuroblastoma cells) and ATRT (atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumour cells) with my mentor in the Next Generation Precision Medicine Program. We also learned how to run a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) DNA Amplification test with our mentor in the Cancer Genetics and Functional Genomics Research group. Following lab work, we spent two days learning about bioinformatics, learning about how technology and programming can also contribute to biological research processes. We were then given time to prepare for our presentations. 

Overall, this experience gave me the unique opportunity to connect with a new group of people that shared my interests, as the eleven other girls completing this program with me became a tight-knit cohort by the time that the week ended. My experience was undoubtedly invaluable to my future career path, because interacting with researchers and scientists from so many different backgrounds and fields of science, broadened the possible future pathways that I can take into research and science in general.

 

 

Hello! I'm Tharuki, and during my week at the Hudson Institute of Medical Research, I was given the opportunity to delve into the field of newborn health and observe the life-changing work that scientists perform in this facility to aid in the safe delivery of new babies. While I was eagerly trailing after my mentor on the floor of the Ritchie's Center (which was the main department of newborn health research), I was given a chance to see exactly what researchers and scientists are doing in investigating ways to prevent, reduce and treat complications related to the delivery process.  With a new group of friends who were also assigned to this sector, we learnt about all the important tools that are used in the lab to help with performing experiments, such as medical-grade pipettes and complicated analysis machinery. While donning an oversized suit of scrubs, I was able to observe a surgery for the first time that was being performed on a sheep in the institute 'Animal House', learning about the medical equipment used to carry out these feats and exactly 'why' these sorts of surgeries are performed. From the data and samples collected from this surgery, my group partook in an immunofluorescence imaging session to analyze the localization of a variety of antigens within the tissues of a cell. 

All in all, the astounding research done by the scientists in the newborn sector has opened my eyes to the complexities that come with bringing new life into this world and just how much of an impact they have on our livelihoods.

 

 

I'll admit; it was quite intimidating standing in front of Hudson Institute with nothing more than a jumble of nervousness and enthusiasm. But like always, after the first day things got easier. I had become quite fond of the amiable work environment at Hudson and the girls I got to meet in this opportunity.

Here's a brief summary of my very eventful week

Monday

  • Tackled the day with a much needed cup of hot chocolate
  • Observed my mentor preparing organs from a sheep in glue
  • Also observed a PhD student performing a cell culture

Tuesday

  • Began my day working with a human placenta
  • Had lunch with the CEO of Hudson (not as daunting as it sounds!)
  • Viewed fibroblast cells under a microscope

Wednesday

  • With the other girls, I stained a histology slide of a rat's brain
  • Learnt about immunofluorescence
  • Calculated and applied antibody solution to microscope slides

Thursday

  • Participated in platform visits
  • Viewed a rat's brain under a microscope

Friday

  • More platform visits with other mentors
  • Frantically prepared my presentation slide last minute (do not copy)
  • Performed my presentation in front of mentors, the CEO and other big important people (definitely as nerve-racking as it sounds)

 

As the cliché saying goes, if I could do it again, I would. I am exceedingly appreciative of this opportunity granted to me by Ms Bach (my lovely science teacher) and Dr Fiona Cousins (the extremely humorous coordinator of Hudson Institute Young Women in Science).

 

- Ellie

 

Overall, this experience was one we will never forget and an incredible insight into the world of medical research and science.