Video Conferencing at the College

One of these additional facilities is the use of high speed, high quality video conferencing.

Students have had the opportunity to link live with a number of experts and take some virtual excursions from the comfort of their own classroom. Last week Professor Tamara Davis, an award-winning astrophysicist based at the University of Queensland, joined science students for an hour. She spends most of her time trying to figure out why the expansion of the universe is accelerating, and thus figure out whether we can harness that acceleration to make things like hoverboards or clean energy. One of the most highly cited astrophysicists in the world, Tamara has been awarded many prizes; including the 2015 Nancy Millis Medal for Women in Science by the Australian Academy of Science. She is a highly engaging speaker with a passion for playing ultimate Frisbee. The girls spent the hour learning about her work and had the opportunity to ask her questions about her current research.

This week a number of senior students were lucky enough to link live with leading Australian contemporary artist, Ben Quilty, in his studio and talk with him about his life and what inspires him and his art. A group of Year 11 students linked live with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority in Townsville, QLD. The group discussed with a Marine Biologist managing the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and the effect of human uses of the reef. The girls also had the opportunity to interact live with a SCUBA diver underwater on the reef. We explored the diversity of reef creatures, the adaptations they possess and the role they play within the reef community.

Next year the College will be expanding the ability to utilise the video conferencing technology across different faculties.