2018 is shaping up to be an excellent year for scientific discovery- The BT young scientist results are out and the competition has showed a higher standard of work than ever before. Galway students were among those taking home huge prizes- including the first place in the Junior Group category, a highly prestigious award.

The winners of this prize were Aoibhe Briscoe, Ellie Concannon and Katie Owens from Coláiste Iognáid school. The girls’ project was titled Think Before You Drink: Microplastics. It was concerned with how water pollution has led to a disturbing level of microplastics in the water we drink everyday. One of their findings was particularly shocking- the level of microplastics in the classroom water was at 2.7, much higher than the European average, while the staff room water was much lower at 1.6. The girls discovered that a lot of the time staff’s water would be filtered while pupil’s would not, something that stunned them. It’s no surprise that they also took  an Environmental Protection Agency Special Award

These students are following in the footsteps of  another Galway student Thomas Hayes, a 6^th year. Thomas, representing Yeats College, won third prize in the Senior Individual Category last year. The title of his project was The Alternative Heart Valve Design, his goal was to develop heart valve prototypes for use in treating heart valve disease.

This year’s overall winner, however, hailed from Cork. Simon Meehan’s ‘Investigation of the antimicrobial effects of both aerial and root parts of selected plants against Staphylococcus aureus’, took the judges by storm and earned him the top spot. A transition year student, Simon now has the opportunity to represent Ireland in the European Union Contest for Young Scientists.

As the BT Young Scientist Awards end for another year, it’s a reassuring thought to know that the future of science is safe in the hands of Ireland’s secondary school students.

Met Éireann has updated its earlier rainfall warning to include the counties of Galway, Mayo, Clare, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford.

A status yellow warning has been issued, as forecasts predict between 25 to 40 mm of rain in the 24 hour period from noon on Friday to noon on Saturday with flooding in places.

Heavy rain in the W & SW will gradually extend over Munster, Connacht and west Ulster. Spot flooding is likely, especially in parts of Kerry & Cork. Mainly dry in Leinster and much of Ulster. Max temps of 6 to 9°C with freshening S to SE winds.
Rain extending to all areas tonight pic.twitter.com/QAshOaB4UE

— Met Éireann (@MetEireann) January 12, 2018

Higher amounts are possible on some mountains.

The warning is valid from today, Friday at 12pm to 12pm tomorrow, Saturday.

A yellow weather warning is in place for 25-40mm of rainfall for Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford and Wicklow from 6pm this evening until 6pm tomorrow. Higher amounts are likely in the Wicklow Mountains. Watch out for flash flooding and the risk of aquaplanning. pic.twitter.com/XTUJp0Zte3

— RSA Ireland (@RSAIreland) January 12, 2018

An initiative by The Bar of Ireland supported by the IDA and the legal community was launched by the Minister for Justice and Equality, Charlie Flanagan, yesterday (Wednesday).

The initiative seeks to promote Ireland as a leading centre globally for international legal services.

When the UK finally leaves the European Union, Ireland will be the only English speaking common law jurisdiction fully integrated into the European legal order, and this could present opportunities for both the Irish legal sector and the wider economy.

In this initiative, the Government is encouraging legal professionals in Ireland to work in a unified way to develop and progress a strategy to increase trade in legal services to the international sector as the UK leaves the EU.

The Minister for Justice and Equality, Charlie Flanagan TD, said: “The growth in international trade and investment across borders has increased demand for legal advice and representation.

“While the ultimate outcome of the Brexit negotiation process is not yet known, the UK’s withdrawal from the EU will give rise to a changing landscape, including in the field of legal services.

“The initiative being launched today will help put Ireland on a firmer footing to benefit from any opportunities that arise from the UK’s departure from the EU, leaving Ireland the only English speaking common law jurisdiction in the Union.”

Minister Flanagan added: “I intend to brief Cabinet on this initiative and propose the Government’s formal endorsement and support for The Bar of Ireland in bringing this key sectoral initiative to fruition along with the legal community and other stakeholders and with the support of an implementation group”.

The first ever Irish Geoscience Early Career Symposium is taking place today, attended by Minister of State Seán Kyne TD.

iGEO2018 is a geoscience event organised for early-career geoscientists.

The new two-day event is designed to cultivate scientific debate and foster the development of early-career geoscientists.

The event secured support from all sectors of the geoscience community and received sponsorship from a wide variety of sources including hydrocarbon and raw materials companies as well as the Petroleum Affairs Division and the Geological Survey of Ireland from the Minister’s Department.

The Minster stated: “The objectives of iGEO2018 fit with my Department supporting the encouragement and development of early-career geoscientists, including geoscientist’s entry into the research, mineral and petroleum sector and therefore the development of capacity in Ireland for all the geoscience sectors.”

A recent report from Indecon International Economic Consultants on the Sectoral Economic Review of the Irish Geoscience Sector, that Minister Kyne launched in November 2017, concluded that the Economic Review puts a value of €3,277m on the overall Economic Impact of the sectoral outputs for 2016, across the areas of Geotourism & Geoheritage, Groundwater, Extractive Industries, Geoscience Research and Geohazards and directly and indirectly employs 24,739 individuals.

“The Geoscience sector has very practical and important applications. The Geological Survey of Ireland, for example, is leading a groundwater and turlough project which is studying and analysing flood problems, including at several dozen sites in Galway, Mayo and Roscommon. This information and analysis is contributing to the OPW’s CFRAM programme which is of huge importance to many communities,” said Minister Kyne.

He said that the inaugural symposium of iGEO2018 offers an organised structured event and wished the attendees success in their chosen geoscience career and said that it was an exciting time to be involved in the sector.

With half of Ireland suffering from the Australian flu, teddy bears’ health is often forgotten, or ignored.

All of that will change next week, when over 1,300 sick teddy bears will be diagnosed at the 13th annual Teddy Bear Hospital at NUI Galway.

The event will see over 1,300 sick teddy bears admitted to the hospital, accompanied by their minders, 1,300 primary school children.

The event is organised by the Sláinte Society, the NUI Galway branch of the International Federation of Medical Students Associations, and up to 200 medical and science students will diagnose and treat the teddy bears.

The society hopes to help children aged between three and eight feel more comfortable around doctors and hospitals.

Over the years, children have come along with teddy bears suffering from an imaginative range of illnesses and ailments.

Sally Cahill, a third year medical student at NUI Galway and co-auditor of Sláinte Society, said: “This year we are celebrating the 13^th annual Teddy Bear Hospital.

“Over the past couple of years, demand from schools to attend the event has increased and as a result the event has become ever bigger in an attempt to cure all of the sick teddies of Galway.

“We are eagerly awaiting the arrival of our first ‘patients’ on Thursday, 18 January and hope to create a relaxed and enjoyable ‘hospital’ environment for the children.”

This year, 25 local primary schools are participating in the event, equating to over 1,300 children. On arrival at the Teddy Bear Hospital on campus, the children will go to the ‘waiting room’, which contains jugglers and face painters. Then the children and their teddy bears are seen by a team of ‘Teddy Doctors’ and ‘Teddy Nurses’, who will examine them.

The students will have specially designed X-ray and MRI machines on hand, should the teddy bears need them.

Recuperating teddy bears can avail of medical supplies from the Teddy Bear Pharmacy, stocked with healthy fruit from Burkes Fruit and Veg, along with medical supplies sponsored by Matt O’Flaherty Chemist.

The Teddy Bear Hospital at NUI Galway will take place Thursday and Friday, 18 and 19 January.

A project led by NUI Galway and Athlone Institute of Technology is set to improve production efficiencies and management of farmed fish at several inland freshwater sites.

The project, called ECOAQUA, has received almost €350k in funding from the European Commission.

This project is expected to give us new information, new methods, and increased awareness in this area.

Led by Dr Eoghan Clifford from NUI Galway and Professor Neil Rowan from Athlone Institute of Technology, with support from Bord Iascaigh Mhara’s technical aquaculture team, ECOAQUA will address important needs identified by industry and aquaculture stakeholders including:

• Analysing the environmental and energy performance of three freshwater aquaculture sites by extensive sampling and remote online monitoring of water parameters.
• Facilitating the re-use of the treated water, thereby reducing both the volumes of extracted and discharged waters.
• Enabling the industry to meet stringent environmental regulation while increasing production in a sustainable and cost-effective manner.
• Piloting technological innovations with industry to ensure the research is easily and rapidly transferrable to the aquaculture sector.
• Ensuring technological innovations and research results can be leveraged to enable the sustainable growth of this high-potential sector.
• Enable the industry to leverage the scientific outputs from the project to communicate with government, policymakers and regulators and the public.

Dr Eoghan Clifford from the College of Engineering and Informatics at NUI Galway, said: “Aquaculture is recognised to have the potential to address food security concerns in many countries and offer significant economic benefits.

“Ireland currently ranks as fifth in value and seventh in volume in terms of high value fish species with exports supporting approximately 2,000 jobs.

“However, the sector in Ireland has remained relatively stagnant and has significant potential to grow, develop export markets and create employment in rural areas.

“These developments are strongly aligned with Ireland’s FoodWise2025 policy that seeks to grow food exports by 85% to €19 billion by 2025.

“This research has the potential to introduce innovative monitoring practices, technologies that can enhance the value and sustainability of Irish and European fish stock densities while ensuring the environmental sustainability of the sector.”

A status yellow rain warning has been issued for Co. Galway by Met Éireann today, with up to 40mm of rain forecast.

The weather warning was issued at 11.00am and will be in force from 4.00pm today until 4.00am tomorrow morning.

Met Éireann are warning people in Galway that spot flooding may occur in parts.

The warning applies only to Co. Galway and Munster.

(2/2) Across the southwest, showers will turn heavy and thundery this evening, with the risk of spot flooding. Cold, with maxima ranging from 3 or 4 ° Celsius in the north to 8 or 9 ° Celsius further south. pic.twitter.com/jPPfGJ42Zi

— Met Éireann (@MetEireann) January 10, 2018

Thundery conditions are also forecast in the south-west.

IRELAND’S trolley figures have risen again to 575 today, but just 22 are in University Hospital Galway.

The figures fell from a high of 656 last week, but the number of people waiting on trolleys has risen again to a shocking number, indicating that this crisis will continue throughout this year.

Last week’s report by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation revealed almost 100,000 people were waiting on hospital trolleys across the country last year.

Galway was the third worst affected, behind just Cork and Limerick, with over 6,500 waiting on trolleys throughout last year.