Students taking part in this year's Young Scientists Exhibition will be busy in the Royal Dublin Society, Ballsbridge, Dublin, this morning putting up and arranging their 350 projects. This is more than double last year's figure, with the girls once again leading the way, with 64 per cent of the entries.
The formal exhibiting will commence tomorrow and the winners will be announced on Friday. The exhibition - always well attended - will be open to the public on Saturday and Sunday.
Aer Lingus had sponsored the popular competition for 33 years, but this role has now been taken over by Esat Telecom.
Many of the projects relate to social and behavioural science (43 per cent of entries), followed by biological/ecological sciences (37 per cent). There has been a significant increase in chemistry and physics entries, up 20 per cent.