Extended Project Qualification

Presentation Evening

Tuesday 15th & Thursday 17th March 2016

Lecture Theatre 6.00 pm start.

Welcome to the sixth Perse School EPQ Presentation Evening.

The EPQ is a very different qualification from other AS subjects (and indeed A levels) in that there is no specification to be followed. Each student chooses a topic area to research and then manages his or her own progress from outset to completion. Students are required to formulate a suitable title, undertake extensive research, and write a report of up to 5,000 words. In some cases an artefact or performance may be produced, accompanied by a report.

Students are also required to keep a detailed log of the research and writing process, and to make use of expert help in their subject area, in many cases going beyond School to do so. They are also assessed on their ability to present their research verbally to a live audience and answer questions from the audience on it: you are invited to pose suitable questions this evening as part of that process. Finally, the students have to write a critical reflection on their research. All this means that the EPQ develops and tests a range of academic and other valuable skills that go way beyond those required for most AS and A levels.

The range of projects is diverse and ambitious, and a list of titles, abstracts and posters follow. We have had a very enjoyable year helping the students through the process, and hope you enjoy this evening of presentations. If you are currently a lower sixth student you may well consider taking the EPQ next year and if you are taking the HPQ we look forward to seeing you in the near future.

There is a poster presentation of each project around the stage area in the lecture theatre for you to preview before the evening begins, during break, and after the presentations have ended.

D J Clarke EPQ Coordinator CN Anderson, CA Deadman, S Dickens, MJ Fox & PJC Hicks, EPQ project supervisors.

EPQ Programme

Tuesday 15th March

6.00 Tristan Alphey: To what extent was ‘chivalry’ a reality, rather than merely an

ideological phenomenon, in Western Europe during the

medieval period?

6.20 Millie Kearton: The war the Spanish have tried to forget: Why is the memory of

the Spanish civil war still so contentious?

6.40 Ben Browning: How did Hannibal lose the Second Punic War and could

Carthage have won it?

7.00 Break

7.15 Bradley Young: How can the use of innovative materials and metallurgy

improve the racing performance of skis?

7.35 Tom Anderson: What are the likely effects of climate change on the polar jet

stream?

7.55 Adam Hughes: To what extent should ethics be considered in the genetic

engineering of GM crops.

Thursday 17th March

6.00 John Busher: To what extent was Luddism a political protest?

6.20: Jia Gu: Suspended animation: science fiction or near reality?

6.40 Amy McCarthy: To what extent do websites which give information and advice

regarding medical issues benefit the General Practice system?

7.00 Break

7.15 Marcus Tuchel: What is the best battery technology for the future of electric

cars?

7.35 Dominic Payne: Is the gothic a feminist genre?

Tuesday 6.00 Tristan Alphey To what extent was ‘chivalry’ a reality, rather than merely an

ideological phenomenon, in Western Europe during the

medieval period? ‘Chivalry’, as a concept, is one often misapplied in a modern world. This

project explores the realities of early Medieval European chivalry, casting

aside our romanticised remembrance, while highlighting the role of

literature and idealisation in perverting its image. By highlighting three

traditional pinnacles of chivalry (Richard I, Roland, and William Marshall),

and by cross referencing such men to the actual delineations of the

contemporary ideology, a degree of actual subscription to ‘chivalry’ may

be deemed. Ultimately, such is a question as to whether ‘chivalry’ can ever

be deemed to extend beyond the realms of an idealised way of thought,

to an applicable regulatory body.

Tuesday 6.20 Millie Kearton The war the Spanish have tried to forget: why is the memory of the Spanish civil war still

so contentious?

Franco, unlike other European dictators of the 20th century, was on the

winning side of the Spanish Civil War; there was no pressure for Spain to

‘demonise him’ or to convict his supporters of war crimes. Nationalist heroes

were remembered in the vast Valley of the Fallen whereas the Republican

dead were denied any memorial at all. Following Franco’s death in 1975,

the leading political parties signed ‘The Pact of Forgetting’ which allowed

Spain to move on from the violence of the past and make a swift transition

into democracy. However, many today feel that in order to achieve this

peace, justice had to be sacrificed, and now it is important for the future

stability of the country for this legacy to be addressed. Others disagree,

fearing that the process of remembering could re-open old wounds. This

project will examine why the memory of the Civil War is still so contentious

both in Spain and abroad. It will touch on the horrors of the war which tore

an already divided country apart, the repression of Franco’s rule, and the

impact of the Pact of Forgetting on today’s politics. In the words of the

novelist Cercas, “This is the past that has not passed. The civil war is still

here.”

Tuesday 6.40 Ben Browning How did Hannibal lose the Second Punic War and could Carthage have won it? This project evaluates the main causes for Carthage’s failure to win

the Second Punic War against Rome, focusing specifically upon the

war in Italy as well as evaluating the effectiveness of Hannibal’s, and

indeed Carthage’s, overarching military strategy. Through the use of

a combination of both contemporary and more modern sources I will

seek to explain how a General that remained undefeated in set

piece battle for fifteen years finished a member of the defeated side,

and without straying too far into counterfactual history I will seek to

answer whether there was anything more that could have been

done to attain victory, or whether the clear contrasts in culture

between the nations made this result almost inevitable.

Tuesday 7.15 Bradley Young How can the use of innovative materials and metallurgy improve the racing performance

of skis? With races won or lost over hundredths of seconds, ‘marginal

gains’ is an important topic within ski racing. With such in mind,

this project explores the different aspects of the ski to decide

which area would be most beneficial to develop for the racing

skier. Once such aspects have been identified the project

explores the ways in which innovative materials science and

metallurgy could be used to enhance the performance of this

area of design within the ski. With almost all sports having moved

away from the use of wood in their equipment in favour of more

modern composites, is this ancient material still the most effective

for the skiing industry?

Tuesday 7.35 Tom Anderson

What are the likely effects of climate change on the

polar jet stream?

Jet streams are high speed currents of winds that many of us hear

about regularly through weather forecasts. They affect our lives

on a daily basis through a number of means: transatlantic flights

for instance can “hitch a ride” on the jet, cutting down the time

it takes to fly from New York to London by up to two hours.

However, the complex processes and forces that go on behind

the scenes are less well understood, and the aim of this project is

to explain some of the implications climate change (specifically,

rapid warming at the poles) will have on these unique forces of

nature in the future.

Tuesday 7.55 Adam Hughes To what extent should ethics be considered in the genetic engineering of GM crops. The regulation of genetically modified crops differs from country

to country around the world. The aim of this project is to highlight

differences in regulation in order to understand positions held by

some countries over the controversial topic of these plants, their

real uses and what they represent.

Thursday 6.00 John Busher To what extent was Luddism a political protest?

The cause of the Luddites, people who in the years 1811 to 1817 embarked

on a concerted campaign of machine breaking in the teeth of Britain’s

nascent industrial revolution, has today become synonymous with a

philosophy that criticises unconstrained technological progress. However,

the actual aims and motivations of these figures were, in fact,

considerably more diverse. The government, for example, treated the

disturbances as a serious threat to its power and was forced to divert

significant numbers of troops from the Napoleonic Wars to crush the

unrest. What little survives of Luddite writings, meanwhile, displays a wide

variety of political, economic and social opinions and goals, leading to

doubts about the exact nature and intention of the revolts. Through

analysis of primary and secondary documents, alongside communicating

with respected authorities on the subject, I have attempted to establish

the extent to which Luddism was a revolutionary movement as well as an

economic one. This question is of the highest contemporary importance

as, depending on the answer, the period 1811-1812 may have been the

closest Britain has ever come to a genuine popular revolution.

Thursday 6.20 Jia Gu Suspended animation: science fiction or near reality? Science fiction writers have always been captivated by the concept of suspended animation - preserving

humans in a reversible state between life and death. In fictional stories, one can simply be put to “sleep” with

the flick of a switch, going through millenniums of interstellar travel

only to be woken up unaffected by the passing of time. For

decades, the idea seemed to be far-fetched in the scientific

world. In my presentation, I will discuss the current research into

pausing the biological clock in order to buy time for the critically

injured or for other medical reasons. Other terms such as

cryptobiosis, hibernation and quiescene torpor all represent

varying degrees of suspended animation which is often

characterized by both reduction of energy production and

lowering of cellular metabolism. Humans can’t control their

biological clock any more than they can stop breathing without causing severe hypoxic damage. However,

with recent research, a way to forcibly induce suspended animation may have been discovered using a gas

that was essential for survival 55 million years ago. If the method is proven viable, then science fiction might

just become a little closer to becoming reality.

Thursday 6.40 Amy McCarthy To what extent do websites which give information and advice regarding medical issues

benefit the General Practice system?

During the process of applying to medical school, I undertook

many clinical work experience placements. Throughout these

periods I became aware that patients were frequently

researching health concerns online. The purpose of this project

was to determine the extent that internet research into medical

issues is beneficial, with a specific focus on its effects to the

general practice system. I conducted a survey to investigate

which websites people visited for medical advice and crucially

why they choose to use them. NHS direct and Web MD were by

far the most popular sites and the majority of people used them

to increase awareness of symptoms or to diagnose a condition.

Existing literature highlighted that much of the information available online is unreliable, however more than

half the people surveyed said they trusted the information they found online. A focus group reinforced that

internet sites are most often used to check symptoms and diagnose conditions but interestingly most of the

participants would research online in conjunction with consulting a health care professional. Interviewed GP’s

all said that patient research was common prior to a consultation. Furthermore, providing patients are willing

to accept when their information is incorrect, health research by patients is helpful as it results in a more

informed and receptive patient. Additionally the GP’s said they would recommend internet research to

patients in specific cases.

Thursday 7.15 Marcus Tuchel What is the best battery technology for the future of electric cars?

Electric cars are the future. They have better efficiency, are more reliable, have faster acceleration and

decreased running costs when compared to conventional petrol car.

However, they only account for 0.001% of all road cars. Why is this?

Research shows that the main reason for this is clear: it is the batteries

used as they contribute to the cost and range of the car which, from my

survey, I found to be the top two considerations taken into account

when buying an electric car. For my project I am comparing three

energy storage methods to find which technology is the most promising

to be able to increase the range of electric cars and also lower the price

so that in the future electric cars will be the majority of cars on the road.

My research revealed that there were two ways in which the

effectiveness of batteries can be compared and contrasted. These were

‘technological fact’s’ and ‘what consumers want’. In researching

technologies, I contacted Andrew Morris, a researcher at the University

of Cambridge. Through conversations with him I drew conclusions about

the three very different forms of battery being used: Lithium air batteries,

Lithium-Sulphur batteries and the ‘3d’ battery from the company Prieto.

In relation to ‘what consumers want’, it is simply low cost and long range.

From my research I concluded that all the technologies have their

advantages and disadvantages but that the Lithium-Sulphur battery is the most promising as it is only a few

years away from being a reality and is also half the price of current batteries.

Thursday 7.35 Dominic Payne Is the gothic a feminist genre?

This project examines the gothic genre, specifically the male gothic

tradition, which has previously been viewed as sexist. Through the

analysis of five texts spanning a century and a half, alongside feminist

criticism, I will evaluate whether the texts support a feminist

interpretation, or instead mirror the period’s repression of women. This

project presents the idea that, through the depiction of the gothic

heroine and her relationship with other characters, the genre empowers

women to subvert the oppressive patriarchy, advocating social and

cultural reform.