Mr Alan Allinson, President IYPT with Kathryn Zealand 3x IYPT competitor
Information
Who competes at IYPT
The Physics Fight:
A Physics Fight is based on the roles that each team takes in turn.
The Reporter has the principle role of delivering their solution to the problem.
The Opponent has to critique the report and engage the reporter in discussion.
The Reviewer (only in the final at IYPT Australia) has the job of summarising the strengths and weaknesses of both the report and the opposition.
A Jury of scientists, teachers and previous competitors then scores each of the roles with a mark out of 10.
A selection of Powerpoints from past problems
IYPT Australia Challenge 2003
This is a good example of a presentation for IYPT Australia. Presented by Tom Sze from Brisbane Grammar School it addressed the problem Pot and Ice at IYPTAustralia Challenge 2003
It is sometimes argued that to cool a pot effectively one should put ice above it. Estimate to what extent this is more effective than if the ice is put under the pot.
Note: These powerpoints are only aids to the presentations - students often prefer to show videos or conduct small demonstrations in addition. Results are often shown via direct access to Excel spreadsheets. All of these are aimed to show an IYPT Australia standard and would have developed further before presentation overseas.
Heat engine A tall glass cylinder is half-filled with hot water and topped up with cold water. A small ampoule, containing a few drops of ether or alcohol (and closed off by a rubber pipette cap), is then put in. Describe the phenomena occurring in the system. How does the motion of the ampoule change with time? PowerPoint Show
Fractal Diffraction Produce, demonstrate and analyse diffraction pictures of fractal structures of different orders. PowerPoint Show
Flying colours Why do flags flutter in the wind? Investigate experimentally the airflow pattern around a flag. Describe this behaviour. PowerPoint Show
Pond skater It is known that unwettable small bodies can float on water due to the surface tension force. Construct a floating raft based on this principle and determine its static and dynamic parameters. PowerPoint Show
Elastic pendulum Study and describe the behaviour of a pendulum where the bob is connected to a spring or an elastic cord rather than to a stiff rod. PowerPoint Show and video can be useful!