In the beginning of April aspiring high school students from 25 countries in the European Union gathered in the Greek capital. For one week they put their brains together and tested their knowledge in three fields – biology, physics and chemistry. Among 150 students, two teams represented Slovenia. One of the teams included three students from the Novo Mesto High School, which did very well. Domen Kulovec, Klemen Kovač and Uroš Prešern narrowly missed out on the gold medal. But they were very pleased with the silver around their necks and ninth place overall.
The European Union Science Olympiad (EUSO) is for students younger than 16 years of age. There is no individual competition. Teams have to perform well and show knowledge in every natural science subject. "In these kinds of competitions tasks are usually joined and put together, however this year they were divided. We had to perform practical tests, from which we then drew conclusions and theories," said the oldest from the Dolenjska trio, Klemen Kovač. Domen Kulovec added that the tasks weren't exactly "out of this world or as demanding as one would expect." "In chemistry Uroš had to purify sodium chloride, that is normal kitchen salt. He was given a sample, which he had to purify to a certain degree. Klemen measured the viscosity of olive oil. And in biology I had to measure the transpiration rate of olive leaves – how much water evaporates from the leaves in a certain time period," explained Kulovec.
All three of them are big enthusiasts when it comes to natural science. "Pure natural scientists" is how they describe themselves, although they can't put into words what it is that attracts them to biology or chemistry. "I'm interested by it, because it has to do with the world around us," said the third link of the Novo Mesto "chain" Uroš Prešern. Klemen added: "Nature is interesting and with natural science, you learn how everything works."
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However Uroš, who like Domen attends his second year at the Novo Mesto High School, is a lot more than "just" a natural scientist. Talent "radiates" from him. He also managed to make it into Slovenia's team for the chemistry and linguistics Olympiads. But because the dates of the two Olympiads overlap, Uroš had to choose only one. "I decided to try myself out in linguistics. I'll have more time for chemistry in my third and fourth year in school," he said. In July he will represent Slovenia's colours along with three other talented students in China. And so, are school classes still a challenge for Uroš? "I really don't have any problems with subjects connected to natural science. But I do have to study for subjects like English or French, and also for geography and history," was the reply of a future potential PhD in chemistry. He says chemistry appeals to him the most. "My wish is to study chemistry and then work for a chemistry institute. The National Institute of Chemistry and the Jožef Stefan Institute are well recognized, so working there I would have a lot of opportunities for research. It is also true, that good results at international Olympiads can also bring scholarship offers for abroad," replied Uroš. For all his success he was also commended by his principle Mojca Lukšič.
Klemen and Domen would also like to start earning in a couple of years with their knowledge in natural science. Klemen is also thinking about venturing into the field of medicine, which combines the other three – biology, chemistry and physics.
