British Science Week is a ten-day celebration of science, technology, engineering and maths, taking place between 10-19 March 2023.
When you think about science and how it affects our everyday lives, do you make the connection that science is, simply, everywhere?
From manufacturing to travel and healthcare, it all contains an element of science.
The British Science Association, which runs British Science Week, has been keen to discover how young people (our future scientists) feel about science.
According to one survey conducted last year, only 34 per cent of 14-18-year-olds in the UK think that science is relevant to their lives.
At the same time, a previous study concluded that only 22 per cent of the UK public feel actively connected to science compared to the 40 per cent who feel actively connected to sports.
At South East Water, science is in everything we do. It's used in production, distribution, environment, sampling, and testing.
We've spoken to our Organic Chemistry Analyst, Natasha Beasly and Catchment Scientist, Kirsty Taylor Yeomans, to discuss what they do here at South East Water.
Can you give us a brief description of what your day looks like?
Natasha: I run various methods of routine analysis, mainly looking for pesticides in our drinking water.
Samples are prepared using various extraction procedures for the highly analytical instrumentation.
The data created is processed within a quality system and then interpreted over various levels of skill, ensuring the water is safe and monitored for many aspects of the environment and most importantly, people's health.
Kirsty: As a Catchment Scientist in the western region, my role involves monitoring groundwater levels in boreholes across Hampshire and taking water quality samples from several rivers as part of South East Water's restoring sustainable abstraction scheme.
What is your favourite part of your job?
Natasha: My favourite part of the job is developing results, paying particular attention to all the processes it takes, and ensuring the best results are obtained.
It's easy to be complacent in understanding what our instruments are doing. Still, the technical aspects they provide are so incredible it blows my mind how clever the triple quad mass spectrometers are. Truly mind-blowing!
It is, however, very easy to lose sight of this when troubleshooting takes over, but when you've managed to fix an issue and without an engineer. It's a great feeling!
Kirsty: I love working outdoors and knowing I'm playing a part in enhancing the environment.
What is an interesting science fact you'd like to share?
Natasha: Thomas Edison once electrocuted an elephant to death to prove a point between varying currents of electricity!
This was a filmed public display as the elephant involved had killed three previous handlers, and so was donated for science by the zoo to stop her killing anymore!
Kirsty: The Earth's water cycle is a closed system, so any water you drink has been around for millions of years. That means we're sharing the same water that dinosaurs once utilised.
We’re incredibly proud of all the scientists across the business who ensure we can provide clean, safe drinking water to our 2.2 million customers across the South East.
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