Rita Otto, Alice Guillaume, Matilda Pimlott and Shalaka Bapat from Year 8 may have discovered a new career opening following their extraordinary day at the Department of Chemistry at University College, London. The team had been chosen to attend this year's Salters' Festival of Chemistry which aims to promote the appreciation of chemistry and related sciences among the young.

The girls had two practical challenges. The first was the Salters' Challenge, which we are delighted to announce they won! At the initial briefing they were told that there had been a murder on the premises and the police had supplied samples of a white powder and ink. They carried out the analysis of the powder and some chromatography on a series of inks skilfully. Most importantly they worked as a team and identified the murderer from a list of suspects. In the afternoon, the girls undertook the University Challenge where they were given four solutions and had to match them to four chemical names. They admitted to being initially baffled, but then there was a light-bulb moment when they realised that combining two solutions would precipitate the reaction they wanted. The girls were praised for their performance in both tasks, winning first prize overall.

They were also treated to lecture by Dr Andrea Sella from UCL. He has been involved in the production of the BBC's Volatile History of Chemistry series and the current series on the History of Science. There were some innovative demonstration linked to the states of matter including use of dry ice and liquid nitrogen. A homemade ice-cream with fresh raspberries and chocolate made using liquid nitrogen treated the taste buds as a finale. Amazing, considering how they watched liquid nitrogen destroy rubber piping earlier! Congratulations to the whole team whose winning smiles you can see here!