On Friday 8th March, Years 7 and 8 pupils from local schools were invited to participate in an Eco-Science Day for Schools in Pontio. Interactive activities included: showcasing the latest eco-science research, numerous talks and interactive stalls, plus a variety of demonstrations and exhibitions.

The DSP Centre stall provided an interactive Morse Code activity based on optical fibre and light. The school pupils firstly built their own torch and then sent messages using a length of optical fibre (plastic) and the light from their torch LED bulb. DSP Centre students and staff were on hand to assist and discuss the vast improvements and innovation in long-distance communications over the last century and how not just messages, but large amounts of data can now be sent long-distance within seconds.

The school pupils got to keep their torches and length of fibre as a keepsake, aswell as the activity booklet which included an information page on signals, digital signal processing (DSP) and optical communication, and a diagram illustrating how DSP is used to make optical communication better, faster and more efficient.

We enjoyed the day inspiring the next generation of scientists and engineers and all the school pupils showed great interest in hearing about how the DSP Centre’s research will help meet the needs of future communication networks.