Science enthusiasts battle it out

The main hall of Wynberg Boys' High School hall was abuzz recently when the school hosted the Western Cape qualifying rounds - co-ordinated by staff and students from UCT's Department of Chemical Engineering - of the annual MinQuiz competition.

This year 35 schools participated, some travelling from as far afield as Knysna, Bredasdorp and Wellington. First the learners write an individual multiple-choice test, and the top 10 performing schools (five from each category) are then selected to participate as a team in an oral quiz.

Westerford High School won the platinum category, with Rondebosch in second place and Bishops in third. In the gold category, Hugenote High School took top honours, trailed by Bredasdorp High School and the Cape Academy.

A team comprised of Ashley Koopman from Spine Road Secondary, Ashraf Moolla from Rondebosch Boys' High, Flippie Van Dyk from Hugenote High and Sean Wentzel from Westerford High will represent the Western Cape at the national competition, which takes place in Johannesburg in October.

Hailed as South Africa's premier national science competition for grade 12 learners, the event - an initiative of Mintek, South Africa's national mineral research organisation - encourages interest in careers in science, engineering and technology.