"Ferrier sat his Leaving Certificate exams last month at Schull Community College and is due to attend university in the Netherlands. The teenager works as a curator at the Schull Planetarium, has won 12 science fair awards, speaks three languages fluently, plays the trumpet at orchestra level, and had a minor planet named after him by the MIT Lincoln Laboratory."
Anyone else feeling somewhat inadequate in comparison?
Sounds like he has parents from different countries, first name is Irish, surname sounds Portuguese(?) so head start there on the language front, perhaps. Schull is a very small community, couple of thousand max but there's been a lot of 'alternative' type immigration there from other first world countries, artists etc from places like England (eg Jeremy irons), Netherlands so its secondary school is pretty progressive afaik. They have a slipway to the bay right next to the school so the school does sailing classes etc. The planetarium in question is a stone's throw from the school. County Cork has a youth orchestra. Overall not the worst place in the world to grow up.
As an Irish person, I feel both proud of his work and saddened by the fact that our own university research system is so lacking he has to move abroad.
Superstars exist, dude. The only actionable view is to improve on the current you. Sometimes there will be things you're not good enough to do or that you don't want enough to practise enough.
I don't think inadequacy is the strong emotion I'm feeling. It's probably more relief, or some sense of hope. I wish this sort of youthful experience was more the norm the world over. Outside of the curator and minor planet part (which are very much out of the ordinary for obvious reasons), many of these other characteristics match up pretty closely with high achieving students I saw grow up around me in my own youth. I very much agree with a sibling comment that "This reads like a figurative kick in the face to those who argue against free education and social programmes."
>Ferrier sat his Leaving Certificate exams last month at Schull Community College and is due to attend university in the Netherlands.
pretty normal to graduate high school and attend university
> works as a curator at the Schull Planetarium
I don't know what responsibility this holds how he got the job so it's hard to say.
>has won 12 science fair awards
I don't know the award scheme so hard to say. Even if he won 1st place 12 times, a science fair is hardly difficult to win since you are basically competing against semi-motivated highschoolers.
>speaks three languages fluently
This depends on the language. Some people get 2 languages for free from home and learn another to fluent level in high school. Not really a mind-blowing accomplishment.
>plays the trumpet at orchestra level,
This is really the only one that required consistent effort.
>had a minor planet named after him by the MIT Lincoln Laboratory."
meh
Out of all these, the only thing I wish I had is the ability to play the trumpet.
Tangent: I have a hunch that the Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube, or something based on it, could be used to separate or just concentrate microplastics from water.
> The vortex tube was used to separate gas mixtures, oxygen and nitrogen, carbon dioxide and helium, carbon dioxide and air in 1967 by Linderstrom-Lang. Vortex tubes also seem to work with liquids to some extent...
Like a constant flow centrifuge, amazing ... but water is not so compressible, will it separate out based on dissolved solids effecting the density of the solution? It could be used to reduce salinity in that case, no?
I would think if no ones figured out desalination via vortex, filtering otherwise seems unlikely
In extremely focused on under ground pumped hydro energy storage using derelict mines as core infrastructure, and I think you just gave me a very big idea. Any interest in discussing this concept?
Maybe it was the cynical in me, but I wonder why those "teenager will save the world" relates are so popular (but often show so few results at long term). Some awards seem just a way to pose, borrow some good ideas, obtain a photo and a cover page and this is all.
It is a really nice science fair project. However, the concentrations that he used seem really high compared to what would be in the environment or even in wastewater. So conjectures about scaling this up for practical use seem to be the usual pro forma pitch that projects often have.
Granted this was many years back now, but when I was familiar with the Westinghouse Award world there was invariably an adult scientist somewhere in the background pushing a research agenda.
Go to any R1 university and talk to the postdocs, they are the same teenagers with ten to fifteen more years of knowledge under their belts.
That's not to say there is no such thing as prodigy, but they tend to be in a few fields where it is possible to substitute sheer raw brilliance for knowledge of the literature (e.g. certain subfields of math) and they are extremely rare.
> Regulations that prohibit the use of this stuff altogether would be even better
A lot of microplastic is from textiles. If you ban all sources of microplastics you'll be back to wearing only wool, cotton, silk, linen, and leather.
A lot of the remainder is from plastic single use containers. Instead of banning them they could simply be returned to the shop from which they were bought for recycling as is done for most drinks containers (both plastic and aluminium) here in Norway.
Banning plastic bottles would mean a substantial increase in energy use because the alternative is glass which is much heavier and more costly to recycle. Perhaps we could switch to aluminium for more containers.
It fashionable now to complain about the deliberately created microplastics like those used in cosmetics but the vast bulk come from wear and tear on what are now effectively traditional materials.
This stuck out as strange to me since they defined microplastics as <5mm. If you run water through sand it would filter things this large, and that's a common wastewater treatment practice.
"Microplastics or microbeads are mostly used in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs to exfoliate skin..."
So, wait... If we just stopped using microplastics in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs we'd mostly stop dumping microsplastics in to the environment?
But we don't because we'd rather have this totally optional, cosmetic benefit?
The article is correct only in the sense that that is the purpose of many manufactured microplastics, and the teenager's quote hints at it: "The method used was most effective on fibres obtained from a washing machine and least effective on polypropylene plastics".
I strongly think it's the majority, though I don't have a source, that most microplastics come from wear and other sources. From consumer sources, microplastics come from synthetic fibers and wear from regular plastic products, among others.
Microbeads are already banned in many places. The United States for example banned it back in 2017. But there are many governments that haven't caught up to it yet.
Ocean microplastics come from trash being beaten into tiny pieces by waves, wind, and radiation from sunlight, not really exfoliating beads, straws, or glitter.
Even if you want the cosmetic benefit of physical exfoliation, we don't have to use plastic -- you could just as easily use sand or salt and get the same benefits.
Is not so simple because now we know that some animals can generate microplastics also so even if we stop dumping any microplastic right now, the stuff will keep being generated continuously for an awful lot of time.
Absolutely. I agree with you. The only way to do thing in a good maner is to stop using plastics. We have the technology and the talent enough for find an alternative for every single use.
I am awed by the teen and his accomplishments to date. But serious question: how can this be used in vivo, say in the ocean?
The magnetite left behind seems toxic also. When I saw it being dropped in the water, I wondered how the fish are going to survive all that.
Microplastics that settle to the bottom of the ocean might be collected somehow. The rest are dispersed by ocean currents in a vast, vast volume of water, especially colloidal plastic. How would we have enough magnetite to do any of this?
I really hope there can be some plastic-eating bacteria that will break down microplastics and won’t get out of control and create a worse problem
However we as a society must switch away to biodegrdable plastics! Why haven’t we done this for decades, same as with electric cars? Governments are unwilling to use pigovian taxes and tariffs to subsidize eco-friendly alternatives.
It is unclear whether biodegradable plastics break down fully to non-plastic products or whether their breakdown produces microplastics, unfortunately.
It should not be a competition about anything, instead all the efforts should be supported to solve the plastic issue, from reduction of use to clean-up.
Honestly, almost every one of these 'teen finds...' story are very sensational and clickbaity. Eventually it turns out to be something already known, absolutely cannot scale, way too costly for any practical purpose, nothing related to the headline etc
I know, lots of articles are published that cite one another. But none of them have any actual harm documented. They just vaguely refer to one another with "It's well-known that these things are harmful" and then cite another article that says the same thing.
It reminds me of 'solar roads', another hyped-up internet sensation based on nothing.
There is evidence that earthworms fail to thrive in soil containing microplastics (but it is not quite clear why)[0]. That then has knock-on effects for soil health and farming.
[+] [-] bb101|6 years ago|reply
Anyone else feeling somewhat inadequate in comparison?
[+] [-] barking|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Tade0|6 years ago|reply
I think the author of this piece values these accomplishments more than the guy in question.
[+] [-] simonebrunozzi|6 years ago|reply
I could somewhat deal with the rest with a shoulder shrug, but this one is what makes it too hard to swallow :)
[+] [-] secfirstmd|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] scarejunba|6 years ago|reply
I can't ollie a board. Such is life.
[+] [-] avip|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] yowlingcat|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jim_and_derrick|6 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] RomanBob|6 years ago|reply
pretty normal to graduate high school and attend university
> works as a curator at the Schull Planetarium
I don't know what responsibility this holds how he got the job so it's hard to say.
>has won 12 science fair awards
I don't know the award scheme so hard to say. Even if he won 1st place 12 times, a science fair is hardly difficult to win since you are basically competing against semi-motivated highschoolers.
>speaks three languages fluently
This depends on the language. Some people get 2 languages for free from home and learn another to fluent level in high school. Not really a mind-blowing accomplishment.
>plays the trumpet at orchestra level,
This is really the only one that required consistent effort.
>had a minor planet named after him by the MIT Lincoln Laboratory."
meh
Out of all these, the only thing I wish I had is the ability to play the trumpet.
[+] [-] carapace|6 years ago|reply
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vortex_tube
> The vortex tube was used to separate gas mixtures, oxygen and nitrogen, carbon dioxide and helium, carbon dioxide and air in 1967 by Linderstrom-Lang. Vortex tubes also seem to work with liquids to some extent...
[+] [-] jazzyjackson|6 years ago|reply
I would think if no ones figured out desalination via vortex, filtering otherwise seems unlikely
[+] [-] cududa|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|6 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] unknown|6 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] pvaldes|6 years ago|reply
Will be interesting to see how this ends
[+] [-] Merrill|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bradleyjg|6 years ago|reply
Go to any R1 university and talk to the postdocs, they are the same teenagers with ten to fifteen more years of knowledge under their belts.
That's not to say there is no such thing as prodigy, but they tend to be in a few fields where it is possible to substitute sheer raw brilliance for knowledge of the literature (e.g. certain subfields of math) and they are extremely rare.
[+] [-] RomanBob|6 years ago|reply
But people just think "amazing" when a teenager does something, because people now have very low expectation for teenagers.
[+] [-] tempodox|6 years ago|reply
This seems to be a hole that needs plugging. Regulations that prohibit the use of this stuff altogether would be even better.
[+] [-] kwhitefoot|6 years ago|reply
A lot of microplastic is from textiles. If you ban all sources of microplastics you'll be back to wearing only wool, cotton, silk, linen, and leather.
A lot of the remainder is from plastic single use containers. Instead of banning them they could simply be returned to the shop from which they were bought for recycling as is done for most drinks containers (both plastic and aluminium) here in Norway.
Banning plastic bottles would mean a substantial increase in energy use because the alternative is glass which is much heavier and more costly to recycle. Perhaps we could switch to aluminium for more containers.
It fashionable now to complain about the deliberately created microplastics like those used in cosmetics but the vast bulk come from wear and tear on what are now effectively traditional materials.
[+] [-] _edo|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] annogram|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] phnofive|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] phnofive|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pmoriarty|6 years ago|reply
So, wait... If we just stopped using microplastics in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs we'd mostly stop dumping microsplastics in to the environment?
But we don't because we'd rather have this totally optional, cosmetic benefit?
Humans are so stupid.
[+] [-] jhanschoo|6 years ago|reply
I strongly think it's the majority, though I don't have a source, that most microplastics come from wear and other sources. From consumer sources, microplastics come from synthetic fibers and wear from regular plastic products, among others.
[+] [-] kccqzy|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] abadar|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rangibaby|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] starpilot|6 years ago|reply
There are still a lot floating around though.
[+] [-] cbhl|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pvaldes|6 years ago|reply
... and what kwhitefoot said about textiles.
[+] [-] otroqueccorre|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] forgotmypw|6 years ago|reply
Anything made of plastic, because it deteriorates over time.
Tires with synthetic threads, as another HN poster mentioned recently.
Plastic shoes (most shoes in western world)
Glitter and car paint
[+] [-] EGreg|6 years ago|reply
The magnetite left behind seems toxic also. When I saw it being dropped in the water, I wondered how the fish are going to survive all that.
Microplastics that settle to the bottom of the ocean might be collected somehow. The rest are dispersed by ocean currents in a vast, vast volume of water, especially colloidal plastic. How would we have enough magnetite to do any of this?
I really hope there can be some plastic-eating bacteria that will break down microplastics and won’t get out of control and create a worse problem
https://www.popsci.com/bacteria-enzyme-plastic-waste/
However we as a society must switch away to biodegrdable plastics! Why haven’t we done this for decades, same as with electric cars? Governments are unwilling to use pigovian taxes and tariffs to subsidize eco-friendly alternatives.
[+] [-] hoorayimhelping|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] mikekchar|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pcstl|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] selimthegrim|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ummonk|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Azrael3000|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] luord|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Yuval_Halevi|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] choonway|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] wfjkwepofjpw|6 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] jagannathtech|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] eaenki|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] JoeAltmaier|6 years ago|reply
I know, lots of articles are published that cite one another. But none of them have any actual harm documented. They just vaguely refer to one another with "It's well-known that these things are harmful" and then cite another article that says the same thing.
It reminds me of 'solar roads', another hyped-up internet sensation based on nothing.
[+] [-] newsocks|6 years ago|reply
[0]https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/sep/12/worms-fa...