Young Scientist
by Tommy
The wheels are turning. The questionnaires are converted into one big Excel file. The graphs are being made up and the Project Report Book is taking shape.
1,769 questionnaires came back from the different schools, which all had to be entered onto a computer. The mammoth task required help from a couple of friends who acted as data loggers, transferring the 2 page questionnaire into Y, N, 1, Y, 2, Y, U, 1. They were a massive help because I underestimated the amount of time it’d take to enter the data. At 1 minute per questionnaire, the work ahead of me when I looked at it after John & Patrick had gone home sure seemed mammoth.
But now the boring and laborious job is complete, with a large Excel file sitting in the “Young Scientist” folder on my desktop.
I think the information I uncover will be of huge interest, being honest. I surveyed up to 2,000 people, all different ages, genders and years, on their internet habits, which included major areas of interest including what social networking sites they were a part of, what they classed their main usage of the net as (music, keeping in touch with friends and research), and whether they had the internet at home.
I’m also researching statistical significance, to see how likely these results are chance, or an accurate representation of Ireland’s youth. When Patrick suggested I look into it, it all sounded like Greek to me but now that I’ve got my own results beside me, a practical usage as it were, it’s all taking shape, and even Patrick admits “the
feeling of being fairly lost in technical reading is something that never really goes away. you just have to get good at getting used to it, and then overcoming it.”
Remind me to doubt him less.
This day week (about this time, too), I’ll be in the car with Mom heading up to the RDS armed with an A3 poster and a barely-contained excitement. Whatever about the worry about whether I’ll get the project done in time, the 4 days you have actually presenting your project are epic fun. Last year was some of the best days of a year barely started!
Looking forward to seeing ya there! :)