Sleek Geek Week is an annual event in which Dr Karl Kruszelnicki (Julius Sumner Miller Fellow at the University of Sydney

University of Sydney

The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...

) and Adam Spencer

Adam Spencer

Adam Barrington Spencer is an Australian radio presenter, comedian, and media personality. He first came to fame when he won his round of the comedic talent search Raw Comedy in the mid-1990s...

 travel to several destinations around Australia, presenting free talks on the topic of popular science. Sleek Geek is part of National Science Week

National Science Week

National Science Week refers to series of science-related events for the general public which are held in a specific countries during a designated week of the year...

 in Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

.

In 2005, the inaugural University of Sydney Sleek Geeks Science Eureka Schools Prize was launched as part of University of Sydney Eureka Science Awards. The competition is sponsored by the Faculty of Science at the University of Sydney, with additional support from Abbey’s Bookshop, Sydney and Microsoft.
The competition encourages secondary school students to tell a scientific story via a short video piece, in a manner that is enjoyable and accessible for the general public. Entries are to take the form of a 1-3 minute video piece and a 250-word description of the video content.

2006

University of Sydney Sleek Geeks Science Eureka Schools Prize - (prizes totalling A$11,000 are shared between contestants and their schools)

Winners

Alex Lee-Rekers, Olivia Jablonski and Thomas Marr
Year 10, Conservatorium High School

Conservatorium High School

The Conservatorium High School , is a publicly funded, co-educational, creative and performing arts secondary day school specialising in music. It is owned and run by the New South Wales Department of Education and Training , and prepares students for the Higher School Certificate in their final...

 of Music, New South Wales

• Nanosamurai Defense

• For a simple explanation of the body's complex immune system. Through the clever use of analogies and dramatic action sequences, Alex and Olivia explain how the body's immune system works in a simple and entertaining way.

Kartika Suharto-Martin, Joanna Brooke and Rosa Gollan
Year 10, Conservatorium High School of Music, NSW

• Moles

• For an entertaining look at moles (of the skin variety). Not afraid to ask the hard-hitting questions and seek expert advice, the team's journalistic approach unearths some startling facts about moles.

Kaleah Balcomb, Hannah Butler, Matthew Wardrop, Laura Cavanagh and Jonathan Woodbury
Year 12, Gosford High School

Gosford High School

Gosford High School is a public, co-educational, academically selective high school located in Gosford, New South Wales, Australia with 1080 students from years 7 to 12....

, NSW

• A Brief History of Light

• For a theatrical piece exploring how the theory of light has evolved over the centuries. By consulting with some of the greatest minds in science, such as Faraday, Einstein, and Hawking, the team shows how scientific theories can be ever-changing.

Maddie and Lizzy Finnigan
Year 12 and Year 9, Northern Beaches Christian School

Northern Beaches Christian School

Northern Beaches Christian School is an independent, co-educational, non-denominational Christian, day school located in Terrey Hills, a suburb of the Northern Beaches of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....

, NSW

• Inertia, the musical

• For a musical tribute to the laws of inertia. Using well known show tunes and fabulous costumes, Maddie and Lizzie's performance explains inertia in a truly unique way.

2005 national finalists

• • Thomas Kidd and Sam Jarousek
  • Year 10, Brisbane State High School
    Brisbane State High School
    Brisbane State High School is a partially selective, co-educational, state secondary school, located in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is a member of the Great Public Schools' Association of Queensland, and the Queensland Girls' Secondary Schools Sports Association...
    
    , South Brisbane, Queensland
  • Busting Myths
  • For a fun look at the myth of the "Supersonic Fly" which tests how fast a small fly can travel using logical and practical evidence.

• • Maddie and Lizzy Finnigan
  • Year 11 and Year 8, Northern Beaches Christian School, Terrey Hills, NSW
  • Science Is Your Friend
  • For an entertaining look at Newton's Third Law of Motion using simple props, easy to understand analogies and some absurd humour.

• • Andrew Katsis and Michael Steinbach
  • Year 11, Gisborne Secondary College
    Gisborne Secondary College
    Gisborne Secondary College is a single-campus, year 7 to 12, co-educational school located in Gisborne, 51 kilometres north of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia....
    
    , Gisborne, Victoria
  • Cellular Respiration In Humans
  • For a short documentary with outstanding camera work that explains how humans generate energy.

• • Kristian Leadbeater
  • Year 10, Faith Lutheran Secondary School
    Faith Lutheran Secondary School
    Faith Lutheran School is a co-educational independent secondary school of the Lutheran Church of Australia located on of land on the northeastern side of Tanunda...
    
    , Tanunda, SA
  • Nobel's Intentions
  • For a dramatic production which tells the story of Alfred Nobel's discovery of dynamite and his subsequent creation of the Nobel Peace Prize.

External links

• Sleek Geek Week website