Paradigm Shifters launch with explosive lecture on Hydrogen

The School’s newly established History and Philosophy of Science Society, Paradigm Shifters, made an impressive debut with a visit from Dr Andrew Szydlo, Fellow of the Royal Society and teacher at Highgate School. Dr Szydlo addressed pupils in the Barton Science Centre, delivering a lecture entitled The Explosive History of Hydrogen.

Dr Szydlo traced the development of our understanding of hydrogen, illustrating key moments with a series of lively demonstrations. These proved a particular highlight, with many boys finding the practical elements especially engaging.

As a new society, Paradigm Shifters aims to place scientific knowledge within its wider historical and philosophical context. By exploring how ideas have developed over time, and the intellectual and personal costs at which progress has often been achieved, the society encourages pupils to think more deeply about science as a human endeavour, rather than simply a collection of established facts.