Laura Grant is Honorary Research Fellow in the Communications Unit in the Department of Physics, Liverpool University. She also runs the Education Outreach Programme from the University’s Physics Department.

Why did you want to get involved in The Big Experiment?
The Big Experiment combines two passions of mine – one of course is science and especially physics. However my ‘day job’ could be considered as educational research. I’m really interested in social justice in education, so the fact that the project was going to target a group that included some young people that weren’t hugely engaged with education meant it was especially interesting to me.

Why is Science so important to you?
Science is important to me because it’s not just an interesting subject; it provides me with a way of looking at and making sense of the universe in which I live. I’m not saying I understand absolutely everything about science – far from it! But it gives me the means to satisfy my own curiosity about the world. To me, science (and especially physics) is all about asking and trying to answer some really big questions… Who are we? What are we made of? Where did we come from? And I think the fact that we ask these questions is what makes us human. So I guess I’m saying that the process of science is an integral part of our culture. That makes it pretty important!

Was Science your favourite subject at school?
Science was definitely my favourite subject at school. When I was at school I particularly enjoyed Chemistry and my Chemistry teacher really inspired and encouraged me. However when I went to university I realised I’d get to study my favourite parts of chemistry, like atomic structure, in the physics department. And that it was physics that would let me (try to) understand the inner workings of atoms and light and stars and magnets.

Do you think the current culture of heath and safety is discouraging young people to experiment with Science?
I think that if young people think something is dangerous they are probably more likely to experiment with it! However what the health and safety regulations do is make it much more time consuming for teachers and technicians in schools to set up certain experiments. Given that these are people whose jobs are extremely time-pressured as it is, that means that some experiments just may not happen in school, which is a great shame. I know that many science teachers actually spend a considerable amount of their spare time when they shouldn’t be working planning or setting up ‘dangerous’ experiments for their students.

Would you ever consider being a Science teacher?
I have considered teaching in the past, as I know that physics teachers especially are in short supply. After taking part in The Big Experiment I feel that I’d definitely like to teach at some point in the future, and it will probably be sooner rather than later. In the meantime I’m hoping to stay in touch with the Royal Docks school - the deputy head and I are thinking up some fun science projects we can work on together.

Has your experience in The Big Experiment helped you to appreciate how tough the job of Science teacher is?
Working in educational research I know many teachers and already had lots of respect for the profession. Teaching is probably the most difficult yet potentially the most rewarding job you can do. You also have tremendous responsibility as an influencer of the young people you work with. Good teachers really do make a difference.

When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
The earliest careers aspiration I remember was wanting to be an astronaut. But after studying physics at secondary school I realised that weightlessness is basically the process of constantly falling towards the centre of the earth. As I can’t stand roller coasters that soon put me off! I then wanted to be a vet and actually applied for vet school, but didn’t get in, and was recruited by the physics department at the University of Liverpool through the clearing process. It was the best thing that could have happened to me – I can’t imagine missing out on all the great physics demonstrations and experiments I get to do!