Is this the beginning of the technological future? - Ben Evans, Sixth Former

In Back to the Future part 2, Doc Brown and Marty McFly travelled to October 21st 2015. It’s now November 16th 2018.  So, where’s my hoverboard, why don’t my shoes tie themselves, what gives? The future always seems to be so far away, and every time there’s a technological breakthrough, people seem less and less amazed. We’ve become numb to the rate at which technology progresses, and now, it could be slowing down.

In 1965, Gordon E. Moore predicted that the power of computers would double every two years. This was an ambitious claim to say the least, and people had many doubts about the computing industry, as shown in these quotes:

‘I think there is a world market for maybe five computers’ – Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943
‘Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons’ – Popular Mechanics Magazine, 1949 
‘There is no reason anyone in the right state of mind will want a computer in their home’ – Ken Olson, President of the Digital Equipment Corporation, 1977

It came to pass that the people who were the most successful in the next 50 years were those who saw the potential of computers. Gordon Moore obviously believed in this potential and he later became a co-founder of Intel. His prediction was so accurate in fact, it became known as a law, Moore’s law. However, Moore’s law is ending. Not because we are getting worse at making computers, in fact we’re finding more efficient ways to do it all the time, which I will talk about later, but we are hitting some barriers. A processor is made up of billions of tiny switches, called transistors. Just like a light switch, these can be on or off and nothing else. If on is represented as a 1 and off as a 0, you can create a binary system, and this is the basis of all classical computing. As we make transistors smaller, we can fit more into the same space and thus we get smaller computers that are just as powerful. This effect is known as miniaturisation. The issue is that we have become so good at making transistors small, that the next smallest thing is a single atom. This poses a few issues, and it is the main reason that processors are no longer becoming twice as powerful every two years. The other reason is that the more power we put in, the hotter the computer gets. We have reached a level where if not cooled properly, most of the computers we use would simply melt and burn. Electronics are also far less efficient unless they are cooled. This is why the computer cooling industry is somewhat booming at the moment, and the prices show it.

While it may seem like we are reaching the end of technology development as we know it, we’re not and there are many things to be excited about in the future. I’ve personally noticed that advertisement for ‘futuristic’ technologies has certainly increased. The other day I saw four adverts in a row on new technologies. The first was for Microsoft AI, a project that involves programs that allow deaf people to ‘see’ sound, something I am actually researching for my computing coursework, drone security and helping architects recreate history in virtual reality. The next was completely about virtual reality, and how it could be used to affect people going through therapy, children going through education and using it to see chemical molecules in 3D. I then saw an advert for Samsung’s new 8k TV and finally a Siemens advert for voice controlled appliances. I didn’t really know what to think. Why would you need to spend hundreds of pounds on a virtual reality headset to see molecules in 3D, when you can just buy one of the model kits we have in our department for a fraction of that. 8K TV? Just to put that into perspective, that’s 33 million, 177 thousand, 600 pixels. The human eye can barely see the difference in 4K. Enough pixels! As for voice controlled appliances, if you’re going up to the washing machine to put the clothes in anyway, you may as well press the button while you’re there.

To read the full article, please visit our academic blog page www.canford.com/Academic-Blog

A Level Results Day: an OC perspective - Libby Jones (2014 leaver)

Four years ago today, I was devastated by the news that I had missed one of my A Level grades and had therefore been rejected by Exeter University. I remember frantically calling the admissions office and unsuccessfully pleading with the lady on the other end of the phone to accept me. I had had my heart set on studying at Exeter for years and I really struggled to process that this was not going to become a reality for me.

After several days of feeling really upset and thinking everything through with the support of my parents and teachers, I decided instead to defer my entry to Cardiff University, which was my insurance choice, and to take a gap year – something that I had previously been too nervous to commit to doing. This turned out to be one of the best decisions I have ever made, as I had an incredible year gaining work experience and spending time volunteering overseas that I would never have experienced if results day had gone to plan. This was followed by three fantastic years in Cardiff studying Human Geography, which were full of new and exciting opportunities and experiences. I also quickly realised that the course was far more suited to me than the one at Exeter would have been and I really enjoyed my studies, as well as the time I spent playing hockey and volunteering with South Wales police.

Having just graduated and really thrilled to have gained a First, I can confidently say that my A Level grades have neither defined me nor stopped me from achieving my goals. I hope that by sharing my experience I can help to reassure anyone who may be feeling disheartened or having to rethink their plans: I can guarantee that you can make your plan B just as good, if not better than what you hoped for in the first place.

Libby is hoping to pursue a career in PR and marketing and would love to connect with any OCs or Canford parents working in that world. If you would like to get in touch with her please email jones.libby96@gmail.com

The Benefits of Music - Christopher Sparkhall, Director of Music

There are frequent articles in the press talking about the beneficial effects of learning a musical instrument. In recent times, music has variously been credited with developing better synaptic pathways, helping fend off dementia in later life, improving cognitive function; aiding the process of speech and language learning and more besides.

Canford is currently involved in a long-term study with the Psychology department at Goldsmiths, University of London, which is investigating whether learning a musical instrument has an effect on attitudes to academic work in teenagers and, related to that, whether it can then show an improvement in academic outcomes. Last summer, almost all of our Shell pupils sat some standardised and specially designed tests which measured aspects of their musical and academic abilities and their attitudes to work. Although the most interesting and useful conclusions will only come in several years’ time, the information from last summer’s testing provided both some helpful confirmation of things we thought were the case, as well as some useful observations which will inform some lively discussions at Canford.

There was some initial evidence for a positive impact from musical learning on academic attitudes too. As the study develops and the evidence base builds, we will continue our involvement with the project. Looking beyond the study, analysis of our own A Level and GCSE results from last summer showed that those pupils involved in learning a musical instrument and musical ensembles gained significantly better academic GCSE and A Level grades than those who were not.

As Dr Wilkinson, our Director of Studies rightly observes, “Correlation is not causation: there will be many factors behind why an individual pupil achieves the grades they do. However we can be reasonably certain that involvement in musical activity does not distract from academic work and that there may well be some substantial benefits to it beyond the purely musical.”

Developing Leadership

Leadership at Canford is not all about “commanding” but much more about “influencing”. Different types of leaders use different styles and indeed people respond differently themselves. Part of the skill of leadership is recognising how to approach individuals and teams alike in order to optimise the efficiency and energy and there is no richer environment than an active school such as Canford with its wide spectrum of activities from which these lessons can be drawn.

We aim to imbue our pupils with a sensitivity, a confidence, an ability to communicate and a perception that enables them to make a difference and pull together disparate elements into one cohesive team so the result is greater than the individual sum of the parts. Every pupil is encouraged
to take on a significant role as a leader at some point, normally in the Sixth Form, but any forum; house plays, the CCF, in the classroom, running a club, fundraising activities will all leave those involved with a heightened sense of what it takes and add to their skillsets as they embark upon their exciting lives.

Among the ways in which we foster these skills:

• Development of leadership qualities ranks highly within the Canford assessment criteria. In the grade descriptors for the three weekly assessments which pupils receive, the top grade is awarded to those who achieve not only above target academic progress and excellent effort, but who also show leadership within the classroom. 
• Important leadership qualities are actively encourage within all houses. Pastorally, Sixth Formers act as House prefects and are responsible for running various different areas of House life whether on the social side or taking a role in pastoral issues and for helping to settle the juniors each evening. 
• The CCF offers a rich environment for the pupils to cut their teeth as leaders, starting right at the beginning where the activities all encourage confidence and adventure. Certainly the Norway Cross-country skiing expedition pushes the cadets to their limits but in doing so multiple lessons are draw from the experience where we see pupils supporting and encouraging each other in adversity. Ten Tors training and competitions adds further to this.
• Through Sport, pupils are given opportunities to lead their peers and develop teams to their full
  potential alongside coaches. The leaders of sports teams should display confidence and strength of character to address their teammates when some may prove disruptive and unfocused during training sessions. A real leader will have the courage to challenge a friend’s behaviour, however difficult this may be.

“Leaders don’t create followers, Leaders create more Leaders”