On January 17, on the occasion of the International Children's Inventors Day, the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine traditionally hosted a reception for young inventors and scientists of the capital and their leaders. In the meeting room of the NAS Presidium, they were greeted by the President of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Academician Anatoliy Zagorodny, and the President of the Junior Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Stanislav Dovgy.
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“This is a celebration of those who change the world with their ideas, dream of a better future and are not afraid to experiment! Thank you for your curiosity, courage and perseverance. Let your ideas shine brightly like stars, and let each invention become a step towards great achievements!” the Junior Academy of Sciences said. After the presentation of the Certificates of Appreciation to the best young researchers and their scientific and pedagogical supervisors, an excursion to the office-museum of Borys Paton, a legendary scientist and longtime leader of Ukrainian science, was organized for all the awardees.
Among the awardees was the first-year student of the Institute of FTI, a graduate of the Technical Lyceum of the Dniprovsky district of Kyiv, the winner of the All-Ukrainian competition for the defense of research works of students-members of the Minor Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, the winner of the scholarship of the President of Ukraine Anastasia Minitskaya and her scientific adviser - Oleg Kozlenko, head of the scientific laboratory of cryogenic technology of the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics of the KPI, Honored Teacher of Ukraine. For many years, Oleg Kozlenko's students have been winning international and national scientific and technical competitions, representing Kyiv and Ukraine with dignity thanks to his scientific guidance and the available laboratory and technical facilities of Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute.
Anastasiia is currently studying to become a cybersecurity specialist. She became interested in science in the 9th grade when she joined the materials science section of the Kyiv Minor Academy of Sciences for Pupils. Anastasia is working on improving lightweight but durable materials that can be used in military and civilian applications. For example, they took porous aluminum as a basis and began to improve its properties by filling the pores with a suitable filler. The result is an ultra-lightweight, ductile metal-polymer material that is strong and reliable. It could be used to create body armor, protective structures or even mobile shelters. “Today, the military is interested in protective structures that can be quickly assembled and disassembled, so that they are light and strong at the same time, but there are few such materials,” she explains. In such structures, aluminum provides lightness, and polymer adds strength.”
Indeed, the project has great potential and has already received approval from experts. An application for the invention “Method of obtaining a composite material” was filed on 05/14/2024.
By the way, the girl's parents are university scientists. They approve of their daughter's hobby, rejoice at her successes, and support her when things don't work out.
In addition to her technical achievements, studying at the Kyiv Junior Academy of Sciences helped Anastasiia feel more confident at public events: “When I first defended my thesis, I was very nervous, but now I am more open and ready to speak. This is an experience for which I am very grateful.” It is worth adding that Anastasiia has already presented her design at several international exhibitions. “The first exhibition I took part in was in Croatia - it was the INOVA International Innovation Show, and I won a gold award. The second exhibition was held in Taiwan. It was extremely interesting to see not only other projects, but also to get to know a culture that is different from ours,” she recalls.
Today, the experiments continue. “We have tested the material for compression, but we plan to move on to practical tests close to real-world conditions. We also want to explore other possible fillers,” Anastasiia shares her plans. So she continues to strive to improve her designs and continue her studies in cybersecurity.
As you can see, inventors - persistent and inquisitive - have no limits to their imaginations, but a desire to create new and useful things. May their ideas inspire and their successes multiply.