Lenja Shines at the Mainz Academy of Particle Physics

Lenja is a K12 German Secondary student who participated in the Mainz Academy of Particle Physics which was organised by the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz. Over the summer, 16 participants, including herself, took part in this extraordinary programme that provided in-depth training for the future generation of theoretical physicists. She shared with us some insights of her experience.

I first found out about the programme through the recommendation of the Deutsche Schülerakademie. During my time at school, I developed a strong interest in the sciences, especially physics and chemistry. This is why when I read the description of the Mainz Academy of Particle Physics, it spoke strongly to me.

We would participate in numerous lectures and workshops on the subject of particle physics. Alongside the physics part, the programme offered a lot of fun leisure activities for us, such as a movie night, a city rally to get to know the city of Mainz or a visit to the Gutenberg museum. Towards the end, we were divided into groups and worked separately on experiments that involved work with the particle accelerator MAMI directly on site. After carrying out our experiments with the MAMI, every group prepared a short presentation to present to everyone on the last day.

All in all, it was a very engaging programme. I learned more about particle physics and got to know other teenagers my age who are interested in physics during the various leisure activities.

More information about the Mainz Physics Academy can be found on their website.