Pupils will participate in one of 8 Science-related projects during the second week of the programme.
Some of the projects are listed below. Further details and full blurbs will be added in due course.
Participants, please start thinking about a preferred project, and a backup.
2026 UK-Japan Young Scientist Workshop Program Guide.pdfHosted at St Pauls (Rikkyo) University
Mao MINOURA
Join this hands-on workshop and discover how to “Dye Your Own Blue with Chemistry”. Participants will synthesise indigo — the very molecule responsible for the deep blue colour — and then use the indigo they have made themselves to dye fabric by hand.
Indigo has been prized since ancient times and occupies an important place in Japan’s traditional dyeing culture as well as in the textile heritage of Britain and Europe. Under the guidance of university staff, high school students from the UK and Japan will explore the fundamentals of molecular chemistry, experience traditional indigo dyeing techniques, and take home a fabric piece dyed with the indigo they synthesised themselves.
Kitamoto Shunji
X-ray astronomy is a fascinating field that uses X-rays to look at the universe. It is the best way to study "extreme" objects like black holes and neutron stars, or the glowing hot gas found in supernova remnants and galaxy clusters. Because our atmosphere blocks X-rays from reaching the ground, we have to send X-ray telescopes and detectors into space on satellites. One of the newest missions is the XRISM satellite, launched in September 2023. It carries a cutting-edge detector that can measure X-ray energy with better detail than ever before. To make sure this sensitive equipment stays accurate, it uses a built-in X-ray generator to constantly check its performance.
In this project, we are going to learn how the XRISM satellite’s X-ray generator works and then try to build our own version based on the same principles! What are X-rays? What can we learn by observing celestial objects with X-rays? Why is an X-ray generator necessary for astronomical observation? How can we generate X-rays effectively? What kinds of improvements can we make? Let's think about these questions together and try generating X-rays.
KAZUYOSHI KURITA
Most of you know that the matter around us is made up of extremely small particles called atoms. Inside each atom lies a nucleus that is less than 1/10,000th its size, yet accounts for 99.97% of the atom's total mass. It is, in fact, an object of ultra-high density. The experiment conducted by Rutherford and his colleagues was the very first to confirm the existence of this atomic nucleus.
In this experiment, we will place radioactive americium-241 inside a vacuum chamber and observe how alpha particles emitted from it change their direction of travel when striking a thin gold foil. This hands-on workshop aims to be an inquiry-based experiment that helps participants truly understand and appreciate how we can confirm the existence of such infinitesimally small objects.
Kiyoshi Furusawa, Ryoko Takahashi
Science communication is about sharing science and thinking about it together. In this workshop, you will interview researchers, research groups, or other participants working on different scientific topics, and create a short video or written piece to share what makes their work interesting.
It is important not only to understand the science accurately, but also to think about three key questions: Who are you communicating with? What do you want to share? How will you communicate it?
Communicating science is not just about making technical knowledge easier to understand. It is also about discovering the researchers’ motivations, the background of their research, and the connections between science, society, and the future — and then expressing these ideas in a way that reaches your audience.
And most importantly: enjoy the process! What can you do to create something that you yourself would want to watch or read? Let’s explore this together!
Yasunobu Uchiyama
In this program, students will take on the role of a "Research Project Leader," partnering with a cutting-edge "AI Agent System" as their buddy to tackle two grand themes: astrophysics and the global environment. Rather than writing lines of programming code, students will direct and guide the AI agent to conduct autonomous data analysis.
The workshop features a dual-track focus utilizing real-world datasets: "Cosmic & Astronomical Data" (such as black holes) and "Global Environmental Data" (such as CO2 concentrations tracking climate change). Based on the visualizations and analytical reports generated autonomously by the AI, UK and Japanese students will collaborate to deeply examine what the data physically signifies and understand what the data tell us about the Universe or Earth.
This exciting four-day experience offers a firsthand look into the future of AI-driven data science and the very essence of scientific discovery.
Masakazu Morimoto
Photochromism is defined as photoinduced reversible interconversion between two isomers that exhibit different colors. Various types of photochromic molecules have been developed with advances in synthetic organic chemistry. The typical examples are azobenzene, spiropyrane, fulgide, and diarylethene. These molecules have been studied not only from the fundamental viewpoint of photochemistry but also for their potential applications in photofunctional devices, such as optical memories, optical switches, and displays. In this experiment, we synthesize photochromic molecules and observe their photoinduced color changes.
Hosted at St Luke's University
Kanzunari Onishi
Masks are a familiar part of everyday life, but how do they actually protect us? Their effectiveness depends on more faAnd how does our behavior affect the protection masks provide? And how does our behavior affect the protection masks provide?
Through this theme, students will explore how to understand invisible risks and how to think scientifically about questions that arise in daily life. It also offers an opportunity to reflect on how science can contribute to society, while considering both personal protection and consideration for others, as well as the importance of scientific evidence in public health.
