Asian Olympiad brings physics down to earth

TANGERANG (JP): Physics is generally considered one of the toughest subjects and one that most students will do their utmost to avoid if they can. Yet students who packed the weeklong first Asian Physics Olympiad here the other day found physics more than just a mass of mind-boggling formulas and complicated theories.

A high school student from Tangerang, Mia Surachman, who came with a contingent to the event at Pelita Harapan campus in Karawaci, Tangerang, was impressed.

Under the scorching sun and amid sweating enthusiasts crowding every single Olympiad exhibition stand, she carefully observed the assorted objects and intently listened to explanations given by the stand attendants.

"If physics is explained and visualized this way in the classroom, I'm sure the subject would be more interesting," said the girl while admiring a flying ball at the exhibition.

The force that lifts the ball was used to explain the principle of how the wings of a plane work. It was explained that the air pressure around the ball was bigger than the air pressure inside the ball, making the ball fly vertically. When a hand was put under the ball, the ball flew horizontally.

The second-year student admitted that physics was not her favorite subject. "I get low grades in this subject ... But this event shows me the real and interesting application of physics."

Physics is relatively unpopular in the country.

The Ministry of Education and Culture's data from 1993 to 1996 showed that students' average grade in physics during the national exam never exceeded five. Critics blame it on the poor curriculum.

The lack of interest can also be seen from the widening gap in the ratio of physicists here. Currently, there are only around 600 Indonesian physicists with doctorates, while ideally there should be around 100,000 physicists with the same qualification considering the country's 200 million population. Japan, for instance, reportedly has three physicists for every 1,000 citizens.

Achievements

Several Indonesian students have won awards since the country first took part in the annual International Physics Olympiad in 1993.

The best achievement so far was when a Balinese student, I Made Agus Wirawan, became the first Indonesian to win the gold medal in the International Physics Olympiad which was held in Padua, Italy, last year.

In the weeklong first Asian Physics Olympiad, known as APhO, which was opened by President Abdurrahman Wahid on April 24 and closed on May 1 by Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri, Indonesian students won a silver and two bronze medals.

The silver medalist was Zainul Abidin from senior high school SMUN Moncong in Gorontalo, South Sulawesi, and the two bronze medalists were Halim Kusumaatmaja of SMUK 1 and Bremana Adhi of SMU Taruna Nusantara in Magelang.

Participants from China won the most with four golds and a silver, followed by students from Taiwan with three golds, four silvers and a bronze. The Absolute Prize Winner went to Chinese student Song Jun Liang. In all, there were eight golds, nine silvers, 11 bronzes and 17 honorable mentions.

Head of the Indonesian team for the Olympiad, physicist Yohanes Surya, said he was not entirely happy with his team's achievement but believed the members did their best.

"Maybe we should have been better prepared," Yohanes said, adding that the team officially prepared for the Asian Olympiad since January this year.

"We will conduct much better training for five representatives for the upcoming international Olympiad in July so we can win gold," said the chairman of the Indonesian Physicists Association.

The Olympiad was a warm-up event for the 31st International Physics Olympiad in Leicester, England, in July. Indonesia will host the International Physics Olympiad in 2002.

In the APhO, Indonesia was represented by eight students, who were selected from 1,900 students who applied to take part in the event. Over 60 students from 11 Asian countries took part in the event.

Beside the Indonesians, the other participants were five students from Australia, six from Azerbaijan, five from China, six from Kazakstan, one from the Philippines, eight from Singapore, eight from Taiwan, eight from Thailand, five from Uzbekistan and eight from Vietnam.

The students had to take part in two tests on theory and practice, prepared by Prof. Dr. Waldemar Gorzkowski of the International Physics Olympiad Committee along with physics lecturers from the Bandung Institute of Technology and the University of Indonesia. Participants who achieved at least 90 percent on each test won the gold medal, 78 percent to 89 percent got silver, 65 percent to 77 percent bronze and 50 percent to 64 percent were given a "special award".

Yohanes said Indonesian students mastered theory better than practice. "The students are good at theories, but they lack in practical skills."

The APhO, which also included several other physics-related events such as Lippo E-tech technology exhibition, book fair, technology village, seminars and various competitions, was organized in a bid to popularize physics and to boost students' interest in the subject.

"We want to show that physics is interesting and not difficult. It does not only concern math and its application can be found in everyday's life," said the chairman of the Olympiad's organizing committee and the APhO's president.

The event reached its target; every day between 3,000 to 5,000 visitors, mostly students and their teachers, flocked to the venue.

"We're surprised by the overwhelming response," Yohanes said. (ste)