The INSPYRE, International School on Modern PhYsics and Research, is an advanced modern physics international school organized at the Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati of INFN for high-school and college students coming from all around the world, who are highly interested in science. The school kicked-off with 20 participants in 2010, reached about 100 participants by 2019 edition. Many former INSPYRED participants are now physicists, engineers, biologists, medical doctors and even lawyers and economists. The 2020, 2021 and 2022 editions–due to the pandemic–were organized online. Finally, in 2023 INSPYRE returned in person. In 2024, the school will run again, in person, in April.
More information, including the program of the INSPYRE 2023 event, “From Quarks to Black Holes: let’s get INSPYRED!” with slides of the various talks, can be found on the event’s dedicated page.
The 2023 edition of the INSPYRE School was organized with support from FQxI. 81 high-school students from various countries in the world (Armenia, France, Germany, Italy, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia) took part. The school was based on interactive presentations and hands-on experiments connected to the most recent and exciting results, technologies and future perspectives in our investigations of the universe, going from quarks to black holes. FQxI particularly supported the section on quantum mechanics and technologies. As always, quantum physics generates lots of enthusiasm from young participants.
Experimental and theoretical investigations within the Standard Model of particle physics, as well as searches of new physics, beyond the Standard Model, performed at various laboratories, including accelerators and underground laboratories, were also addressed by experts in the field. Moreover, nine hands-on experiments and visits to the Visitor Centre of the Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati were organized.
On the last day of INSPYRE, I presented a talk on “Seven Open problems of Modern Physics,” where I also spoke about my FQxI-funded project to experimentally investigate consciousness’ connection with quantum theory. You can read more about that project in the article, “Can We Feel What It’s Like to Be Quantum?” and you can watch Sir Roger Penrose’s talk about his model of consciousness at FQxI’s session at the PUZZLE X festival too.
We were delighted that various students at the school wanted to remain at the INFN-LNF institute much longer; one declared that after the school he changed his mind from studying medicine and now wishes to explore the Universe as a physicist!