Weizmann Institute’s International Physics Tournament – the “Safe-Cracking Tournament” – is open to students in grades 11 and 12. (photo from Weizmann Canada)
Registration is now open for the Weizmann Institute’s International Physics Tournament. New this year – teams from Western Canada will be able to compete. A Zoom information session is scheduled for Sept. 23.
“Each spring, for the past 29 years, teams of highly talented high school students from around the world arrive at the Davidson Institute of Science Education, the educational arm of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, to take part in the international physics tournament, commonly known as the ‘Safe-Cracking Tournament,’” Morgan Leibner, annual and education programs officer at Weizmann Canada, told the Independent.
In the competition, teams of high school students (grades 11 and 12) design and build a safe that has a locking mechanism based on principles of physics. “Teams are challenged to put their knowledge to the test, where they break into each other’s safes by solving the physics riddles,” explained Leibner.
“Throughout the tournament, participants gain experience in building systems that they invent,” she said. “It is a unique opportunity for students to put physical principles and their imagination into practice – it is a totally different, enjoyable, exciting and encouraging way of learning physics and collaboration, with the goal of competing internationally at the finals.”
While the finals take place in Israel – or online, as they did this year because of the war – there are semi-finals in Canada. They’ve usually taken place in Montreal, with school teams from Montreal and Toronto competing.
“This year, our goal is to expand the program to include a West Coast tournament, which will take place in Vancouver,” said Leibner. “We anticipate teams participating from Vancouver, Calgary and Winnipeg. One winning team will be selected from the West Coast and a second team will be selected from the East Coast to represent Canada at the finals in Israel.”
The registration deadline is Oct. 9 and, once accepted, “teams are required to check in with Weizmann Canada staff every one to two weeks to discuss their work, as well as their challenges and successes,” Leibner said. There are various milestones teams must meet by certain dates, with the semi-finals taking place in Montreal and Vancouver in early February, and the finals at the institute March 23-27, situation permitting.
“The finals have been conducted virtually when circumstances make it unsafe for students to travel to the institute,” said Leibner. “In that case, students submit a video of their safe to the judges, explaining the locking mechanism and the physics principles required to open the safe successfully. The students’ videos are judged on roughly the same criteria and a winner is announced at a virtual Zoom session.”
The 2024 virtual closing ceremony can be watched at youtube.com/watch?v=InI8CDoDqDk.
Weizmann Institute of Science has hosted various versions of the high school physics tournament since 1973. “In fact, the winner of the first-ever physics tournament is Dan Gelbart – a notable Canada-based engineer and inventor. He won the tournament at the age of 16 with an original motor he designed and built himself using spare materials, some even sourced from his mother’s kitchen!” said Leibner.
Gelbart, who was born in Germany and raised in Israel, has lived in Canada since the 1970s. Based in Vancouver, he co-founded Creo, a local printing technology company that was bought by Eastman Kodak Co. in 2005, and he has co-founded several other companies. According to a profile on the Weizmann Institute’s website, Gelbart has registered some 145 patents. He also has volunteered as an adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia and has a YouTube channel – the most recent video, which was posted a couple of years ago, is a tour of his workshop and its instruments.
Typically, the physics tournament attracts between 200 and 300 participants a year, from Israel, Canada and other countries.
“The international tournament offers students an incredible opportunity to meet similarly scientific-minded youths from across the world,” said Leibner. “The tournament also offers a teacher development conference for the physics teachers accompanying teams to the tournament.”
Participants work in teams of three to five students and their local teacher/mentor – who is the one who must submit the team’s registration – coordinates with the tournament’s physics consultant throughout the process. The team’s safe is judged on its quality and complexity; team members’ level of understanding of the physics concepts being employed is key, as are the esthetics and originality of the safe they build.
“Local mentors are past participants of the physics tournament themselves,” said Leibner. “They have firsthand knowledge of the competition, what is required to build the safe, and what it is like to compete in the tournament. They have also participated in other educational opportunities at Weizmann Institute in Israel and have experienced living on campus and working with the community of scientists. Our mentors have a deep love and appreciation for science and an understanding that promoting STEM in education is incredibly important.”
For information on the tournament and to submit an application, visit weizmann.ca/physics.