Double winner with coffee stain and shampoo jet

• Regional competition “Youth Researches / Pupils Experiment” at MTU Friedrichshafen
• Prizes awarded to young researchers
• Tognum CEO Volker Heuer: “We need more highly qualified specialists”

Friedrichshafen, 23 February 2008. There’s no stopping some young researchers – for example Jan Binder, Florian Ostermaier and Andreas Landig from Mittelbiberach, Ostrach and Bad Saulgau. These three 18-to-19-year-olds submitted two entries in the “Youth Researches” South Württemberg regional competition under the motto “Viva la curiosity” – and won two first places. At a prize-giving event on the premises of MTU Friedrichshafen, a Tognum subsidiary, the three young researchers and four other groups of young scientists received their winners’ certificates – tickets to the state competition in Stuttgart in the middle of March. The Tognum Group supports the competition in order to bring young people closer to modern technology and scientific work. “Some German companies are shifting more and more research, development and production facilities to other countries, partly because the required specialists are unavailable in Germany. That’s why this kind of youth support is so important to us,” stated Volker Heuer, CEO of Tognum AG at the prize-giving event. 85 participants submitted 41 entries in the regional competition.

The young participants’ motivation is varied: The double-winners in the field of physics dealt with the question of why coffee stains have characteristic borders, and examined the Kaye effect, which has not yet been sufficiently explained but which a lot of us know from our bathrooms: if a narrow jet of shampoo hits a surface, a pile of shampoo is formed from which another jet issues forth.

Other projects are more user-oriented: Julia Sigloch, Regina Zimmermann and Kerstin Wolf from Berg, Baindt and Weingarten convinced the members of the jury in the field of chemistry by producing a biopolymer with the help of bacteria. In this way, they produced environmentally friendly packaging flakes.

Daniel Luib and Daniel Schreiner from Albstadt developed an environmentally compatible method of regenerating etching agent for printed circuit boards containing copper with the help of a sloping surface. Peter Stegmaier, Philipp Engelhard and Andreas Mader from Riedlingen, Salem and Wilhelmsdorf used a failed thermal-water borehole in Bad Saulgau to investigate fluctuations in the level of underground water. But there were also more theoretical approaches: Raphael Reinauer from Sauldorf and Felix Engelmann from Hohentengen calculated lucky numbers with the help of algorithms. An excerpt from the project description: “The number of lucky numbers below a certain limit is asymptotic to the number of prime numbers below a certain limit.”

The mtu special price was awarded to Franz Sauerstein (15 years old) and Markus Hagenmeister (14) from Konstanz. These two pupils of the Alexander-von-Humboldt High School in Konstanz examined the aerodynamic properties of paper airplanes and found out which sorts of paper are the most suitable for making paper planes, how strong the uplift is at different speeds, and which wing position gives the best flying capabilities. The two young researchers will receive a four-day research internship at MTU Friedrichshafen.

The issues dealt with by the very young researchers up to the age of 14 were just as fascinating. They examined the sense of taste of children, adults, non-smokers and smokers, developed an environmentally friendly text marker, measured the speed of flow of the River Rhine, and developed an automatic flower-watering device.

It is true that MTU Friedrichshafen and its parent company, Tognum AG, do not derive a direct advantage from supporting the “Youth Researches” competition. “But we have always been active in providing support for technology and applied science. In global competition, we will only succeed with skilled workers, engineers and scientists with a first-class education,” stated Tognum CEO Volker Heuer. “For nearly 90 years, the Group has been involved in extensive occupational training and also employs large numbers of young university graduates,” continued Heuer.

“MTU Friedrichshafen, which was originally called Maybach, will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2009. 100 years of high technology at Lake Constance with all of these great and successful companies – we also regard that as an obligation to promote young people and to offer them opportunities,” said Friedrichshafen’s Lord Mayor Josef Büchelmeier at the prize-giving event. Encouraging pupils and teachers to fully appreciate education and technology must be the daily work of responsible persons in the fields of politics, administration and business in the region of Lake Constance.


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“Youth Researches”

Winners of the South Württemberg regional competition,

Friedrichshafen, February 22/23, 2008

Subject	Topic	Entrant	School
Biology	Production of a biopolymer with the aid of bacteria	Julia Sigloch (18), Berg Regina Zimmermann (18), Baindt Kerstin Wolf (20), Weingarten	Weingarten High School
Chemistry	Regeneration of etching agent for printed circuit boards on a sloping surface	Daniel Luib (16), Albstadt Daniel Schreiner (16), Albstadt	Lammerberg Middle School, Tailfingen
Geography/geology	Reviving a failed thermal-water borehole as a geophysical measuring station	Peter Stegmaier (18), Riedlingen Philipp Englhardt (20), Salem Andreas Mader (19), Wilhelmsdorf	Riedlingen District High School Jörg-Zürn School, Überlingen Wilhelmsdorf High School
Mathematics	Lucky Numbers	Raphael Reinauer (17), Sauldorf Felix Engelmann (16), Hohentengen	Heidegger High School, Messkirch Störck High School, Bad Saulgau
Physics	Coffee stains – a borderline problem	Jan Binder (19), Mittelbiberach Florian Ostermaier (19), Ostrach Andreas Landig (18), Bad Saulgau	Wieland High School, Biberach Wilhelmsdorf High School Störck High School, Bad Saulgau
Physics	Dancing shampoo	Jan Binder (19), Mittelbiberach Florian Ostermaier (19), Ostrach Andreas Landig (18), Bad Saulgau	Wieland High School, Biberach Wilhelmsdorf High School Störck High School, Bad Saulgau

“Pupils Experiment”

Winners of the South Württemberg regional competition,

Friedrichshafen, February 22/23, 2008

Subject	Topic	Entrant	School
Biology	A matter of good taste	Julia Biegerl (13), Konstanz Julia Groß (13), Radolfzell	Heinrich-Suso High School, Konstanz
Chemistry	Environmentally friendly text marker	Markus Birkler (13), Weingarten Friedemann Ohl (13), Baindt	Weingarten High School
Physics	Measuring the speed of flow of the River Rhine	Jakob Ningelgen (14), Konstanz Moritz Baumann (14), Konstanz	Alexander-von-Humboldt High School, Konstanz
Technology	Automatic flower-watering device	Philipp Zimmermann (11) Konstanz Gian Amriko (10), Konstanz	Alexander-von-Humboldt High School, Konstanz

mtu

Together with Detroit Diesel, mtu is the core brand of Tognum.

MTU Friedrichshafen GmbH supplies diesel engines and complete drive systems for ships, heavy land and rail vehicles, industrial applications and decentralized power generation plants. Covering diesel engines from 20 kW to 9,100 kW and gas turbines, the range of products is one of the most modern and wide-ranging in the sector. And to control and monitor its engines and drive plants, the company develops and manufactures its own custom-tailored electronic systems.

Tognum is one of the world’s leading suppliers of high speed diesel engines and complete propulsion systems for ships, heavy land and rail vehicles and of industrial drive systems as well as decentralized power plants, set-up in the two divisions mtu Engines and Tognum Onsite Energy Systems and Components. Its product portfolio includes diesel engines in the power range from 20 to 9,100 kW, gas engine systems, gas turbines and fuel cells and is one of the most modern and comprehensive in its sector. In addition, the group develops and manufactures custom-made electronic control and monitoring systems for its engines and propulsion systems.

Sales of the Tognum Group amounted to EUR 2.5 billion in 2006. Today, the Group employs more than 8,000 personnel worldwide. It maintains a global sales and distribution network including 22 subsidiaries, more than 130 distribution partners and 1,100 authorized dealers.