ULTIMATUS Electicus, a team from the University of Guyana (UG) consisting of undergraduate engineering students, came in first place at the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport’s National Science Fair Finals and Expo, winning $1 million.

Their prize-winning project was the wireless fault line indicator project which would help Guyana Power and Light (GPL) to restore electricity faster.
Instead of GPL having to wait for someone to report a fault for it to be detected, with the wireless fault indicator, faults would be able to be detected immediately.

There were 30 projects exhibited at the finals which were judged by 16 persons who were knowledgeable in the fields of energy, housing, and Information and Communications Technology (ICT).
Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Charles Ramson Jr., speaking at the declaration of the first place awardee at the science fair, congratulated everyone who participated in the science fair.

“We really have been blown away by your intelligence, your creativity and your innovation and your teamwork, your inspiration… you, by your actions, are going to be inspiring a group and maybe even a generation of young people that are going to be coming after you.

“That is pretty significant for you to understand what kind of impact you’re already starting to create in the country. We just provided the platform,” Minister Ramson said.
He related to all the contestants, not just the ones who made it to the finals, that they were very formidable with their responses and they were also very passionate about their projects.

“When we (the Minister and his team) were asking those questions, those very piercing questions… it was so that you can start to think deeply and more comprehensively about your projects to start thinking about how you can make changes if you were able to make it to the finals,” he said.

Minister Ramson said that the finalists made changes to their projects which showcased innovation.
“That’s what we’re doing — finding solutions to problems. It’s about making those innovations where you can make it better, and it’s not a criticism about your project. It’s an examination of how you can make it better,” he related.

Additionally, he said, there was also a business element to the science fair because the marrying of science and business is “a very important part of how we live our lives”.
“You have to make the innovation but you also have to make the innovation work from being able to make it in a market perspective and that’s why we brought it into that Expo… so that you, the young scientists, can start thinking about how you’re going to make your science projects become marketable or commercialised, or even start thinking about taking it to the next step,” Minister Ramson said.
The Minister announced that it was going to be a signature event for the youth department every year.