There’s a classic saying from many Indonesians: “If you have not eaten any rice, you have not had a meal yet!”. Rice is a staple here in Indonesia, but are you fully aware of the negative health implications of excessive white rice consumption ?
For my Personal Project, I conducted a research and scientific experiment to find the healthiest way of cooking white rice using different types of oil, inspired by scientists from SriLanka who found a way of cooking rice that could cut the number of calories absorbed by the body, potentially reducing obesity and diabetes rates. To communicate my research and scientific findings, I made a short animation video to share my scientific justifications and reasoning behind canola oil as the healthiest oil tested in my experiment.
Many parts of this project were unfamiliar to me, such as the part where I had to shift to UV-Vis Spectrophotometry to calculate glucose concentration instead of the simple calorimetry method. I had to consult with Chemistry experts and contact laboratory institutions in my city to borrow the equipment and understand how to operate it.
My tips for students doing their PP next year is to discover and explore your passion, think of how your passion relates/correlates to real-life issues, collaborate with various primary resources to deepen your understanding about certain topics and to gain different perspectives, and always be open to feedback and criticism!
Venezia Ferrari Hartono – Grade 10C
