The Guy from Google
Who would have known that – for the last four years – one of our pupils at Galashiels Academy has been recognised as a partner in the internet sensation ‘YouTube’? Michael Inglis, both an S6 pupil and Deputy Head Boy, has his own YouTube channel, with a whopping 3.5million views on his videos, and six thousand subscribers.
“This started very gently. When I first started on YouTube, I had around 100 views a day. Then it went up to a mind-boggling thousand a day! And now it stands between eight and ten thousand a day. I was amazed to find that even the Times Educational Supplement had noticed my endeavours and gave me a full-page article!”
This whole internet connection began when Michael found out about Stop Motion animation – a technique used to create characters such as Wallace and Gromit. After establishing his large audience on the internet, he moved on to designing non-endorsed LEGO pieces to appear in his videos – swords, shields, hats – and then sent them to a company called Shapeways, who are manufacturers in CAD computer drawings. This meant that Shapeways physically made Michael’s computer designs to be used with the LEGO, and were able to sell online in a high demand! About one hundred different models were designed in a year, which meant Michael received “a great response from the LEGO community” – which he fully denies being a part of!
To make all of this even more of a success for young Michael, he was then noticed by large websites which were online retailers who specialised in Lego customisation. He designed for them, and these designs were mass manufactured in China using ABS (plastic) injection. This meant they weren’t 3D prints, but were physically made as a mould, then melted and injected.
Although Michael hasn’t done as much animation in recent months, he intends to start the animation he originally planned when he took up 3D modelling in the first place. What was originally a hobby for him, has now landed him into making money, as he receives revenue from his YouTube videos and from the online shop which sells the physical prints of his 3D models. Michael’s videos can been seen on his YouTube channel, Inglis93.
I knew that voting him “most likely to become a millionaire” in our yearbook was the correct idea.
Kirsty Patterson
Meeting Michael Moore
After the worthwhile and thought-provoking trip to the Scottish Parliament, another political experience came to Modern Studies students by way of Westminster this time in the form of our constituency MP, Michael Moore.
The Liberal Democrat gave up some of his valuable time to answer questions and tell about his experience as an MP and most recently as Scottish Secretary.
Like all politicians he is skilled in parrying questions but the Modern Studies did not always make it easy for him. Questions ranged from “Why do the Liberal Democrats have the lowest numbers of women MP’s?” to “What is it like to cooperate with the Tories?” The grilling he got would have matched any that challenged him at Westminster.
The pupils benefited from the visit with plenty of first-hand raw material for exam preparation and a better understanding of the ways of MPs. Summing up the view of the majority was one member of the audience who described the experience as “insightful and really rewarding.” And, who knows, maybe one day a Galashiels Academy Modern Studies student will change roles and be answering questions from pupils as MP.
Kate Macfarlane
Meeting the Maths Challenge
Maths, especially at Advanced Higher, is a difficult subject. But the Advanced Higher class this year gave themselves another hurdle to surmount when they took part in the UKMT’s Senior Maths Challenge – an optional test taken by senior maths students all across Britain. This consists of difficult reasoning problems that test students’ ability to master the fundamentals of geometry, combinations and number theory.
The top 10% of those who sit the challenge are invited to participate in another paper of an even higher difficulty. Two Academy candidates scored highly enough to merit an award: Kerry Allan, who achieved a Bronze award, and Jordan Reid, who obtained a gold award and, we are proud to say, has now progressed to the next level of the competition.
UKMT, who organise these challenges, was set up in 1996 to help improve skills in mathematics within the UK. We wish Jordan well in the next round of the competition.
Jordann Aikman
Galashiels Academy Concert
Jingle bells! Jingle bells! Jingle all the way! The annual Christmas concert at Galashiels Academy played host to a whole variety of festive performances. But although the talents of our performers fully encompassed the Christmas spirit, they stretched well beyond it, too.
On this front, step forward Beth Cormie who, accompanied by her mother, gave a sparklingly joyful performance of the Allegro from a Vivaldi Flute Concerto in G. Also catching the audience’s admiration were contributions from the Guitar group and the Rock Group, proving we cater for all musical tastes at the Academy. And we don’t just stop at music: the Senior Drama Group had their own version of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ which wowed the audience, with particular affection being reserved for Toto, the dog, played winningly here by Ben Cullum in full canine mood.
Rounding off the evening was a selection from ‘Showtime’, as high-spirited as it was musically persuasive, with Grace Wilson’s tap-dancing in 42nd Street sending everyone home in a great good mood.
After the performances came the raffle, held by the senior Social Enterprise class. “I think it got people in the festive spirit,” commented a cheery Hannah Otton, who clearly enjoyed her part in the concert. And who could disagree? Our thanks, as ever, to our hard-working music department who gave us all such a polished evening’s entertainment.
James Louth
