Generating Genius

Find out here what happened when BHF sent Joel and Jordan and 13 other young people to find out about their hearts.

After being selected as potential science 'geniuses' of the future from around the country they travelled to the Royal Veterinary College, to conduct experiments, carry out tests and do some dissection.


Generating Genius Group Shot
The Team in their lab coats!
Sheeps Heart

Week 1:

Sheep heart and lungs: we dissected a sheep’s insides and learnt how the right side of the heart pumps blood to the lungs.

Then, towards the end of the day, we dissected a dog. None of us could identify the breed, but it was gruesome! The stench was awful, some of us were brave enough our stick our fingers into the gut…

Heart Rate Machine

Week 2:

This week we focused on exercise and how keeping our body healthy means keeping our organs functioning well.

We also checked our resting heart rates and our recovery rate. We got into pairs and strapped blood pressure cuffs to our arms. The lower our heart rate was, the fitter we were! Your heart rate should not be too high or too low because it might be unhealthy for you. The average for adults was 70 to 75…

Body Mass Index chart

Week 3:

This week we focused on obesity. We looked at the Change for Life charts and leaflets that tell you how to have a balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle. We realised that we should eat more fruit and vegetables.

We also checked our BMIs (Body Mass Index) which is calculated using your weight (kg) and height (cm). We relaxed when we saw we were both a good weight.

Heart Tissue on a Slide

Week 4:

For the last week we got into pairs and got involved in the very complicated process of staining slides.

We had to go through a number of steps where we dipped the slides in different solutions (that we all amazing shades of the rainbow) to make sure that the tissue of the heart stood out when observing it through a microscope.



We’ve really enjoyed our time at the Royal Veterinary College. We’ve learnt that we should always eat healthily and exercise. Now we know the effects of bad eating and not keeping fit, we know that we will try to do our 60 minutes of exercise each day.

Also this course has majorly developed our knowledge of the heart. We have gone back to Science lessons at school confident to talk about arteries and veins.

We know now that the heart is a very important thing. Without it we would simply fall apart!


To find out about events you can take part in check the main events page.