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Stardate Friday 5th October 2007 Issue 251
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This week saw the anniversary of 50 years of Sputnik - the first man-made object to orbit the Earth. Now more than 800 satellites orbit the Earth. What might the next 50 years bring? We’ll tell you what the next few minutes will bring – plenty of interesting features in the Planet Science newsletter, that’s what. Get stuck in!
The line-up this week:
- Stump the Scientist: Green monkeys
- Activity of the Week: Draughts Trick
- Mouses at the Ready: Richard Dawkins book
- Noticeboard: FYI
- Recommended websites of the week
- The Winners’ Enclosure
- Joke of the Week
Are you one of those people who likes their chilli con carne very, very hot! The sort of person who likes to eat whole chilli peppers just because they’re well'ard? (The person that is, not the chilli pepper). Presumably you’ve also got a very high pain threshold? Well scientists are experimenting to find out whether a chemical from chilli peppers may be able to kill pain without affecting touch or movement. Conventional local anaesthetics affect all nerve cells but the researchers Harvard team, writing in Nature, said that with capsaicin, the chilli chemical, they can target just pain receptors. However, it hasn’t been tried on humans yet and the unpleasant burning sensation it causes may be too much for some patients. Hmmmmmm. Let’s try a little investigation. You get stuck into the hottest chilli/curry you can muster and we’ll wheel over your toe with a heavily-laden shopping trolley (aren’t those 2-for-1 offers irresistible?).
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1. Stump the Scientist
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 This week’s question comes from Clare Christie who ponders
‘On the topic of questions from thoughtful Year 6 students, I was asked (during a discussion about camouflage) why monkeys aren't green... I've still not really been able to think why this might be! Any ideas?’
Kirsty Morris comments
‘Logically, monkeys aren’t green because they don’t need to be. Being green isn’t necessarily the best colour for camouflage- e.g. tigers are orange and black, zebras white and black etc. There is no need for an animal to adapt to the colour of its surroundings if its prey/predator is colour-blind. Likewise, monkeys sit on branches/against tree trunks/on the ground, not directly on leaves, so a dark brown or speckled fur the colour of bark/soil or shadow is a much more effective camouflage.
Additionally, why would a primate (larger than a pigmy) need camouflage? They don’t have many natural predators, after all, so camouflage isn’t a necessary evolutionary trait. Land predators have a hard time catching a monkey in the trees (although it isn’t impossible), and an airborne predator would have to be very large, quick and able to fly proficiently through dense trees to catch a monkey on the move… ‘
Thanks Kirsty.
If you can help or have a burning question of your own then send us an email with STUMP THE SCIENTIST in the subject line to planet-science.news@nesta.org.uk
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2. Activity of the Week
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Another little gem from Planet Scicast. Tune in, you don’t know what you’re missing.
 Draughts Trick
You will need:
- Some low quality draughts (ones which don’t lock together when stacked, but are solid and have a bit of weight).
What to do:
- Stack a black draught on top of a white one, then pile three more white draughts on top.
- Roll a draught at the stack. You will need to create backspin by squeezing the draught down with your finger so it fires out forward.
- Keep practising until the black draught is hit by the rolling draught and flicks out of the pile, leaving the others undisturbed.
What’s going on?
Newton's 1st law explains why this is possible. The draughts all have a certain inertia while sitting on the table - they won't move unless they are acted on by a force. The rolling draught provides that force to only one of the draught pieces - the black one in the middle. The only force the other draughts feel is a little friction between the pieces - pulling them out in the same direction as the black draught. If the pieces do not lock together this friction will be low, allowing the black to slide out without much resistance. Any friction that they do feel will be made less effective if the draughts are reasonably heavy (Newton's 2nd law tells us the more massive an object is the less it will move when acted on by a force).
The reason the rolling draught is given some backspin is to prevent it carrying on after the collision and bringing down the whole stack. It is hoped that at collision this 'rolling' draught is brought to a stop, its backspin then carries it away from the stack in a similar way that backspin is used in snooker to position the white cue ball.
See this activity on Planet Scicast.
Like to know more about filming scicast demonstrations? Top tips, the benefit of Jonathan Sanderson’s experience, and lunch all for free! In five cities, in October, please see the seminars page on Planet Scicast for details and how to get in touch.
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3. Mouses at the Ready
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 This week we have a great book to give away. Richard Dawkins – How a scientist Changed the Way we Think (Oxford University Press). This is a collection of essays in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the publication of Richard Dawkins' The Selfish Gene.
If you’d like to win it then email us with your name and address, and the words DAWKINS in the subject line, to planet-science.news@nesta.org.uk.
The draw will take place at 5pm on Wednesday 10th October.
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The Scrabilicious Quiz
As the chilly autumn nights draw in, what’s better than to settle down with a good old game of Scrabble. But how much do you know about this legendary game? Could your science know-how lead you to sweep the board? Get all ten questions right and you could win a fantastic Scrabble Deluxe complete with rotating base and velvet tilebag. Oooooh!
Ready, steady... grabble!
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Café RSA - Manchester
The next Cafe RSA event of the theme of "SCIENCE ♥ ART" is looking at ways that the arts and sciences can work together to provide innovative answers to current environmental questions. The debate will be presented by Professor John Hyatt of MMU's Manchester Institute for Innovation in Art and Design.
Tuesday 16th October at 6pm
Cafe Muse, Manchester Museum, Manchester.
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Royal Commonwealth Society Essay Competition
If you are 18 years of age or younger, why not enter the Commonwealth Essay Competition and pit your writing skills against students of the same age around the world? There are lots of prizes - and you may even get your essay published.
The theme for Commonwealth Day 2008 is “The Environment: Our Future”. Discuss the likely impact of climate change on life as you know it. What is to be done? Deadline: 1 March 2008
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Manchester Science Festival
Singing sand, taking the perfect free kick and the science behind champagne are just some of the mysteries to be explained during the inaugural Manchester Science Festival. Over 100 events across Greater Manchester, from 2 - 28 October 2007, aim to enthuse and inspire people of all ages about science, engineering and technology
Spread the word - pass it on to family and friends, colleagues and neighbours…
20-28 October 2007
- promoting science, technology and engineering at venues across Greater Manchester
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Animal Crackers – Half-term at the Grant Museum
This half-term come and explore what animals eat for dinner and how they do it. From bone-crushing hyenas to nectar-sipping bats, investigate the amazing world of beastly diets with the Grant Museum’s fantastic specimens. Take part in hands-on activities to discover the animals that hunt at 200mph, detect electricity, cast nets, eat poisonous plants or don’t feed at all.
22nd to 26th October
1-5pm
Free (No need to book)
Grant Museum of Zoology, Darwin Building, University College London
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7. Recommended websites of the week
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The Sun|trek website has now gone live!
This site is aimed at 10-14 year old students (KS3/4) and their teachers.
It is about the Sun and its effect on the Earth. There’s a whole host of spectacular images and movies (from solar space observations) which can be downloaded for classroom work. Sun|trek contains material relevant to 'Earth and Beyond' and also covers environmental issues such as alternative energy sources. This website can also be used to illustrate many physical concepts, such as electromagnetic radiation (UV and X-rays), waves, magnetism, energy and gravity. Don’t forget to have a look at the 'solar guides' - young researchers who tell it like it is..
The Sun|trek project is led by Helen Mason, University of Cambridge, and funded by S&TFC (formally PPARC).
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Remember last week when we were offering you tickets for The Sun Kings at Glasgow Science Centre? The lucky winner is Louise Guy of Bathgate. Hope you enjoy the performance Louise! We were also offering two pairs of tickets for Transformers at the National Media Museum. The lucky winners are Laurie Boyle of Ripon and Suresh Nathan of Bolton. Well done everyone!
And the winners of the Horrible Digestion kits for last month’s UK Tasty Tester quiz (well done you all) are: Sue Blake from Gawsworth, Martin Phillips from Wolverhampton, Joe Parrot from Liskeard, Erica Price from Birmingham and Laura Newton from Stafford.
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9. Joke of the week
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Quantum Theory of Socks
Philosophers have long wondered why socks have this habit of getting lost, and why humans always end up with large collections of unmatched odd socks. One school of thought says that socks are very antisocial creatures, and have a deep sense of rivalry. In particular, two socks of the same design have feelings of loathing towards each other and hence it is nearly impossible to pair them (e.g. a blue sock will usually be found nestling up to a black one, rather than its fellow blue sock).
On the other hand, quantum theorists explain it all by a generalised exclusion principle--it is impossible for two socks to be in the same eigen-state, and when it's in danger of happening, one of the socks has to vanish. Indeed the Uncertainty Principle also comes in--the only time you know where a sock is, is when you're wearing it, and hence unable to be sure exactly how fast it's moving. The moment you stop moving and look at your sock, it then starts falling to pieces, changing colour, or otherwise becoming indeterminate. Either way, socks may possess Colour and Strangeness, but they seem to lack Charm.
Jonathan R. Partington
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