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01. WELCOME FORENSICS FANS
 First of all, a particularly big welcome to you if you're receiving the Planet Science newsletter today because you ticked that special "Newsletter Subscribe? Yes/No" box on your Whodunit registration form! Very glad you said YES and hopefully we'll be able to keep you updated on Whodunit happenings and much much more from week to week. Meanwhile, if you're a teacher of KS2 and KS3 classes anywhere in England and you've not yet signed up for the Whodunit - hurry hurry hurry and check out what's on offer... (i.e. great story for your pupils to get their heads round, six celebrity participants, a free 'mock' evidence kit for every school group who'd like to have a go at solving the mystery for themselves and more curriculum links than you can shake a Buchner flask at...) Here's how to get there: http://www.planet-science.com/whodunit Any queries, give Science Line a ring on 0808 800 4000 from 1-7pm, Monday - Saturday (they can even sign you up over the phone if that's easier for you.)  |
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02. PLEASE HELP US OUT - WE NEED YOUR FEEDBACK! Whether you're a longstanding newsletter reader or have only just signed up, we would really appreciate your comments about the newsletter and any feedback that would enable us to improve it. (And of course we'd appreciate any lovely positive comments too needless to say!) "You can't please all of the people all of the time" they say, but we do try our best, honest! That's why we've created an online survey form... Thank you very much. And so to... water rockets! |
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03. WATER ROCKET CHALLENGE 2003 The National Physical Laboratory at Teddington has been in touch to invite school teams to take part in its fifth annual Water Rocket Challenge. This will be held on the NPL sports field on Wednesday 25th June 2003. Sounds like a good way to get wet in the sun? Well, yes but there's more to it than that! All rocket propulsion, from NASA level to water rockets, is to do with Newton's Third Law of Motion, and as the organisers say, "Water rockets are a great educational tool for teaching concepts such as force, aerodynamics, friction and gravity." Read all about the challenge and how to take part by visiting their website at http://www.npl.co.uk/waterrockets. There are all sorts of useful bits of info about how to construct your own water rocket, plus the results from the 2002 challenges, application forms and rules for the 2003 challenge. Click your way around the photo-gallery too - it looks like they had an absolutely brilliant time last year! The organisers also promise a guest celebrity for the prize presentation, and the event is being run in aid of the Shooting Star Trust, a local charity that's raising funds to build a children's hospice. If you need more information, contact: Simon Julliard on 020 8943 6447 or drop him an email to waterrockets@npl.co.uk. |
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04. MOUSES AT THE READY? Are you in the North-East area and fancy getting up close and personal with some bugs of giant proportions? If so, you may be interested to know that we have TEN free family passes for the MONSTER CREEPY CRAWLIES exhibition which returns to the Life Science Centre in Newcastle on the 12th April. "Discover all you've ever wanted to know about bugs from what they look like to how their bodies are built. Study their habitats, food chains and life cycles and find out what life might be like if bugs were the same size as humans!" Gulp - that's what they say about it ... and furthermore, "There's lots to discover and much fun to be had as you explore the interactive exhibitions, get to grips with the feely boxes, dig deep in the creepy crawly sand pit and meet the good, the bad and the ugly of the bug world!" Read all about it here: http://www.centreforlife.co.uk. And if you'd like one of those free 4-person vouchers, send an email to joanna@planet-science.com with your name, address and phone number and 'TICKETS PLEASE FOR CREEPY CRAWLIES' in the subject heading. The draw of all successful entries will take place at close of play on Monday (14th) April. PS. Tip - you MUST include your name, address and phone no - not everyone remembers to do that ... but you won't go into the draw otherwise. |
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05. WEIRD WILDLIFE IN WINCHESTER - DON'T MISS OUT! All creatures great and small (and well-adapted to their environment) is the theme of the next lecture being held by INTECH (Winchester's Hands-On science and Technology Centre) on the 30th April. It's official title is 'Weird Wildlife' and it's being presented by Ian Dunne, the storytelling scientist, who will be showing how living things have managed to adapt some of the harshest conditions on the planet... There's both a schools' lecture and one for the general public. The Schools Lecture is at 1.30pm and priced at £1 per child with accompanying adults going free. It's suitable for years 3 and 4, and Hampshire, Portsmouth and Southampton LEA schools have free entry to the exhibition. The lecture for the general public will take place 7.00pm. Ticket prices are £5.50 for adults, £2.50 for children, £4.00 concessions. The exhibition will be open from 5.00pm at no extra charge, and pre-lecture suppers can be booked in advance. For more information, contact Sharon Colpman on 01962 863791or email her on htct@Intech-uk.com. P.S. the following lecture in the series will take place on Thursday 8th May and is called 'Chemistry is Elementary'. It will be delivered by Dr Bryson Gore, an ex-R.I. lecturer and is guaranteed to be a goodie.... |
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06. DNA IN THE GARDEN Meanwhile, if you're based in the London area, you may be interested in visiting 'DNA in the Garden', an exhibition presented by the BBSRC and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew. It runs until 11 May 2003 in the White Peaks Exhibition Centre and its aim is to explore some science and some surprises about plant DNA: what it is, how it works and how we put it to use, from new ways of classifying plants and discovering how they develop and reproduce, to global conservation. It features interactive DNA models - virtual as well as real plants that are used in research - and explores the history and the possible future of plant genetics ... If you're a teacher, you're even more in luck, as the organisers have put together some school worksheets can either be printed off, or are available in a Powerpoint version that you can adapt to produce your own school worksheets. They have been designed to accompany the four main sections to the exhibition which can be visited in any order, and you can find them HERE And the main website for the exhibition is right HERE |
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07. AOTW: ROTTING TEETH AND ROTTING EGGS Another activity this week from our downloadable Parents Easter Pack, which is stuffed to the gunnells with things for kids (or adults) to make, do and read during the Easter holidays, and can be found HERE . This little gem lets you find out what's harming your teeth... without actually harming your teeth. Everyone says that fizzy drinks are bad for our teeth, but how can we test the effects of cola on teeth without actually damaging any in the process? (You can do this experiment with real teeth if anyone you know has a milk tooth that's about to fall out and is willing to give up the tooth fairy visit for the sake of science. However, eggshells react in a similar way to the acid in drinks and so make a good substitute.) YOU WILL NEED
READY, EGGY, GO...
WHAT'S GOING ON: Cola is very definitely acidic as it contains phosphoric acid, carbonic acid and citric acid. Over time, the calcium carbonate in the eggshells reacts with these acids and is slowly dissolved into the drink, softening the shells. Fresh orange juice also contains acids, particularly citric acid, and can be just as acidic as colas. Squash drinks contain acids such as citric, tartaric and malic acid and the level of acidity can vary from brand to brand. Still water is far less acidic than fruit juice so the eggshell remains unaffected. Our teeth are made out of calcium phosphate which also reacts with these acids, and so drinking too many acidy drinks will slowly dissolve your teeth... |
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08. ACTIVITY TESTERS WANTED! If that's got your juices flowing and you'd like to try some more activities, we have a fabulous opportunity for you to do so... and help everyone else in the process. Oh - and you'll be rewarded for your efforts too. You may already have visited our online database of science activities, the 'Little Book of Experiments' on the Planet Science website at http://www.planet-science.com/experiment. (If not, check it out now: that address again: http://www.planet-science.com/experiment!) All the experiments in the database so far have been donated and designed to be of help and interest to teachers. But we hav another 50 or so experiments up our sleeves, this time selected especially for children to use outside of school. Sam Nimmo is our Experiment-Expert and she has responsibility for making sure all the experiments are top-quality AND that they work reliably. And right now, she'd appreciate help with testing them... She says: "Are you aged between 7 and 16? Or are you an adult with children at home? (Under 7's included too!) Or do you work with children in an out-of-school setting? If you've answered yes to any of the above, you could potentially be very useful to us here at Planet Science... Before we can unleash the new set of experiments on the general public, they need to be tested by Experts In The Field (ie YOU) who can report back and tell us exactly what they think." If you're interested, please send an e-mail to sam@planet-science.com, with "TESTING TESTING" in the subject line, and a note stating your age (or the age of your children if you're an adult). The first five groups or individuals to test at least three experiments for us will receive not only a £10 book token but also a copy of the original 'Little Book of Experiments' to ensure even more fun-filled experimentation in the future. Hope to hear from you soon! |
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09. SCIENCE BEHIND THE NEWS: FOOD FOR FEET If you're running in the London Marathon, you should (hopefully!) have nothing to learn from this week's science investigation - but for all armchair race-watchers, you may be interested to know about how the runners prepare nutritionally for all the physiological stresses and strains of the 26 miles. Science Line have been on the case, and you can read all about it here: http://www.sciencenet.org.uk/slup/CuttingEdge/Apr03/ marathon.html And if you're taking part tomorrow, best of luck! |
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| 10. RECOMMENDED WEBSITE OF THE WEEK Here's a lovely site: PLANET DIARY http://www.phschool.com/science/planetdiary  There are various sections, but all of them concern the natural phenomena happening in the world. There's a clickable world map showing various places where there are big events currently happening (natural phenomena that is - not political ones...). You can find out more about each of these types of events in the 'Phenomena Backgrounders' section, and you can also spin through a calendar of events and weblinks for the year. It's full of information, but very easy on the eye too - we think you'll like it! And talking of 'natural phenomena'... LOCHNESS WEBCAM http://www.lochness.scotland.net/camera.cfm  or tourist phenomena anyway - if you really need something to help you while away the hours, you might enjoy a look at the Loch Ness webcam (at least you can check out the weather in the area if nothing else should pop/slide/bubble up...) |
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11. JOKE OF THE WEEK A postgraduate student, a post-doc, and a professor are walking through a city park and they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a genie comes out in a puff of smoke. The Genie says, "I usually only grant three wishes, so I'll give each of you just one." "Me first! Me first!" says the postgraduate student, "I want to be in the Bahamas, driving a speedboat with a gorgeous woman who sunbathes topless." Poof! He's gone. "Me next! Me next!" says the post-doc, "I want to be in Hawaii, relaxing on the beach with a professional hula dancer on one side and a Mai Tai on the other." Poof! He's gone. "You're next," the genie says to the professor. The professor replies, "I want those guys back in the lab after lunch." |
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| 12. AOB Next week's newsletter will be devoted to all things forensic... If you have any relevant websites, jokes, activities or anything else of a detectivey nature, please sent them through to Bobby Cerini our Investigator General on bobby@planet-science.com. And have a great week! |
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