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 The sun's out, and here comes another summer holiday six-pack straight from the Planet Science cool-box... This week our selections include music, chimpanzees, zebras, atoms, superheroes and that shifty old phenomenon they call the 'Doppler Effect'... Here we go: 1. SCIENCE FRICTION - feel the force 2. Activity of the Week: BALLOON ROCKET 3. Latest scientific research is A BIT OF A YAWN 4. MOUSES AT THE READY for 'Soundscape' in Halifax 5. This Week in Science History: DEATH OF A GENIUS 6. RECOMMENDED WEBSITE OF THE WEEK 7. AWKWARD QUESTION - and answer 8. WINNERS OF 'MUMMY' TICKETS and OPERATION FIX-IT 9. JOKES OF THE WEEK But first: the scene changes. The sound of birdsong and children's laughter disappears abruptly, while the vivid hues of summer drain away, leaving only a stark monochrome scene: West Berlin, February 1971. Two huddled figures have a problem to solve... |
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01. A TALE OF SOME RESISTENCE
Herr Resistance cursed his shoes as he slithered about on the ice, desparately trying to look cool as he discussed tactics with Special Agent Frankie 'the Burn' Friction. Their job was to immobilise arch enemy Perpetua Motion - and to stop slippery smuggler Sly Ding in his tracks. It wasn't going to be easy. And there was more bad news. As they were about to find out, Sly Ding had teamed up with another smooth operator, Lou Briquant. Things could only get messy.
- o - O - o - Where oh where would we be without a bit of friction? Dramatic friction is of course the life force of movies and soap operas - but the real McCoy, scientific fiction, is happening under our very feet and everywhere else too... To explain and explore this sticky issue, we've created a new section on the Planet Science website : we call it SCIENCE FRICTION. Read all about it, and try out the activities for yourself here. And by way of a sneaky preview, this week's activity comes from that very place:  |
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| 02. ACTIVITY OF THE WEEK : BALLOON ROCKET Perfect for any rainy day, whether or not you're that bothered about friction! * A drinking straw * A long balloon * About 2m of string * A clothes peg or bulldog clip * Washing up liquid * Sticky tape * Two chairs about 2m apart What to do: 1. Blow up the balloon, fold the neck and put a peg or clip on it to stop the air coming out. (Warning: don't inflate the balloon yourself if you are under 8 years old - ask an adult to do it for you). 2.Thread the string through the drinking straw. 3. Tie each end of the string to two chairs placed a distance apart. Make sure the string is at least 30 cm off the ground. 4. Pull the straw to one end of the tied string and stick the straw lengthways to the balloon using the sticky tape. 5. Remove the peg or clip and watch your rocket zoom away! 6. Measure how far it goes and then repeat the activity but this time RUB A LITTLE WASHING UP LIQUID ON THE STRING FIRST. Notice any difference? What's going on: When the air from the balloon rushes out backwards it propels the rocket forwards. If the friction between the string and the straw is high then the rocket will only go a short distance. However, if the friction is low then the rocket will go much further. The washing up liquid acts as a lubricant on the string, which lowers the friction and makes the rocket go further. For advanced users: Try designing a paper rocket to stick to your balloon. Remember to design a shape that will move through the air quickly. For the fastest rocket you will need an aerodynamic shape and very low friction between the straw and the string... |
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| 03. NEWS JUST IN : YOUR MOUTH WILL FALL OPEN... Oi! Stop yawning, you at the back. Especially because you're setting everyone else off now. (Nice view of those tonsils though). The mystery of why we yawn may not be one of science's most pressing problems, but it remains every bit as unasnwered as the question of how life began and the riddle of the human consciousness. Unborn babies do it, so it can't be to do with getting a big gulp of air in, and cats and dogs do it too, so it's not just a human thing... One of its oddest features is the way it's so contagious. Everyone knows that seeing someone else yawn can trigger off the response in yourself, and many people find tht even just reading about yawning can even do it. Imagine a really, really luxurious hugh yawn with a big stretch at the same time... mmmmmmm - feels good huh? How're you doing?! This week's news is that British researchers have found evidence that chimps 'catch' yawning too. In the experiment, six adult chimps and three babies were treated to videos of other chimps yawning, as well as grinning and opening their mouths in a non-yawn way. What they found was that two or the chimps started yawning their heads off in response to the yawns - a similar hit-rate to that found in human trials. The reason the scientists are so pleased with the results though isn't because it sheds light on yawning itself, but because it seems to provide further evidence that chimps can instinctively understand that another chimp is 'like me' and does similar things. Read more about it on the New Scientist website at: http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99996182 |
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| 04. FREE TICKETS FOR 'SOUNDSCAPE' AT EUREKA in HALIFAX If you were a Take That fan (and really, who wasn't?) the only place to be on Tuesday was at the Eureka! Children's museum in Halifax, as the lovely Mark Owen was there to officially endorse the power of music and to open their brand new interactive gallery, 'Soundscape'. The NESTA contingent present were extremely happy, not just to see Mark Owen, but to experience 'Soundscape' for themselves, because it's a project that NESTA has been involved in funding. It was therefore very gratifying to see the impressive final result, and to experience its sci-musical grooviness at first hand. The gallery is aimed at children aged 3-12, but the adults we saw seemed to be having just as much fun, as they explore rhythm, vibration, stereo, sound mixing and the wonderful world of music at large, all courtesy of an extra-terrestrial guide called Orby, who pops up throughout the exhibit. It's no exaggeration to say that the whole gallery is 'state of the art' and makes use of the latest technology - kids will love it, and could well be in there for hours! We though it was right up Planet Science's street, so have twisted a few generous arms and secured four family passes in to the museum and 'Soundscape'. If you fancy one of them, all you need to do to get in to the draw is send an email titled "SOUNDSCAPE TICKETS PLEASE", to planet-science.news@nesta.org.uk. Make sure you include your name and postal address so we can send the tickets to you if you win. Meanwhile if you want to have a look at what else is on offer at Eureka!, check out their website at: http://www.eureka.org.uk/ |
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| 05. THIS WEEK IN SCIENCE HISTORY: GOODBYE TO A GENIUS The word 'genius' may be much over-used nowadays, but this week marks the anniversary of the death of a scientist who genuinely deserved that title. John Dalton, whose Atomic Theory remains a cornerstone of the physical sciences, died on 27th July 1844. Forty thousand Mancunians turned out to pay their respects at his funeral procession. Dalton, the son of a Cumberland weaver, was first drawn to the science of meteorology, and during his lifetime he made 200,000 observations and measurements. He was able to prove that rain is precipitated by a decrease in temperature rather than an increase in pressure, and he explained the formation of dew. His meterological studies of the atmosphere had developed in hime a particular interest in gases, and what happens when they mix. Using experimental equipment he'd invented himself, he explored the subject extensively and in 1803 published the law of partial pressure of gases known as Dalton's Law, which states that, "the total pressure exerted by a mixture of gases is equal to the sum of the separate pressures that each of the gases would exert if it alone occupied the whole volume." It was while musing on the results of his various gas experiments that Dalton had his 'Eureka!' moment, the realisation that the masses of the different particles making up the different gases must be different. By 1808 he was ready to publish his New System of Chemical Philosphy, containing the four axioms of his Atomic Theory: 1) All matter is made of atoms. Atoms are indivisible and indestructable. 2) All atoms of a given element are identical in mass and properties. 3) Compounds are formed by a combination of two or more different kinds of atoms. 4) A chemical reaction is a rearrangement of atoms. Scientists before Dalton had envisaged a matter being made up of particles, but he was the first to provide a model from which definite predictions could be made and tested. Many previously unexplained chemical observations could be easily understood through Dalton's new perspective, and it quickly became the theoretical foundation for the physcial sciences. Although modern atomic theory includes aspects not predicted by Dalton (in particular the divisibility of the atom in to its myriad sub-atomic particles; and the existence of 'isotopes' - atomic vriations of elements differing by mass), Dalton's theory is still more-or-less intact over two centuries after its publication. |
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| 06. RECOMMENDED WEBSITE OF THE WEEK : SUPERHEROES R US From a real life superhero, to the superheros of comic book and Pinewood sound stage... This week's RWW has to be the SCIENCE OF SUPERHEROES from BBCi. Perfect whether you're been to see Superman already, or have yet to make your cinema-going plans. It's had phenomenal reviews, so hurry, hurry, hurry! Someone must have had fun compiling the site's factfile on not just Spiderman, but also Wonder Woman, the X-men, Superman, Daredevil and the Incredible Hulk, but there really is some science in there - you just have to scroll down a bit further! What they've done is look at the super-human characteristics of each of the Stupendous Six, and tease out how their abilities relate to animal, human or technological goings-on in 'the real world' - and the world of the future. For example, Spiderman's amazing ability to walk up walks, and to shoot out cables of web-string may make him 'superhuman', but this is all bog standard stuff for any self-respecting spider. No wonder human technologists have been studying our 8-legged friends very attentively of late to try and find out how they do it, and how we can apply the science to our own society and ambitions. Wonder Woman, on the other hand, had the uncanny ability to sense when anyone was telling a porky pie. But in the real world how close are we to fool-proof lie detection technology? Hmmmmm. As for the Incredible Hulk, he has incredible strength and he changes colour too... What lessons can we learn from HIM? (Apart from the value of buying cheap shirts from Asda...) Have a look, it's a bit of fun, but interesting too - and you can test for yourself whether you have what it takes to be a Superhero... Here's the link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/hottopics/superheroes/index.shtml |
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| 07. AWKWARD QUESTION Helllllllpppppppp MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Last week's question surely was crying out for a satisfactory answer. Here's a reminder: In movies there's often a cliff-hanger scene ending up with someone falling (hopefully it's the bad guy). We hear a long continuous cry of horror growing fainter as they fall further and further down away from us. What is the usual error with this sound effect? Got it? The answer is: The volume of the sound decreases while the person falls, which is all well and good (science-wise) as the sound energy is being spread over greater and greater areas. The error made in the movies is that the pitch of the screaming sound in the movies often doesn't change. The pitch should get lower and lower according to something called the Doppler Effect. We notice this everyday with the apparent change in pitch of police car sirens and motorbike engines as they approach you and then whoosh past. The pitch increases as they approach, and then decreases as they recede. As the vehicle approaches, successive sound waves from it tend to 'pile up'. More waves in a certain time mean that the frequency is higher. Our ears and brain detect this as a higher pitch. Put the situation in reverse (like with a falling screaming person) and you'll receive less sound waves in a certain time and so should hear a lower pitch. The Doppler Effect is at work in radar speed traps and also in some GPS set-ups. We don't normally notice the Doppler effect with light, as opposed to sound, waves as the speeds involved needed to observe it are so high. However, astronomers can study the wavelength and frequency of light emitted by distant objects in space to figure out if they're approaching us (in which case you get a 'blue shift') or receding ('red shift'). The red shift shown by many astronomical objects provides powerful evidence of an earlier Big Bang. >>>>>>>>>>> And so to this week's question. If you're a gardener, you may know what's what from your own experience, but what we're looking for is the SCIENTIFIC reason why... Here it comes: Q. Is it easier to push, or pull, a wheelbarrow? Answer next week! |
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08. THIS WEEK'S WINNERS |
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| 09. JOKE OF THE WEEK Many thanks to Kim Vale, Dave Hart and 'Marianne' (the mysterious woman who keeps telling Dave Hart jokes which end up right here!) First from Kim, a sorry story of soccer allegiance... A mummy zebra and a baby zebra were chatting one day and the baby zebra said: "Mummy I really want to support Charlton Athletic, can I, please?" To which the mummy zebra replied: "No darling, you have to support Newcastle United, like the rest of us." * * * * * Suddenly the scene cuts to a cruise ship. Over to you, Dave: OK, a magician worked on a cruise ship. The audience was different each week, so the magician did the same tricks over and over again. One problem: The captain's parrot saw the shows each week and began to understand how the magician did every trick. Once he understood, he started shouting in the middle of the show: "Look, it's not the same hat!" "Look, he's hiding the flowers under the table." "Hey, why are all the cards the ace of spades?" The magician was furious, but couldn't do anything. It was, after all, the captain's parrot. Then one day in the middle of his act the ship sank. The magician found himself on a piece of wood in the middle of the sea with, and as fate would have it, the parrot. They stared at each other with hatred, but did not utter a word. This went on for a day, and then another, and then another. Finally on the fourth day, the parrot could not hold back: "OK, I give up, what have you done with the ship? * * * * * That's all for this week. If you have any news, ideas, recommended websites, jokes or indeed freebie offers, please send them straight through to Anne McNaught on anne.mcnaught@nesta.org.uk. Have a great week! |
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