1. Have an (atom) smashing time at CERN
2. Take to the SEAS
3. Junior Talent sought for TV
4. Science Year website is alive with our new MUSIC QUIZ
5. Germine Greer meets Lewis Wolpert
6. Get me a SCIENCE LINE QUESTION - and make it snappy
7. Website/s Of The Week - inventors
8. Website/s Of The Week - careers
9. Website Of The Week - Crocodile Clips
10. Website Of The Week - Sheffield's Science
11. You must remember this MNEMONIC CORNER?
12. Excellent jokes



A PARTICLE-ULARLY GOOD OFFER

If you're a classroom-bound physics teacher and you've ever wanted to explore for yourself how particle physics research is really carried out, an amazing opportunity has just arisen. Which, like it or not, may involve you travelling to Geneva for several days, free of charge...

A bit of background first: CERN, as you may know, is our 'local' particle accelerator. It's situated on the Swiss-French border near Geneva, and it's the world's largest research facility of this sort. 20 countries including the UK contribute to its running costs, and its staffing rivals, or possibly even beats (?) the English Premier League for international diversity, with 6500 scientists from 60 countries living and working together.

What are they up to out there? Basically, they're trying to find answers to some of the most fundamental questions about the nature of matter in the universe. Work done at CERN has made major contributions to the development of the Standard Model of Particle Physics. (And incidentally, the World Wide Web was also developed there - but they did that during a coffee break).

Anyway! CERN is organising a conference for teachers: Physics Teachers @ CERN 2002, which will run between 1st - 3rd March 2002. The programme includes talks on particle physics and visits to experiments. The idea is that this will not only give participants the chance to meet colleagues from other countries and get bang up-to-date on current physics, but should give them new insights into the world of contemporary particle physics that they can later share with their classes. It will also be very sociable and a lot of fun! Full details are on the web at www.cern.ch/education.

So what's the catch? There isn't one. Science Year and PPARC (the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council) are joining forces to offer grants so that teachers can attend free of charge. The grants will even provide for teacher cover while you are there. To apply for a place fill in the online form on the CERN website. There are 15 grants available, and a random selection will be made from all applications received by 5 January - so get booking. (Even if you don't get a grant you can still apply if your school can cover the costs.)

For more details contact the PPARC Schools Liaison Officer Andrew Morrison on morrison@innotts.co.uk, or Sophie Duncan on sophie.duncan@scienceyear.com



SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING AMBASSADORS: AN INVITATION

Meanwhile, back in the UK, if you currently run a scheme that involves science or technology-based volunteers working with schools and young people, then you're invited to bring your scheme within the wider initiative known as the Science and Engineering Ambassadors programme. This programme is supported by the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department for Education and Skills, and will provide a high quality and flexible co-ordinated national framework.

The benefits of joining together like this will be:

* increased support for your operating structure
* a matchmaking facility to bring together Ambassadors and schools
* the opportunity to access training and induction packages
* up to £5 million personal liability cover for recognised Ambassadors through the SEAs insurance policy.

Your approved Ambassadors will be recognised as meeting national quality standards. And there will be annual awards for organisations whose staff take part. You may also have access to more schools through the programme.

If you would like your scheme to be part of SEAS, send details of your induction or initial training to:

Tim Sibthorp
SETNET
37 Queen Anne Street
London
W1G 9JB

Office: 020 7636 7705
Helpline: 0800 146415

If your scheme does not currently include a training element then they will be able to help you develop this to meet the national standard. For further information, contact your local SETPOINT, details available from www.setnet.org.uk



KIDS DO THE MOST TECHNICALLY ASTUTE THINGS ...

Meanwhile, on a totally different note, an opportunity has come up for clued up young people to appear on TV with Ruby Wax as a technical 'Whizz Kid'.

The background to this is that oft-cringed fact that something went a bit awry somewhere between the Industrial Revolution and the present day, and now it's usually the youngest person in the room who'll be niftiest at anything technical, eg. mobile phones, DVDs, web downloads, while those over 40 (or ... 30?) are left looking like dundering techno-neanderthals by comparison.

Princess Productions, the makers of 'Life With Ruby' have decided that if you can't beat them, feature them in a programme and try to learn from them. So if you know - or are - one of these newly evolved junior techno-wizards, they want to hear from you...

Here's what they say:

"Life With Ruby" is a new daytime television show hosted by Ruby Wax looking at life in the 21st century and how to survive it. At times light-hearted, at times extremely serious, "Life With Ruby" looks at the subjects that reflect the viewers' interests, life and love, health and fitness, family and friendship, money and careers.

In one of the key features of the programme, Ruby will focus on children with a technical streak. "Whizz Kids" features clever children who know how to set videos, surf the Net, build web-sites, re-programme mobile phones, write computer programmes etc. Each piece will feature a clued-up child explaining a modern technical concept to an older relative!

In keeping with the overall nature of the show, this feature will be fun and light-hearted. We are looking for a wide range of technically knowledgeable children (and accompanying adults!) who might enjoy taking part in the show. We would then aim to go to their house for no more than a couple of hours filming in a fun and very relaxed atmosphere - and then the children get to see themselves on national TV."

If you're keen please note that their timeframe on this is very, VERY tight, as they're aiming to film all the children before Christmas. (Unless of course, if your child is SO technically advanced that they've developed a time-travelling device large enough to carry a film crew and director, in which case they may be open to negotiation ...)

The person to contact is Alex Dundas at Princess Productions, and his email address is: alex@princess.uk.com



WIN AN MP3 PLAYER

Even if you're not young, gifted or technical, you can take part in our new science-of-music quiz - everyone can. The inspirationally-named 'Music Maestro!' quiz has today taken over from the Space Challenge quiz on our website, and it's well worth taking part since the prizes, three MP3 players, are not to be sniffed at.

When one door opens though, another one must close. So it's goodbye to the Space Trivia quiz, and greetings to the 400 people who entered - we'll be sending out the prizes shortly to the first three all-correct entries out the hat.

And on a completely different note:



WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE GERMAINE GREER TO ASK LEWIS WOLPERT?

This may sound like a caption competition for the front cover of Private Eye, but it's not. Instead it's a genuine opportunity to get involved with a special event being organised by the Royal Society for the ASE Annual Meeting in January. Both Germaine Greer and Lewis Wolpert are of course outspoken commentators on science and society, the former being a feminist writer, broadcaster and academic, and the latter being Professor of Biology at University College London, and highly respected communicator of science. The conversation will take place in front of a live audience, but this is your chance to influence what's discussed.

If you'd like to submit a question please email Kirsty Brown, Education Officer at the Royal Society, by Wednesday 12 December kirsty.brown@royalsoc.ac.uk

And please note that all teachers registered to attend the ASE meeting are welcome to come to this event on Friday 4 January at 4pm in the University of Liverpool Science Lecture Rooms, Lecture Theatre B.



CROCODILE CHOPS

But meanwhile ... did you know that with just the aid of a small elastic band you could (if you could get it over his snout safely) confound the mightiest toothiness of a 2m crocodile? The truth, as they say, is stranger than fiction. But it definitely IS true because Science Line told us so...

The Science Line question this week was:

How strong is a crocodile's bite?

And the full answer can be found at: www.sciencenet.org.uk/database/Biology/0104/b00895d.html

And they don't just do croco-questions, they'll handle anything science-related you can throw at them. For example, they're currently energetically working on a question about squirrels and their poo posed by one newsletter reader, which you'll be able to check out shortly. So as you can gather, their area of expertise and enthusiasm is pretty well limitless!

You can call Science Line on their freephone number: 0808 800 4000 (lines are open from 1pm - 7pm Monday to Saturday). Or you can drop them an email - the url is http://www.sciencenet.org.uk - and you can have a rummage in their archive while you're there.



RECOMMENDED WEBSITE OF THE WEEK - INVENTORS

And while we're on the subject of websites, we'd like to proudly announce the arrival of two new sets of links on the Science Year website, one devoted to inventors and inventions, and one devoted to careers and further study information. Both are packed with the best we've found so far - let us know if we've missed any you think should be there.

Here's a couple to have a look at: A Brief History of Cold - The Rev Ed Hird canters through the history of cooling, and explores the life of James Harrison, credited with being the first inventor of a workable cooling system, and the saviour of Australia. www3.bc.sympatico.ca/st_simons/cr0003.htm

And: Biography of John Logie Baird 1 (pictured above)
A comprehensive page on the great man's early life, and how he beat the big companies trying to invent television with no money and few resources. http://www.arts.uwaterloo.ca/FINE/juhde/hills961.htm



RECOMMENDED WEBSITE OF THE WEEK - CAREERS

There are loads in the Science Year Library - but here are just two:

Real Science Careers www.realscience.org/

If you are science inclined this is a great site. They have a long list of science jobs, and real scientists are interviewed about what they do for each one. Very inspiring and informative for those who know exactly what they want - and those still shopping!

And new one from the DTI ... Noise: www.noisenet.ws Which is full of ideas and inspiration about jobs in science throughout the career spectrum. Oooh - and jargon tip, that '.ws' on the end of the url is the new ".com". Not a lot of people know that. Yet.



RECOMMENDED WEBSITE OF THE WEEK - CROCODILE CLIPS

Very many thanks to Pat Firth, the science coordinator of Overhills Primary School in Cambridgeshire. He emailed to remind us to mention the Crocodile Clips site at www.crocodileclips.com.

Don't be put off by its money-spinning appearance; you don't need to spend anything to get the benefit. Pat says, "This is a commercial site but I downloaded the freeware - Crocodile Clips elementary. I was then able to use the program to demonstrate very simple circuits very easily to the whole class, before the children had a go themselves with real wires, bulbs and batteries, this week adding in switches and buzzers. Great fun. Through this freeware, children aged 4-11 can design their own circuits and test out a variety of "what if" scenarios. Particularly good for Year 6 revision."



RECOMMENDED WEBSITE OF THE WEEK - SPECIAL MENTION

And finally, Science Year's Links co-ordinator Katie Walsh, would like to give a special mention and professional doffing of cap to the researcher and co-ordinator behind Sheffield University's own Science Links Library, which she describes as "awesome" - and reckons must have been an awesome load of work to put together too... Check out their url treasurehouse at www.sheffcol.ac.uk/links/Science/ . But make sure you come back to the Science Year site, you hear?



MNEMONIC CORNER

Let's face it, it's never been more crucial to know off the top of your head what's in the top left corner of the periodic table or whether the Pleistocene period came before or after the Jurassic period... This kind of stamp collecting type knowledge can be very helpful during exams etc - but it's absolutely CRUCIAL if you're going to be phoned-by-a-friend on national tv, or are trying to avoid being the weakest link goodbye during Christmas board games.

So - it's time we clubbed together to share knowledge. And in particular, mnemonics for remembering knowledge.

Let's open the batting with this beautifully apposite one for remembering the order of the planets in our solar system.

My Very Easy Method Just Speeds Up Naming Planets

Or:

My Very Excellant Memory Just Stores Up Nine Planets

Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto

Soooo easy. And apparently also, if you want to know where the Asteroid Belt comes in the scheme of things, you can go for:

My Very Energetic Maiden AUNT Just Swam Under North Pier. What an amazing woman.

Please let us know any other favourite memory-joggers you rate highly, but not planet ones, let's go for something different next time. You choose.



JOKES OF THE WEEK

Following on from last week's rib-tickler:

Q. Where does bad light end up?
A. In prism.

Julian Cooke from Bourne in Lincolnshire sent us the following (thank you again Julian):

Q. What happens when you cut a prism in half?
A. All the prismers escape!

Recovered? Because he also added:

Q. How do you see through pressurized glass?
A. Press your eyes against it! (Hint: it's all in the delivery)

Which reminds one of another joke about gas pressure, found while surfing idly on the Web... Apparently it helps students pass exams, so should perhaps be in Mnemonic Corner as well as here:

Q. Why do gas molecules like to look into your window at night?
A. Because they're PVnRT'ed. (pronounce: pivnerted)

Get it? Or has your brain twisted into a knot of half-remembered science initials? It's perfectly simple actually. It's just ... a little tricky ... to explain to others ...



BYE TILL NEXT NEWSLETTER

But before then, let us know about any news, events, comments, jokes, mnemonics, websites or other juicy scientiffica. Email them to anne.mcnaught@science year.com .

And have a wild and brilliant week!