STARDATE Friday 9th October 2009 Issue 327
Every so often there comes an event that you can really get your teeth into. Yes we are referring to Chocolate Week which runs from 12-18 October 2009. Excuse us - we’ve an urgent appointment with a tin of Quality Street...- Gimme Five – fascinating facts about chocolate
- Confused Copy
- Stump the Scientist – cake vs biscuits
- Mouses at the Ready – family pass
- Planet Pick of the Week – Myths and Legends
- Activity of the Week – Cheesy Waves
- Noticeboard – FYI
- Recommended websites of the week
- The Winners’ Enclosure
- Joke of the Week
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1. Gimme Five
1. One chocolate chip provides enough food energy for an adult to walk 150 feet. Therefore, it takes about 35 chocolate chips to walk a mile or 875,000 to get you around the world.2. Joseph Fry of Bristol, England, made the first eating chocolate in 1848.
3. It takes the whole of one year’s crop from one tree to make half a kilo of cocoa.
4. During the Aztec reign, a slave could be bought for 100 cocoa beans.
5. If the number of Toblerones sold in one year were laid end to end, they would equate to 62,000 Km - equivalent to the circumference of the Earth.
For more facts about chocolate read here
Have you got FIVE facts about anything/everything? Preferably science-based of course (we’re not called Planet Science for nothing y’know). If so, send it along to us at planet-science.news@nesta.org.uk with GIMME FIVE in the subject line.
2. Confused Copy
This week, continuing our series dealing with journalists using science vocabulary in the wrong context.
Here’s Ian Francis to explain. They say “A hybrid car light years ahead of the competition”.
They mean that their new eco-friendly car is more advanced than the competition, who will only produce something equivalent a long way into the future.
This is a funny comparison- if they’d left it as plain old “years ahead” then it could be meaningful. But a light year is a measure of distance in astronomy (not time). It’s defined as the distance light travels through space in one year. And while a claim about being a certain distance ahead of the competition could be justified (as in a race), to suggest their car is at least 9.5 billion kilometres (a measly single light year) ahead in such a race is clearly bonkers.
Thanks Ian. More next week.
3. Stump the Scientist
This week Chris Dew asks“Why do biscuits, if they are left out in the air for too long become soft, whereas cake becomes hard?”
Good question. We’d like to do some research into it but it pains us to waste such yummy fodder. So scientists, over to you!
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
4. Mouses at the Ready
Eeeee Gromit! Get your skates on lad - it’s the last chance to see Wallace & Gromit present a World of Cracking Ideas!Until 1 November 2009
Wallace & Gromit present a World of Cracking Ideas is a fun, family-oriented, interactive show which aims to appeal to all ages by telling the story of invention and innovation to inspire children’s creativity and flair. The exhibition takes visitors through Wallace and Gromit’s home - from the kitchen to the garden shed. The exhibition features interactive exhibits, creative activities and animated displays.
Plus
From Monday 5 October visitors can take advantage of the Is Your Name Wallace? offer to gain free entry to Wallace & Gromit present a World of Cracking Ideas. This offer is open to anyone whose name contains Wallace - first name, middle or surname. Visitors will be asked to provide photo identification, such as a passport or driving licence, at the ticket desk to be let into the exhibition. The offer will run every day from Monday 5 October - 1 November 2009.
On Friday 9 October, the Museum will launch its first Flat Cap Friday. Like Wallace himself, visitors must come to the museum wearing a flat cap to gain free entry into the exhibition. The offer will run for a whole day, on every Friday of the month until 30 October.
Terms and Conditions apply - for details visit www.sciencemuseum.org.uk
But if you’re not called Wallace and you haven’t got a flat cap then have no fear... those lovely folks at the Science Museum have given us a family ticket (2 adults + 2 children) to give away! Eeee crack open the Wensleydale, lad, and let’s celebrate.
If you want to win it, send your name and address and the words ‘CRACKING GIVEAWAY’ in the subject line, to planet-science.news@nesta.org.uk.
The draw will take place at 4pm on Wednesday 14 October.
5. Planet Pick of the Week
Myths and Minefields is an illustrated audio resource is for students aged 10-12 and aims to awaken a sense that not all issues are black and white, and they will have many interesting science (and other) debates in their future education, and beyond.If you haven’t seen it yet then give it a go - there’s plenty of food for thought. Pandora! What were you THINKING of, opening that box?
6. Activity of the Week
Cheesy WavesMicrowaves in a microwave oven are the kind of waves that don’t travel anywhere but just stay in one place. These are called standing waves. You can make standing waves with a skipping rope or by banging a drum. In this experiment you can see standing waves by melting cheese in a microwave oven. Plus of course afterwards there is the added bonus of eating it!
What you need
• A microwave oven
• Some slices of processed cheese
• A (microwaveable) plastic tray
What you do
1. Remove the turntable from the microwave.
2. Lay strips of cheese on the tray and put it in the oven 3. Either give it a quick blast (about 10 sec) on high power Or try leaving it in there for 1 min on a low setting like defrost. (This is better if your microwave timer doesn’t have seconds on it).
4. Take the tray out of the oven and look to see where the cheese has melted. The places where the cheese has melted show where the microwaves inside the oven are biggest (where the waves have maximum amplitude).
What’s going on?
In some parts of the oven, the waves have a high amplitude and the cheese gets hot and melts. In other parts, the amplitude is small, or zero, and the cheese doesn’t melt.
This is why you need a turntable in a microwave oven. If the food isn’t turned round it doesn’t get cooked evenly all over.
(We did this experiment with a microwave with an ‘Intellowave even heat system’ and we still saw parts where the cheese didn’t melt.)
This experiment came from the Cheesy Waves activity in the Planet Science’s Little Book of Experiments
7. NOTICEBOARD
a) Make Your Mark Challenge 2009 - Don’t be a carbon copy!
The Make Your Mark Challenge is the UK’s largest one-day enterprise competition. It will take place on Monday 16 November 2009 at the start of Global Entrepreneurship Week UK (formerly Enterprise Week). It’s free to enter and it offers you an effective way to engage 14-19 year olds in a fun and rewarding enterprise activity.When? Monday 16 November 2009
Where? At your school or college
Who’s it for? KS4 & KS5 students (14-19 years)
How do I register? www.makeyourmarkchallenge.org.uk
b) Prove It! - free event at the Science Museum
Prove It! - a compelling new project at the Science Museum - encourages visitors to explore the scientific evidence that human activity is behind climate change, and to decide if they support a strong, effective and fair deal at the forthcoming United Nations conference in CopenhagenOpens 22 October
FREE
For more details about Prove It! read here
c) The STEM Challenges
STEM Challenges for schools explore the science behind the OlympicsThe STEM Challenges will present a range of tasks to pupils based on real life scenarios and case studies linked to London 2012. There are ten Challenges in all, with each one running for approximately one term, and they will ask pupils to use their creative thinking skills, teamwork and practical skills. The first Challenge, which goes live on Monday (12 October), is about construction and is linked to the Olympic Handball Arena which has just reached a milestone in its completion.
The STEM Challenges are open to any school or college in England.
Find out more by visiting www.stemchallenges.net
8. Recommended Website
This week Helen Jones from Syngenta told us about the Learning Zone on their Syngenta website. It has been launched as part of their educational outreach program, a one stop site for agriculture and research.We’ve had a look at the Science Lab section and particularly the Experiments section where you can ‘Grow a Fungal Disease’. Don’t panic! It’s a plant disease.
To tell us about your favourite science websites - drop us an email with the words ‘RWW’ in the subject line, to planet-science.news@nesta.org.uk.
9. The Winners’ Enclosure
Last week we were offering two cuddly blood cells. The winner is Alison Green from Shifnal. ‘A+’ result for you then Alison!The winners of the ASE Lab Design CD are Clare Elliot, Alison English, Anne Oakes, Bob Granfield, Marina Fraser-Ryan and Lynn Pugsley.
10. Joke of the Week
A man found a bottle on the beach. He opened it and out popped a genie, who gave the man three wishes. The man wished for a million dollars, and poof! There was a million dollars. Then he wished for a convertible, and poof! There was a convertible. And then, he wished he could be irresistible to all women... Poof! He turned into a box of chocolates.And if you think that’s bad, you should see the jokes in the Planet Science joke collection
Have a great week!
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