If you cannot see the html version of this email then you can view it online at: http://www.planet-science.com/wired/hay-wire/newsletter/index.html
haywire heading

Friday 11th August 2006 Issue: 50

Thank Haywire it’s Friday! Not that it makes any difference in the school holidays anyway does it?  Every day is a weekend day.  So what have you been up to?  Oh really? Well if you want any other ideas then just carry on reading ‘cos we’ve loads to tell you.

  1. Planet Picks – the August Sandblaster Quiz
  2. The Buzz – Jellyfish and volcanoes
  3. Crash Bang! – Look out! She’s going to blow. Volcanooooo!!!!
  4. Out and About – what’s on at the museums
  5. Up for Grabs – Dinosaur Tube? How do you fit a dinosaur in a tube?
  6. Winners – Techniquest and balloon cars

1. Planet Picks - News from the world of Planet Science...

Are you in the mood for a quiz?  How much do you know about sand?  Yes you’re right – it’s very good for making sandcastles but actually it’s even more interesting than that.  Find out more by trying the August Sandblaster Quiz. You could win an icecream making ball. Make sure you don’t drop it in the sand though!

<< Back to top

2. The Buzz – Science news delivered to your inbox…

Jellyfish on the beach, jellyfish on the beach, wibble wobble, wibble wobble…  eeeek! I’ve been stung! People have been banned from swimming on beaches in Europe after hundreds of people got stung by jellyfish. Swarms of the creatures have invaded the coast off Spain and Italy, forcing loads of holidaymakers to steer clear of the water. Experts say the hot, dry weather is encouraging the creatures to stray from North Africa where they usually live. That's because the water at the moment is warmer and saltier than usual because there is less water flowing into the sea from rivers. This means that jellyfish are being washed closer to the coast than usual.

Did you know?

Jellyfish

  • have been on Earth for 650 million years
  • have no brain, heart or bones
  • have sensors that tell them which direction they're going in
  • bodies are 95% water.

If you want more details then check out the CBBC Newsround site.

But beware of the Box jellyfish, it is very dangerous and its sting could kill you. Don’t have nightmares though; it lives in the waters around Australia so you should be OK paddling in Skegness.

Talking of Australia – try the animal sounds quiz.

Go wild down under and see if you can recognise the sounds that various animals make. Are you sure it’s an animal making that noise?  Sounds like a squeaky gate to me.

Thousands of villagers in the Philippines have been told to leave their homes because of fears a nearby volcano will erupt. More than 35,000 people living on the slopes of Mount Mayon will be evacuated from the area after the mountain started spewing out ash and boulders. Mayon has erupted about 50 times in the past 400 years. Mayon is the most active volcano in the Philippines. Its biggest eruption took place in 1814, killing more than 1,200 people. If you want to know more about what causes volcanoes then check out the BBC News site.

Volcano facts

  • One in 10 people in the world live within 'danger range' of an active volcano.
  • There are around 1500 'active' volcanoes in the world. There are thought to be many more volcanoes on the seabed.
  • The biggest volcano in the world is Mauna Loa in Hawaii.
  • Sometimes lightning is seen in volcanic clouds. It's not clear why this happens but it could be to do with lots of hot particles bashing into each other, causing static charges.

<< Back to top

3. Crash Bang! – Exciting experiments for you to try at home…

Did someone say something about volcanoes?

Kitchen Krakatoa

You will need:

  • Flour
  • Baking powder
  • Food colouring (red and green)
  • Vinegar
  • Plastic cup or yoghurt pot
  • Plate
  • Teaspoon

What to do:

  1. Fill the cup or pot up to the top with flour and pat it down with a spoon.  It’s a bit like making a sandcastle. 
  2. Place the plate face down on top of your pot.  Carefully upend the pot on to the plate.  Now it does look like a sandcastle! Actually this is your inactive volcano. Let’s make it active!
  3. Carefully scoop a hollow into the top of the flour.
  4. Place a spoonful or two of baking powder into the hollow.
  5. Add a few drops of red food colouring to the baking powder.
  6. Add a few drops of green food colouring to the edge of the hollow.
  7. Now brace yourself.  This volcano is about to erupt.  Add a spoonful of vinegar to the baking powder. 
  8. See the fizzing red lava rise up out of the volcano and start to pour down the sides? Keep adding vinegar if you need to – the volcano will continue to erupt. Look out below! Run, run for your lives!
  9. Now you’ve got the hang of it, it’s time to scale up.  Make it bigger by using a basin instead of a pot.  Use different food colourings for added effect.  Add a few plastic people to evacuate. You might want to make a more permanent model volcano by using papier mache.  Try incorporating an empty film canister in the top that you can remove and reuse time and again. 

What’s going on?

Volcanoes erupt when liquid rock known as magma from the Earth’s core rises up to the surface.  The pressure generated causes the mountain to explode and the magma pours out as lava. Pent-up gases are released in the explosion and when the frothy lava cools down it forms a rock known as pumice.  Pumice stone can float in water.

In our volcano the vinegar causes the baking powder to fizz up and pour out.  Vinegar is an acid and baking powder is an alkali.  When an acid is mixed with an alkali a chemical reaction occurs.  In this case the reaction causes a gas, carbon dioxide, to be formed.  The bubbles of carbon dioxide form a frothy  ‘lava’ oozing down the side of our volcano. 

<< Back to top

4. Out and About – Things to see and do…

Well what’s going on down at the museums over the holidays? 

The Science Museum has a whole host of fun free activities including the chance to make a crafty car or even a replica of the Wright Flyer.  Up, down, flying around – looping the loop and defying the ground (get the picture?) Plus don’t miss the Super Science Museum Game Show! See the Science Museum for more details.

Hocus Pocus I’m a diplodocus.  Have a magic time at the free dinosaur activities for families taking place over the summer at the Natural History Museum.

<< Back to top

5. Up for Grabs – You’ve got to be in it to win it...

Talking of dinosaurs…Have some monster fun constructing a ‘glow-in-the-dark’ 3D dinosaur skeleton.  Don’t panic, it’s not that big.  After all it does fit in a test tube.  Want one? Well we’ve got one to give away.  It’s a Dinosaur Discovery Tube. All you have to do is send us an email with your name, age and address to: Hay-wire.Clubhouse@nesta.org.uk with ‘DINO GLOW’ as the subject. The winner will be picked at random at 5pm, on Thursday 17th August.

Good luck!

<< Back to top

6. Winners – Has your name been picked out of the bag?

Remember Issue 48 when we were giving away a family pass to Techniquest? The lucky winner is Ryan Bradley-Evans (age 11) of Brecon. Well done Ryan!

Also the winners of the two balloon cars are James Vipond (7) of Bristol and Connor (please send us your surname too in future Connor!) of Cambridge.  Happy racing!

So remember – keep entering ‘cos next time it could be you!

<< Back to top
Information Overload

Planet Science has gone Hay-Wire and now you have too!

That’s all for this issue. The next issue of Hay-Wire will be with you in two weeks time so until then, why not ask your friends to join the Hay-Wire Club?

They can visit the Clubhouse for more details at:
http://www.planet-science.com/wired/hay-wire/clubhouse

Bye for now!