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12
March 2004
Lego
on Mars, Britney and Sir Isaac Newton:
March 15 to 19 is Science Week at the University of Leeds
What
happens when your memory fails? How does your heart know it
has to beat? These and many other questions are being addressed
as part of National Science Week, March 15 to 19 at the University
of Leeds.
Over the
course of the week around 1,200 students from primary and
secondary schools in the region will take part in hands-on
experiments, laboratory-based practical sessions and demonstration
lectures.
Students
will have the chance to make music without instruments using
interactive multimedia technology, use geo-physical equipment
to discover what lies under the ground and take part in debates
about genetics, ethics and health. Science Trails will give
students the chance to find out what it is like to study science.
A highlight
of the week will be the regional final of the First Lego League
(FLL) tournament on Tuesday 16 March. The regional final of
the FLL will see eight teams of 10-16-year-olds compete using
the Lego Mindstorms Robotics Invention System to carry out
missions based on those carried out by NASA in Mars expeditions.
Each team
will have two minutes to complete as many missions as possible
and amidst the hectic environment of the competition, will
make research presentations to the judges, showcasing their
knowledge of the science behind their efforts. The day will
culminate in a showdown between the highest scoring teams.
During
the week there will also be performances by the Quantum Theatre
for Science of ‘A Complete Guide to Horses Forces’
in which Dr Morris Clampstand takes the audience on a whistle-stop
tour through the principles of forces and mechanics. With
the help of Sir Isaac Newton, James Joule, Pascal and work
experience assistant Britney, the school students will learn
all about gravity, friction, density, pressure and much more.
Notes
for Editors
National Science Week is co-ordinated by the British Association
for the Advancement of Science and has run across the UK every
March since 1994. It aims to celebrate science and its importance
in our lives by giving people the chance to participate in
science activities and experiments in their local area.
The University’s Science Week is run annually and provides
an opportunity to:
- Encourage
an understanding of what science, engineering and technology
can and cannot achieve
- Promote
appreciation of the role of science in our daily lives –
from medicine to mobile phones
- Encourage
pupils to study science, engineering and technology beyond
the age of 16, thereby promoting the possibility of careers
in this area.
Photo
Opportunity
Activities during National Science Week will provide a number
of exciting photo opportunities. The week includes the launching
of water-fuelled rockets and workshops in Snakes, Slugs, Spiders
and Slime! A programme of events is attached.
For further information contact Ruth Burke-Kennedy, Press
Office, University of Leeds. Telephone: 0113 343 3636, E-mail:
r.burke-kennedy@adm.leeds.ac.uk
SCIENCE WEEK AT UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS, PROGRAMME OF
EVENTS
| MONDAY
15 MARCH |
Primary
Science Day
• Snakes, Slugs and Spiders
• Wild Weather
• Flash! Bang!
09.30 – 12.00 and 12.30 – 15.00, University
of Leeds |
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Bridge
It!
Use and develop your problem-solving, communication
and negotiation skills, as well as your imagination,
to battle it out in a team of five in the Bridge It
! competition. Students will work together to plan and
construct a bridge in this day-long event, to focus
on career routes and higher education opportunities.
9.30 – 14.30, Leeds Metropolitan University
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Fibonacci
and his rabbits
Explore a remarkable series of numbers generated from
a problem set by Italian mathematician Fibonacci in
1202, that is still revealing its secrets today. See
how the series appears in nature (sunflowers, pine cones
and pineapples), architecture and art, and solve a well
known optical illusion. Calculators will be needed.
10.00 – 12.00, University of Leeds
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Twilight
Debate
Should we test for genetic diseases? How would you use
the results? An opportunity to engage in a series of
two or three topical debates around the areas of health,
genetics and ethics.
16.00 – 18.00, Leeds Metropolitan University
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| TUESDAY
16 MARCH |
Science
Day
A combination of workshops for Key Stage 3 pupils:
Make a Molecule
Leeds Rocks
Phenomenal Physics
Sessions 9.30-12.00 and 12.30-15.00, University of Leeds |
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First
Lego League: Mission Mars
Local students are delving into the challenges faced
by real-life scientists and engineers at NASA with the
First Lego League tournament. By building a robot and
investigating a research assignment, they have been
working in teams in January and February to discover
how Mission Mars relates to the real world of science.
Today the teams will battle it out in the final of the
competition.
13.00-15.00, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University
of Leeds |
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Constructive
Experience
Work in a team to explore real life issues related to
building, creation and planning of local housing
9.30 – 14.30 University of Leeds |
| WEDNESDAY
17 MARCH |
A
Complete Guide to Forces
Quantum Theatre for Science
On Forces And Mechanics
Dr Morris Clampstand offers you a whistle-stop tour through
the principles of forces and mechanics. With the help
of Sir Isaac Newton, James Joule, Pascal and the unpromising
work experience assistant Britney (who due to an administrative
error was given a placement to work with forces rather
than, as she had hoped, horses) we learn about gravity,
friction, density, pressure and much, much more.
Disaster strikes when food poisoning disables the pilots
of a plane on which Britney’s mother is a passenger.
Time and speed calculations are needed to ensure that
the plane has enough fuel to divert to Eastbourne International
Airport – can Britney use what she has learned to
save the day?
A Complete Guide to Horses/Forces covers relevant topics
of the National Curriculum for Science Key Stage 3 and
is sponsored by Rolls-Royce plc.
10.00 - 11.30 and 13.00 - 14.30
13.30-15.00, School Parties
19.00 – 20.30, General Public (Adults £4 Children
£1), Great Hall, University of Leeds |
| THURSDAY
18 MARCH |
Primary
Science Day
How Strong are You?
Who Can Shout the Loudest?
And many more health-related activities
9.30-12.00 and 12.30-15.00, Leeds Metropolitan University
Science Day
Slime Time!
Heart of the Matter
Colourful Chemistry
9.30 – 12.00 and 12.30 – 15.00, University
of Leeds
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| FRIDAY
19 MARCH |
Science
Workshops
Morning sessions:
Why make a GM potato ?
Make the perfect potato! Discover how the genes of a potato
can be modified to protect the plant from pests without
the need to use harmful chemicals.
Detecting Marvellous Molecules
Become a biochemist, work in a lab and learn for yourself
how molecules such as chlorophyll and sweat are separated
and identified in living organisms.
The Chemical Detective
We need your help – many drugs exist as almost identical
white powders but which ones are which? Use the special
techniques we can teach you to identify some common drugs.
How to be a Rocket Scientist
Work in teams to produce water-fuelled rockets and launch
them to great heights. Which rocket will be propelled
furthest?
Psychology but not as you know it
What happens when memory fails?.. The Electric brain…
come along, take part and explore Psychology.
Quills, Ink, Blood… write, draw and taste!!
Celebrate the idea of 'Gothic' from the 1400s right up
to the late Victorian industrial age. A chance to make
your own medieval ink and edible blood and write and draw
with a quill, whilst looking at the original handwriting
of ‘Dracula’s’ Bram Stoker and ink drawings
housed within the University Library and Art Collection.
10.00 – 12.00, University of Leeds
Afternoon sessions:
Music via Motion
Become a musician in a second. Use interactive multimedia
technology to make music without instruments.
You Are What You Eat
Tantalise your taste buds and experience the amazing
science of food. Let our students experiment on you
with their ideas.
How to be a Rocket Scientist
Work in teams to produce water-fuelled rockets and launch
them to great heights. Which rocket will be propelled
furthest?
Earthquakes in Britain
Earthquakes are one of the most dangerous and spectacular
of natural hazards. Access the earthquake monitoring
network and find the location of an earthquake
What Lies Beneath…
Use special Geo-physical equipment and discover what
lies beneath the Earth’s surface, below our feet.
12.30 – 14.30, University of Leeds
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