Avsnitt

  • Let’s get fired up with five fascinating fast facts about climate science, a deep dive into carbon footprints, an interview with Stuart Goldsmith, an English comedian with a passion for communicating about climate change, and a sea level experiment for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    03:41 Carbon footprints and reducing carbon emissions

    05:43 Stuart Goldsmith and climate comedy

    12:58 Rising sea level activity

    For adult listeners, find out more about Stuart Goldsmith’s stand-up comedy, climate comedy, and comedy podcast: https://www.stuartgoldsmith.com

    Rising sea level activity instructions:

    You will need: A few ice cubes, two small drinking glasses that are the same size and shape, sticky tape, and a rock or some other heavy object that will fit in the base of one of the small glasses.

    Place the two small glasses side-by-side on a bench.Put the rock in the bottom of one of the glasses and add water to this glass until the water is just below the top of the rock.For the other glass, add water until the water is at about the same level as the glass with the rock.Place one or more ice cubes on the rock, making sure the ice is not touching the water.Add the same number of ice cubes to the glass without the rock, making sure the ice cubes are floating. If they are not floating, add some more water to the glass.Use sticky tape to mark the water level in each glass. You might have to dry the outside of the glasses with a cloth to get the tape to stick and you should carefully line up the side of the tape with the surface of the water before sticking it to the glass.Wait until all of the ice cubes have completely melted and then look at the water level in each glass. Have the water levels changed?

    When land ice melts, like the ice in glaciers, the melt water causes the sea level to rise. When sea ice melts, the sea level doesn’t change much because the ice was already floating in the sea. However, with less sea ice, the ocean absorbs more light from the Sun, which makes the oceans warm up even more. And when the oceans warm up, the volume of water in the sea increases, causing the sea level to rise.

  • Let’s get growing with five fascinating fast facts about seeds, a deep dive into seed banks, an interview with Cassy Polimeni, a children’s author who writes stories featuring science, and a see-through seed growing activity for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    03:09 Seed banks

    03:47 Cassy Polimeni and ‘The Garden at the End of the World’

    08:33 CD bean plant activity

    Cassy Polimeni: https://cassypolimeni.wordpress.com/

    UWA Publishing: https://uwap.uwa.edu.au/collections/ella-and-the-frogs-series

    CD Bean Plant Activity Instructions:

    You will need: Old CD case, moist soil or potting mix, broad bean seeds, and a shallow tray. If you can’t find a CD case, you can try using a DVD case or a clear plastic zip lock bag instead.

    Open the CD case, lay it out flat on a bench and take out the plastic inner part. The inner part is often made from black plastic and it has the round part that holds the CD.At the end of the CD case that doesn’t have the hinge, add some moist soil or potting mix and place up to three broad bean seeds in the middle of the soil.Close the CD case and stand it up in the plastic tray. You might need to lean the CD case against a wall or a box so it stands up on its side with the soil at the bottom.Leave the CD case until the first signs of germination appear, with roots and leaves growing out of the seed, and continue to observe the plant growing over several days. You will need to keep the soil moist by adding a small amount of water through the gap at the hinged end of the CD case.

    A dry broad bean seed stays dormant until it has the soil and water it needs to grow. The seed has enough energy and nutrients to start growing, but it soon starts making food from carbon dioxide gas in the air and takes up water and nutrients through the roots.

    As the bean plant grows, the different parts of the plant can be observed through the clear CD case, including the roots, stem, and leaves. The stem grows up and the roots grow down because the plant can detect light and the force of gravity.

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  • It’s time to lift off with five fascinating fast facts about rockets, a quick look at some famous rocket launches, an interview with Jason Sercombe, a scientist who knows a lot about building and launching model rockets, and an easy-to-make rocket for you to launch yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    04:42 Building and launching model rockets

    08:42 Straw rocket activity

    You will need: a sheet of paper, a drinking straw, scissors, and sticky tape

    Use the sheet of paper to make a tube that fits over the drinking straw. Place the straw along one side of the paper and cut a rectangle of paper that is about 3 centimetres shorter than the straw and can wrap around the straw. Wrap the rectangle around the straw to form the tube and use sticky tape to hold the tube together. Make sure the tube can slide easily over the straw to ensure a smooth rocket launch.Take the rocket tube off the straw and twist the paper at one end to seal off the end of the rocket. This end is the nose cone.Look at some pictures of rockets and use the paper and scissors to make 3 or 4 fins for the paper rocket. Use sticky tape to attach the fins to one end of the rocket: the end that is closest to the open end of the rocket.Slide the rocket onto the paper straw, aim it at an open space, away from other people, and blow quickly into the straw to launch the rocket. Experiment with holding the straw at different angles and blowing harder into the straw to get the maximum flight time. You can also try making different fin designs.
  • Let’s get slimy with five fascinating fast facts about eels, an intriguing story about long-finned eels from Kelly Osterberg, an educator who knows a LOT about eels, and a gooey eel activity for you to cook up at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:21 The lives of long-finned eels

    09:05 Glass eel noodle activity

    WaterNSW Warragamba Dam website https://www.waternsw.com.au/nsw-dams/greater-sydney-dams/warragamba-dam

    WaterNSW Education website (for Teachers) https://www.waternsw.com.au/education

    Glass Eel Noodle Activity instructions

    You will need: A heat-proof cup, such as a teacup or a small mug, 2 tablespoons of potato starch, 1 tablespoon of boiling water, a metal teaspoon, a small saucepan, a stove, and a strainer.

    WARNING! An adult must do the steps that use boiling water.WARNING! Glass eel noodles have a very chewy texture. They should not be eaten by very young children or anyone who has trouble with chewing food.

    Add the 2 tablespoons of potato starch to a heat proof cup, such as a teacup or a small mug.Add 1 tablespoon of boiling water to the potato starch and mix thoroughly using a metal teaspoon.Use your hands to knead the mixture until it forms a smooth dough.Break the dough in half and then divide each half into about 6 equally sized pieces.Roll each of the 12 pieces of dough into a thin eel shape, about 5 to 7 cm long.Boil water in a small saucepan and add the eels to the boiling water, one at a time, so they don’t stick to each other.Boil the eels for about 15 minutes until they are almost completely transparent.Use a strainer or colander to carefully strain the eels and then rinse the eels in cold water.
  • Things are really going to heat up with five fascinating fast facts about the Sun, a deep dive into Solar radiation, a question about the Sun exploding, some history of solar power, and a sunny science activity for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:21 Solar radiation

    04:19 Is the Sun going to explode one day?

    05:59 Solar power

    08:01 Tracing shadows

    You will need: A sunny day, a hat and sunscreen, a small toy, for example a LEGO figure, a pencil, and a piece of paper. You might also need something heavy, like a few rocks, to stop the piece of paper blowing away in the wind.

  • Let’s get slimy with five fascinating fast facts about slugs, a deep dive into sea slug adaptations, a question about why slugs have slime, a look at a sea slug citizen science project, and a slimy substance for you to make yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:20 Sea slug adaptations

    04:26 Why do slugs have slime?

    06:10 Sea Slug Census

    08:26 Sticky tapioca slime

    You will need: Help from and adult, a small saucepan, a spoon, a stove, one quarter of a cup of cold tap water, four drops food colouring, and one quarter of a cup of tapioca flour.

    iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/

    Search for ‘Sea Slug Census’

  • It’s time for some bubbly science with fascinating fast facts about the bubbles in food, a deep dive into chemical reactions in the kitchen that make carbon dioxide gas, a question about eating acidic foods, some history of bubbly drinks, and a fizzy lemonade recipe for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    03:01 Chemical reactions that make carbon dioxide gas

    04:26 If vinegar is an acid, how can it be safe to eat?

    06:09 Bubbles in drinks

    07:46 Bubbly lemonade activity

    You will need: A citrus juicer, a fresh lemon, a drinking glass, some cold water, a teaspoon, sugar, and sodium bicarbonate, otherwise known as bicarb.

  • Get ready to glow with fascinating fast facts about luminescence, a deep dive into living things that make their own light, a question about how things glow, some scientific uses for a fluorescent molecule, and a glow-in-the-dark activity for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    03:30 Bioluminescence

    05:50 How does luminescence make things glow?

    07:32 Green fluorescent protein

    09:59 Finding luminescent objects

    You will need: A UV torch or blacklight and a collection of objects that you think might be fluorescent or made from a glow-in-the-dark material.

    Build a Blacklight instructions from National Science Week 2024 ‘DIY Science’:

    https://www.scienceweek.net.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Build-a-blacklight.pdf

  • Let’s go green with five fascinating fast facts about fantastic plants, a deep dive into plant adaptations, a question about carnivorous plants, some history of the science of pitcher plants, and a photosynthesis activity for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:24 Adaptations to help plants survive

    05:17 Why do some plants eat animals?

    07:30 Pitcher plants

    09:12 Oxygen on a leaf experiment

    You will need: Two green leaves, freshly picked from the same plant; two jars of water; some paper and a pencil; and a camera if you’d like to take photographs of your experiment.

  • Let’s get a bit stinky with five fascinating fast facts about faeces, a deep dive into unusual animal poo, a question about why poo smells bad, some history of fossilised poo, and scat saving citizen science projects for you to try yourself.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:46 Unusual animal poo

    05:04 Why does poo smell so bad?

    06:08 Fossilised faeces - coprolites

    08:06 Citizen science projects using animal scats

    - Echidna CSI at the University of Adelaide in South Australia https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/echidna-csi

    - Koala DNA at Griffith University in Queensland

    https://www.griffith.edu.au/griffith-sciences/research/koala-dna

    - Scoop a Poop at Macquarie University in New South Wales

    https://www.scoopapoop.net/

  • Get X-cited with five fascinating fast facts about x-rays, a deep dive into x-ray images in medicine, a question about x-ray safety, some history of x-ray science, and a shadowy activity for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:24 X-rays in medicine

    04:22 Are X-rays safe?

    05:43 History of X-ray science

    07:31 Properties of light activity

    You will need: a dark room, a torch, and a flexible drinking straw.

  • Let’s take a deep breath and feel the force with five fascinating fast facts about air pressure, a deep dive into the power of the wind, a question about how air pressure is used to predict the weather, some history of atmospheric science, and a forceful falling experiment for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    Astronaut David Scott dropping a hammer and a feather on the Moon:NASA, Astronomy Picture of the Day, The Hammer and the Feather (2011) https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap111101.html

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:48 Forces in air and the power of the wind

    04:50 How is air pressure used to predict the weather?

    05:58 Some history of barometric pressure and air resistance

    08:27 Paper drop experiment

    You will need: two pieces of paper that are the same size and shape. For example, two pieces of A4 size photocopy paper.

  • Let’s get cosmic with fascinating fast facts about the universe, a deep dive into the life cycle of stars, a question about the distance from Earth to outer space, some history of cosmic science, and a galactic activity for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:48 The life cycle of a star

    04:54 How far away is outer space?

    06:05 Space telescopes, Edwin Hubble, and Henrietta Swan Leavitt

    08:14 Swirling spiral galaxy activity

    You will need: a large round bowl, water, a splash of milk, a dessert spoon, and food colouring in a dropper bottle

  • Let’s lighten the mood with fascinating funny facts about laughter, a deep dive into what happens in your brain when you giggle, a question about tickling, some history of the science of laughter in humans and animals, and a funny activity for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:58 What happens to our bodies when we laugh

    05:12 Why can’t I tickle myself?

    06:59 Laughter in humans and animals

    08:52 Not tickling activity

    You will need help from someone you are close to, like a sister or brother, close friend, or a parent.

  • Let’s brighten up your day with fascinating fast facts about light, a deep dive into rainbows, a question about colour blindness, some ideas about how light energy is used in technology, and a colourful activity for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    03:21 Light spectrum and rainbows

    04:50 What does it mean if someone is colour blind?

    06:51 Light in technology

    09:10 Rainbow CD activity

    You will need an old CD or DVD, a torch, a piece of paper, and some coloured pencils.

  • Wrap it up – festive science

    In the last episode for 2023 we look back at fast facts about sound, electricity, and liquid nitrogen in preparation for the Creative Science Christmas Show being performed in Sydney primary schools. The Creative Science for Kids podcast will return with new episodes in early 2024.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction

    01:07 Sound science recap

    02:20 Electricity recap

    03:48 Liquid nitrogen recap

  • Let’s go nano with fascinating fast facts about nanoscience, a deep dive into nanoscale structures in living things, a question about nanotechnology, some history of quantum dots, and a nano activity for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    03:10 Nanostructures in living things

    05:13 What are some examples of nanotechnology

    07:12 History of quantum dots

    08:58 Bubble colours activity

    You will need bubble mix, a small dish, and a round bubble wand.

  • It’s time to lift off with fascinating fast facts about the Solar System, a deep dive into The Moon, a question about living on Mars, some history of Solar System science, and a planetary activity for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:52 The Moon

    04:48 Can humans live on Mars?

    06:50 History of planetary science

    08:33 Arm span Solar System activity

  • Let’s go sub-zero with fascinating fast facts about liquid nitrogen, a deep dive into how people use liquid nitrogen, a question about the safety of liquid nitrogen, some ideas about how cryogenic liquids are made, and a chilling experiment for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:53 Uses for liquid nitrogen

    04:25 How dangerous is liquid nitrogen?

    06:33 Making liquid nitrogen, the temperatures of other cryogenic liquids

    08:47 Frozen lettuce activity

    You will need two fresh lettuce leaves, a fridge and freezer, and a plate.

  • Be drawn in with fascinating fast facts about magnets, a deep dive into what makes a magnet magnetic, a question about how animals use magnetic fields to navigate, some ideas about the many uses for magnets, and a very attractive experiment for you to try yourself at home.

    Presented by Jenny Lynch and Matilda Sercombe. Written and produced by Jenny Lynch. Music by Purple Planet Music. Sound effects by Pixabay.

    https://www.creativescience.com.au

    Episode content:

    00:00 Introduction and fast facts

    02:37 Which metals are attracted to magnets?

    03:55 How do animals navigate using the Earth’s magnetic field?

    05:25 Many uses of magnets

    07:04 Magnetic wire activity

    You will need a magnet and two paperclips.