Spring 2012 Issue 22 How many schools and teachers do you reach – The European journal for science teachers worldwide? In this issue: Build your own microscope: following in Robert Hooke‘s footsteps Also: Harnessing the power of the Sun:

fusion reactors

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Published by EIROforum: ISSN: 1818-0353

Subscribe (free in Europe): www.scienceinschool.org Published and funded by EIROforum Editorial About Science in School The European journal for science teachers Science in School is the only teaching journal V detectives often rely on genetic fingerprinting to cover all sciences and target the whole of to track down criminals, but what is the science Europe and beyond. Contents include cutting- edge science, teaching materials and much behind the technique? Find out in this issue of Sci- T more. ence in School and learn how to do genetic fingerprinting Brought to you by Europe’s top scientific at school (page 49). One of the marvels of forensic sci- research institutes ence is that it requires only very small samples – and the Science in School is published and funded by same is true of microscopy. Did you know that you can EIROforum (www.eiroforum.org), a partnership easily build your own microscope, following in the foot- between eight of Europe’s largest intergovern- steps of 17th century scientist Robert Hooke (page 29)? If mental scientific research organisations. this inspires you to build more equipment, you could construct a paper rocket, Inspiring science teachers worldwide launch it and analyse its flight (page 36). The Science in School website offers articles in 25+ languages and is read worldwide. The Another person casting their eyes to the heavens is space scientist Maggie Ader- free quarterly journal is printed in English and in-Pocock, who regularly shares her love of astronomy with young people (page distributed across Europe. 6). During her frequent school visits, Maggie finds that “the main challenge is trying to get people to realise that science is for everybody.” One group that Advertising: tailored to your needs Choose between advertising in our print needs no convincing are the participants in the European Union Contest for journals or on our website, website or Young Scientists (online article), the winners of which receive generous prizes e-newsletter or on our website. For maximum from EIROforum, the publisher of Science in School. In October 2011, EIROfo- impact, reach our entire readership with an rum also demonstrated its commitment to science education by giving hands-on advertorial (online and in print). Online and in experience of scientific research to 30 European school teachers (see online print, we have a total of 100 000 readers per quarter. article). To learn more about recent research and education activities at the EI- · The majority of our readers are secondary- ROforum members, see page 2. school science teachers. The research institutes that constitute EIROforum cover a wide range of science · Our readership also includes many primary- areas, from molecular biology to astronomy, from particle physics to materials school teachers, teacher trainers, head science. One such topic is fusion energy, a promising source of energy being teachers and others involved in science education. investigated at EFDA. Christine Rüth from EFDA explains how a fusion reactor · The journal reaches significant numbers works and what the technical challenges are (page 42). of key decision-makers: at the European Another promising source of energy is hydrogen – indeed, hydrogen-powered Commission, the European Parliament and in cars are already on the market. Did you know that one potential source of hy- European national ministries. drogen is an anaerobic bacterium (page 12)? One advantage of hydrogen as an For more information, see www.scienceinschool.org/advertising or energy carrier is that it can be synthesised in remote areas, but given this bacte- contact [email protected] rium’s preference for high temperatures, this could be a challenge in places like the remote Antarctic. In fact, just staying alive there is a challenge, although that Subscribing has not deterred an intrepid group of Spanish researchers from returning every Register free online to: year to study permafrost and global warming (page 17). · Subscribe to the e-newsletter From the far south, we jump to the far north to learn about Denmark’s most in- · Request a free print subscription novative school, where science is taught not in laboratories but in open spaces (limited availability) (see online article). If that is good science, does bad science also have a place at · Post your comments. school? And how do you tell the difference on the basis of media reports? Find How can I get involved? out on page 23. Science in School relies on the involvement of Finally, we are making every effort to continue the print version of Science in teachers, scientists and other experts in science education. School, but we still need your help. Donating via the Paypal button on our web- · Submit articles or reviews site is simple, and every cent we receive goes towards printing and distribution. · Join the referee panel See: www.scienceinschool.org/donation · Translate articles for publication online · Tell your colleagues about Science in School Eleanor Hayes · Make a donation to support the journal. Editor-in-Chief of Science in School See www.scienceinschool.org or contact us. [email protected] Contact us www.scienceinschool.org Dr Eleanor Hayes / Dr Marlene Rau Science in School To learn how to European Molecular Biology Laboratory use this code, see page 57. Meyerhofstrasse 1 69117 Heidelberg Germany i I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Contents

Image courtesy of ESO / S Gillessen et al. i Editorial News from the EIROs 2 Black holes, magnetism and cancer

Feature article 6 6 Maggie Aderin-Pocock: a career in space

Image courtesy of Selitbul / iStockphoto Cutting-edge science 12 Hydrogen: the green energy carrier of the future? 17 Revealing the secrets of permafrost Teaching activitiy 23 Bad science: learning from science in the media Science education projects 23 29 Build your own microscope: following in Image courtesy of Rita Greer; image source: Wikimedia Commons Robert Hooke’s footsteps 36 Sky-high science: building rockets at school Science topics 42 Harnessing the power of the Sun: fusion reactors 49 Genetic fingerprinting: a look inside 29 Image courtesy of Rita Thielen / pixelio.de Additional online material Events Diving into research at the EIROforum teacher school Camp of brilliant brains

Teacher profile 42 Designing a school: taking science out of the classroom Image courtesy of Arno Bachert / pixelio.de Forthcoming events for schools: www.scienceinschool.org/events

To read the whole issue, see: www.scienceinschool.org/2012/issue22

To learn how to use this code, 49 see page 57. www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 1 Black holes, magnetism and cancer

Image courtesy of CERN

A simulation of the Higgs boson decaying into four muons; the tracks of the EFDA-JET: muons are shown in yellow A snowball in hell During the recommissioning of the Joint European Torus (JET) after an 18-month refurbishment period, scientists have injected the proverbial snowball into hell. The snowball in question is a 3 millimetre pellet of frozen deuterium, at approximately -260 degrees Celsius. Hell is the plasma inside JET, ionised deute- rium gas at about 100 million degrees Celsius. These experiments are part of the quest for nuclear fusion, an CERN: energy source based on nuclei colliding and coalescing Tantalising hints of Higgs into heavier elements. Surprisingly, contrary to popular legend, the ‘snow- The hunt for the Higgs boson has entered its decisive ball’ has a significant effect on ‘hell’. The pellet injection phase, as announced in a seminar on 13 December 2011. system is designed to prevent plasma instabilities in If they exist, Higgs bosons are short-lived and decay in which the hot gas momentarily escapes its magnetic many different ways. Both ATLAS and CMS, the two cage, diffusing a lot of energy and many of its constitu- largest experiments at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider ent particles. The injection of a cold pellet actually (LHC), have observed an excess of gamma rays (highly triggers instabilities as well, but if pellets are injected at energetic photons) in the mass region where the Higgs regular intervals, scientists have found that the many boson would be expected to register. small instabilities produced reduce the number of large However, even the 500 trillion proton–proton colli- instabilities, thereby allowing the plasma pulses to sions observed in each experiment – thanks to a brilliant operate for longer. performance of the LHC during 2011 – are not enough. The way is now clear to begin the process of slowly With a statistical significance between two and three turning up the new heating systems to test the many standard deviations, the signals do not yet allow the other new components. scientists to claim that they have finally discovered the To find out more, see: long sought-after particle. Rüth C (2012) Harnessing the power of the Sun: fusion reactors. About four times more collisions will be needed to Science in School 22: 42-48. www.scienceinschool.org/2012/

finally conclude whether the Higgs boson exists. If all issue22/fusion Image courtesy of EFDA-JET goes well, the LHC will provide these data by the end of Situated in Culham, UK, JET is Europe’s fusion device. Scientific exploitation of JET is undertaken through the European Fusion 2012, when it will become clear if the standard model of Development Agreement (EFDA). To learn more, see: particle physics can be considered complete. www.efda.org To learn more, see the press release: For a list of EFDA-JET-related articles in Science in School, see: http://press.web.cern.ch/press/PressReleases/Releases2011/ www.scienceinschool.org/efdajet PR25.11E.html To find out more about the LHC, see: Landua R, Rau M (2008) The LHC: a step closer to the Big Bang. Science in School 10: 26-33. www.scienceinschool.org/2008/ issue10/lhcwhy Essentially, this equipment Landua, R (2008) The LHC: a look inside. Science in School 10: is a gas-powered machine 34-45. www.scienceinschool.org/2008/issue10/lhchow gun capable of firing up to 50 small frozen pellets of Based in Geneva, Switzerland, CERN is the world’s largest particle deuterium fuel per second physics laboratory. To learn more, see: www.cern.ch into the hot plasma For a list of CERN-related articles in Science in School, see: www.scienceinschool.org/cern

2 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org News from the EIROs

Science in School is published by EIROforum, a collaboration between eight of Europe’s largest inter-governmental scientific research organisations. This article reviews some of the latest news from the EIROforum members (EIROs).

ESA: Tumour formation Take your classroom into space

PromISSe is the fourth European long-duration mis-

Image courtesy of André-Pierre Olivier sion to the International Space Station (ISS), which be- gan on 23 December 2011 with the arrival at the ISS of EMBL: the European Space Agency’s astronaut André Kuipers Cancer research and his Russian-American colleagues. André and his for schools colleagues will remain in space until mid-May 2012. During this 148-day mission André is taking part in On 9 December 2011, experiments on human research, fluid physics, materi- more than 200 enthusiastic als science, radiation and solar research, mostly in the pupils and teachers gath- European space laboratory Columbus. School students ered at the European Mo- can join in too, taking part in many science activities lecular Biology Laboratory being transmitted from space to classrooms across (EMBL) for the EMBL Insight Lecture 2011. To celebrate Europe. the International Year of Chemistry, Maja Köhn, who André is also encouraging a new generation of space works in the highly interdisciplinary field of chemical explorers to stay fit and ‘Train Like an Astronaut’, with biology, gave a lecture on ‘Chemistry and biology – a NASA-led educational programme for 8- to 12-year- strong allies in the fight against cancer’. olds. Thousands of pupils are invited to perform physi- Her cross-disciplinary team of organic chemists and cal exercises and classroom lessons, competing with molecular biologists works on designing molecules that teams from around the world. inhibit proteins involved in disease mechanisms. The To learn more about the Columbus laboratory, see: scientists want to understand the role of phosphatases Wegener A-L (2008) Laboratory in space: interview with in cancer metastasis, the molecular mechanisms leading Bernardo Patti. Science in School 8: 8-12. www.scienceinschool. to disease and how the activity of these proteins can be org/2008/issue8/bernardopatti modulated. During her lecture, Maja demonstrated how For more details of the in-orbit demonstration for children, see: inhibitors of phosphatases are designed by combining www.esa.int/SPECIALS/PromISSe/SEMU1FJ37SG_0.html or molecular biology, biochemistry and synthetic chemis- use the direct link: http://tinyurl.com/7y7ahy9 try. To find out more about the ‘Train Like an Astronaut’ project, see: www.esa.int/SPECIALS/PromISSe/SEMK0FJ37SG_0.html or The EMBL Insight Lectures series is produced by EMBL’s Euro- use the direct link: http://tinyurl.com/76hk2vy pean Learning Laboratory for the Life Sciences (ELLS) to inform ESA is Europe’s gateway to space, with its headquarters in young people about current trends in life-science research and Paris, France. For more information, see: www.esa.int how this research influences our everyday lives. Maja’s lecture For a list of ESA-related articles in Science in School, see: is one of a growing list of EMBL Insight Lectures available at: www.scienceinschool.org/esa www.embl.org/ells/insightlectures ESA astronaut

EMBL is Europe’s leading laboratory for basic research in molecu-- André Kuipers with Image courtesy of ESA an experiment to lar biology, with its headquarters in Heidelberg, Germany. To demonstrate properties learn more, see: www.embl.org and behaviour of wet For a list of EMBL-related articles in Science in School, see: foams in space www.scienceinschool.org/embl

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 3 Image courtesy of ESO / MPE / Marc Schartmann

A simulation of how the gas cloud approaching the supermassive black hole may break apart over the next few years. The remains of the gas cloud are shown in red and yellow, with the cloud’s orbit marked in red. The stars orbiting the black hole are also shown along with blue lines marking their orbits. This view simulates the expected positions of the stars and gas cloud in the year 2021

ESRF: The chemistry of attraction: magnetism A problem that has puzzled scientists for 70 years has finally been solved. Magnetite – the most mag- ESO: netic of all minerals – stops conducting electric cur- rents at low temperatures, a discovery made in 1939 Doomed cloud approaches by Dutchman Evert Verwey. The reasons remained black hole controversial until a group of scientists working at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) fired Astronomers using the European South- an intense X-ray beam at a tiny, perfect crystal of mag- ern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope netite at very low temperature. They observed a subtle have discovered a gas cloud with several rearrangement of the mineral’s chemical structure, times the mass of Earth accelerating fast trapping electrons within groups of three iron atoms, towards the black hole at the centre of the inhibiting them from transporting an electrical current. Milky Way. This is the first time ever that Magnetite (Fe3O4) was discovered more than 2000 the approach of such a doomed cloud to a supermassive years ago. It gave rise to the original concept of black hole has been observed. magnetism and was used to build the first magnetic Over the past seven years, the speed of this gas cloud compass. When it crystallises from volcanic magma, has nearly doubled, reaching more than 8 million kilo- magnetite conserves the direction of Earth’s magnetic metres per hour. In mid-2013 it will pass at a distance of field, which was key to the discovery that this field only about 40 billion kilometres from the event hori- had reversed direction in the past. Tiny crystals of zon of the black hole. In astronomical terms, this is an magnetite are also found in insect and pigeon brains extremely close encounter with a supermassive black and are thought to play a role in these animals’ ability hole. The cloud’s edges are already starting to shred and to fly back home over long distances. disrupt and it is expected to break up completely over To find out more, see: the next few years. Attfield JP (2011) Condensed-matter physics: A fresh twist on “The idea of an astronaut close to a black hole being shrinking materials. Nature 480: 465–466. doi: 10.1038/480465a stretched out to resemble spaghetti is familiar from sci- Download the article free of charge on the Science in ence fiction. But we can now see this happening for real School website (www.scienceinschool.org/2012/issue22/ to the newly discovered cloud. It is not going to survive eiroforum#resources), or subscribe to Nature today: the experience,” explains Stefan Gillessen of the Max- www.nature.com/subscribe Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, the lead Situated in Grenoble, France, ESRF operates the most powerful author of the paper describing the discovery. synchrotron radiation source in Europe. To learn more, see: www.esrf.eu To find out more, see the press release (www.eso.org/public/ For a list of ESRF-related articles in Science in School, see: news/eso1151) or the research paper: www.scienceinschool.org/esrf Gillessen S et al. (2012) A gas cloud on its way towards the supermassive black hole at the Galactic Centre. Nature 481: 51-54. doi: 10.1038/nature10652 The scientists watching Download the article free of charge on the Science in magnetite crystals School website (www.scienceinschool.org/2012/issue22/ eiroforum#resources), or subscribe to Nature today: www.nature.com/subscribe

ESO is the world’s most productive astronomical observatory, with of Ana Wright courtesy Image its headquarters in Garching near Munich, Germany, and its telescopes in Chile. For more information, see: www.eso.org For a list of ESO-related articles in Science in School, see: www.scienceinschool.org/eso

4 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org News from the EIROs

The ongoing tunnel floor installations f Europe urtesy o an XFE s co L age Im

ILL:

Symmetry in quasicrystals

Discovery of colloidal quasicrystals with small-angle neutron scattering: the 12-fold diffraction symmetry of a quasicrystalline micellar phase and the corresponding tiling pattern showing the position of the micelles

European XFEL: Image courtesy of instrument D11 / ILL and Stephan Förster / Universität Bayreuth Building the world’s ILL is an international research centre at the leading edge of neu- tron science and technology, based in Grenoble, France. To learn largest X-ray laser more, see: www.ill.eu The year 2011 has shown good progress on the con- For a list of ILL-related articles in Science in School, see: www.scienceinschool.org/ill struction and development of what will be the world’s most brilliant source of ultra-short X-ray pulses. The European XFEL will offer new insights into the nano- world, revealing the structures of biomolecules and allowing chemical reactions to be ‘filmed’. With most of the tunnel boring completed, tunnel builders have started to put in the concrete floor ele- ments. All told, the facility is 3.4 kilometres long and has 5.7 kilometres of underground tunnels. The tunnel EIROforum for the linear accelerator, which will speed electrons EIROforum combines the resources, up to very high energies, is now ready for the installa- facilities and expertise of its member organisations to tion of technical equipment. support European science in reaching its full potential. At the far end of the accelerator, the tunnel splits To learn more, see: www.eiroforum.org into a number of smaller tunnels, where X-ray light For a list of EIROforum-related articles in Science in School, flashes will be generated by forcing the electrons on see: www.scienceinschool.org/eiroforum a tight slalom course through a line of magnets called undulators. The first prototypes of the undulator To browse the other EIRO news articles, segments have been delivered. Significant milestones see: www.scienceinschool.org/eironews have been reached in the development of the instru- ments that scientists will use to carry out their experi- ments and of other technical equipment. European To learn how to use this XFEL expects to start operation in 2015. code, see page 57. European XFEL is a research facility currently under con- struction in the Hamburg area in Germany. It will generate extremely intense X-ray flashes for use by researchers from all over the world. To learn more, see: www.xfel.eu www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 5 Image courtesy of ESO / S Gillessen et al. P Amico, S TordoAmico, P Image courtesy of ESO / F Marchis, M Wong, E Marchetti,

Maggie Aderin-Pocock: Image courtesy of Paul Nathan a career in space

Saturn, as viewed in visible light

Maggie visiting a solar array

Image courtesy of ESO / University of Oxford / LN Fletcher / T Barry

As a child, Maggie Aderin-Pocock dreamed of going into space. She hasn’t quite managed it yet, but she’s got pretty close, as she tells Eleanor Hayes.

leave the Solar System behind us and Universe. From the safety of their re you ready for a tour of the visit some of the other stars in the night classroom, they are whirled away on a Universe? Strap on your hel- sky, until we reach the very edge of simulated journey through space and met and we’ll dim the lights. our galaxy. There, we’ll use the latest time, transported only by an interac- A technology on board the Hubble space w1 Over the course of the next hour, tive computer programme and Mag- telescope to see what’s at the end of we’ll be travelling far across the Solar gie’s boundless enthusiasm. the Universe and try to calculate how System, across our galaxy and even Space scientist Maggie has many many galaxies there are, and the prob- demands on her time – developing in- beyond. As we leave Earth behind us, ability of there being life out there. struments for space satellites, filming we’ll look back and marvel at our own All set for take-off? 3-2-1 and we’re off! with the BBC and, since March 2010, planet and its watery surface before looking after her daughter Laurie. But whizzing off to orbit the Moon and see she still makes time to visit schools how very different it is. Then we’ll take This may sound like fantasy, like a around the UK. a trip to the centre of the Solar System once-in-a-lifetime dream, but Mag- “I like to have aspects in my talk and examine the Sun before visiting gie Aderin-Pocock has taken this tour that will appeal to girls and aspects Venus, Mars and Jupiter. We’ll take a regularly over the past five years, that will appeal to ethnic minorities, close look at the rings of Saturn before guiding children as young as four but the main challenge is trying to ending up on Pluto. From there, we’ll years old through the wonders of our get people to realise that science is for

6 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Feature article Image courtesy of ESO / S Gillessen et al.

A thermal-infrared image of Jupiter with its moon Io (left in this image), taken with ESO’s Very Large Telescope

Image courtesy of ESO

Jupiter, as imaged in infrared light The centre of our Galaxy, the Milky Way, as observed with ESO’s Very Large Telescope in the near-infrared with the NACO instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope everybody. Anyone who’s inquisitive across the world have looked up at that can enhance your research. Some is effectively a scientist – you don’t the night sky and wondered what’s of the greatest insights and the great- have to have a bowtie or mad hair. out therew4.” est scientific discoveries will be made “I also try to show that if you look What advice does Maggie offer the where the sciences overlap.” back in history, all cultures have been young scientists she meets on her Nobody could accuse Maggie of interested in astronomy. I talk about school visits? having had a linear career. As a young Stonehengew2 in the UK and about a “My advice is to find out what child, she was captivated by a library stone circle in southern Egypt – Nabta you’re really interested in and pursue book with an astronaut on the front Playaw3, one of the oldest stone circles that, but to be aware of other scientific cover and dreamed of being an as- in the world, from about 6000 BC. areas, too. As scientists, we can be very tronaut too – but her route into space Both are ancient astronomical con- linear, pursuing one course of research science was anything but direct. structions, which show that people in great detail, but by looking around “I suffer from dyslexia, so I wasn’t you may find other fields of science very good at English or history at

Physics ence teachers, we should provide a fertile environment Space science for them to do so; we should provide situations and information that evoke students’ interest while helping Careers in science them to base their dreams on facts rather than fiction. Women in science This article is very suitable for discussions, for exam- Science around us ple, on possible careers in science, on scientists as real Ages 14+ people, on the characteristics and traits of scientists This is a very interesting article about the fabulous and and on women in science. It can also be used to il- dynamic life of a modern-day scientist. It may best be lustrate how scientific principles and concepts can be linked to the physical sciences, but it can also be used linked to countless applications around us. very easily in a multidisciplinary context. I hope that Maggie will someday manage to go into It shows how important it is for us teachers to inspire space and that all our students fulfil their dreams.

REVIEW our students to imagine and dream. I feel that as sci- Paul Xuereb, University Junior College, Malta

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 7 Image courtesy of ESO / S Gillessen et al.

Image courtesy of ESO / Y Beletsky

ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile, where astronomers were observing the centre of the Milky Way using a laser beam Neptune, as imaged with the NASA / ESA Hubble Space Telescope

Image courtesy of NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI / AURA)

Image courtesy of G Hüdepohl

school, but I did have an aptitude When Maggie entered the job mar- for science. My father was keen on ket in 1994 after her PhD, Britain was “It was more like being my studying medicine and I found in the middle of a recession and jobs biology absolutely fascinating, but I were hard to find. With some qualms, James Bond than a decided in the end to study physics.” she took a job at the UK Ministry of scientist!” As a student in London, UK, Maggie Defence. “As a child, I was a paci- built her own telescope and began fist, but my ideas had evolved since to specialise in optics. Sponsored by then and I had realised that we need Her next project involved develop- major oil companies, she then did a some defence. However, during the ing hand-held land-mine detectors, PhD, developing an optical system interview I was told ‘we can’t tell you which relied on a metal detector, for looking at engine oils, to enable what you’ll be doing until you sign ground-penetrator radar (to trace the lubricants to be tested more effec- the Official Secrets Act’. So I turned rough outline) and nuclear quadro- tively and cheaply – a system that is up knowing that there might be some pole resonance (to detect explosives). still used commercially, more than 15 things I wasn’t prepared to do, and “Land-mine detectors were a very years later. that I might have to leave the job topical subject in the late 1990s be- before I really started.” cause of all the work Princess Diana Image courtesy of Paul Nathan As it turned out, Maggie hugely was doing. For that reason, we got a Maggie describes how enjoyed her work, developing opti- lot of visits from politicians and I a total eclipse of the cal systems that detected missiles, used to try to find interesting ways Sun occurs warned the pilot and sent out decoys to tell them about the technology – to prevent the plane being hit. “Most and that’s when I started to think of the work I’d done for my PhD had about doing public engagement been lab-based and suddenly I was work.” flying around pointing cameras out At that point, though, Maggie’s of the open door of an aircraft. It was career took another turn. “I’d always more like being James Bond than a wanted to work in space and as- scientist!” tronomy and in 1999, a job came up at University College London, managing

8 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Feature article Wikimedia Commons Image courtesy of Old Moonraker; image source:

The dome of the Gemini South Tele- scope, reflecting the Chilean sunset Gemini Observatory / Keith Raybould Wikimedia Commons Image courtesy of Raymbetz; image source:

Stonehenge, a prehistoric stone circle that allowed celestial events to be predicted

out where it’s coming from and how much there is, so that in future people who release carbon dioxide are taxed for it. Doing that from space makes a lot of sense, but you need to develop very high-resolution detectors.” It was while working for Astrium Nabta Playa, one of the world’s earliest known archaeoastronomical devices that Maggie became increasingly involved in science communication. In 2006, with funding from the UK’s a project making bHROSw5, an optical European Space Agency (ESA)w8 and Science and Technology Facilities spectrograph for the Gemini Telescope the Canadian Space Agency, the James Councilw9, she started visiting schools in Chile.” In fact, the job turned out Webb Space Telescope will replace the and appearing on television – on a to be a lot more than project manage- Hubble Space Telescope and is due to news programme. “I wanted to dem- ment. “I like project management but be launched in 2018. onstrate parabolic flight by throwing I really love the hands-on stuff too. At “As a child, I wanted to be an as- an apple, but the news crew were a bit the end of the project, we packed the tronaut. I haven’t succeeded in doing perturbed because you don’t usually instrument into 28 boxes and I flew that (yet!) but being a space scientist is do live demonstrations on the news. out to Chile myself to construct it at the next best thing because I’m build- In the end, they loved it and I’ve been the telescope. Chile is my favourite ing instruments that go into space. asked to do other news programmes place on earth: because it’s in the When the telescope is launched, it’s since – and I always bring a demon- southern hemisphere, you can look up going to travel a million miles from stration if I canw10.” into the night sky, right into the heart Earth and look across the Universe, Since the birth of her daughter Lau- of the Milky Way. I stayed out there hopefully giving us a new under- rie, Maggie has been taking a break for about nine months. In the end, my standing of what’s out there. Being from space instrumentation, but she’s husband had to come out and bring part of such an epic project fills me still very involved in science com- me home!” with joy.” munication. “Four days after Laurie On her return to the UK in 2004, Subsequently, Maggie worked for was born, I got an email asking me to Maggie moved from building in- Astrium on several optical instrumen- make a documentary for the BBC. My struments for peering into space to tation projects for ESA and NASA husband took time off work to look building instruments that actually and for ground-based telescopes. Her after her and we travelled the world travel into space. As a project man- latest project involved detecting car- making a documentary called ‘Do we ager at Surrey Satellitesw6 (now part of bon dioxide, as part of a large NASA really need the Moon?’. Right now, Astrium), she was responsible for the project. “It’s quite challenging. We we’re filming a second documentary development of a spectrographic in- can detect the absorption character- about why we need satellites, and strument, one small component of the istics of carbon dioxide, but what we Laurie’s travelling with us.” vast James Webb Space Telescopew7. really want to do is to localise the When Laurie is a bit older, Maggie A collaboration between NASA, the emission of carbon dioxide – to find plans to return to space instrumenta-

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 9 Image courtesy of Gemini Observatory

Sunset over the Gemini South Telescope

tion, but in the meantime she’s hoping w2 – Stonehenge near Salisbury, UK, w5 – bHROS is an optical spectro- to be involved in a project for music is an enormous stone circle con- graph, part of the Gemini South and literary festivals, looking at the structed between 3000 and 2000 BC. Observatory in Cerro Pachón, science in Shakespeare’s plays. “For Archaeologists disagree about the Chile. To learn more, see the Gemini instance, in Romeo and Juliet, Juliet religious significance of the monu- Observatory website (www.gemini. ment, but its design appears to have drinks a potion that makes her appear edu) or use the direct link: allowed eclipses, solstices, equinox- dead. What was the chemical compo- http://tinyurl.com/7wwbj7w es and other celestial events to be sition of that potion? Does it really ex- w6 – Formed as a spin-off company predicted. To learn more, see: ist? Or when Shakespeare’s characters by the University of Surrey, UK, www.stonehenge.co.uk navigate by the stars, which constella- Surrey Satellite Technology spe- To find out more about the 2008 tions were they using? We can use the cialises in designing, building and excavation of Stonehenge and for a plays to see how science has evolved launching small satellites. See: 360° panorama of the stone circle, since the 17th century.” www.sstl.co.uk visit the BBC website (www.bbc. Clearly, Maggie does not regret her co.uk) or use the direct link: w7 – The James Webb Space Telescope choice of career. “I’m very lucky to http://tinyurl.com/55qv67 will be a large infrared telescope, have found work I enjoy so much and examining every phase of cosmic w3 – To learn more about Late Neo- that is also so varied – not just build- history from the first glow after the lithic astronomy at Nabta Playa, ing equipment that goes into space Big Bang to the formation of galax- see: www.colorado.edu/APS/ but also talking about it. I like to pass landscapes/nabta or use the shorter ies, stars and planets, to the evolu- on my enthusiasm when I can.” link: http://tinyurl.com/7pghhsu tion of the Solar System. See: www.jwst.nasa.gov Web references w4 – Aimed at young children, Stories of Stars is a collection of myths w8 – ESA is Europe’s gateway to w1 – Celestia is a free, interactive, 3D about astronomy, each short story space, organising programmes to astronomy programme that al- taken from a different culture. To find out more about Earth, its imme- lows you to travel throughout the download the illustrated stories (in diate space environment, our Solar Solar System, to any of more than English, Aragonese, French, Portu- System and the Universe, as well as 100 000 stars, and even beyond our guese and Spanish), visit: http:// to co-operate in the human explora- galaxy. Devise your own tour of the sac.csic.es/unawe/cuentos_ tion of space, develop satellite-based Universe or take tours prepared by cuentos_de_estrellas_eng.html or technologies and services, and to other users. See: www.shatters.net/ use the shorter link: http://tinyurl. promote European industries. celestia com/75z92gj See: www.esa.int

10 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Feature article Image courtesy of ESA

The European Southern Observatory Mars (ESO) is the foremost inter-govern- (Univ. Colorado, USA), and NASA / ESA Clancy (Space Science Inst., Boulder, CO, USA), Steve Lee Image courtesy of Phil James (Univ. Toledo, USA), Todd mental astronomy organisation in Europe and the world’s most pro- ductive astronomical observatory. Its website offers a wealth of news, images, videos and other material about astronomy, space and the Universe, aimed at schools and the public. See: www.eso.org ESO is a member of EIROforumw11, the publisher of Science in School. If you enjoyed this article, why not browse the other feature articles in Science in School. See: www.scienceinschool.org/features An artist’s impression of the James Webb Space Telescope, due to be launched in 2018 Dr Eleanor Hayes is the editor-in- chief of Science in School. She studied zoology at the University of Oxford, w11 w11 – EIROforum is a collaboration ESA is a member of EIROforum , UK, and completed a PhD in insect between eight of Europe’s largest in- the publisher of Science in School. ecology. She then spent some time ter-governmental scientific research w9 – The Science and Technology working in university administration organisations, which combine their before moving to Germany and into Facilities Council carries out civil resources, facilities and expertise to research in science and engineer- support European science in reach- science publishing in 2001. In 2005, ing, and funds UK research in areas ing its full potential. As part of its she moved to the European Molecular including particle physics, nuclear education and outreach activities, Biology Laboratory to launch Science physics, space science and astrono- EIROforum publishes Science in in School. my. See: www.stfc.ac.uk School. To learn more, see: www.eiroforum.org w10 – For a video of Maggie explaining to Newsnight’s Jeremy Resources Paxman why the Moon looks The Celestia Motherlode website of- blood red during a lunar eclipse, To learn how to use this fers 12 detailed educational space code, see page 57. see: www.bbc.co.uk/news/ tours to more than 400 destinations, science-environment-13787011 or with student worksheets to com- use the shorter link: http://tinyurl. plete. See: www.celestiamotherlode. com/7v6vxxy net/catalog/educational.php

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www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 11 Im ag e co ur te sy o f ja n e ff /

iS t o c k p h o t o Hydrogen: the green energy carrier of the future? Hydrogen may be the fuel of

the future, but how can we produce it sustainably? Karin Willquist explains.

ydrogen has been called ‘the energy carrier of the Züttel, 2001)w2. A more fundamental future’ – because it can challenge, however, is that of produc- beH oxidised in a fuel cell to gener- ing hydrogen in a sustainable manner. ate electricity, for example to power Hydrogen is mainly used now as a This is what I shall focus on here. cars, without releasing carbon diox- chemical reagent rather than an en- Ways to produce hydrogen ide (CO2), and it can be produced in ergy carrier, but there is no doubt that remote places without an electricity it has the potential to transform our Hydrogen is an abundant element infrastructure. In contrast to available transport and energy systems. How- on Earth’s surface, normally linked to resources such as natural gas and gas- ever, realising its potential is not easy. carbon in carbohydrates (in plants) or oline, hydrogen has to be produced, Most fuels currently in use are liquids, to oxygen in water (H2O). Hydrogen making it an energy carrier and not a solids or gases with high energy per gas (H2), in contrast, exists only in fuel. volume (energy density). Hydrogen, small quantities on Earth. One of the An energy system in which hy- in contrast, has a low energy density: challenges for sustainable hydrogen drogen is used to deliver energy – a at a given pressure, burning one litre production is releasing H2 from its hydrogen economy – was proposed by of hydrogen produces one third of the bonds with carbon and oxygen.

John Bockris in 1970; in 1977, an in- energy that burning a litre of methane Currently, H2 is produced mainly ternational hydrogen implementing does. This poses problems of storage, from fossil fuels (e.g. natural gas) by agreement was established to work distribution and use that are being steam reforming: heating the fuels to towards itw1. addressed by scientists (Schlapbach & high temperatures with waterw2:

12 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Cutting-edge science

Biochemistry ficiency), environmental science (energy resources, Environmental science fossil fuels and renewable resources), biology (algae, bacteria, cyanobacteria and Archaea) and organic Biology chemistry (hydrocarbons and steam reforming). It Organic chemistry could also provide valuable background reading be- Hydrogen economy fore a visit to a power plant or research laboratory Energy working on fuel cells or hydrogen production, use or storage. Ages 14-19 The article could be used to initiate a discussion on the Following the publication of Jeremy Rifkin’s book on difference between energy resources and energy car- the hydrogen economy (2002), this topic is frequently riers; the problems of hydrogen use and storage; and addressed in media as a real possibility for the near possible scenarios for the transition from our hydrocar- future. Another common issue surrounding hydrogen bon economy to a hydrogen economy. is its supposed role as a clean energy source. In this Suitable comprehension questions include: article, Karen Willquist offers a thorough overview of the issues involved in hydrogen production and of the 1. Which of the following apply to respiration, to dark ongoing research – including her own work – into sus- fermentation, or to both? tainable ways to achieve this goal. a) The presence of glucose Given the author’s clear approach, the article is partic- b) The presence of oxygen ularly suitable for science teachers and upper-second- c) The absence of oxygen ary-school students (ages 14-19) wishing to deepen 2. Which of the following is not a process involved in their knowledge of this complex topic. Furthermore, converting acetate into hydrogen? both teachers and students will benefit from the many a) Dark fermentation resources listed. b) The use of electricity in a microbial fuel cell The article would be relevant for lessons on biochem- istry (respiration, fermentation and photosynthesis), c) The hythane process physics (fuel cells, thermodynamics: energy and ef- Giulia Realdon, Italy REVIEW

→ conditions using modified micro- CH4 + H2O CO + 3H2 (1) windmills produce more electricity → organisms, but the processes are still CO + H2O CO2 + H2 (2) than can be consumed. too slow and expensive to be a realis- However, this method relies on fos- Interestingly, H2O splitting occurs tic source of H2 any time soon (Hallen- sil fuels and releases CO2 , causing the naturally in the oceans, because mi- same emission problems as burning croscopic algae and cyanobacteria use beck & Ghosh, 2009). fossil fuels. Steam reforming is only solar energy to split water in a process Finally, biohydrogen can be produced sustainable if renewable hydrocar- called biophotolysis (Equation 3). from crops and from industrial, bons such as biogas are used, because However, the rate of H2 production is the CO2 released has previously been extremely slow. absorbed in the production of the hy- Efforts have been made to increase m bo se drocarbons. the production rate under controlled Kir d al ar H H2 can also be produced by elec- f o w2 sy e trolysis , whereby electricity is used rt u o c to split H O into H and oxygen: e 2 2 g a → Im 2H2O 2H2 + O2 (3) This method can be sustainable if the electricity is from renewable re- Figure 1: C. saccharolyticus sources such as wind, wave or solar bacteria under the electron microscope power. H2 can thus be used to store energy on windy days when the www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 13 Gokce Avcioglu, METU Biohydrogen Research Lab, Turkey (anaerobic digestion reactor) and Karin Willquist (microbial fuel cell) Images courtesy of Holger / pixelio.de (waste), Michael Cavén (paper factory), Keith Bryant (trees), Marcel Verhaart (C. saccharolyticus), Jakub Gebicki (photobioreactor), forestry and agricultural waste, using bacteria. Like us, these bacteria oxidise plant material as a source of energy, but unlike us, they live in anaerobic environments (lacking oxy- CO gen). In aerobic respiration, we use O2 2 to oxidise sugars, e.g. → C6H12O6 + 6O2 6CO2 + 6 H2O (4) CO2 In contrast, to oxidise the substrate Caldicellulosiruptor H as far as possible and thus optimise saccharolyticus 2 their energy gain, these anaerobic bac- teria reduce protons, released during substrate oxidation, to H2 (Equation 6, CO below). Acetate 2

Hot bugs 3 Digestion 1 Photofermentation During my PhD, I investigated the hydrogen-producing abilities of one of these bacteria, Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus (Figure 1, page 13), CO which lives in hot springs: anaerobic 2 environments at 70 °C, with low levels of available carbohydrates. This bac- Power Steam reforming terium is of particular interest because H CH 2 it is twice as efficient as most bacteria 4 used for H2 production. Unlike humans, C. saccharolyticus H gains energy from a wide spectrum 2 of plant building blocks: not only Anode Cathode glucose, but also, for example, xylose Microbial fuel cell 2 (Willquist et al., 2010). This allows the CO2 bacteria to produce H2 from waste such as that produced during potato, H2 sugar and carrot processing, as well as from industrial waste from pulp Figure 2: Biohydrogen production from waste. Waste is degraded and oxidised to H2 and paper production, or agricultural and acetate by C. saccharolyticus. Acetate is converted to methane (CH4) by anaerobic digestion (3), or to H either by a microbial fuel cell (2) or by photofermentation (1). waste such as straw. 2 The CO produced is taken up by the substrate, which results in a CO -neutral process This is a promising start, but even 2 2 C. saccharolyticus releases only 33% of Dark fermentation: algal H2 production, this process is the potential H2 that could be released → currently too slow and expensive from the substrate. Equation 5 shows C6H12O6 + 2H2O 4H2 + 2CO2 + to be commercially viable in the the potential complete oxidation of 2CH3COOH (6) near future (Hallenbeck & Ghosh, glucose, releasing 12H2 per molecule To release the rest of the H from 2 2009). of glucose. Equation 6 shows the dark the acetate requires external energy. → fermentation performed by C. sac- 2CH3COOH + 4H2O 8H2 + 4CO2 (7) Alternatively, methane (CH4) – which charolyticus, which releases only 4H 2 can be steam reformed to release H2 2. Using electricity to push the reac-

(33%) per molecule of glucose. The (Equations 1 and 2) – can be generated tion of acetate to H2 in a microbial rest of the energy is released as acetate from acetate. Luckily, there are three fuel cell with a mixture of bacterial w4 (CH3COOH). promising ways of doing this (Figure 2). species (Equation 7) . This is an elegant concept, but its application Total conversion of glucose to H2: 1. Using sunlight to convert acetate

to H2 with photofermentative bac- is currently limited by low produc- C H O + 6H O → 12H + 6CO (5) 6 12 6 2 2 2 teria (Equation 7)w3. However, like tion rates (Hallenbeck & Gush,

14 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Cutting-edge science

sy of Bull-Do urte ser; co im ge ag a e m so I u rc e 2009). (To learn how to build your : One of London’s buses powered W ik own microbial fuel cell, see Mad- i by hydrogen fuel cells m e den, 2010.) d i a

C 3. Using methane producers (Ar- image source: Flickr o ; m lix O Fe m of chaea) to digest the acetate, gen- sy o

rte n u s co erating methane (Equation 8). The e ag m I combination of dark fermentation

(Equation 6) and methane pro-

duction is known as the hythane

process (hydrogen methane), and

can convert approximately 90%

of the original substrate to H and 2 The Hyundai ix35

methane. FCEV, powered by a

hydrogen fuel cell → CH COOH CH + CO (8)

3 4 2

The methane can then be steam re-

formed, releasing H .

2

To put the hythane process into

perspective: if four people in a house

eat 10 kg potato products each in one

month, their waste could fuel 0.5%

of their monthly domestic energy

requirement (3500 kWh), provided

that the H produced is used directly

2

(to avoid energy losses) and that the house is equipped with a heat and power fuel cellw5. More hydrogen could of course be generated from @ EIROforum other waste – 0.5% is just from pota- toes. This is a rough estimate of the poten- Research into hydrogen tial of the hythane process, based on a) storage and production 30% energy loss in the production of

H2 and CH4 (hythane) and b) 30% in Storing hydrogen safely and efficiently is one then steam reforming CH4 to H2. The of the main technological challenges to adopt- steam-reforming step (b) is used in the ing hydrogen as an energy carrier. The Institut production of hydrogen from natural Laue-Langevin (ILL)w7 has firmly established gas, and is a well developed com- itself in frontier research into the hydrogen mercial technique. The production of economy, using neutron diffraction to monitor hydrogenation and dehy- hythane (a), however, is not yet that drogenation reactions in potential hydrogen storage materials. To find out efficient, although research is ongoing more, visit the ILL websitew7. to improve the efficiency to reach 70% The powerful X-ray beams of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (as in the example) and thus make the (ESRF)w8 have recently probed the complex mechanisms by which hydrogen production of biohydrogen competi- is produced by enzymes called hydrogenases. Most of these enzymes work tive with the steam reforming of fossil under anaerobic conditions and are, in fact, inhibited by the presence of fuels for producing hydrogen. oxygen. Hydrogenases that remain active under aerobic conditions, there- Although there has been some re- fore, are of great interest for technologies such as enzymatic fuel cells and cent progressw6 (see box, right), it is the light-driven production of hydrogen. A German team of scientists has too early to give a reliable time esti- recently solved the crystalline structure of one of these enzymes (Fritsch et mate for when sustainable H produc- 2 al., 2011) – perhaps a step towards a hydrogen economy? tion could play a significant part in w9 supplying us with energy. However, Both ILL and ESRF are members of EIROforum , the publisher of Science as poet Mark Strand once said, “The in School. future is always beginning now.” www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 15 Image courtesy of David Berkowitz; image source: Flickr

or use the direct link: http:// tinyurl.com/7jao2tp Portable Fuels w7 – ILL is an international research mobile phone charger from centre at the leading edge of neu- Powertrekk. Just add some tron science and technology, based water, and after a few minutes in Grenoble, France. To learn more, you have a battery for your see: www.ill.eu mobile phone For more information on ILL’s research into the hydrogen economy, see the ILL website or use the direct URL: http:// References Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus: tinyurl.com/illhydrogen Fritsch J et al. (2011) The crystal struc- an efficient hydrogen cell factory w8 – Situated on the same campus as ture of an oxygen-tolerant hydroge- Microbial Cell Factories 9: 89. doi: ILL, in Grenoble, France, ESRF oper- nase uncovers a novel iron-sulphur 10.1186/1475-2859-9-89 ates the most powerful synchrotron centre. Nature 479: 249–252. doi: Microbial Cell Factories is an open- radiation source in Europe. To learn 10.1038/nature10505 access journal, so the article is freely more, see: www.esrf.eu Download the article free of charge available. For more information on ESRF’s from the Science in School website research into hydrogen storage, see (www.scienceinschool.org/2012/ Web references the ESRF website or use the direct issue22/hydrogen#resources), or w1 – To learn more about the hydro- URL: http://tinyurl.com/87bnj4c subscribe to Nature today: gen implementing agreement of the w9 – To find out more about EIRO- www.nature.com/subscribe International Energy Agency, see: forum, see: www.eiroforum.org Hallenbeck P, Ghosh D (2009) Ad- http://ieahia.org vances in fermentative biohydro- w2 –To learn more about hydrogen Resources gen production: the way forward? prospects, see Joseph Romm’s If you enjoyed this article, you may Trends in Biotechnology 27: 287–297. analysis on the Environmentalists like to browse the other chemistry- doi: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2009.02.004 for Nuclear Energy website related articles in Science in School. See: Madden D (2010) The microbial (www.ecolo.org; under ‘docu- www.scienceinschool.org/chemistry fuel cell: electricity from yeast. ments’) or via the direct link: Science in School 14: 32-35. http://tinyurl.com/77dhx8x www.scienceinschool.org/2010/ See also Joan Ogden’s peer- Chemical engineer Karin Willquist issue14/fuelcell reviewed analysis Hydrogen as an obtained her PhD on biohydrogen Rifkin J (2002) The Hydrogen Economy: Energy Carrier: Outlook for 2010, production from Lund University, the Creation of the Worldwide Energy 2030 and 2050 on the website of the Sweden. Her research interests in- Web and the Redistribution of Power University of California: http:// clude microbial physiology, process on Earth. New York, NY, USA: JP escholarship.org/uc/item/9563t9tc optimisation and outreach activities. Tarker. ISBN: 1585421936 w3 – For a video about how She works at Lund University, using computer simulations to improve the Schlapbach L, Züttel A (2001) Hydro- hydrogen is released from potato hythane process. She also organises gen-storage materials for mobile biomass using sunlight, see: courses on bioenergy for a multi-dis- applications. Nature 414(6861): www.biohydrogen.nl/hyvolution ciplinary bioenergy research platform 353–358. doi: 10.1038/35104634 w4 – To learn more about (LUBiofuels) at Lund University. She microbial fuel cells, see: Download the article free of charge is in the process of writing a book on www.microbialfuelcell.org from the Science in School website bioenergy for high-school students. (www.scienceinschool.org/2012/ w5 – To find out more about heat and issue22/hydrogen#resources), or power fuel cells, see: www.fchea. subscribe to Nature today: org/index.php?id=57 To learn how to use this code, see page 57. www.nature.com/subscribe w6 – To read about recent progress on Willquist K, Zeidan A, van Niel E a biohydrogen fuel station in Tai- (2010) Physiological characteris- wan, see the Focus Taiwan website tics of the extreme thermophile (http://focustaiwan.tw)

16 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Cutting-edge science

Image c ourte sy of Revealing the secrets Hu gu es L an tui t, In ter n at of permafrost io n a l P e r m

a fr Studying permafrost enables us o s t A

ss

o to look not only into the past, but c i

a

ti

o also into the future. Miguel Ángel n de Pablo, Miguel Ramos, Gonçalo Vieira and Antonio Molina explain.

racing themselves against the Subsea permafrost limit icy Antarctic wind, four bulky Continous permafrost Discontinous permafrost Deep boreholes (>10m) figures struggle uphill. Could Sporadic permafrost Shallow boreholes (<10m) Isolated permafrost Unknown theyB be penguins? Seals? No. They are permafrost scientists – well wrapped up against the cold, and laden with Figure 1: Permafrost distribution in the northern hemisphere and in high-tech equipment. Antarctica, showing boreholes used for permafrost monitoring This is how we spend about two months of each year before returning to our warm European laboratories to What is permafrost? call this permafrost. Clearly, this only Image courtesy of Mark Sykes; image source:Flickr analyse our data. What are we doing When winter arrives and the tem- happens in extreme environments: and why do we do it? peratures drop, ice forms on puddles permafrost is found mostly around or ponds. When the temperature stays the poles and in high mountains (Fig- below 0 °C for long enough, even ure 1). Nonetheless, in the northern Figure 2: Cross-section showing the ground freezes. In some cases, hemisphere, where it has been most different types of permafrost the ground can remain continuously studied, permafrost covers 20% of the frozen for more than two years; we continental area.

Unfrozen soil and rock Active layer Permafrost

Bog Large lake Small lake

Open talik Modified image courtesy of PhysicalGeography.net

Closed talik

Through talik

Discontinous permafrost Continous permafrost www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 17 Biology on the planet has direct or indirect implications that Chemistry go far beyond what anyone can first imagine. For ex- Environmental science ample, students will realise that global warming can Geology negatively affect human land use and development. Meteorology Suitable comprehension and discussion questions Physics include: Ages 13-19 1. What are the major differences between permafrost, Many people know what permafrost is: frozen ground. talik and the active layer, with regard to properties But if researchers spend decades studying permafrost, and location? there must be a lot more to know than just this simple 2. Which criteria are commonly used by researchers to information. locate permafrost sites? This article describes what permafrost is, how it can 3. Explain how changes in the active layer can contrib- be researched, what can be learned from this research, ute to global warming. and why the information revealed is valuable. Addi- 4. Why is it important to measure the temperature at tionally, it contains information that could be used in different depths inside permafrost? the secondary-school science classroom for teaching 5. A construction company plans to build houses in many subjects and topics, including biology (e.g. ecol- an area where permafrost exists. Would you support ogy), environmental science (e.g. climate change), these plans? Explain your reasoning. physics and chemistry (e.g. water and material proper- ties), geology (e.g. rock properties) and meteorology The article would be most appropriate for study in the (e.g. wind and temperature). countries of northern Europe as well as countries with For lower-secondary-school students (ages 13-15), the very high mountains, as these countries are the ones article would be a good source of information about that have permafrost. Nevertheless, because climate what permafrost is, how it is studied and what kind of change, which affects and is affected by permafrost, important information it reveals. For upper-secondary- is a global problem, this article can provide valuable school students (ages 16-19), the article would also be information in any classroom, anywhere in the world.

REVIEW helpful in understanding how everything that happens Michalis Hadjimarcou, Cyprus

Image courtesy of Miguel Ángel de Pablo Mixed up with the permafrost may be patches of ground that remains unfrozen all year round (talik), the Figure 3: Stone circles result of local pressure, high salin- formed by active layer ity or groundwater flow. This means dynamics due to seasonal that the permafrost may be spatially freeze-thaw cycles continuous, covering large regions, but can also be discontinuous (Figure 1, page 17). The depth of the perma- frost varies widely, depending on the environment: it can extend hundreds of metres into the ground, whereas on Deception Island in Antarctica, which is an active volcano, it is only 3 metres regular measurements over two years. it thaws in the warm season. The deep. However, obtaining accurate and rep- surface layer above the permafrost is resentative data is more complicated. known as the active layer, and the re- Detecting permafrost This is because the ground’s most peating freeze-thaw cycles can cause it In theory, detecting permafrost is superficial layer is directly affected to form peculiar small-scale landforms relatively easy: simply insert a ther- by solar radiation and weather condi- such as polygonal terrains, stone mometer into the ground and take tions, so unlike the permafrost below, circles and patterned ground.

18 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Cutting-edge science Image courtesy of Miguel Ángel de Pablo Temperature (°C) thickness of the active layer at differ- -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 ent sites on Earth, we can investigate 0 Active layer the influence of global warming on

5 ground temperatures. Permafrost not only tells us about 10 our current climate, but can also Level of zero annual reveal our past climate. If a piece amplitude 15 of rock warms up during the day, it will start to cool down the following 20 night. However, it will remain warm

25 Geothermal gradient for some time – especially deep in the Permafrost rock, far from the surface where heat 30 is being lost. Measuring temperatures

Depth (m) at different depths inside the piece of 35 rock can tell us about the rock’s previ-

40 ous thermal conditions. We can do the same in permafrost – the deeper we –––– Coolest temperature 45 –––– Warmest temperature dig, the further we are travelling into –––– Average annual ground temperature the past. Permafrost base 50 Soils and rocks, however, transfer heat at different speeds depending 55 on their composition and structure; we call this thermal conductivity. If Figure 4: A thermal profile taken from borehole data in Antarctica. At its warmest, only the active layer rises above 0 °C; below the level of zero annual amplitude, we know the thermal conductivity of there are no seasonal temperature changes; below the permafrost base, the ground the soil and rocks in the permafrost, temperature is above 0 °C we can convert depth into time, re- constructing climate evolution over the past decades or centuries. For These landforms, therefore, may layer is becoming thicker – as the per- example, finding colder rocks below indicate the presence of permafrost mafrost below thaws – or thinner. This the surface indicates that the climate below. To check, we and other perma- tells us how the climate is changing, at that depth (time) was colder than frost scientists drill boreholes and in- as the thickness depends not only on today. In theory, these calculations troduce temperature sensors at depths air temperature, but also on factors would also work in unfrozen ground of as little as 50 centimetres or as such as snow cover. By monitoring the but there, the geothermal gradient much as 50 metres. After several years of data logging, we can determine Image courtesy of Vladimir Romanovsky, UAF whether permafrost exists and what its thermal evolution was: how the ground temperature changed over the monitored period at different depths.

What can we learn from permafrost? Why do we and other scientists want to know if the ground is frozen below the surface? Permafrost can be important in daily life, as well as telling us about the past and future climate on Earth; it can even teach us about other planets. Figure 5: Infrastructure collapse due to thawing ice-rich permafrost terrain, By measuring the temperature near Alaska, USA the surface, we can see if the active www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 19 Figure 6: Water ice under the surface (the heat from the centre of Earth) also of Mars discovered and analysed by as deep as 25 metres. We monitor the influences the temperature. In perma- the Phoenix mission temperature in the ground, compare frost, the surface temperature plays a it with air and surface temperatures, much more significant role. and study the factors that affect Recently, scientists have discovered ground temperature: from wind speed Image courtesy of Phoenix / ASU / JPL NASA that changes in the active layer not to rock properties such as thermal only indicate climate change but can conductivity, porosity and humidity. actually contribute to it. In the north- We also measure the thickness of the ern hemisphere, permafrost soils con- active layer every year in the thaw tain huge amounts of frozen organic season. Some of the boreholes have matter. As global warming causes the been monitored continuously for up active layer to thicken, this organic to 25 years; others were drilled in the matter is exposed to decomposition past six years. by micro-organisms, releasing carbon We selected the Antarctic Peninsula dioxide and methane – important region because: greenhouse gases – into the atmo- 1. Most permafrost research is in sphere, increasing the rate of global planets, such as Mars. Mars has large the northern hemisphere, so we warming. amounts of frozen water forming wanted to extend the monitored Permafrost can also have a direct permafrost (Figure 6), so studying areas. Like our colleagues working impact on humans, in areas where the evolution of permafrost on Earth in the north, we use international houses, roads and railways have been may help us to understand the past protocols for monitoring the active built on permafrost. When the per- and present climate of Mars. Future layer and measuring temperature mafrost thaws, the ground resistance permanent bases there may even use inside the boreholes, as defined by drops and constructions can collapsew1 Martian permafrost as a source of the International Permafrost Asso- (Figure 5, page 19). Increasing global water. ciation (IPA)w2. temperatures will cause this to hap- 2. The peninsula is one of the few pen more frequently. By detecting Studying permafrost in Antarctica ice-free areas of the Antarctic – permafrost below the surface, we can For over two decades, our team has important because permafrost is enable engineers to take precaution- been conducting long-term permafrost stable if there is ice above it, and ary measures to strengthen the con- research on different sites on Livings- we wanted to investigate the ac- structions or not build them above ton and Deception Islands in the Ant- tive layer. permafrost in the first place. arctic Peninsula region (Figure 7). We Finally, permafrost can help us to measure the ground temperature both understand the dynamics of other near the surface and inside boreholes Images courtesy of Miguel Ramos Image courtesy of Benjamin Dumas; image source: Flickr

ANTARCTICA Livingston Island

Deception Island Figure 7: Our research sites in the Antarctic Peninsula region

20 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Cutting-edge science

Figure 8: Patterns in freezing and thawing at three different dephts in the Incin- Permafrost temperature monitoring erador borehole (230 cm deep) on Livingston Island, between 2000 and 2010. borehole in the South Shetland Currently, we do not have enough spatial and temporal information to conclude Islands, Antarctica that the permafrost in the Antarctic Peninsula is affected by global warming. In the Incinerador borehole, there is a slight positive trend in the thawing index, but the freezing index shows no change – overall, the permafrost is still stable. Image courtesy of Miguel Ángel de Pablo 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 800

700

600

500

400 Images courtesy of Miguel Ramos 300

200 Freezing index (ºCday)

100

0 T(-15cm) T(-90cm) T(-230cm)

a) The thawing index for each year is defined as the cumulative positive daily 3. It is close to the northern bound- temperatures (in °C) during the thaw period. ary of Antarctic permafrost, where ground temperatures are close to 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 0 ºC and the permafrost is therefore 0 more sensitive to climate change. -100 What do our data reveal? The main

-200 result is that although some areas that were previously permafrost are now -300 unfrozen all year round, most of the -400 ground on Livingston and Deception Islands is approximately as frozen -500 as it was 10 years ago, despite global -600

Thawing index (°Cday) Thawing warming (Figure 8). These local dif-

-700 ferences are determined by the prop- erties of the soil and rocks: material Image courtesy of the Science & Analysis Laboratory, NASA Johnson Space Center -800 with higher thermal conductivity, for T(-15cm) T(-90cm) T(-230cm) example, thaws more quickly. Over b) The freezing index for each year is defined as the cumulative negative daily the next few decades, therefore, we temperatures (in °C) during the freezing period expect permafrost with lower thermal conductivity to succumb to global warming, too. We hope to wrap up warm and return to Antarctica regu- larly to find out.

Web references w1 – The US Public Broadcasting Brabant Island Service has developed an activity to make your own permafrost in class, build a house on it and ob- Deception Island serve the consequences of thawing. Livingston Island See: www.pbs.org/edens/denali/ permawht.htm

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 21 Image courtesy of Paul Ward, CoolAntarctica.com Studying permafrost in Antarctica w2 – The International Permafrost As- sociation co-ordinates international co-operation among scientists and engineers working on permafrost. See: www.ipa-permafrost.org Resources The US National Snow and Ice Data Center runs an educational website on frozen ground, including many activities and resources on perma- frost. See: http://nsidc.org/ frozenground The Scientific Committee on Ant- arctic Research offers a wealth of it and what the current situation is, de Alcalá, and leads the university teaching resources on the Antarctic see: research into Antarctic permafrost. He for students of all ages, in different Harrison T, Shallcross D (2010) A has spent 25 years working on Ant- languages, including dressing an hole in the sky. Science in School arctica, studying the effect of climate Antarctic scientist in appropriate 17: 46-53. www.scienceinschool. on the thermal evolution of the South clothing. See: www.scar.org/ org/2010/issue17/ozone Shetland Islands. about/capacitybuilding/ If you found this article useful, why Gonçalo Vieira is an assistant pro- antarcticeducation not browse the full series of climate- fessor of geographical studies at the The United States Antarctic Museum change-related articles in Science in Universidad de Lisboa in Lisbon, has made lists of educational oppor- School? See: www.scienceinschool. Portugal. He is a geographer and the tunities for teachers to experience org/ climatechange head of a Portuguese team working the Antarctic and of resources for on permafrost and other periglacial their students. See: www.usap.gov/ processes, mainly in Antarctica. He usapgov/educationalResources. has collaborated with Miguel Ramos cfm?m=5 Miguel Ángel de Pablo is an assis- since 2002. tant professor of geology at the Uni- Antonio Molina is a PhD student To find some wonderful pictures of versidad de Alcalá in Madrid, Spain. in the department of planetology and Antarctica to use in your lessons, He is a geologist and has a great deal habitability at the Centro de Astrobi- visit: www.coolantarctica.com of experience working on the geology ología CSIC / INTA in Madrid, Spain. To learn about one school teacher’s of Mars, where the surface remains He is a young researcher who has trip to the Antarctic, see: frozen. He joined the Antarctic re- been studying Martian processes and Hayes (2007) Teaching on ice: an search team in 2007 to study terrestrial the terrestrial analogues, especially Image courtesy of Lian Quinn; image source: Flickr educational expedition to Antarc- permafrost in an effort to understand those related to frozen soils, since tica. Science in School 6: 78-81. www. the Martian geological processes re- 2009. He has participated in one Ant- scienceinschool.org/2007/issue6/ lated to frozen terrains. arctic campaign as a member of the antarctica Miguel Ramos is an associate pro- Antarctic research team of the Univer- It is more than 25 years since a hole in fessor of physics at the Universidad sidad de Alcalá. the ozone layer was discovered over Antarctica. To find out what caused To learn how to use this code, see page 57.

Chinstrap penguins on Elephant Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica

22 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Teaching activity

Bad science: learning from science in the media When you read the newspaper, how do you know what to believe? Ed Walsh guides you and your students through the minefield of science in the media.

cience is all around us – but so is pseudoscience. Few of Biology us read the original research Digestion papers behind every ‘science’ S General science story, so how do we know what to believe? And why aren’t all media Ages 11-16 stories about science reliable? This This article enables students to learn to think scientifically about what classroom activity aims to teach they read or hear in the media. Beginning with a role-play, the activ- students: ity triggers their thinking and group discussion. The activity relates • The difference between to digestion and health, and would therefore be suitable for biology observational and intervention lessons, but the structure of the activity could be used in any science studies lesson to encourage critical thinking. • Why we need to carefully For students aged 14-16, the activity could be used as described. For scrutinise media reports about younger students (aged 11-13), this article could encourage the teach- the health outcomes associated er to use the media cautiously to raise awareness of science topics or with different aspects of diet as the basis of class discussions on topics related to the curriculum. • That the decision to change lifestyle is often dependent upon At the end of the activity, a class discussion could move beyond the a range of factors. science curriculum, examining the implications of dieting, sun expo- sure and cosmetic surgery. Stephanie Maggi-Pulis, Malta REVIEW Image courtesy of Selitbul / iStockphoto

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 23 Can consuming more olive oil stop you getting wrinkles?

could set up such an investigation. control of variables and the groups Get them to think about such fac- can be balanced to eliminate other tors as: variables. However, they are more • The size of the groups expensive to run and may be un- • How to make it a fair test ethical: imagine researching smok- • How to control the variables. ing in this way. They may also take 3. What problems are there with con- longer: if you want to examine the ducting such research? effect of a lifetime of eating olive Explain that there are two main oil on life expectancy, you would Introduction types of study that scientists could have to start your experiment with 1. Ask students to imagine that they use to answer this question, an children, but wait perhaps up to 70 have decided to emigrate. They observational study and an interven- years until you had your answer. are going to live and work in one tion study. Observational studies are 6. Return to the investigations of the following regions: Sweden / when scientists find people who have proposed by the students, and ask rural Greece / Melbourne, Austral- already brought the change they are them to determine which type of ia. Show students images of these studying into their lives (e.g. who has study they used. regionsw1. been using olive oil in their diet and Explain that in 2001 a detailed sci- 2. In small groups, they should who hasn’t?). entific study was conducted into the discuss all the things that might 4. Ask the students to consider the wrinkling of skin on people who lived be different about living in these advantages and disadvantages of in Sweden, Greece and Australia, and situations, such as pollution, diet, this kind of study. that you are going to share the find- healthcare, pace of life, prosperity, Draw out that observational stud- ings. Depending on the age and abil- types of employment, and climate. ies use existing behaviours, so are ity of the students, you could do this 3. Explain that after a number of cheap and easy to do, but may in one (or more) of three ways: years, the wrinkling of their skin struggle to isolate single vari- • Explain verbally, making key will be measured, quite scien- ables. People in the study group points on the board tifically. Which of the factors they may well use different amounts of • Give students copies of the edited have identified might make a olive oil in their diets, but there are findings (student worksheet difference to the amount of wrin- almost certainly going to be lots 1, page 26, which can also be kling? Establish that there could be of other differences as well. As a downloaded from the Science in Image courtesy of jaime.silva; image source: Flickr a number of causes. result, it may be extremely difficult School websitew2) It is often hard to find out which of to clearly identify the extent to • Give students copies of the many possible causes has produced which the presence of olive oil is original research paper (br Purba a particular outcome, such as skin the significant factor in preventing et. al., 2001). wrinkling, especially if some of the the wrinkling of skin. 7. Ask the students to work in groups possible causes are interlinked. In Explain that intervention studies and explore what the research a scientific study we try to change (‘trials’) are when the scientists control showed. only one thing at a time. This may the variables (e.g. you are going to sometimes be difficult, and we need have olive oil in your diet, but he is to think of a way to account for that not). shortcoming, or consider conducting a 5. Again, ask the students what they different kind of study. think the advantages and disad- Main activity vantages of this type of study are. 1. Ask the students to imagine that Ideas should include that interven- they are working as scientists tion studies involve a much better and have been asked to conduct research into the use of olive oil in people’s diets as a way of reduc- ing skin wrinkling. The hypothesis Gothenburg, Sweden is that ‘more olive oil consumed leads to fewer wrinkles’. 2. Ask students to decide how they

24 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Image courtesy of venetia koussia; image source: Flickr

Teaching activity Image courtesy of Helene Souza; image source: pixelio.de

Bad Science is good for school science

Bad Science is a book (Goldacre, 2008), a newspaper column in The Guardian and a websitew3 by Ben Goldacre, an award-winning writer and broadcaster who specialises in unpicking questionable Rural Greece scientific claims made by scaremongering journalists, dodgy gov- ernment reports, evil pharmaceutical corporations, public relations companies and quacks. It promotes a healthy scepticism as a way skin in old age you might have to do of detecting powerful and effective uses of science and its misuses a bit more than consume more olive and abuses. oil. Some may feel that simplifying Ed Walsh, science advisor for Cornwall Learning, has taken eight of the story to make it accessible, and the case studies from the book and turned them into lessons to excite leaving out the caveats, has also made students (aged 14-16) and to encourage them to think for themselves it misleading. and to use the Bad Science approach. To download the rest of the 11. Draw attention to the abstract from w4

BACKGROUND teaching materials, visit the Bad Science for Schools website the research paper, which said that “This study illustrates that skin

wrinkling in a sun-exposed site in older people of various ethnic • Was this an observational or an happy might be difficult because backgrounds may be influenced intervention study? the research has shortcomings by the types of foods consumed.” • The study found an association and does not give a clear answer. Remind students of the confound- between features of people’s di- The pieces should be written in ing variables they identified earlier ets and the amount of wrinkling large writing on sugar paper and in the lesson and ask them the they had. That might be because displayed around the room. extent to which either their report different diets cause wrinkles to 9. Ask students to assess each other’s or the one from the Daily Mirror different extents. But what alter- work and give each piece two recognised these. native explanations are there? marks (out of five): one mark for 12. Ask students to work in pairs to Are there factors which might ‘how engaging it is’ and the other list the pros and cons of observa- be independently associated for ‘how accurate it is’. tional and intervention studies. with both diet and wrinkles, 10. Show the students the extract from Take a show of hands – if students such as social class, working the Daily Mirror (‘Sun protection saw the newspaper headline tomor- outdoors, sunlight exposure, on a plate’, student worksheet row, ‘Scientific study shows butter smoking, and so on? (In this 2, page 27, which can also be causes s kin cancer’, would they stop situation, scientists would call downloaded from the Science in eating butter immediately? these alternative explanations School websitew2), part of a longer ‘confounding variables’.) article with a series of tips about Melbourne, image source: nner; pixeli • Did this study prove that chang- improving diet. Ask the students r Bru o.de live Australia f O ing your diet will help you get y o to discuss the extent to which the tes ur co fewer wrinkles? article’s conclusion is reasonable. e ag Im

8. Ask the students to work in small Emphasise that we are not saying

groups. Each group has to write a that olive oil is not good for you,

short piece of text (no more than 50 but asking whether this conclusion

words) for a local newspaper using is entirely justified. this report as the basis. Some students may think that the The editor has made it clear that news stories make the good advice in they want something engaging a rather dry research paper accessible about how readers can enjoy the to a wide range of people. Others may summer sun without being af- feel that it is not quite as simple as fected by it. Keeping the editor that, and that if you want smoother

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 25 Student worksheet 1: Summary of conclusions from the research paper

This study (br Purba et al., 2001) Group 4: 159 people born in and still legumes, and lower intakes of butter was set up to see if there was a cor- living in Sweden. and margarine, milk products and relation between the intake of various sugar products. foods and nutrients and the wrinkling They were participating in the Inter- High intakes of vegetables, legumes of skin in places with significant national Union of Nutritional Sciences and olive oil seemed to offer protec- amounts of sunlight. ‘Food habits in later life’ study and tion against wrinkling whereas a high had their dietary intakes measured intake of meat, dairy and butter ap- The study included four groups: and their skin assessed. peared to have the opposite effect. Group 1: 177 people born in Greece The results showed that Group 4 This study illustrates that skin wrin- but now living in Melbourne, Aus- had the least skin wrinkling in a sun- kling in a sun-exposed site in older tralia exposed site, followed by groups 1, 2 people of various ethnic backgrounds Group 2: 69 people born in Greece and 3. Analysis of the data and iden- may be influenced by the types of and living in rural Greece tifying correlation with food groups foods consumed. suggested that there may be less skin Group 3: 48 Anglo-Celtic Australians damage amongst people with a higher living in Melbourne intake of vegetables, olive oil, fish and Image courtesy of Alex Garcia; image source: Flickr

Gothenburg, Sweden

26 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Image courtesy of James Peacock; image source: Flickr Teaching activity

Student worksheet 2: Daily Mirror article

Sun protection on a plate! By Angela Dowden 13/06/2006

With temperatures soaring to record of your SPFs [sun-protection factors] levels, it’s vital to protect yourself on a plate... from the Sun’s rays. Here are the foods that can help... Olive oil By making a few simple changes to An Australian study in 2001 found your diet, you can help protect your that olive oil (in combination with skin from sunburn, ageing and even fruit, vegetables and pulses [legumes]) cancer. Of course, you also need to offered measurable protection against keep wearing your sun lotion and a skin wrinkling. Eat more olive oil by hat and stay in shade during the heat using it in salad dressings or dip bread of the day, but here’s how to get some in it rather than using butter.

Image courtesy of wrw; image source: pixelio.de Image courtesy of andrea.pacelli; image source: Flickr

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 27 References Science in School (2006) Free image in Science in School useful. See databases. Science in School 1: 87. www.scienceinschool.org/teaching br Purba, M et al. (2001) Skin wrin- www.scienceinschool.org/2006/ kling: can food make a difference? You might also like to browse the issue1/web Journal of the American College of medicine-related articles in Science Nutrition 20(1): 71–80 w2 – To download student in School. See: www.scienceinschool. org/medicine The article is freely available here: worksheets 2 and 3, visit the www.jacn.org/cgi/ Science in School website: reprint/20/1/71.pdf www.scienceinschool.org/2012/ issue22/badscience#resources Goldacre B (2008) Bad Science. Lon- Ed Walsh is a curriculum developer don, UK: Harper Collins. ISBN: w3 – To read Ben Goldacre’s newspa- with experience of working with 9780007240197 per column, visit the Bad Science teachers, schools, local authorities and website: www.badscience.net national agencies. As Science Advisor Web reference w4 – To download the eight ‘Bad sci- for Cornwall Learning he provides w1 – A worksheet with the im- ence for schools’ lesson plans, visit: support and guidance to schools ages of rural Greece, Melbourne www.collinsnewgcsescience.co.uk/ in Cornwall, UK, about curriculum and Sweden used in this article badscience development in general and science can be downloaded from the in particular, including writing and Science in School website: www. Resources editing material for classroom use and scienceinschool.org/2012/issue22/ For a review of Ben Goldacre’s book teacher support. badscience#resources Bad Science, see: To find more freely available pho- Hayes E (2011) Review of Bad tographs to use, try Flickr (www. Science. Science in School 18. To learn how to use this code, see page 57. flickr.com) and the German website www.scienceinschool.org/2011/ Pixelio (www.pixelio.de). issue18/badscience For a more extensive review of free If you enjoyed this article, you might image databases for science lessons, find the other teaching activities see:

28 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science education projects Image courtesy of Rita Greer; image source: Wikimedia Commons

Biology Build your own Physics Microscopy Lenses and optics microscope: Ages 15-18* I would never have thought it was so easy and cheap following in Robert to construct a light micro- scope. The activities in this article will surely help stu- dents to understand how a Hooke’s footsteps microscope works and ap- preciate their work once they get to use the micro- Nektarios Tsagliotis explains how to build scope and see with their own eyes what set Robert an effective microscope using simple Hooke on his fascinating journey. This is a very in- materials – enabling your students to teresting project that could discover a hidden world, just as Robert even be carried out as part of a school science exhibi- Hooke did in 1665. tion – with a prize for the best, coolest microscope! Although the author car- ried out the project with 10- to 14-year-old students, I would use it for older stu- dents (15-18), as in my ex- perience younger students tend to lack the necessary dexterity and patience. For older students, the activity could be extended to in- vestigate what happens if you use lenses of different sizes. Rita Greer’s portrait of Robert Hooke Andrew Galea, Giovanni (2009), painted for The Open University, Curmi Higher Secondary UK. Among the items in front of him are School Naxxar, Malta his book, Micrographia, and a microscope *Note that the author performed the project with

REVIEW students aged 10-14

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 29 ike the telescope, the micro- of sketches and descriptions. repeatedly for microscope studies and scope was made famous by The microscope I built with my / or observations, requiring minimal the achievements of one of its students is a modified version of maintenance, such as lens cleaning earliest users. When we consider the one described by researchers at the and battery supply for the spotlight. L w1 telescope in history, we think of Gali- Museo Galileo in Florence, Italy . It is Moreover, it can be stored easily in leo Galilei (1564–1642) and his pio- similar in construction to those used the classroom and laboratory, as it oc- neering observations of the Moon and by Hooke and other scientists during cupies a small space. planets. Similarly, the English scientist the late 16th and early 17th centuries Robert Hooke (1635–1703) was one of and has the same essential elements: Materials the first to realise the potential of the two lenses (objective and eyepiece), a • 2 lenses with a focal length of 35 microscope. In his book Micrographia, microscope tube, and a diaphragm to mm, each salvaged from a single- published in 1665, Hooke astonished reduce optical distortion. The mod- use disposable camera. the public with a fantastical world, ern materials we used include plastic Make sure the flash has been where everyday objects such as nee- lenses, each of which was extracted discharged and remove the battery dles and hairs, ants and spiders, were from a single-use disposable cam- before you open the camera. Use transformed by magnification. era. Once built, the microscope has insulated tools (like screwdriver From a very early age, Robert a magnification of approximately 20 and pliers). The students might Hooke’s curious mind drew him into times – quite sufficient to reveal the need help extracting the lenses many scientific fields (for this reason wonders of the microscopic world as from of the cameras. he has been called the ‘Leonardo of Hooke saw them. • 2 metal washers with an external England’). In 1662, he was hired by This microscope is durable and diameter of 2 cm and an inner hole England’s recently founded academy portable, and can be assembled of approximately 1 cm diameter of science, The Royal Society, to carry quickly once the materials have been • 1 black cardboard or rubber disc out studies with the microscope. collected, cut and glued appropriately with an external diameter slightly Three years later, he published these (see online videow2). It can be used smaller than the washers (approxi- and many of his other studies in Mi- crographia. This huge book is filled with de- scriptions of what Hooke saw under the microscope. He claimed that his goal was to use ‘a sincere hand, and a faithful eye, to examine, and record the things themselves as they appear’. Along with descriptions, Hooke in- cluded stunningly detailed drawings of the objects he viewed. His lively

drawings of insects made them seem, Image courtesy of Nektarios Tsagliotis as he remarked, ‘as if they were lions or elephants seen with the naked eye’. The book was a great success and is still considered a masterpiece of scien- tific literature. Micrographia was the inspiration for my classroom project, which had two aims. First, to build a working micro- scope inspired by early models from inexpensive, easily obtainable modern materials that students could use in class; and second, for the students to investigate the microscopic world for themselves, taking Robert Hooke’s studies as a starting point and produc- ing their own observations in the form

30 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science education projects

Images courtesy of Nektarios Tsagliotis

mately 1.2 to 1.5 cm) and a small • Blutack® (malleable stickyish plastic position. Then fix the other lens- hole of approximately 2-3 mm di- used for temporary fixing) and-washer unit at the other end ameter. • Glue gun with hot silicone and in- in the same way. This is the diaphragm: it ensures stant glue 4. Place the black cardboard or that the centre of the lens is used • Scissors rubber disc on top of one of the rather than its edges, as these can • Paper cutter washers at the end of the tube and distort the image. • Hacksaw secure it with Blutack. The disc • 4 plastic tubes, to form the micro- • Ruler forms the microscope’s objective. scope body and support, with the • Pen or pencil 5. Make the microscope eyepiece: in following dimensions: the bottom of the film container, · Microscope body tube: 16.5 cm Procedure cut a hole just large enough to fit length of Ø18 (1.8 cm external 1. Take the tube that will form the the microscope body tube into (if diameter, internal diameter microscope body (Ø18). Roll the you use a tube connector, see list 1.6 cm) opaque black paper lengthways of materials, you do not need to · Main support tube: approxi- and insert it into the tube so that it mately 17 cm length of Ø23 forms a lining for the tube. (2.3 cm external diameter, 2. Attach each lens to a washer using internal diameter 2 cm) Blutack or glue them carefully · Two smaller support tubes: each with instant glue. Then add a ring an approximately 10 cm length of of Blutack around the edge of the Ø16 (1.6 cm external diameter)s lens and washer. These are plastic tubes used 3. Place one lens-and-washer unit for electrical home installation, at one end of the tube, with the obtainable from hardware stores washer on the outside, using the and / or electrical supplies shops. Blutack ring to hold it firmly in An ant, as illustrated in Hooke’s Micrographia • 1 rigid base made from thick card-

board, wood or similar, approxi- Image courtesy of Nektarios Tsagliotis mately 10 x 10 cm • 2 strong rubber bands (for a more stable construction, use 1 strong rubber band and 1 plastic cable tie)

• 1 piece of opaque black paper, ap- Image courtesy of the Project Gutenberg proximately 15 x 5 cm • 1 black plastic 35 mm film contain- er or similar. Alternatively, a plastic connector for the Ø18 tube • A reading spotlight, preferably with a clip for attaching it to the microscope base www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 31 Images courtesy of Nektarios Tsagliotis right position. (If you are using the cable-tie version, focus by turning the microscope tube gently and simultaneously moving it up and downw3.) Shining a bright light, such as a desk lamp or a small torch or spot- light on the object will give you even better images. If you have a compact digital cam- era, you can even take photos of your magnified specimens. Hold the camera against the eyepiece lens, keep it steady and you will cut a hole). Push the tube (the end 7. Then use the glue gun to attach be surprised at the clarity of the without the black disc) a short the free end of the longest tube to images you produce. way inside the film container and the base, positioning it towards secure it with glue if necessary. one end of the base. Hold the tube a) 6. Now construct the support for steady in a vertical position until Images courtesy of Nektarios Tsagliotis Magnified specimens: the microscope body. Using the the hot glue has cooled. a) thread; b) rasberry; glue gun and hot silicone, fasten 8. Complete the microscope by c) isopode legs the two smaller tubes to the main joining the microscope body to support tube (the longest remain- the support. Place the two rubber ing tube) so that they lie alongside bands around the three support each other, touching, with all three tubes, one near the top and one tubes aligned at one end and the near the bottom. (Or use a plastic longest tube extending beyond the cable tie instead of the lower of the c) others at the other end. two rubber bands.) Then slide the microscope body under the bands, with the eyepiece at the top. Make b) sure the bands are tight enough to

Image courtesy of Nektarios Tsagliotis hold the body tube in position, but that it can still move up and down. 9. Adjust the position so that the objective end is a few centimetres

above the base. Your microscope is Image courtesy of Nektarios Tsagliotis now ready! 10. To view an object under the microscope, place it on the base, under the objective. Bring it into focus by sliding the body tube up and down until you find the

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32 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science education projects

Image courtesy of Nektarios Tsagliotis Improving the images To achieve even sharper images, with less distortion, you can build a version with an additional lens (a field lens) between the eyepiece and the ob- jective. For this you need to have used a tube connector rather than a film container for the eyepiece, since the film container’s diameter is too wide to hold the lens. Then all you have to do is add another lens-and-washer unit at the top of the connector: this is the new eyepiece. The eyepiece of

Image courtesy of Nektarios Tsagliotis

A

B

the original model (described above) • Grains of sand, sugar and salt becomes the field lens of the three- • Plant seeds and other parts of lens model. plants • Small insects (e.g. ants) or Classroom activity other arthropods (e.g. isopods C The idea is for 10- to 14-year-old – woodlice) anaesthetised by b) students to use the microscope in a placing in alcohol solution (20- similar way to Robert Hooke, recreat- 30%, e.g. an antiseptic solution) ing an authentic scientific method of for around 15 min discovery. The students view an object 3. Then set up the microscopes (we using the microscope and then pro- made one per pair of students), en- duce a detailed sketch and a descrip- suring that there is sufficient light The three-lens microscope tion. Afterwards, the class discusses for viewing (e.g. with a reading A: The new eyepiece; their results. spotlight or a strong torch). B: the field lens, which was the eye 1. Prepare some printouts of pages 4. Start the lesson with a brief ac- piece of the original microscope; from Micrographia, including count of who Robert Hooke was C: the objective lens Hooke’s sketches of items similar and his life story (I found this to those the students will study effective in engaging the students’ Image courtesy of Nektarios Tsagliotis with the microscope (see list curiosity about his work). A series below), paired with a simplified of paintings by historical artist Rita version of the text description in Greer, depicting Robert Hooke’s each casew4. life from boyhood onwards, are a 2. Collect a selection of suitable useful resourcew5. objects for looking at under the 5. Divide the students into pairs, microscope. You could try: with pencils and paper for sketch- • A printed and a hand-written ing and writing notes, plus a full stop (dot) drawing and description from Materials for the improved • The point of a needle Micrographia as an example to fol- microscope with three lenses • Pieces of fabric low. Each student in a pair should

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 33 take a turn with the microscope, aged my students to ‘do science’ Web references viewing and sketching the object, themselves, demystifying it in the pro- w1 – To learn how to build the Museo then writing a description. cess: they were using an instrument Galileo version, see: http:// As part of our project, I developed that they had built themselves using brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/esplora/ a set of seven worksheets for each simple materials. microscopio/dswmedia/risorse/ type of specimen observed. These erisorse.html can be downloaded free of charge Acknowledgments This website also offers a collection in English or Greekw6. This project is part of the research of historical texts about 17th century 6. The students should discuss their work undertaken by the Greek group microscopy. observations, writings and draw- for the ‘History and Philosophy of ings in pairs and / or in groups of Science in Science Teaching’ (HIPST) four, before reporting to the whole projectw8, funded under the 7th The Scientists, by Rita Greer (2007). After class. Framework Program, Science in Soci- Robert Hooke finished his education and My students were enthusiastic ety-2007-2.2.1.2 – teaching methods. secured his doctorate at Christ Church, about the activity, making a big ef- The author would like to thank the Oxford, UK, he assisted Robert Boyle. fort to work in a ‘scientific’ way, like coordinator of the Greek research Hooke is shown in Dr Cross’s apoth- Hooke. Even those who complained group of the HIPST project, Fanny ecary’s shop in Oxford, setting up an that they could not draw tried hardw7 Seroglou (associate professor at the experiment using the air pump that he and attempted to describe the object Aristotle University of Thessaloniki) designed and made. Hooke is attaching the glass globe while Boyle supervises. verbally. The whole project encour- for her support on the project. The artist used Hooke’s own working drawing of the air pump for accuracy

Image courtesy of Rita Greer; image source: Wikimedia Commons

Join the teacher community and collaborate with business to motivate your students to become scientists! www.ingenious-science.eu Shaping the future of maths and science education

inGenious is co-funded by the European Union's FP7 Programme. The content of this advert is the sole responsibility of the Consortium Members and does not represent the opinion of the European Union.

34 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science education projects Image courtesy of the Project Gutenberg w2 – For a video of my students Resources building the microscope, see: For a more detailed article about this http://hipstwiki.wetpaint.com/ project, see: page/Videos Tsagliotis N (2010) Microscope stud- w3 – To see some alternative sug- ies in primary science: following the gestions for improving the stabil- footsteps of R Hooke in Micrograph- ity of the microscope, see: http:// ia. In Kalogiannakis, M Stavrou D, hipstwiki.wetpaint.com/page/ Michaelidis P (eds) Proceedings of the constructing+the+microscope 7th International Conference on Hands- For a photographic account of how on Science. 25-31 July 2010, Rethym- to construct our microscope, as well no-Crete, pp. 212–221. www.clab. as a more advanced one with three edc.uoc.gr/HSci2010 lenses (objective, field lens and eyepiece), click on ‘constructing the For a description of a similar simply microscope’ constructed microscope, see: w4 – The original text and images of Vannoni M, Buah-Bassuah PK, Mo- Micrographia can be downloaded lesini G (2007) Making a microscope from the Project Gutenberg website: with readily available materials. Thyme seeds, as www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/15491 Physics Education 42(4): 385-390. doi: 10.1088/0031-9120/42/4/008 illustrated in Hooke’s w5 – Rita Greer’s paintings of Robert Micrographia Hooke’s life are freely available For a detailed account of how to via Wikimedia Commons: http:// construct a somewhat more com- commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/ plex but more stable microscope, Category:Paintings_by_Rita_Greer see: www.funsci.com/fun3_en/ ucomp1/ucomp1.htm w6 – To download the micros- Primary Science Laboratory at the 9th copy worksheets, visit http:// If you enjoyed this article, you might Primary School of Rethymno, Crete, hipstwiki.wetpaint.com/page/ like to browse the other project providing support and in-service Science in School study+worksheets_gr (Greek) articles in . See: training for the teachers of the region. or http://hipstwiki.wetpaint. www.scienceinschool.org/projects He is interested in inquiry-based com/page/study+worksheets_en teaching and learning in science, in (English) authentic investigative environments. w7 – For examples of my stu- Nektarios Tsagliotis is a teacher-re- dents’ work, see: http:// searcher in the field of science educa- hipstwiki.wetpaint.com/page/ tion. He has taught primary science children%27s+texts+%26+drawings for the past 15 years and also works as To learn how to use this w8 – To learn more about the HIPST a researcher at the University of Crete, code, see page 57. project, see: http://hipstwiki.eled. in the department of primary educa- auth.gr tion. In this role, he is in charge of the

Join the teacher community and collaborate with business to motivate your students to become scientists! www.ingenious-science.eu Shaping the future of maths and science education inGenious is co-funded by the European Union's FP7 Programme. The content of this advert is the sole responsibility of the Consortium Members and does not represent the opinion of the European Union.

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 35 Launch of Renu sounding rocket

Sky-high science: building rockets at school

Ever wanted to launch a rocket? Jan-Erik Rønningen, Frida Vestnes, Rohan Sheth and Maria Råken from the European Space Camp explain how.

pace science is a fascinating field of study, whether at school or, in our case, at the one-week European Space Camp in Norway (see box on page 39). One hands-on as- Spect that can be easily introduced in the classroom is rocketry. Paper rockets are small and relatively simple to construct, and can achieve flight distances of 50 metres or more, enabling students to compete in terms of either height or distance, de- pending on the space available. Students can also be creative, designing visually appealing rockets or using different types of material. Making a paper rocket is the perfect way to have fun and learn plenty of physics at the same time. Here, we describe a simple rocket that we built and launched during the 2011 European Space Camp. Building paper rockets enables students to tie together many different concepts in physics – in particular, the equations of motion linking velocity, acceleration, distance and time, as well as the principles of aerody- namics. It also provides an exciting introduction to what it is like to be a scientist: designing a rocket from theoretical principles, carrying out an experiment by launching rockets, and finally analysing the results,

Image courtesy of Arve Jørgen Tokheimdrawing conclusions and identifying points for improvement for the future.

Building your rocket

Materials · Two pieces of A4 paper · Scissors · Sticky tape · Putty or Plasticine®

36 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science education projects

of the rocket. Check that the seal is Physics airtight by blowing into it. Space Science Nosecone: Maths 1. From the other piece of paper, cut Ages 13-19 out a circle (diameter 7.5 cm), then cut a sector of approximately 90 Building and launching rockets is definitely a unique experience that degrees from the circle. students can enjoy with their peers. It is one way of merging old and 2. Twist the remaining piece into a contemporary science, as it applies standard equations and theories cone and place a small ball of putty to advanced techniques used for space exploration. inside the tip of the cone before The activity described in the article would definitely create excite- fastening the cone to the sealed end ment among school students, most of whom would try their best to of the rocket body with tape. build the best possible rocket. Before attempting to build their rocket, Fins: they should explore and discuss how the shape, dimensions and ma- 1. Cut four paper triangles of exactly terials used will affect the range, apogee and time of travel of the the same size and fold one of the rocket. After the activity, a new dimension of discussion, re-modelling sides of each triangle to form a and evaluation can be explored, with students discussing their indi- flap, which will be attached to the vidual results with the whole class and seeing which methods and rocket. models worked better and why. Furthermore, they can try to improve Students should think about the their model and re-test their hypotheses. optimal shape of the fin – some fin Some topics, not all of them scientific, can be discussed with the profiles will cause the rocket to spin class, before or after the activity, including: more, others less. Is spin desirable in · Human curiosity about our Universe a rocket? · Space missions that were successful Stability · Missions that were less successful The stability of a rocket depends on · Justifying the budget involved in some of these missions in view where the centre of gravity and the of current economic problems centre of pressure are in relation to · Academic, physical and psychological training required by each other. For a stable rocket, the cen- astronauts. tre of gravity should be in front of the This activity involves a wide range of physics topics ideal for ages centre of pressure at all times. Simply 13-16, and also involves physics concepts, equations and mathemat- put, the centre of pressure is where ics suitable for students aged 16+. The teachers can adapt the cal- the sum of all drag forces acts. culations involved according to the level of their class. The topics If the centre of pressure is in front involved are gravitation and escape velocity; stability and centre of of the centre of gravity, a turning mo- gravity; projectile motion; air resistance in relation to mass and shape ment will occur, causing the rocket of rocket; conservation of momentum and energy during launching; to flip over in mid-flight. This is why and material properties. REVIEW Catherine Cutajar, Malta

Forming the nosecone Procedure The aim when building the rocket is to minimise drag (air resistance). Drag Image courtesy of the European Space Camp is mostly dependent on the velocity, but also on the frontal surface area of the rocket and its overall shape – important considerations when designing a rocket. Rocket body: 1. Roll one piece of paper into a cylinder to form the body of the rocket. 2. Seal one of the open ends of the cylinder with tape, making the front www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 37 Launch of Renu sounding rocket

ballast is usually applied D to the nosecone. i If the relative distance A between the centre of grav- h ity and centre of pressure is too large, either because too Figure 2: much mass has been applied The rocket launcher to the front of the rocket or A) Paper rocket because the fins are oversized, B) Copper tube Image courtesy of the European Space Camp the rocket will be more sensi- B C) Valve tive to wind. D) Pressure gauge

Launching the rocket To launch the rocket, you will need a launcher, which for safety C reasons should be built by the teacher. There are many types of launcher, but all are essentially a stable tube with the same three con- D stituents. 1. A compression chamber in which the air is pressurised, using either a compressor or a robust launcher out of metal pip- bicycle pump with a built-in pres- ing, with an adjustable launch tube. sure gauge (Figure 1, A+B). This allows reproducible launches, 2. A launch tube on which the rocket with different angles of elevation.

Image courtesy of Kolbjørn Blix Dahle / Andøya Rocket Range Rocket Andøya / Dahle Blix Kolbjørn of courtesy Image is placed (Figure 1, D). An adjusta- At the European Space Camp, we ble launch tube allows the angle of used a launching system in which elevation of the rocket at take-off air was pumped into a copper pipe to be determined. system using a low-cost air compres- 3. A mechanism (e.g. a lever or a sor, a robust and stable system that battery-powered valve) to release can be used over and over again. For the pressure from the compression downloadable instructions, see the chamber into the launch tube (Fig- Science in School websitew1. A robust ure 1, C). The sudden release of launcher can also be built out of PVC, pressurised air launches the rocket. using materials readily available from We would recommend building a hardware shops, as described on the NASA websitew2. When launching your rocket, note

Image courtesy of the European Space Camp that higher air pressure does not necessary lead to better flight perfor- Figure 1: Our mances. This is because aerodynamic rocket launcher, D drag on the rocket increases with made of cop- velocity: the rocket’s fins may be dis- per piping and torted, increasing drag and reducing powered by an air A C compressor. A: The performance. air compressor is Before deciding on the angle at attached here; B: The B which to launch their rocket, the compression cham- students should think about how the ber; C: The pressure- angle of elevation affects the total release lever; D: The distance travelled and the rocket’s launch tube apogee (its highest point above the ground).

38 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Image courtesy of Kolbjørn Blix Dahle / Andøya Rocket Range Rocket Andøya / Dahle Blix Kolbjørn of courtesy Image Science education projects

Our rocket launcher, made of copper piping and powered by a bicycle pump. A: The com- pression chamber; B: The pressure-release lever Images courtesy of the European Space Camp Image courtesy of the European Space Camp

A

B

Launching the rocket Safety Safety is important when launch- ing rockets. Students should wear safety glasses and stand behind the launcher at all times to avoid being The European Space Camp hit by the paper rockets. When using a compressor for the launcher, be sure The European Space Camp focuses on topics important in the space not to exceed the pressure limit, which industry, motivating and inspiring young students by showing them could cause parts of the launcher to how theoretical ideas can be put into practice. fall apart or even rupture. The exact During the one-week camp at the Andøya Rocket Range in Norway, limit will depend on the materials the northernmost permanent launch facility in the world, 24 students you use: the copper launcher we built aged 17-20 are treated as real rocket scientists, using professional w1 at the European Space Camp could equipment and solving advanced problems in international teams. withstand more than 8.3 bar (120 psi) Each team addresses a different aspect of rocketry such as system of pressure; the NASA PVC launcherw2 design, experimental instrumentation, payload assembly or telem- is limited to 2.0 bar (30 psi). etry, all working towards the launch of a ‘sounding rocket’ to carry Follow-up instruments. Participants also receive lectures from some of Europe’s best scientists, on topics ranging from rocket physics to the North- After the launch, the students can an- ern Lights. Some of the lectures are supplemented by fascinating alyse the rocket’s trajectory to calculate hands-on activities, such as building the paper rocket described in the maximum height (apogee) attained this article. by the rocket and also its initial veloc- Students interested in applying to participate in the 2012 camp ity. To perform the trajectory analysis, (24 June – 2 July 2012) should visit the websitew3 or email some measurements need to be taken [email protected].

before the launch (see Figure 2): BACKGROUND • Length of the rocket body (h, in m) • Inner diameter of the launch tube

(Di , in m) • Pressure within the launcher (P, A successful flight in Pascal) before launch while the valve is closed; this can be read off the foot pump or the compressor, and converted from psi or bar into Pascal. (The pressure is assumed to be constant across the length of the tube.)

• Mass of the rocket (mr, in kg) • Angle of elevation (θ, in degrees; Figure 3, page 40).

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 39 1. The first step is to calculate the initial velocity travelled by the rocket in these directions will n ( 0) of the rocket. This is equal to the accelera- then be:

tion (a) of the rocket multiplied by the time (t0) n θ x = 0 cos ( ) · t (8) for which the force was acting on it: n θ 2 n y = 0 sin ( ) · t – ½gt (9) 0 = a · t0 (1) 2. The force acting on the rocket can be calcu- where g is the gravitational constant.

lated using two equations. Ai is the cross-sec- 2. From the equation for the distance travelled in tional area of the rocket body. the x direction (Equation 8), an expression of 2 π · Di (2) the time t can be inserted into the equation for F = P · Ai = P · 4 the distance travelled in the y direction (Equa-

F = mr · a (3) tion 9), and this gives us the equation for the 3. The acceleration of the rocket can be expressed trajectory of the rocket: by combining these two equations: π · D 2 P · i a= 4 (4) mr

4. By time t0 , the rocket has travelled a distance equal to the length of the rocket body (h), and this length can be expressed by:

2 h = ½ a · t0 (5) 3. The apogee of the rocket (H) can then be 5. To find an expression for t0 , Equation 5 can be calculated by: rearranged: 2 t0 = 2h <-> t0 = 2h (6) a a n Each rocket will probably be able to be The rocket’s initial velocity ( 0) can now be ex- pressed in terms of known variables, by inserting launched only once, as the nosecones are usu- ally damaged on landing. However, if the rockets the expressions for the time t0 (Equation 6) and acceleration a (Equation 4) into the equation for are still intact, the students can carry out repeat initial velocity (Equation 1): experiments and perhaps vary the launch angle.

On the basis of their results, the students could π · D 2 π · D 2 P · i 2h · P · i discuss the following questions: n 4 · 2h n 4 0= 2 <-> 0= 4 (7) m π · Di mr 1. How does the weight of the rocket affect the r P · 4 height and distance it travels?

mr 2. Why does wind affect the performance of the paper rocket? We assume that the rocket has a parabolic flight 3. What would happen if you placed the fins near path, and this allows us to calculate the equation the nosecone? for the trajectory of the rocket. 4. Where should the launcher be pointed in rela- 1. By decomposing the initial velocity vector tion to the wind direction? n 0 into the x and y directions, the distance

Image courtesy of the European Space Camp

Figure 3: The flight path of the rocket

40 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science education projects

Web references pieces you need (though note that group at the European Space Camp. w1 – For instructions for build- the materials are all US standard, so He has worked in the missile products ing our rocket launcher, see the may not be compatible with Euro- division of Nammo Raufoss since Science in School website: www. pean parts). See: www.makershed. 1997, developing new rocket technol- scienceinschool.org/2012/issue22/ com or use the direct link: http:// ogy and improving existing hybrid rockets#resources tinyurl.com/75vdss4 rocket technology. At the European w2 – Instructions for building a rocket For instructions in English and Nor- Space Camp, he is the foremost expert on rockets and how they function. launcher from PVC piping can wegian for building a water rocket, be downloaded from the NASA see the website of Sarepta, Using Rohan Sheth is a third-year student website (www.nasa.gov – search for Space in Education (www.sarepta. at Imperial College London, UK, ‘High-Power Paper Rocket org), or use the direct link: http:// studying towards a master’s degree in Launcher Directions’) or via tinyurl.com/7kl7q5q mathematics, and is currently spend- ing a year as an Erasmus exchange the direct link: http://tinyurl. If you are interested in lessons to take student at the Humboldt University com/7lydxuc you even further into space, find out in Berlin, Germany. He is the British The instructions are part of the how to build a space habitat in the representative at Team Space Camp, NASA rockets educator guide, classroom. See: which organises the European Space which offers many more activities Tranfield E (2011) Building a Camp together with the Norwegian for the classroom. See www.nasa. space habitat in the classroom. Centre for Space Related Education gov or use the direct link: http:// Science in School 19: 43-49. (NAROM). tinyurl.com/yx2et6 www.scienceinschool.org/2011/ Frida Vestnes is a first-year stu- w3 – To find out more about the Euro- issue19/habitat dent at the Norwegian University pean Space Camp and how to apply, To find out how to build a CO -pow- of Science and Technology, studying see http://www.spacecamp.no 2 ered rocket, see: for a master’s degree in mechanical engineering. She is the head of Team Resources Rau M (2011) Fizzy fun: CO in pri- 2 Space Camp. The US magazine Make offers down- mary chool science. Science in School Maria Råken is a first-year student loadable instructions for building 20: 24-29. www.scienceinschool. at the University of Oslo, Norway, a PVC rocket launcher and paper org/2011/ issue20/co2 taking a one-year programme in sci- rocket (http://blog.makezine. For further space-related inspiration, ence before starting a master’s degree com; ‘weekend project: compressed why not browse the other space sci- in chemistry at the Norwegian Uni- air rocket’) or use the direct link: ence articles in Science in School? See: versity of Science and Technology. She http://tinyurl.com/7twlba6 www.scienceinschool.org/space is a member of the Team Space Camp. There’s also a video showing

how to build the launcher on Image courtesy of the European Space Camp YouTube: www.youtube.com/ Jan-Erik Rønningen is a propulsion To learn how to use this code, see page 57. watch?v=eNFfK5uo6D0 engineer at Nammo Raufoss and is You can even buy a kit with all the the leader of the rocket system design

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 41 Harnessing the power of the Sun: fusion reactors

Renewable, clean, unlimited energy – how can it be achieved? Christine Rüth from EFDA introduces the tokamak, the most advanced fusion device. Image courtesy of Rita Thielen / Pixelio

he Sun produces vast 250 kilograms of fuel per year and of fuel. Furthermore, although some amounts of energy by fus- produce electricity without emitting components of a fusion reactor will ing light atomic nuclei into carbon dioxide. A coal-powered plant become radioactive during operation, Theavier particles. If scientists could with the same capacity burns 2.7 this radioactivity is short-lived: the make this process work sustainably megatonnes of coal each year. And materials can be safely disposed of on Earth, we would have a nearly unlike fission, fusion is not a chain re- after about 100 years, as opposed to inexhaustible and climate-friendly action, which makes it inherently and the many thousands of years required energy source. A 1 gigawatt fusion reassuringly safe: to halt the reaction, for a fission reactor (for more details, power plant would consume only it is necessary only to stop the supply see Warrick, 2006).

42 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science topics Image courtesy of EFDA-JET Physics Interdisciplinary Environmental science Energy production Fusion Sustainability Ages 10-19 This article describes the re- Figure 1: A fusion power plant will fuse tritium (two neutrons, blue, search into producing elec- one proton, red) and deuterium (one neutron, one proton) nuclei, trical energy by the fusion generating a helium-4 nucleus and a highly energetic neutron of light atomic nuclei – just as the Sun does. It offers physics or science teachers a detailed overview of how Scientists at Europe’s largest fusion The fusion device fusion works, and what the experiment, the Joint European Torus Currently, the most advanced type challenges are to produc- (JET) in Culham, UK, have been of fusion device is the tokamak. At ing energy in a fusion power making significant progress towards the heart of a tokamak is the reactor, a plant. fusion energy for more than 30 years. ring-shaped steel vessel with numer- The issues of climate change Nonetheless, the JET experiment still ous openings for heating, measure- and the greenhouse effect requires more power than it generates ment and other systems, and an inner mean that many countries – which is not good for a power plant. wall lined with removable heat-resist- have to solve the problem The next step will be the international ant tiles (Figure 2). To start the fusion of how to produce renew- experiment ITER, due to be switched process, the vessel is subjected to high able energy in a sustainable on in 2019. ITER is expected to be the vacuum – at JET, this value is around way. This article therefore first to produce a net power surplus – 0.00000001 millibar – and a few grams could be useful not only for 500 megawatts from a 50 megawatts of deuterium and tritium gas are physics lessons, but also for input (see Warrick, 2006). This would injected. The gas is heated to above biology, geography and lan- prove that fusion power plants are 10 000 °C, at which point the electrons guage lessons. viable. The article would stimulate So how does fusion work? Image courtesy of EFDA discussion around a broad To achieve fusion on Earth, scien- range of questions, includ- tists picked the most efficient reaction ing: that takes place in the Sun – the fusion of two isotopes of hydrogen: deute- · How does fusion work? rium and tritium. This reaction yields · Why, even after 30 years a helium-4 nucleus and a neutron, of research, are we not yet which carries 80% of the fusion energy producing energy from fu- (Figure 1). These fast neutrons are sion power plants? What captured in the steel wall of the fusion are the challenges? reactor, which transfers the heat to · What could be the advan- cooling fluids within the wall, which tages of using fusion reac- in turn drive a turbine to produce tors? electricity. · Is the production of ener- gy by fusion sustainable?

Gerd Vogt, Higher Second- Figure 2: Cutaway diagram of the tokamak JET showing the steel vessel ary School for Environment surrounded by eight large copper coils, which produce the magnetic and Economics, Yspertal, fields. Note the person on the left to give an indication of size Austria REVIEW www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 43 escape from their nuclei. This ionised Figure 3: A magnetic field B imparts a force on moving charged particles. The gas is called plasma, or the fourth entire electromagnetic force on a charged particle with charge q and velocity v is state of matter; it is the basis for pro- called the Lorentz force and is given by ducing fusion power. F = qE + qv × B Conditions for fusion The first term (qE) is contributed by the electric field. The second term (qv x B) is Getting nuclei to fuse is no easy the magnetic force and has a direction perpendicular to both the velocity v and feat: they are positively charged and the magnetic field B. The magnetic force is proportional to q and to the magni- repel each other, so they must collide tude of v × B. In terms of the angle ϕ between v and B, the magnitude of the force at extremely high speeds to fusew1. equals qvB sin ϕ. (Source: Encyclopædia Britannica Online (magnetic force: moving charges). Accessed 23 January 2012. Because particle speed corresponds www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/1319/Magnetic-force-on-moving-charges) to temperature, the plasma has to be millions of degrees Celsius before the fusion process will start. Although the plasma loses heat at its edges, it can A: Moving charged particles in a keep itself hot by absorbing energy magnetic field are subject to the Lorentz force and spiral around the carried by the helium nuclei produced field lines. Positively and negatively in the reaction, and this self-sustained charged particles spiral in opposite Images courtesy of EFDA fusion process can continue as long directions. as new fuel is injected. However, the challenge is to reach that state and ig- nite the plasma. To ignite, the plasma must be hot enough, dense enough (to ensure a sufficient fusion reaction B: The particles’ rate) and keep its energy for long movement without enough – this last condition is called a magnetic field the confinement time. The product of the three parameters – temperature, density and confine- ment time – is the triple product, a cen-

Image courtesy of EFDA Inner poloidal field coils tral parameter in fusion science. Typi- Outer poloidal field coils (primary transformer circuit) cally, for the fusion reaction to start, (for plasma positioning Poloidal magnetic field the plasma has to be 100-200 million °C, and shaping) with a density of about 1020 particles per cubic metre, (approximately 1 mg/m3, one millionth of the density of air) and this state must be confined for around 3-6 secondsw2. Such a high temperature sounds challenging, but heating is not the problem (see below). Instead, it is the confinement time that is hard to achieve – main- taining that temperature (and density) – because the plasma rapidly loses energy as well as particles (which also carry energy). Resulting helical magnetic field Toroidal field coils Plasma electric current Toroidal magnetic field How does a tokamak work? (secondary transformer circuit) 1) Keeping the plasma together: magnetic fields Figure 4: Several sets of coils, together with a plasma current, create the helical magnetic field that confines the plasma. The inner poloidal field coils in the To maintain the high temperature central solenoid induce the plasma current and protect the reactor walls (which

44 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science topics Image courtesy of spectacle productions; image source: Flickr

would otherwise erode quickly), the plasma needs to be kept away from the reactor walls. To do this, fusion scientists exploit the Lorentz force experienced by a moving charged particle when a magnetic field, is ap- plied. This force is perpendicular to both the particle’s direction of travel and the magnetic field, and therefore causes the particle to rotate around the magnetic field line. As a result, the particle spirals around the field line – with electrons and nuclei moving in opposite directions (Figure 3). The most advanced magnetic confinement design is the tokamak, a ring-shaped vacuum chamber sur- rounded by coils. An electric current flowing through one set of coils (the toroidal field coils, Figure 4) gener- ates a ring-shaped magnetic field. The strength of this toroidal (doughnut- shaped) field is not uniform across the ring, because the coils are closer together on the inside of the torus (doughnut). Therefore the particles experience a stronger Lorentz force on the inner side of the field line around Will future power stations which they are rotating. As a result, be powered by fusion? they gradually drift away from their field line towards the plasma edge. To reduce this effect, a second magnetic field, the poloidal field, is generated. This helical field winds in spirals around the plasma and The Sun, as im- confines it very effectively. The easiest aged by the Extreme way to generate a poloidal field is Ultraviolet Imaging with a plasma current. That in turn Telescope aboard the is generated when the plasma parti- Solar and Helio- cles travel along the ring around the spheric Observatory toroidal field lines – electrons and ions (SOHO), stationed 1.5 million kilome- moving in opposite directions. Like tres from Earth a wire, this current creates a ring- shaped magnetic field around itself. It is induced by a transformer in which the plasma itself acts as a secondary coil around a large primary coil (the inner poloidal field coils). Because the plasma tends to drift vertically, an additional magnetic field created by the outer poloidal field coils is used to control its position and shape.

Image courtesy of ESA, NASA, SOHO / EIT team www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 45

2) Heating 46 . Beamsofhigh-energy particles, 2. Theplasmacurrent produces heat 1. complementary systems(Figure 5). lion °C,fusionscientistsusethree Image courtesy of EFDA of courtesy Image To heattheplasmato100-200mil- I can penetratethemagneticfield uncharged (neutral)particles particle (orion).However, only high voltageexertsonacharged relies ontheattractiveforce thata sary velocity, aparticle accelerator To givetheparticlesneces- In practice,thisisnoeasytask. injection. turned intoneutralatomsbefore field around theplasma,they are cannot penetratethemagnetic voltage. Becausecharged particles ated byacceleratingionswithhigh up). Theparticlebeamisgener- a slowerball,whichthenspeeds (think ofafastbilliard ballhitting plasma particlesviacollisions they transfertheirenergy tothe injected intotheplasma,where usually hydrogen atoms,are current flowsthrough it. wire warmsupwhenanelectric (ohmic heating)itself–justasa Science inSchool Ohmic heating hydrogen atoms Energetic I Issue22:Spring 2012 Electrical current

BACKGROUND heating Radio frequency D nucleuscomprisestwo protons,each weighing1.67262·10 one neutronandproton,each weighing1.6·10 70 GWhofelectricity(with1eV=1.6*10 A fusionpower plantwithanefficiency of40%couldgenerate 6 14.1/(2*1.67262*10 1 kgDwith1.5 T (themassof T is1.5timesthatofD)yields ried by theneutronandcanbeusedtoproduceelectricity. Fusing leases 17.6MeVofenergy, 80%ofwhich –14.1MeViscar The fusionofonetritium(T)anddeuterium(D)nucleusre- fission plants)willuse150kg T and100 kg Dperyear. producing 1GWelectricity (a capacitysimilartothoseofnuclear lithium, 2.3kgofwhich yields1kgtritium. A fusionpower plant the neutronsproducedinfusionreaction: can beobtainedfromthelightmetallithium,withaid of some per cubicmetre. Tritium isnotfoundinlargequantitiesnaturebut Deuterium canbeextracted fromseawater, which contains35grams enough tosupply20average householdsinanindustrialcountry. therefore resultsin3·10 1 kgofD(with1.5 T, asthemassof T is1.5timesthatofD) or inasimilarreactionwith 4.2 x10 One kilogram ofD contains3·10 Fusion energy waves Electromagnetic Li +n=> 27 MeVofenergy. 4 He + Neutral beaminjection heating 3 H +energy Antenna - 27 ) =4.2*10 Transmission line 26 beam injectionandradio frequency heating systems areused:ohmicheating,neutral million °C,threecomplementaryheating Figure 5: To achieve aplasmaof100-200 fusionreactionsandyields14.1x3·10 7 Li. MostofEarth’s minerals contain 27 26 MeV, takingintoaccountthatone

nuclei (oneDnucleuscomprises - 19 Jor Ws) from1kgD, www.scienceinschool.org - 27 kg). Fusing - 27 26 kg.

= -

Science topics

around the plasma, so the (un- charged) hydrogen atoms must More about EFDA-JET first be stripped of their electrons, accelerated and then neutralised again before injectionw3. 3. Antennae in the vessel wall are used to propagate electromagnetic waves of certain frequencies into As a joint venture, JET is collectively used by more than 40 European fusion the plasma. These cause the spiral- laboratories. The European Fusion Development Agreement (EFDA) provides ling plasma particles to resonate the platform to exploit JET with more than 350 scientists and engineers from and absorb the wave energy. all over Europe currently contributing to the JET programme. EFDA-JET is a member of EIROforumw4, the publisher of Science in School. Why is fusion power taking so long? To see all EFDA-JET-related articles in Science in School, see: www.scienceinschool.org/efdajet In the 1970s, scientists believed that once they could heat the plasma sufficiently and create large enough magnetic fields, they would have to be solved and the first fusion power www.scienceinschool.org/2006/ reached the goal of fusion energy. plant could be in operation by 2050. issue1/fusion But the plasma has turned out to be highly unstable and loses much more Acknowledgement Web references energy than they expected. Since then, Thanks are due to Örs Benedekfi, w1 – At the 2007 Science on Stage in- scientists have been investigating the former head of EFDA public informa- ternational teaching festival, Zoltán physics behind these phenomena and tion, for his contribution to this article. Köllö won a prize for his simple developing methods to control these demonstration of nuclear fusion and instabilities. If, as expected, ITER fi- Reference the Coulomb barrier using a couple nally generates a net surplus of fusion Warrick C (2006) Fusion – ace in the of drops of water and the base of a power, these issues can be considered energy pack? Science in School 1: 52-55. drinks can. To learn how to do it, Image courtesy of Khánh Hmoong; image source: Flickra

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 47 see: www.esa.int/SPECIALS/ link: http://tinyurl.com/neutral- Stanley H (2009) Plasma balls: Science_on_Stage/ beam creating the 4th state of matter with SEMRE58OY2F_0.html w4 – To find out more about EIROfo- microwaves. Science in School 12: 24- To find out more about Science on rum, see: www.eiroforum.org 29. www.scienceinschool.org/2009/ Stage, the network of European issue12/fireballs science teachers, see: www. If you enjoyed reading this article, Resources scienceonstage.eu why not take a look at the full w2 – To learn more about fusion, To learn more about fusion in the Sun, collection of articles on fusion fusion reactors and EFDA-JET, see: see: published in Science in School? See: www.efda.org Westra MT (2006) Fusion in the www.scienceinschool.org/fusion In particular, for the full story of Universe: the power of the Sun. JET, its design and results, see: Science in School 3: 60-62. http://tinyurl.com/scienceofjet www.scienceinschool.org/2006/ Dr Christine Rüth is the editor of the EFDA newsletter Fusion in Europe. To watch a video of a plasma pulse issue3/fusion She did her physics PhD in the field of in JET, see the multimedia section of For a comprehensive overview of fu- climate research and finds it interest- the EFDA website (www.efda.org/ sion research in Europe, including ing to be involved now in climate- multimedia; ‘Video Gallery’ then background information on plasma friendly energy solutions. After ‘JET Experiment’) or use the direct physics and reactor types, as well as working as a physicist in industry, she link http://tinyurl.com/plasma- wonderful animations and videos, gained a master’s degree in science pulse see: www.efda.org communication and has worked since w3 – For more details of how the To find out how scientists accidentally then as a science and technology com- high-energy particle beams are pro- created plasma in their microwave, municator. duced, see the EFDA website and how they used it for their re- (www.efda.org) or use the direct search, see:

To learn how to use this code, see page 57.

Image courtesy of Arno Bach ert / pix elio. de Image courtesy of Khánh Hmoong; image source: Flickr Image courtesy of Britta Tewes / Pixelio

48 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science topics

Genetic fingerprinting: a look inside

In popular TV detective series, genetic Biology Genetics fingerprinting is commonly used to Forensic science identify criminals. Sara Müller and Heike Ages 14-19 The idea of using DNA to Göllner-Heibült take a look behind the identify one individual in scenes. the world is mind-blowing. The genetic fingerprinting of an individual relies on he idea of distinguishing peo- group systems simultaneously, how- the sequences are that not ple by their genetic character- ever, about one in ten people give used in coding, but how are istics is not new. Discovered identical results; this is what makes these fingerprints created? in 1900 by Karl Landsteinerw1, ABO blood transfusions possible. For foren- This article explains. T blood typing was the first genetic sic purposes, however, it is a disad- The ability to identify crimi- marker to be used in forensics, later vantage: the results may tell you that nals from DNA databases complemented by MN blood groups your blood sample does not come from raises important questions: (1927) and the Rhesus factor (1937). Suspect X, but they cannot tell you is it ethical to hold human Even when we analyse all three blood with any acceptable level of certainty DNA in such databases or is that it does come from Suspect Y. it a breach of human rights? Advances were made in the 1970s Image courtesy Should there be a DNA fin- of Arno and 80s, with the analysis of differ- Bach ert / gerprint for every person or pix elio. ent forms of enzymes (isoenzymes) de

just those who are arrested? in red blood cells and blood serum. Image courtesy of Alex Mit / iStockphoto.com How long should the DNA The certainty that the sample really profile be kept? came from the suspect depended on Students may wish to dis- cuss how genetic finger- printing can help diagnose genetic diseases, as well as its application in the fight against poaching and spe- cies extinction. Ideally they should be able to try the technique for themselves, either as a real or a simu- lated experiment.

REVIEW Shelley Goodman, UK

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 49 Image courtesy of Darryl Leja, NHGRI / NIH for building the proteins we need for life. However, of our 3 billion base pairs (bp), only about 4% actually code for proteins; the rest is often just ‘filling’ consisting of repetitive se- Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) quences organised in clusters. If you compare the DNA of two humans, most of it is identical, with the vari- ability found largely in these repeti-

One base pair, A-T tive sequences. Different people can have differ- ent numbers of repetitions of these sequences: one person may have five repeats at a specific DNA locus (site); Chromosome another person may have seven. Us- ing samples, e.g. from blood or se- men, we can analyse the repetitive sequences at several DNA loci; we call this analysis a genetic fingerprint. Like fingerprints, genetic fingerprints can From base be used to distinguish individuals. pairs to chro-chro- Although the term ‘genetic finger- mosomes (not to printing’ (or genetic profiling) is com- scale): how DNA monly used, not everybody is aware is packaged that it actually encompasses two very different techniques, only one of which is commonly used in forensics the number of proteins analysed (usu- Our genetic composition – who today. ally four); we call this certainty the we are power of discrimination. The power of Early genetic fingerprinting: discrimination that these combined The human genome consists of 46 restriction fragment length techniques offered was still only paired chromosomes: 23 from our polymorphism Image courtesy of Ulla Trampert / pixelio.de 1:1000, better than the 1:10 power mother, 23 from our father. We there- of blood group analysis but still not fore have two of each chromosome The first method of genetic finger- good enough. To get a better power, (except – in the case of men – sex printing was invented in 1984 by Alec we needed to take a closer look at our chromosomes) and thus two copies of Jeffreysw2, who used repeated DNA genetic composition. each gene. sequences known as variable number The main component of chro- tandem repeats (VNTRs; e.g. sequence

mosomes is deoxyribonucleic acid D1S80, (AGGACCACCAGGAAGG)n). (DNA), which contains information These sequences, 10-100 bp per repeat, Genetic fin- gerprinting can be used in conservation work, for example to analyse confis- cated ivory

50 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science topics

Image courtesy of Sara Müller can be investigated using restriction VNTR A VNTR B enzymes, which work like molecular Allele A4 Allele B3 scissors to cut the DNA at defined Individual 1 sequences (recognition sequences). In Allele A2 Allele B7 our entire genome, a 6 bp recognition sequence will occur around 730 000 times. This means that if you cut the Allele A5 Allele B4 genome with a particular restriction Individual 2 Allele A2 Allele B4 enzyme, you will get around 730 000 restriction fragments of varying lengths. And this is where the VNTRs become important: the number of repeats in Figure 1: Overview about two VNTRs from two different individuals. Sites cut by restriction enzymes (molecular scissors) are indicated by an arrow. Depending on a particular VNTR cluster may vary the number of VNTR repeats, DNA fragments of different sizes are generated (see also Figure 2, Step 4) 1. Size separa- tion of digested DNA Figure 2: RFLP analysis after digesting the DNA with restriction enzymes fragments by gel electro- phoresis. Large molecules 4. with slow mobility in the gel 2.-3. The ex-

Image courtesy of Sara Müller can be seen at the top of the Southern blot posed X-ray film picture; small molecules with technique. Sepa- shows an individual higher mobility in the rated DNA is transferred fingerprint for each gel are at the to a membrane and person (compare to bottom subsequently detected on Figure 1) the membrane with radio- actively labelled probes against VNTRs A and B

IndividualIndividual 1 Size 2 standard Individual 1 Individual 2 Individual 1 Individual 2 1 2 3 4

≈300 g Allele B7 Allele A5 Paper towels Allele A4 Allele B4 2x filter paper Allele B3 Membrane Gel Filter paper Allele A2 Allele A2 Glass plate

Buffer solution

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 51 Image courtesy of Sara Müller

to pull the charged molecules of DNA (AGAA)n), to be amplified exponen- through a gel. The distance travelled tially, generating a billion copies of a was determined by the fragment size single DNA molecule in a few hours (Figure 2, Step 1, page 51). Next, they (Figure 3). For forensic scientists, transferred the DNA to a membrane this has the advantage of making the Cycle 1 (Figure 2, Step 2) and applied a ra- analysis of even very tiny samples dioactively labelled probe that was possible – as few as 30 cells (see Table complementary to the VNTR(s) of 1 on page 54 for a comparison with interest. The probe hybridised (stuck) RFLP-based genetic fingerprinting). to the matching sequences (Figure 2, For PCR analysis, we need STRs Cycle 2 Step 3) and by placing the membrane flanked by sequences that are identi- on an X-ray film, the scientists got a cal in all human beings (we say these picture of the radioactively labelled sequences are conserved). We then bands, each of which represented a use primers – short molecules that Cycle 3 different length of fragment (Figure 2, are complementary to the conserved Step 4). This picture was the genetic flanking sequences (genes 1134 and fingerprint. 1135 in Figure 4) – to initiate the PCR. So how many VNTRs needed to Once the DNA has been amplified, Figure 3: A simplified diagram showing be compared to reliably distinguish we can separate it either by gel elec- how defined DNA fragments are between individuals? If the scientists trophoresis (Figure 5) or, in modern amplified by PCR chose VNTRs with enough variation forensic science, by electrophoretic (e.g. D1S80, which may be repeated automated sequencing (Figure 6), and anything from 15 to 41 times), they visualise it as a genetic fingerprint. between individuals, which means only needed to compare four different We have two copies of each chromo- that the length of the corresponding VNTRs to have a power of discrimina- some, so we also have two copies of restriction fragment will vary between tion of 1:1 million – much better than each STR. If, for each copy of the STR, individuals too (Figure 1). We call this the 1:10 offered by ABO blood typing. someone has the same number of rep- phenomenon restriction fragment length etitions (i.e. the same allele), the PCR polymorphism (RFLP). The current technique: PCR- analysis reveals only one size of DNA Of the 730 000 restriction frag- based genetic fingerprinting fragment: the person is homozygous ments, only some will differ between for that STR allele (green arrow in individuals – too few to be detected Kary Mullis’ invention, in 1983, of Figure 5, corresponding to individual by eye. Instead, scientists used a the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) 2 in Figure 4). If the two chromosomes technique called Southern blotting, won him the Nobel Prize in Chemis- carry non-identical alleles for that which allowed only the sequences of tryw3, w4. This invention, together STR, we see two sizes of fragment and interest to be visualised. To do this, with the discovery in the late 1980s say that the person is heterozygous they separated the restriction frag- of short tandem repeats (STRs) – (red arrow in Figure 5, corresponding ments according to size by gel elec- 2-9 bp repeated sequences, also called to individual 1 from Figure 4). trophoresis, using an electric current microsatellites – paved the way for If we only analyse one STR, the the high-speed genetic fingerprinting chance of two unrelated people hav-

rtesy of Siegfrie technique that forensic scientists use ing the same PCR-based genetic ge cou d Fries Ima / pi xelio .de today. fingerprint is high – between 1:2 and PCR enables a DNA locus of interest 1:100 (blue arrows in Figure 5). This is (e.g. the 4 bp STR known as D18S51, because STRs have fewer alleles and lower heterozygosity than the VNTRs used in RFLP-based genetic finger- prints. To overcome this disadvantage, we analyse multiple STRs simultane- ously; with 16 STRs, as is common in forensic casework in Germany, we can achieve a power of discrimination of 1:10 billion (equivalent to one person in the world’s population; Figure 6).

52 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science topics

Applications of genetic STR D1S80 fingerprinting Individual 1 Individual 2 We now know what genetic finger- Allele A5 Allele A4 printing is, but how is it used? PCR- Gene 1134 Gene 1135 Gene 1134 Gene 1135 based genetic fingerprinting is widely Allele A7 Allele A4 applicable in forensic investigations: it enables the police to exclude or iden- tify suspects on the basis of genetic Image courtesy of Sara Müller material such as hair follicles, skin, Figure 4: Schematic view of the STR D1S80 (the nomenclature ‘D1S80’ tells us that semen, saliva or blood (see the story the STR is on chromosome 1, in region 80) from two individuals. The black arrows that can be downloaded from the Sci- represent the primers used to amplify that specific STR ence in School websitew5). A genetic fingerprint alone, however, is not suf- ficient evidence for a conviction, as close relatives may have very similar 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 M fingerprints (and monozygotic twins will normally have identical ones). And to complicate international foren- 3000 bp sic investigations, although there is a PCR products 1000 bp European recommendation to analyse (D1S80) 500 bp 16 STRs, each country can decide 200 bp which STRs to analyse, which makes comparisons difficult. Image courtesy of Sara Müller The PCR-based method is also used Figure 5: Genetic fingerprint of the D1S80 locus generated by school students (chan- in humans for paternity testing, di- nels numbered 1–16) with their own DNA. The lane on the far right, labelled M, agnosing many genetic diseases (e.g. contains DNA fragments of known sizes, used as markers. Huntingdon’s disease), identifying The individual indicated with the green arrow is homozygous for the D1S80 locus disaster victims, tracing family trees, (only one band is visible). The individual marked by the red arrow is heterozygous tracking down missing people and (two bands). The blue arrows indicate two students who are heterozygous and have the investigating historical figures (e.g. same number of repeats for each allele at the D1S80 locus; this means that they can- the last Tsar of Russia and his family). not be distinguished by the fingerprint. They may be twins, but it is also likely that two unrelated persons will have the same number of repeats if only one STR is analysed In other organisms, it can be used for conservation purposes (e.g. to analyse confiscated ivory), in drug investiga- tions (e.g. by analysing seized can- nabis plants), to control food or water quality (e.g. by identifying contami- nating microbes), in medicine (e.g. to detect viral infections such as HIV, hepatitis or influenza) and in bioter- Amelogenin rorism investigations (e.g. to identify microbial strains). RFLP-based genetic fingerprinting, although largely obsolete due to the many advantages of the PCR method (Table 1), is still used for classifying Image courtesy of Sara Müller plants and animals in basic research. Figure 6: Electropherogram of a woman, generated by multiplex PCR and subsequent It is particularly useful when there is electrophoretic automated sequencing. Eight STRs (D3, TH01, D21, D18, SE33, vWA, insufficient information about the ge- D8 and FGA) and amelogenin (which indicates the sex) were analysed. The blue, nome of the species – remember that green and black curves represent amplified STRs (with repeat numbers below the peaks). The red curve is the marker (DNA fragment size labelled in bp) for the PCR method, we need regions that vary widely between individuals www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 53 Table 1: Comparison of RFLP- and PCR-based DNA fingerprinting After Butler 2010 RFLP PCR

Amount of starting DNA 30–50 µg At least 200 pg (about 30 cells) for a complete STR pattern Sensitivity + +++ DNA quality required for Complete genome No complete genome necessary; degradation products also suf- analysis ficient because of the short sequences involved (total sequence length of an STR, including multiple repeats and flanking sequences, approximately 50– 500 bp) Time Days to weeks Hours Discrimination power per +++ + locus (More alleles and more het- (Fewer alleles and less heterozygosity per locus) erozygosity per locus) However, multiplex PCR amplification (PCR with more than one pair of primers) and multi-colour labelling allows more than 16 loci to be examined simultaneously, which provides an excellent power of discrimination Repeat unit 10 bp to 100 bp 2 bp to 9 bp (in forensic case work, mainly 4 bp) Automated detection Not possible High-throughput sample processing possible Number of validated loci Limited number Large number (important if relatives are involved) Risk for contamination + +++ Additional safety measures Yes (because of radioactive No (no radioactive probing) required? probing)

sy of e3000; image sour courte ce: Flick Identical twins would Image r normally have identical and are flanked by conserved regions genetic fingerprints of known sequence.

Genetic fingerprinting at school The isolation of DNA at school gives the students a ‘wow’ moment when they realise that they are looking at the complete genetic information cod- ing for an organism – a few cotton wool-like strands of DNA that were precipitated by alcohol. It is easy to perform at school using salivaw6 (or epithelial cells from commercially available kits), peas (Madden, 2006), tomatoes, onionsw7 or calf thymus (although check local restrictions on using calf thymus at school)w8. Subsequent PCR of a specific STR in human DNA, for example D1S80 or TH01, can be performed at schoolw6, using reasonably priced commercially available kitsw9 if necessary. If your

54 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Science topics

Image courtesy of the Romanov Collection, General Collection, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University

Madden D (2006) Discovering DNA. Science in School 1: 34-36. www. scienceinschool.org/2006/issue1/ discoveringdna Web references w1 – In 1930, Karl Landsteiner was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiol- ogy or Medicine for his discovery of human blood groups. To learn more, see the Nobel Prize website (www. nobelprize.org) or use the direct link: http://tinyurl.com/7zjg2mw w2 – To learn more about Alec Jef- Public domain image; image source: Wikimedia Commons freys’ discovery, see: www2.le.ac. Nicholas II, the uk/departments/genetics/jeffreys last Tsar of Russia (left and and http://genome.wellcome. above), with Tsarina Alexandra and their four daughters (above). ac.uk/doc_wtd020877.html Following the Russian revolution, In an interview with Science in the entire family were murdered in School, Alec Jeffreys discusses his July 1918. Their bodies, found in 1979 discovery: (the Tsar, Tsarina and three daugh- Hodge R, Wegener, A-L (2006) ters) and 2007 (the Tsarevich and the remaining daughter, Maria) Alec Jeffreys interview: a pioneer were identified by genetic on the frontier of human diversity. fingerprinting Science in School 3: 16-19. www.scienceinschool.org/2006/ issue3/jeffreys w3 – The 1993 Nobel Prize in Chem- school has no access to a thermocycler, directly on the gel), but it nonetheless istry was won by Kary B Mullis for the thermocycling can be carried out demonstrates the principles of the his invention of the polymerase in three water baths, although it is analytical process. When using these chain reaction (PCR). To learn more, tedious and very hands-on. simulation kits, the students should see the Nobel Prize website (www. If this equipment is not available, be made aware that the experiments nobelprize.org) or use the direct there are kits that both simulate and give the impression that differences link: http://tinyurl.com/7fkh7ku simplify the whole process of genetic between individuals can be easily w4 – To learn more about PCR, watch fingerprintingw10. These kits contain identified, which is not the case. this video: www.youtube.com/ fragments of DNA that simulate the watch?v=_YgXcJ4n-kQ amplification of different alleles of a Acknowledgement w5 – A story illustrating how genetic single STR or VNTR. (In fact, they are The authors would like to thank fingerprinting is used in forensic restriction fragments of DNA from Wolfgang Nellen for his ideas about casework can be downloaded from plasmid or lambda phage DNA.) The the article and for allowing the Sci- the Science in School website: www. DNA requires electrophoresis and ence Bridge instructions to be made scienceinschool.org/2012/issue22/ subsequent staining so that students available free of charge. fingerprinting#resources are able to compare ‘amplified’ DNA They are also grateful to Shelley w6 – For instructions (in both sequences from a sample of evidence Goodman for her advice on using English and German) for PCR-based with those of several suspects. Of commercial kits at school. genetic fingerprinting at school, course, this is very different from de- see the Science Bridge website tecting amplified STRs using electro- References (www.sciencebridge.net) or use phoretic automatic sequencing (and Butler JM (2010) Fundamentals of fo- the direct link: http://tinyurl. does not even accurately represent the rensic DNA typing. Amsterdam, com/89u7m53 visualisation of VNTRs using South- Netherlands: Academic Press. ISBN: ern blotting, as the DNA is stained 9780123749994 Science Bridge membership is nor- mally necessary to access these in- www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 55 structions, but readers of this article To find out more about PCR and STRs, can request them free of charge from as well as worldwide DNA databas- [email protected] es and forensic case work, see: Sara Müller studied biology, chem- istry and education at the University w7 – For instructions (in German) Goodwin W, Linacre A, Hadi S of Kassel, Germany, and received her for isolating DNA from onions or (2010) An Introduction to Forensic teaching degree for secondary schools tomatoes, see the Science Bridge Genetics. Chichester, UK: Wiley- in 2008. In December 2011, she fin- website (www.sciencebridge.net) or Blackwell. ISBN: 978-0470710197 use the direct link: http://tinyurl. ished her PhD thesis in the field of For a classroom game on DNA detec- com/7z56745 epigenetics, also at the University of tion, see: Kassel. Since February 2012, she has To find out how to isolate DNA Wallace-Müller K (2011) The DNA been doing her practical training as a from tomatoes (instructions in Eng- detective game. Science in School teacher in Göttingen, Germany. She lish), see: http://ucbiotech.org/ 19: 30-35. www.scienceinschool. has been a member of the executive edu/edu_aids/TomatoDNA.html org/2011/issue19/detective board of Science Bridgew6 for the past w8 – For instructions (in German) for The University of Arizona, USA, de- seven years. isolating DNA from calf thymus, see scribes how to carry out a school Heike Göllner-Heibült is a DNA the Science Bridge website (www. activity on DNA profiling using forensic science expert with a back- sciencebridge.net) or use the direct STRs. See: www.biology.arizona.edu ground in molecular biology. She link http://tinyurl.com/6lwu83g or use the direct link: http://tinyurl. studied human biology at the Philipps w9 – For examples of commercial kits com/7zteg9n University of Marburg, Germany, that can be used for PCR analysis at The website of the DNA Initiative: Ad- spending several months at the Er- school, see the ‘crime scene investi- vancing Criminal Justice Through asmus University of Rotterdam, the gator PCR basics kit’ on the Biorad DNA Technology offers a free online Netherlands, and at the University website (www.bio-rad.com) and the course in forensic DNA analysis. of Cambridge, UK. In 2002, she fin- PCR advanced kits on the Edvotek Aimed at lawyers, it and the accom- ished her PhD in molecular biology website (www.edvotek.co.uk). panying case study provide an ex- at the Institute of Molecular Biology w10 – For examples of commercial cellent introduction to the topic. See: and Tumor Research in Marburg and school kits that simulate and sim- www.dna.gov/training/otc started work in DNA forensics as a DNA expert and reporting officer. She plify the process of genetic finger- To investigate a real database of STRs, currently works for the Forensic Sci- printing, see the ‘forensic DNA visit the website of the US National ence Institute of the office of criminal fingerprinting kit’ on the Biorad Institute of Standards and Technol- investigation in Berlin, Germany. website (www.bio-rad.com) and the ogy: www.cstl.nist.gov/biotech/ ‘DNA fingerprinting by restriction strbase fragmentation patterns kits’ (under To learn more about how genetic dis- ‘forensics’ and ‘DNA’) on the Ed- eases are diagnosed, see: votek website (www.edvotek.co.uk). Patterson L (2009) Getting a grip on Resources genetic diseases. Science in School 13: 53-58. www.scienceinschool. To learn how to use this To learn more about repetitive DNA org/2009/issue13/insight code, see page 57. and methods (RFLP and PCR), see: If you enjoyed this article, you may Klug WS, et al. (2008) Concepts of Ge- like to browse the other biology-re- th netics 9 edition. San Francisco, CA, lated articles in Science in School. See: USA: Pearson. ISBN: 9780321524041 www.scienceinschool.org/biology

56 I Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Safety note Publisher: EIROforum, For all of the activities published in Science in Science topics www.eiroforum.org School, we have tried to check that all recognised EIROforum Editor-in-chief: Dr Eleanor Hayes, hazards have been identified and that suitable Science in School is published and funded by European Molecular Biology Laboratory, precautions are suggested. Users should be aware, EIROforum, a collaboration between eight of however, that errors and omissions can be made, Europe’s largest inter-governmental scientific Germany and safety standards vary across Europe and even research organisations, which combines the re- Editor: Dr Marlene Rau, within individual countries. sources, facilities and expertise of its member or- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, ganisations to support European science in reaching Therefore, before undertaking any activity, users its full potential. See: www.eiroforum.org Germany should always carry out their own risk assessment. Editorial board: In particular, any local rules issued by employers or CERN Dr Giovanna Cicognani, education authorities MUST be obeyed, whatever is The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) is one of the world’s most prestigious Institut Laue-Langevin, France suggested in the Science in School articles. research centres. Its main mission is fundamental Dr Dominique Cornuéjols, European Unless the context dictates otherwise, it is assumed that: physics – finding out what makes our Universe work, Synchrotron Radiation Facility, France · Practical work is carried out in a properly where it came from, and where it is going. See: Monica Talevi, European Space Agency, equipped and maintained science laboratory www.cern.ch the Netherlands · Any electrical equipment is properly maintained EFDA-JET · Care is taken with normal laboratory operations Russ Hodge, Max Delbrück Zentrum, The Joint European Torus (JET) investigates the such as heating potential of fusion as a safe, clean, and virtually Germany · Good laboratory practice is observed when limitless energy source for future generations. It can Dr Rolf Landua, European Organization for chemicals or living organisms are used create the conditions (100-200 million °C) in the Nuclear Research (CERN), Switzerland · Eye protection is worn whenever there is any plasma sufficient for fusion of deuterium and tritium Dr Dean Madden, National Centre for recognised risk to the eyes nuclei to occur – and it has observed fusion power to a maximum of 16 MW. As a joint venture, JET is Biotechnology Education, University of · Pupils and / or students are taught safe techniques collectively used by more than 40 European fusion Reading, UK for activities such as handling living organisms, laboratories. The European Fusion Development Dr Petra Nieckchen, European Fusion hazardous materials and equipment. Agreement (EFDA) provides the platform to exploit Development Agreement, UK Credits JET, with more than 350 scientists and engineers Science in School Dr Douglas Pierce-Price, European Southern is a non-profit activity. Initially from all over Europe currently contributing to the JET supported by the European Commission, it is now programme. See: www.jet.efda.org Observatory, Germany funded by EIROforum. 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Research For further details, see: http://creativecommons.org PDF, send the article to your friends, leave focuses on science in a variety of fields: condensed All articles in Science in School carry the relevant matter physics, chemistry, biology, nuclear physics comments, and much more. copyright logos or other copyright notice. and materials science. See: www.ill.eu www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 I 57 Diving into research at the EIROforum teacher school

Does school feel a long way from modern science? Sonia Furtado Neves explains how 30 teachers recently experienced the thrill of cutting-edge research.

Image courtesy of Artechnique Image courtesy of P Ginter / ESRF cal tutorials enabled the teachers to experience that interdisciplinarity first-hand, imbibing the atmosphere of cutting-edge research and interact- ing with researchers. In this school, the teachers did more than just visit the state-of-the-art facilities of three of the EIROforumw1 members: the European Synchro- tron Radiation Facility (ESRF)w2, the European Molecular Biology Labora- tory (EMBL)w3 and the Institut Laue- w4 The Institut Laue-Langevin Langevin (ILL) . At ESRF beamlines, The building of the Partnership for they learned how to prepare protein Structural Biology, a joint activity of ee, everybody’s trying crystals and explored the computa- EMBL, ESRF and ILL to discuss how to take tional steps necessary to go from raw “ this back and apply it at data to a three-dimensional model of Lidia, Alan and the other 28 teach- school,”S said Alan Glaze, pointing to protein structure, whereas at EMBL ers were also enthusiastic at the pros- an animated huddle at the next lab they observed a ribosome under a pect of swapping tips and experience bench. Alan was one of 30 European cryo-electron microscope. At ILL, they with fellow practitioners, and discuss- science teachers attending the EIRO- were able to see for themselves that ing science education in their coun- forum teacher school in Grenoble, neutrons sometimes behave like a tries and in Europe in general – an France, in October 2011. Selected from wave (when they diffract) and some- exchange made possible thanks to the a pool of 200 candidates, these teach- times like particles (when they hit a support from the course organiser, EI- ers spent four days exploring how detector). ROforum, which covered participants’ electrons, neutrons and X-rays are The lectures, which provided a con- travel and accommodation costs. providing exciting new insights into text for the practical sessions as well And after the course? The aim fields from palaeontology to magnet- as additional examples to share with is that the teachers will spread the ism. their students, were also welcomed. insights gained in these four days not Mathematics. Chemistry. Biology. “It was a fantastic way for me to get only to their current students but also Physics. In school, the sciences are up-to-date scientific knowledge, too,” to future classes and colleagues, and often approached as discrete entities, says Lidia Minza, who teaches chem- ultimately develop their own ways of but in practice these subjects over- istry in Romania. Reawakening the applying this knowledge in the class- lap and intertwine. Under the title teachers’ excitement about the process room. Alan intends to do just that: ‘The physics and chemistry of life’, a of scientific research was a central aim “I’ll be going back to make class plans combination of lectures and practi- of the course. from some of this.”

Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Events

Web references w1 – EIROforum is a collaboration between eight of Europe’s largest in- ter-governmental scientific research organisations. It combines the resources, facilities and expertise of its member organisations to support European science in reaching its full potential. One of its activities is to publish Science in School. To learn more, see: www.eiroforum.org w2 – ESRF, which shares a campus in Grenoble, France, with EMBL and ILL, operates the most power-

ful synchrotron radiation source in Image courtesy of Jan Pavelka Europe. To learn more, see: www. esrf.eu w3 – EMBL is Europe’s leading labo- ratory for basic research in molecu- Sonia Furtado Neves was born in lar biology, with its headquarters London and moved to Portugal at in Heidelberg, Germany, and an the age of three. While studying for a outstation in Grenoble, France. To degree in zoology at the University of learn more, see: www.embl.org Lisbon, she worked at Lisbon Zoo’s w4 – ILL is an international research education department; there, she dis- centre at the leading edge of neu- covered that what she really enjoys is tron science and technology, based telling people about science. She went Image courtesy of Jan Pavelka in Grenoble, France. To learn more, on to do an MSc in Science Commu- see: www.ill.eu nication at Imperial College London, and is now the press officer at the Eu- Resources ropean Molecular Biology Laboratory To learn how to use this code, see Information on the tutorials and addi- (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany. www.scienceinschool.org/help#QR tional resources are available online at: http://tinyurl.com/eiroschool A short video about the course The experimental hall and storage ring building of ESRF

Image courtesy of P Ginter / ESRF is available on YouTube (www.youtube.com; search for ‘Teachers school 2011, Grenoble’) or via the direct link: http://tinyurl. com/89k5yds

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 Camp of brilliant brains Petra Nieckchen from EFDA reports on the 23rd European Union Contest for Young Scientists (EUCYS) in Helsinki, Finland.

ometimes even the richness of the English language is not enough. In their speeches de- Azza Abdel Hamid Faiad, winner of the EFDA-JET prize scribingS participants at the European Union Contest for Young Scientists (EUCYS)w1, representatives of re- nowned institutions used words such as “bright”, “talented”, and “enthusi- S Y C U astic” tirelessly. However, these are in- E f o sufficient words to describe the young y s e t r scientists who presented their work. u o

c

e

The perseverance and seriousness g

a m with which these 16- to 20-year-old I students pursue their projects is astonishing. This generation of highly motivated young researchers has no shyness, and no hesitation in travel- ling 1500 km or more to present their project in a foreign language. Morten Lennholm, an engineer at JETw2 – Eu- rope’s largest fusion device – attended EUCYS to deliver a talk about the science at JET. He had the chance to are an invaluable opportunity for famous Rubik’s Cube without further visit many stands and was extremely promising students to meet ‘real’ help. The European Space Agency impressed with the young scientists: scientists, to present their projects prize went to Andrea Emilio Amedeo “Back when I was their age, I would and, importantly, to start network- Bracesco (19), Jacopo Prinetto (20) and not have had the initiative or the moti- ing. EFDA-JETw2 will be pleased to Federica Villa (19) from Italy, who vation to do the job they have done.” welcome the 2011 prize winner, Azza followed Kepler’s path in estimating EUCYS has a long history. Initiated Abdel Hamid Faiad, from Egyptw4. the mass of Jupiter by observing four in 1968, it was reborn in 1989 when The 16-year-old impressed the jury of the planet’s satellites. Erica Portony the European Commission donated with her project, ‘Production of hy- (18) from the USA can look forward the first cash prizes. Over the years, drocarbon fuel by catalytic cracking to a visit to the European Molecular more and more organisations have of high density polyethylene wastes’. Biology Laboratory for developing a shown interest in encouraging the Azza investigated the potential use of novel method of studying the region next generation of students and have waste plastics as a fuel source, testing of a bacterial protein that is important donated prizes. Since 2000, the mem- a variety of catalytic converters. for the bacterium to attach to kidney bers of EIROforumw3 (the EIROs) have The other EIROs were equally epithelial cells in its host. each offered a visit to their organisa- happy with their chosen young Jane Cox (17), also from the USA, tion to a lucky prize winner. More scientists. The prize from CERN, will travel to one of the European recently, industry has been realising the world’s largest particle physics Southern Observatory’s sites in the the great opportunity that this camp laboratory, was awarded to Florentin Chilean Andes after impressing the of brilliant brains presents for picking Delaine (aged 18), Joseph Gennetay jury with her analysis of the amino out potential employees. (18) and Jason Loyau (19) from France, acid composition of meteorites to The prizes awarded by the EIROs for building a robot that can solve the distinguish terrestrial from extrater-

Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Events

restrial rocks. The prize from the In- forward to welcoming these budding of researchers, and somehow comfort- stitut Laue-Langevin was awarded to scientists. ing that after the award ceremony, Andris Alfreds Avots (17) and Raivis The ceremony at which these and these clever scientists turned back into Eglitis (18) from Latvia for develop- many other prizes were awarded took young people – laughing and flirting, ing a fire-resistant thermal insulation place at Helsinki University main hall, enjoying their scientific adventure, material. Finally, the winners of the a marvellous early 19th century build- their lives, the opposite sex and the European Synchrotron Radiation ing. As the prizes were handed out, prospects of their promising future. Facility prize are Michal Habera and the prize winners’ delight was clearly Michal Fabian (both 18) from Slovakia visible, as was the disappointment of Web references for their project on the influence of those who hadn’t won. w1 – For more information about magnetic fields on free-surface fer- It was a pleasure to exchange EUCYS 2011 in Helsinki, see: rofluid flow. The EIROs are looking information with the next generation http://eucys2011.tek.fi Image courtesy of EUCYS w2 – Situated in Culham, UK, JET is Europe’s largest fusion device. Sci- entific exploitation of JET is under- taken through the European Fusion Development Agreement (EFDA). To learn more, see: www.efda.org EFDA-JET is a member of EIRO- forum, the publisher of Science in School. To learn more, see: www. eiroforum.org w3 – EIROforum is the publisher of Science in School. It combines the resources, facilities and expertise of its member organisations to support European science in reaching its full potential. To learn more, see: www.eiroforum.org The main hall of Helsinki University, where w4 – To listen to an interview with the EUCYS award ceremony was held EFDA-JET prize winner Azza Abdel Hamid Faiad, visit the EFDA web- One of Helsinki’s landmarks: the site (www.efda.org) or use the direct Image courtesy of Birgit Winter; image source: pixelio.de Protestant Cathedral link: http://tinyurl.com/82zumt7 Resources

Image courtesy of Bildpixel; image source: pixelio.de Rueth C (2012) Harnessing the power of the Sun: fusion reactors. Science in School 22: 42-48. www. scienceinschool.org/2012/issue22/ fusion You may also enjoy the Science in School series of articles about fusion. See www.scienceinschool.org/ fusion Helsinki harbour, in the heart of the city

Dr Petra Nieckchen is the head of EFDA’s public information office. Af- ter her PhD in physical chemistry, she decided to follow her real passion and To learn how to use this code, see www.scienceinschool.org/help#QR move into public information. www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 Designing a school: taking science out of the classroom How can the architecture of a school influence its teaching? Allan Andersen, head teacher of Copenhagen’s Ørestad Gymnasium, tells Adam Gristwood and Eleanor Hayes.

ake a walk around the breath- a lot less and, hopefully, students try to teach science in a different way. taking Ørestad Gymnasiumw1 work a lot more, with more active They use a lot of videos and virtual (upper-secondary school) in work, more communication and more laboratories. Instead of traditional ex- TCopenhagen, Denmark and the school knowledge sharing.” perimental write-ups, students might might strike you as quite unusual. In the four years since the comple- create a podcast or develop an ad- As you ascend the spiralling timber tion of the building, the school (whose vertising campaign working together staircase connecting different parts students are aged 16-19) has become with local organisations or industry. of the school, you look over students the most popular in Denmark. Its Lots of students who have difficulties lounging on orange beanbags discuss- concept embraces a theme that runs writing about science find it much ing class work in specialised ‘learn- through every class, from media, com- easier to talk about it. The school has ing zones’. You could come across a munication and culture (the school’s only been running for four years, so I student film crew working on their profile) to languages, mathematics can’t yet prove it, but I do believe that latest media project, or a science class and science – that the physical design our students leave with competen- dissecting frogs in an open work- of the building matters. And it is a cies that they don’t gain in the same space. There are few traditional class- formula that is working. amount from other schools.” rooms and there is certainly no head “Perhaps students do not learn Teaching takes advantage of in- teacher’s office. more in terms of traditional content, novative workspaces that can be “The design of the building encour- but they do learn about co-operation, customised according to the needs of Image courtesy of Peter Junker, Gesamtmetall ages teachers to organise lessons that expressing themselves and working the lesson, which can have particular involve the students more,” explains with technology,” Allan says. “For benefits in science classes. “By having Allan Anderson, head teacher of the example, because of our strength in a school that is built to enable stu- school. “The idea is that teachers talk media and communications, teachers dents to work on their own, you can

The Science on Stage international festival made good use of the open spaces at the Ørestad Gymnasium in 2011

Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 www.scienceinschool.org Teacher profile

Web reference w1 – To read more about Ørestad Gymnasium, see: www.oerestadgym.dk/welcome The open w2 – To learn more about Science spaces of the Ørestad

Image courtesy of Peter Junker, Gesamtmetall on Stage Europe, see: Gymnasium gave plenty of www.scienceonstage.eu opportunities for teachers to swap ideas at the Sci-Sci- Resources ence on Stage international festival in 2011 For a glimpse inside the Ørestad Gymnasium, see a 24-hour film of the school: www.youtube.com/ watch?v=je2Fc4uS9bo move away from science teaching that In April 2011, the Ørestad Gymna- To read other Science in School articles sees teachers demonstrating the same sium hosted the international teach- about Science on Stage, see: experiments they have used for 30 ing festival of Science on Stage, the www.scienceinschool.org/sons years, and instead make science more network for European science teachers If you enjoyed this article, you might stimulating and hands-on,” Allan (Hayes, 2011). The spectacular archi- like to browse the other teacher says. tecture of the school provided a per- profiles in Science in School. See: Equally important are interactions fect backdrop for the eager exchange www.scienceinschool.org/teachers between teachers and students in of ideas between 350 of Europe’s best large central spaces, rather than in teachers. cramped corridors, and through this In April 2013, the next Science on emphasis on interdisciplinarity and Stage international festival will take Adam Gristwood studied politics personalisation, the school has been and philosophy at the University of place in Słubice-Frankfurt (Oder) given a heart where social interactions York, UK, before working in events on the Polish-German border, with have become a key part of education. and publishing, focusing on educa- teachers from 27 countries sharing “The idea is that teachers and tion, local government, policing and their most innovative teaching ideas students should have interactions that science. Since 2009, he has been a com- in workshops, on-stage performances move away from that of authority and munications officer at the European and the teaching fair. Each country towards that of colleagues,” Allan Molecular Biology Laboratory. will be represented by a delegation of explains. “When they know there are Dr Eleanor Hayes is the editor-in- teachers around who can help them teachers selected in a national event. chief of Science in School. She studied with their work, then students can Participation is free for the del- zoology at the University of Oxford, develop a responsibility for their own egates. To be considered for your UK, and completed a PhD in insect learning.” national delegation, contact your na- ecology. She then spent some time There are plans to build in more pri- tional organisers now, as the selection working in university administration vate space for teachers to ‘recharge’, events are already beginning in some before moving to Germany and into but the overall goal of a new vision countries. There will also be a limited science publishing in 2001. In 2005, of content, subject matter, organisa- number of places for non-delegates, she moved to the European Molecular tion and learning remains unchanged. who will be charged a registration Biology Laboratory to launch Science “The school has become somewhat of fee. See the Science on Stage Europe w2 in School. an icon,” Allan explains. “On a school website for details. To learn how to use this code, see day, it is a really exciting experience www.scienceinschool.org/help#QR just to walk around and see every- Reference thing that is happening. In a normal Hayes E (2011) Science teachers take school everything happens behind to the stage. Science in School 19: 6-9. closed doors, but here you can see www.scienceinschool.org/2011/ everything.” * * * issue19/sons

www.scienceinschool.org Science in School I Issue 22 : Spring 2012 Spring 2012 Issue 22 How many schools and teachers do you reach – The European journal for science teachers worldwide? In this issue: Build your own microscope: following in Robert Hooke‘s footsteps Also: Harnessing the power of the Sun:

fusion reactors

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