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Listed under:  Science  >  Scientific inquiry  >  Observations (Data)
Video

Catalyst: What is a megafire?

Join Catalyst reporter Anja Taylor as she visits the Jemez Mountains in New Mexico and discovers the impacts of recent megafires on the landscape there. What is a megafire? And how is a megafire different from a regular wildfire? How have recent fires permanently transformed the landscapes that Anja and Professor Craig ...

Video

Could you make a unicorn by crossing DNA?

Good question! Find out whether this is possible by watching as biologist at MIT, Dr Sera Thornton explains. What is a genome? And why do genomes need to be decoded? If the rhino genome was successfully decoded and the part that described the rhino horn was isolated, what would the process be for creating a unicorn?

Video

The power of science photography

Visual art and science are often considered to be separate fields. Watch as Phred Petersen talks about the way he combines his passions of photography and science. What is the role of technology in enabling this crossover? What kinds of scientific discoveries can be assisted by high-speed photography? And how can scientific ...

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The Conversation - issues concerning self and identity - organ donation

This resource contains a series of articles about organ donation, including ethical consideration of the role of family; research methods available to increase donor rates; and examples from other countries (e.g. Spain) that have high organ donation rates. It can be used to consider a wide range of issues, evidence, and ...

Video

How do solar panels work?

The Earth intercepts a lot of solar power: 173,000 terawatts. That’s 10,000 times more power than the planet’s population uses. So is it possible that one day the world could be completely reliant on solar energy? Richard Komp examines how solar panels convert solar energy to electrical energy. This TedEd animation (4:58 ...

Video

Catalyst: Supercapacitors: new battery technology

Discover how nanotechnology is contributing to the creation of new, improved batteries that may soon be used in all our mobile phones and portable music devices - even in cars and trams. Catalyst's Tanya Ha looks at how traditional batteries produce electricity and how their efficiency may be increased by tiny devices known ...

Video

The physics of invisibility cloaks

Could an invisibility cloak actually work? Prashanth and Maria from MIT explore this idea and demonstrate the cool ways that light bounces, bends and mixes. How do the wings of the Morpho Butterfly give clues about how an invisibility cloak could work? How would light need to be channelled in order for something to seem invisible?

Video

Colourful Weather, Ep 1: What shape is a rainbow?

All you need is water, the sky and sunlight and you’ve got something that’s colourful – with a pot of gold at each end. What is it? A rainbow! Find out what happens to sunlight inside a raindrop, why rainbow colours are always in the same order and the real shape of a rainbow. Tip: it’s not an arch!

Video

ABC News: Sound waves measure ocean temperatures

View how scientists use underwater sound waves to measure ocean temperature changes in the Indian Ocean. The animations show how the technology called acoustic thermometry works. Australian scientists are working with a global network of 'listening posts' to monitor the long-term effects of climate change on ocean temperatures.

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Sunfish seekers

This ABC In Depth feature article is an interesting and lengthy account of this highly unusual fish and the reason it is threatened, despite its enormous reproductive capacity. Issues with difficulty in tracking these animals and the need for further research are explained.

Audio

Chemicals on the Great Barrier Reef

This program deals with a range of human impacts on the Great Barrier Reef. Herbicides from land runoff have been traced to algae and sea grasses in river mouths and coastal zones along the Great Barrier Reef. Effects include retardation of photosynthesis and growth of corals. Other pressures on the reef include high water ...

Interactive

Electric Current

Students use this resource consisting of four slides with diagrams, written explanation and voice-over to understand that current is the flow of electricity around a circuit and that the greater the resistance of the circuit, the less current flows. There is a two-question quiz and a summary slide.

Video

Earthshine

This six and a half minute video segment from Catalyst explains Earthshine as light from our own Earth reflected back from the Moon's dark side. A PhD student is studying it to learn about how light reflects from a planet that contains liquid water as well as land. Her work may one day lead to the discovery of other planets ...

Interactive

Fuses and Circuit Breakers

Students use this resource consisting of five slides with diagrams, written explanation and voice-over to understand how a fuse protects a circuit and learn some uses of resettable circuit breakers. There is a two-question quiz and a summary slide.

Video

Mirrors Simulation (sk-Intel)

Students explore the reflection of light by plane mirrors and operate a simple periscope using ray diagrams.

Interactive

Science talk 2007: Adam Cawley

An interview with Adam Cawley, a chemist and scientist from the Royal Australian Chemical Institute, who is an expert in drug testing in sport. Adam talks to a teacher from Killara High School about working as a chemist, and the challenges in drug testing.

Video

Catalyst: Megafauna fossils

Travel back in time in outback Australia and investigate the giant lumbering beasts of the past - the megafauna. Visit a fossil site in Cuddie Springs, New South Wales, where megafauna bones have been discovered. Explore the connection between Aboriginal peoples and megafauna, and theories for the extinction of Australia's ...

Interactive

Refraction

Students use this resource consisting of ten slides with diagrams, written explanation and voice-over to understand refraction of light and know some examples. There is a two-question quiz and a summary slide.

Online

Recent evapotranspiration

This resource is a Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) web page with a map of Australia showing daily reference evapotranspiration and also tables of daily transpiration for each Australian state and the Northern Territory. Monthly data is available via the location links in the tables for each state.

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Floating froth experiment

Find out how to use froth to separate minerals from unwanted rock. This is an activity sheet giving instructions for a simple experiment that demonstrates how froth flotation works. It includes a blank data table.