Science / Year 9 / Science as a human endeavour / Nature and development of science

Curriculum content descriptions

investigate how advances in technologies enable advances in science, and how science has contributed to developments in technologies and engineering (AC9S9H02)

Elaborations
  • analysing how the development of imaging technologies has improved our understanding of the functions and interactions of body systems
  • considering the impact of technological advances developed in Australia such as the cochlear implant pioneered by Professor Graeme Clark, the Monash Vison Group’s work on a bionic eye, Professor Fiona Woods’s development of spray-on skin and Doctor John O’Sullivan and CSIRO’s invention of wi-fi
  • researching how technological advances in monitoring greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental factors have contributed to the reinstatement of traditional fire management practices as a strategy to reduce atmospheric pollution
  • examining how properties of electromagnetic radiation relate to its uses, such as radar, medicine, mobile phone communications, remote sensing and microwave cooking
  • exploring how scientists and engineers make machines more energy efficient
  • exploring how understanding of the nature of matter and energy has changed over time, and how modern technology has enabled exploration of energy conversion processes at all scales, from black holes to atoms to sub-atomic particles
  • examining how advances in understanding of radioactivity and radioisotopes have led to new applications and technologies
General capabilities
  • Critical and creative thinking Critical and Creative Thinking
ScOT terms

Discovery (Observations),  Innovation,  Technologies

Text

Digital tectonics

This set of learning activities challenges students to use accessible digital technologies and hands-on engineering to measure simulated seismic vibrations, analyse and present data, and determine criteria for the design of earthquake tolerant buildings. The module includes a comprehensive teacher guide, curriculum links, ...

Text

Assist me

This set of learning activities challenges students to students consider the role that STEM plays in healthcare. They explore how biomedical engineers and doctors work together to improve and invent devices that enable people with disabilities to complete daily life tasks efficiently and effectively. Students consider ethics, ...

Text

Communication Technology

In this activity, students identify and evaluate the communication technologies used during the war. They then apply their understanding of the physical sciences to construct a telegraph machine and develop and use a cipher to send a coded message. This resource is part of a suite of activities from Queensland Museum focused ...

Text

First World War: Community of Inquiry

In this activity, students participate in a community of inquiry to consider the ethical implications of scientific and technological knowledge within the context of the First World War. This resource is part of a suite of activities from Queensland Museum focused on trench warfare during the First World War.

Text

Microorganisms and Malaria

This series of activities explores the microorganisms that cause malaria, the parasitic disease of humans. Students also investigate malaria in birds, examine images of bird blood smears and are challenged to spot the parasites in a series of images of microscope slides.

Text

FLEET Schools: Forces and Energy

This collection of learning activities explores the concept of energy and why it is crucial to our understanding of how everything in the universe works – from sub-atomic particles to the sun, mobile phones and the universe itself. There are links to critical thinking activities and experiments that cover the concepts of ...

Text

Food and Fibre Card Game

In this card game, students explore the career opportunities in the Australian grains industry. Students examine the Australian grain supply chain and view real-life examples of the various roles in the production and distribution of grain products and the technologies driving advancements within the sector. From seed ...

Text

FLEET Schools: Light: reflection, refraction, diffraction

This collection of learning activities explores the basic physics that describes light, the history of exploration of light and its applications, and implications for society. There are links to critical thinking activities and experiments that cover the concepts of absorption, reflection, refraction and diffraction to ...

Text

Thermoregulation in spacesuits

Space exploration demands technological advances that enable survival in extremely harsh environments. In this lesson, students will explore contemporary spacesuit design and create their own representation of the suit’s thermoregulation system.

Text

Travel Times

Life would be very different today if we did not have modern transport. In this activity, students calculate the time it would take for humans to travel long distances through different modes of transport. They then analyse the impact of these technological developments.

Text

Low-carb cars

This ABC In Depth feature article explores the electric car as an alternative to petrol and diesel vehicles, with a brief reference to hydrogen powered cars. This article is comprehensive, but it is dated at 2008.

Interactive

Chicken farming in the living world: Stage 5

Chickens are fascinating animals and provide students with an interesting subject matter to discuss the many aspects of our living world. This interactive course for students explores the question 'How does the closed system of a chicken meat farm model the interactions, flow of energy and the cycling of matter through ...

Video

Using maths to understand the universe

When completed, the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project will be the largest and most capable radio telescope available to scientists. Radio telescopes like the SKA detect radio waves produced by events and objects in the furthest reaches of space, translating these waves into data and imagery that allow scientists to study ...

Video

Growing carbon nanotubes

Carbon nanotubes are a very tiny but super strong material used in manufacturing to create strong, lightweight products. Besides sporting equipment, find out what other kinds of products are made using these tiny molecules. What other qualities (besides size and strength) do carbon nanotubes have that makes them even more ...

Video

Precision Sheep Management: video

This is a video (4:09 min) about the University of New England’s Kirby Research Station and how its work with sheep has been transformed by technology, particularly the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag. The video is presented by members of the Enhanced sheep wellbeing and productivity research program and includes ...

Video

NASA celebrates Aura's ten-year orbit!

Aura is a NASA satellite that in 2014 celebrated ten years orbiting Earth, collecting data about the planet's atmosphere and climate. Aura is helping scientists better understand global systems, including the composition of gases in the ozone layer, air pollution and climate change. Watch to learn more about this space ...

Video

Meet the BFFs: Four fundamental forces

We all know something about gravity, but what about the other fundamental forces of physics? Explore the properties of two familiar forces experienced in daily life, and of two less familiar ones. How do they interact, and what keeps everything from falling apart? This video was Kate Dent's entry into the 2013 Sleek Geeks ...

Video

BTN: The biggest radio telescope in the world

In the past, astronomers explored the universe with their eyes and optical telescopes, but what they could see was limited. Find out how radio telescopes have revolutionised the way astronomers 'see' the universe, allowing us to explore deeper into space than ever before.Watch this clip to learn about Australia's contribution ...

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.

Video

Catalyst: Seals help climate research

Discover how seals are helping scientists study Antarctica, polar regions, oceans and climate change. Scientists use Weddell and southern elephant seals to gather data and monitor the way currents move heat around the world's oceans.