Download Issue 23 as PDF [13.4 MB]

Editorial News from the EIROs Events Feature article: a career in space Cutting-edge science Teaching activity Science education projects Science topics Teacher profile

Editorial

• Welcome to the twenty-third issue of Science in School
  Read (English, Dutch) | PDF [131 KB]

News from the EIROs

• A voyage through space, arts and the seven seas
  EIROforum, the publisher of Science in School, reports on the latest news from its eight European inter-governmental research organisations.
  Read (English, Greek, Polish, Spanish) | PDF [721 KB]

Events

• Science on Stage: a Slovak-British relationship
  Sonia Furtado Neves explains how 30 teachers recently experienced the thrill of cutting-edge research.
  Read (English, Spanish) | PDF [721 KB]
• Forthcoming events

Feature article

• Finding maths where you least expect it: interview with Marcus du Sautoy
  What makes viruses so virulent? Why do we enjoy music? Why is the Alhambra so beautiful? The answer? Mathematics!
  Read (English, Catalan, Greek, Italian, Polish, Romanian, Spanish) | PDF [811 KB]

Cutting-edge science

• Exploding chromosomes: how cancer begins
  Brain tumours are one of the most common causes of death in children – and may begin when chromosomes are torn apart during cell division.
  Read (English, Albanian, Croatian, German, Greek, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Spanish) | PDF [848 KB]
• On your bike: how muscles respond to exercise
  We all know that exercise makes us fitter and healthier – but what changes take place in our cells to make this happen?
  Read (English, Albanian, Czech, German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish) | PDF [668 KB]

Teaching activity

• Creating eclipses in the classroom
  During an eclipse, the Sun or the Moon seems to disappear. Why not explore this fascinating phenomenon in the classroom, with an easy to build model?
  Read (Enlgish, French, Galician, German, Greek, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish) | PDF [438 KB]

Science education projects

• Building a seismograph from scrap
  Did you know that you can use old hi-fi speakers to detect earthquakes? And also carry out some simple earthquake experiments in the classroom?
  Read (English, Greek, Spanish) | PDF [1.3 MB]
• Bread-making: teaching science in primary school
  Something as everyday as bread can offer a surprising spectrum of interdisciplinary teaching opportunities.
  Read (English, Croatian, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish)| PDF [606 KB]
• Build your own radio telescope
  Astronomers use giant radio telescopes to observe black holes and distant galaxies. Why not build your own small-scale radio telescope and observe objects closer to home?
  Read (English, Dutch, Greek, Polish, Spanish) | PDF [1.0 MB]

Science topics

• Solar energy: silicon solar cells
  With oil reserves running out, silicon solar cells offer an alternative source of energy. How do they work and how can we exploit their full potential?
  Read (English, German, Polish, Romanian, Spanish) | PDF [602 KB]
• Intersex: falling outside the norm
  Male or female? What are the issues surrounding children for whom the answer is not clear? Researchers Eric Vilain and Melissa Hines hope to provide some of the answers.
  Read (English, German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish) | PDF [2.4 MB]
• The white continent as a stepping stone to the red planet
  For scientists at the European Space Agency, a mission to Mars means going to Antarctica first.
  Read (English, German, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish) | PDF [819 KB]

Teacher profile

• Nuclear options: a teacher at CERN
  Physics teacher Günter Bachmann explains how his CERN residency has inspired both him and his students.
  Read (English, German, Polish, Spanish) | PDF [729 KB]

Scientist profile

• High-powered research: physicist Adrian Mancuso
  Physicist Adrian Mancuso works at the cutting edge of 3D imaging, at what will be Europe’s newest and brightest X-ray facility.
  Read (English, German, Polish, Spanish) | PDF [479 KB]

Reviews

• The PhET website
  Read (English, Italian, Spanish) | PDF [197 KB]
• The Wonder of Genetics: The Creepy, the Curious, and the Commonplace
  Read | PDF [209 KB]
• Inflight Science: A guide to the world from your airplane window
  Read | PDF [221 KB]