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Hello once again from your guest editor. I'm Alison Begley and I shall be taking you through this week's fabulous facts and great give-aways, and of course letting you know if you're a lucky winner!
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01. OUTDOOR ACTIVITY OF THE WEEK: A bit of planet spotting anyone?
You won't have to stay up late and you (hopefully) won't have to freeze to get a view of Jupiter and Saturn. On April 3, Jupiter will be in line with the Earth and Sun so will be like a full moon (only a bit dimmer!), while Saturn is tipped over so far that its rings appear to circle the planet. They're both bright and relatively easy to find, so have a go at a bit of planet spotting... So how do you do that? Well, planets don't twinkle when you look at them, and that is the key to figuring out if you are looking at a bright star or a planet. Next you have to look in the right direction, and at around 10pm they're both in the southern sky. If you are facing south, Jupiter is to your left and Saturn is a little higher to your right. And for those who want a little bit of astronomy lingo... Jupiter is in Virgo - look for the Plough and you'll find Virgo a little distance down, under its handle. Alternatively find Cassiopeia - the big W - and turn around 180 degrees. Saturn is in Gemini - Gemini is to the top left of Orion, just over Orion's shoulder. Still not sure? Check out the recommended website of the week to make it all clear, as long as the weather is.
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| 02. SECONDARY SCIENCE TEACHERS - FANCY A (WORKING) TRIP TO LONDON?
Here's an opportunity for a maximum of three talented, imaginative, creative secondary science teachers to be involved in brainstorming some new science resources for Planet Science and other educational outlets. Oh, and to get an all-expenses-paid trip to London into the bargain (including supply cover). The project relates to 'Bad Science', the Guardian newspaper's weekly column devoted to exposing and debunking scientific incompetence - and at times deceit - wherever it occurs in the public eye. If you're a regular reader of Bad Science, you'll know that the claims of certain TV nutritionists, brands of mineral waters and detoxing products have all been recently dissected by the cool hand of scientific common sense. With an ever-growing community of readers and whistleblowers, the award-winning column has achieved must-read status - in the Planet Science office anyway. The man behind Bad Science is journalist and junior doctor, Ben Goldacre. He's also a huge fan of science teachers, and when he casually mentioned he'd be interested in working with teachers to develop some brand new schools' resources based on Bad Science, we took him at his word and signed him up. We've secured his services and brainpower on the afternoon of 14th April, and we're now looking for a small number of secondary teachers, preferably familiar with the Bad Science column to meet Ben, share ideas, and work towards developing some exciting new curriculum materials. All travel, dining, accommodation and supply cover required for the teachers' panel will be fully met. Here's the schedule: Does this sound of interest? If so, please get in touch and we'll supply The only thing is, it's soon. So if you're interested, hurry hurry hurry... Send your email to: planet-science.news@nesta.org.uk. Please entitle it BAD SCIENCE and include a note of your name, school and a phone number where you can be easily contacted. Thank you for your attention! Maybe see you in London...?
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| 03. ACTIVITY OF THE WEEK: Gravity-defying water
April is here, along with rain showers. Ever wondered how the hem of your trousers can be so wet when you've avoided all but the tiniest puddles? Watch as water climbs up and out of a glass and you'll be tucking your trousers into your socks before you know it.... You will need:
What to do:
What's going on?Well, it's all due to our old friend capillary action. The water clings to a
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| 04. APRIL QUIZ: No fools here...
What do you do when your experiment goes wrong? Do you fake the answers and pretend you got it right? Take our new April-not-such-a-fool quiz to win a bag of goodies and find out how you can turn a flop into a fortune, without having to redraw your graphs. http://www.planet-science.com/wired/comp_quiz/04_05_Fool/index.html
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| 05. MOUSES AT THE READY: Chester Zoo
If you live near Chester and are looking for an animal-filled day out then read on... Thanks to the very generous people at Chester Zoo we have two pairs of tickets to give away. Each ticket admits one adult or two children / Not only does Chester Zoo have 500 species of animals but they also have award-winning gardens. And until April 10th you can 'Meet the Keepers', to help explain how the zoo encourages natural behaviour, keeping the animals happy and healthy. For more information about Chester Zoo have a look at: To win a pair of tickets email us with the subject heading 'Penguins, Giraffes and Lemurs' to planet-science.news@nesta.org.uk. Don't forget to include your name and address.
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| 06. UNSUNG HERO NO 15: Hubert Cecil Booth
Tippex, Sellotape, Hoover: all trade names that have become synonymous with a certain product or process. You'd think that with the immortalisation of the Hoover name that Hoover had invented vacuum cleaners. Not so. If there were any justice in the world, the act of vacuum cleaning would be forever known as 'Boothing'. In 1901, Hubert Cecil Booth witnessed a demonstration of a carpet-cleaning machine that sucked, in the sense that it didn't work. The machine attempted to blow dust away rather than sucking it up and collecting it. As a trained engineer, Booth set to work on a machine that could suck the dirt into one place, rather than blowing it for miles around. He tried a simple experiment - holding a handkerchief over his mouth and pressing his lips onto a fabric-covered chair, he sucked. After probably choking for half a minute, a look at the filth collected on the hankie proved the idea was sound, but getting a machine to replace his lungs was the harder bit. More used to designing bridges, ship engines and huge Ferris wheels, Booth's device was a large four-wheeled horse-drawn unit (called a 'vacuum cleaning pump') that would pull up outside the customer's house. A noisy petrol engine would work an air pump to generate the suction. Long (often transparent) hoses would be fed in through the windows of the house and decades of dirt would be sucked off and trapped by a filter in the machine. Booth's invention was a world away from the compact sleek models we use today, but did tap into a Victorian/ Edwardian obsession with 'cleanliness being next to Godliness'. The process was noisy and Booth was frequently in trouble for frightening horses, and also annoyed the police who said the massive contraption was an obstruction in the street. Yet a high point for him was getting the job of cleaning the carpet in Westminster Abbey prior to Edward VII's coronation in 1902. The royal seal of approval gave the cleaning process a boost, but also encouraged competitors. Vacuum cleaning became such a society event that Edwardian ladies would convene tea parties to watch the teams of uniformed operatives at work. The fact that 'Hoover' has become an alternative word for vacuum cleaner is down to the business prowess of American William Hoover. He bought the patent from James Spangler, who had devised a more allergy-friendly cleaning machine in 1908. Hoover's devices quickly dominated the market, even in the UK, the vacuum cleaner's birthplace. Booth, and the idea of 'Boothing' your carpets clean were pushed to the sidelines. From 1926, Booth's company produced cleaners under the Goblin name, but people would look at you most oddly if you said you were in the middle of 'Gobling' your carpet! The Science Museum in London has artefacts from a 'century of sucking' A neat cyberspace vacuum cleaner museum is at
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| 07. RECOMMENDED WEBSITE OF THE WEEK
Now the weather is becoming a little more pleasant you might find yourself sitting out in the garden in the evening. Heavens Above is a lovely website for anyone ewho wants to do a bit of star-gazing. It has all the information you need, whether you are an amateur astronomer or someone who just likes to spot a planet or two. Select your location to get your 'Whole sky chart' for any date and time. This chart will then help you tell which constellation is which and, crucially, where you might find a few planets!
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| 08. WINNERS WINNERS WINNERS!
As if by magic, we have the winners of the Royal Mail Magic Circle Stamps... Caitriona McKnight, Saffron Walden Did you spring into action to win a fabby slinky? Here are the winners of March's Spring Quiz... Finn Kemp, Bath
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| 09. JOKES OF THE WEEK
And finally... What did Saturn say when Jupiter asked her out? How do you know that Saturn was married more than once? Knock, Knock That's all for now...
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