Other Resources
These Making Statistics Vital resources are provided for those studying the S2 Module of A Level Statistics and present opportunities to investigate Markov chains. A Markov chain is a mathematical system that undergoes transitions from one state to another, between a finite number of states. This spreadsheet allows the user…
Contingency Tables and the Chi-squared Distribution
These Making Statistics Vital resources are provided for those studying the S2 Module of A Level Statistics and review students' knowledge of hypothesis tests and emphasize the fact that the chi-squared test can only be used with frequencies. Test table - By the end of their A2 Statistics course students will have met a range…
Sampling and Hypothesis Testing Using the Normal Distribution
These Making Statistics Vital resources are produced for those studying the S2 Module of A Level Statistics provide practical experience of sampling techniques and highlight the importance of using suitable sampling procedures. Sampling – Students are given 100 natural numbers and are asked to estimate the mean by taking…
The Normal Distribution
These Making Statistics Vital resources are provided for those studying the S2 Module of A Level Statistics and present students with the opportunity to investigate problems, which require a different approach to those questions usually posed, on the topic of the Normal Distribution. The coffee problem – poses the problem…
The Poisson Distribution
These Making Statistics Vital resources are provided for those studying the S2 Module of A Level Statistics and are designed to help students identify when a Poisson distribution is a suitable model to use, as well as how to use the Poisson distribution as an approximation to the binomial distribution. Having the opportunity to apply…
Discrete Random Variables
This Making Statistics Vital resource consists of a number of independent activities, covering many aspects of this area of statistics. Students have opportunities to explore and develop further their knowledge and understanding of Discrete Random Variables in a practical environment, as well as discussing their strategy when solving…
Probability
These Making Statistics Vital resources on the topic of probability are provided for those studying the S1 Module of AS Level Statistics. The resources are independent of each other and allow students the opportunity to reflect on their learning and appreciate how their knowledge can be applied to solve problems. Random independence…
Exploring Data
This Making Statistics Vital resource consists of a number of independent activities, covering many aspects of this area of statistics. Students have practical opportunities to explore and develop further their knowledge and understanding of statistical measures and their application. Worldwide statistics - students explore the…
Vectors Introduction
This interactive resource, produced by the University of Leicester, is designed to enable students to explore vectors, beginning with the definition of a vector followed by the algebra of vectors and the scalar product. The opening slides of the presentation explain the difference between scalar and vector quantities followed…
Transformation of Shapes
This interactive resource, produced by the University of Leicester, is designed to enable students to explore transformations of shapes including translation by a vector, stretches, rotations around a point, reflection in the axes and reflections in the lines y=x and y=-x. The first activity draws a parallelogram which is translated…
Transformation of Functions
This interactive resource, produced by the University of Leicester, is designed to enable students to explore transformations of functions including translations, stretches, reflection in the axes and rotations. The first activity uses function notation to explore translations parallel to the x axis and translations parallel…
The Exponential Function
This interactive resource, produced by the University of Leicester, is designed to enable students to explore the nature of the exponential function and to explore the derivative of the exponential function. An introduction page sets out some basic information about exponential functions leading to a definition of the exponential…
Quadratic Equations
This interactive resource, produced by the University of Leicester, is designed to enable students to explore what is meant by a quadratic equation, the meaning of the coefficients of a quadratic equation and to be able to solve quadratic equations. An introduction page gives examples of where quadratic equations can be found…
Differentiation Exercise
This interactive resource, produced by the University of Leicester, is designed to enable students to explore the differential function of a polynomial and conclude by forming a generalisation. An instruction page explains to students that they should draw a polynomial. Then by sliding the slider the gradient of the curve is plotted,…
Simple Gears and Transmission
This engineering resource, produced by Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI) for the Royal Academy of Engineering, asks the question: how are transmissions designed so that they provide the force, speed and direction required, and how efficient is the design? Students consider the physical characteristics of two gears,…
Resistor Production
This engineering resource, produced by Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI) for the Royal Academy of Engineering, asks the question: how can production outcome data from a manufacturing process be analysed to optimise the process? Students consider the outputs of resistors to see the outcomes form a normal distribution.…
Power Demand
This engineering resource, produced by Mathematic in Education and Industry (MEI) for the Royal Academy of Engineering, asks the question: how can you predict future power requirements? Students are required to complete a table by substituting values into a formula and plot a graph. The interactive file can be used to demonstrate…
Gas Compression and Expansion
This engineering resource, produced by Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI) for the Royal Academy of Engineering, asks the question: how can you calculate the energy used, or made available, when the volume of a gas is changed? A bicycle pump, a refrigerator and the internal combustion engine change the volume of a gas…
Air Tracking of a Ground Object
This engineering resource, produced by Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI) for the Royal Academy of Engineering, asks the question: how can a camera, mounted on a helicopter, be used to track the location of a ground-based object? A number of discussion ideas are considered before using 2D and 3D coordinates to represent…
Wellcome Trust: Tree of Life
Produced by the Wellcome Trust, these resources include an interactive evolutionary tree and a video of the Tree of Life. These materials will help students to find out more about the work of Charles Darwin and evolution. The resources contain: Tree of life video The video is a short section of the 'Charles Darwin and the…
5/5- Publication year: 2010 to date
- Video
MRSA Gene Hunt
This is a classroom-based activity from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute that allows students to explore the features of two bacterial pathogen genomes. The aim of the activity is to highlight the role of different genetic components in two strains of Staphylococcus aureus and to identify how these have led to one strain becoming…
MRSA Animation
This animation from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute is suitable for GCSE and A-level students and provides an introduction to the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus. The animation describes how drug resistant strains such as MRSA can be spread in hospital settings, how infections can be treated and how MRSA has an impact on patients…
Horizontal Gene Transfer
A short Flash animation from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, providing a brief introduction on how bacteria exchange genes through the process of horizontal gene transfer. This animation can be used when discussing antibiotic resistance in bacteria such as MRSA and Salmonella.
Build a Bug Activity
This is a classroom-based activity from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute that allows students to explore the features of two bacterial pathogen genomes. The aim of this activity is to highlight the role of different genetic components in two closely related subspecies of Salmonella enterica, and to identify how these contribute…
Exercise, Energy and Movement
Produced by the Wellcome Trust, this issue of the Big Picture looks at the physiology and sociology of exercise and movement. For humans, movement is for more than just basic survival. They move for fun, to compete and to be healthy. This resource looks at the biological systems that keep humans moving and consider some of the…
Malaria Challenge
Produced by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, this multimedia resource explores the five major stages of the malaria lifecycle, highlighting the role of the Plasmodium parasite at each stage. The resource predominantly focuses on Plasmodium falciparum but does also make reference to other Plasmodium species including Plasmodium…
From DNA to Protein
Produced by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, this animation gives an overview of the process of protein synthesis and how DNA codes for proteins. It covers the major stages of the process starting with where DNA is found in the cell and how its information is transcribed into mRNA. It then follows through the processing of mRNA…
DNA Sequencing
From the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, this animation shows a detailed overview of the processes involved in the dideoxy or Sanger method for sequencing DNA. This is the method used to sequence the human genome. The animation demonstrates the principles and techniques involved in the Sanger sequencing method, and how the technology…
How the Human Genome Was Sequenced
From the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, this resource introduces the Human Genome Project (HGP). A short animation gives: • an introduction to DNA and genomes; • an overview of which countries were involved in the international Human Genome Project; • a description of the processes, biological principles and…
DNA Libraries: Subcloning
From the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, these materials contain a short animation demonstrating the process of subcloning, which is one of the stages involved in sequencing the genome of a large organism. Subcloning is the process of breaking up BAC clones (fragments of DNA inserted into bacterial cells) into smaller more manageable…
DNA Libraries: Bacterial Artificial Chromosome (BAC)
Produced by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, this resource contains an overview of the techniques involved in making a BAC (Bacterial Artificial Chromosome) library. It consists of an animation that covers the key stages in the process: • Extracting DNA from white blood cells and use of restriction enzymes to "cut…
Zoom in on Your Genome
From the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, this resource contains an animation that takes a journey which zooms in from the surface of the body into a cell. It illustrates the relationship between the nucleus, chromosomes, genes and DNA. Each stage is at higher magnification to show where the genome is found and to provide brief…