Going Electric
Sustainability is a high priority for the London organising committee for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. This Catalyst article looks at their aim for all spectators to be able to get to the Olympic Park via public transport or by walking or cycling. In particular, the article focuses on the railway services which with an…
Life Below the Surface
This Catalyst article looks at scuba diving, and how having a knowledge of physics is vital in helping divers to get out of dangerous situations. Divers must be trained to control their buoyancy, and to ascend and descend at a safe pace to avoid injury. Other factors explored in the article are the effects of pressure on the body,…
The Systems Physiology of Exercise
This Catalyst article looks at the effect exercise has on the body. Poor fitness contributes to poor life expectancy, and inability to exercise reduces quality of life in the ill or aged. Scientists hope to understand the mechanisms which limit 'exercise tolerance' which would contribute to enhanced performance for the…
Pedal Power
This Catalyst article explores how cyclists can use physics to explain certain limitations to their performance. Variables which may affect a cyclist's speed such as force, energy and power are considered along with formulas for calculating the correct amount of each in order to optimise performance. The article is from Catalyst:…
Building a White Water Canoe Course
This Catalyst article explores the processes undertaken during the construction of a white water canoe course for the Olympic Games which requires a huge range of practical skills, but also great science skills too. The scientist must calculate how much noise from both the course's construction and its use during the Games will…
Fighting Fit
This Catalyst article looks at how exercise affects our immunity and susceptibility to infection. Recent research indicates that a person's level of physical activity affects their immune function, influencing their risk of respiratory tract infections such as a cold. Whereas moderate levels of regular exercise seem to reduce…
Going Bananas about Radioactivity
This Catalyst article looks at how humans are exposed to radiation from many different sources, including food. The article describes the doses of radiation from sources such as: • building materials and rocks • bananas • bone scans • cosmic rays • radon gas The article illustrates the constant exposure…
Marie Curie - A Life of Discovery
This Catalyst article looks at Marie Curie, who discovered two radioactive elements and showed that radioactivity was a property of atoms, not compounds. Marie Curie won two Nobel Prizes, the only woman to have done so. She is still the only person to have won awards in both Physics and Chemistry. The article describes her life…
Seven Billion - and Counting
The human population of Earth has reached seven billion. This Catalyst article explores the impact that human activity may have on the planet. The article looks at the rate of population growth and how human impact is also related on the amount of resources used by an individual. It considers if the effects of human activity could…
Zombie Invasion
This Catalyst article looks at how Californians are being encouraged to prepare for the next big earthquake. It describes how earthquakes are produced by the relative movement of tectonic plates and how their intensity is measured using the Moment Magnitude scale. The article can be used to stimulate discussion on plate tectonics,…
The Kilogram
This Catalyst article looks at the changing definition of the kilogram, a unit of mass and a base unit in the SI system (the International System of units). It has been found that the International Prototype Kilogram (IPK), made in 1879 and kept in a vault in Paris, has lost about 50microgrammes of mass over the years. This may…
What Causes the Aurora?
This article from Catalyst looks at aurora borealis caused by the interaction of the solar wind with the Earth's magnetic field. It also explains how satellites are testing thoeires of how this happens. Auroral light emission occurs at roughly 100 km altitude. Energetic electrons in the solar wind cause the emission of light…
The Price of Rice
This Catalyst article looks at the production of rice, which is a staple food for billions of people. It describes how crop scientists have identified varieties of rice with favourable characteristics, such as flood resistance, and are using them to develop crops with increased yield. Such crops may help to overcome problems caused…
From Earth to Mars
This Catalyst article describes how a manned trip to Mars and back would be very demanding, both technologically and for the people involved. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 2. Catalyst is a science magazine for students aged 14-19 years. Annual subscriptions to print copies of…
Careers in Biochemistry
This Catalyst article looks at young people working in biochemistry, detailing how they got to where they are and what their job involves. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 2. Catalyst is a science magazine for students aged 14-19 years. Annual subscriptions to print copies of the…
What Is Biochemistry?
This Catalyst article looks at Biochemistry, the study of chemical reactions in living things, exploring how it differs from other biological subjects and how examples can be found in everyday life. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 2. Catalyst is a science magazine for students…
Try This - Pouring a Gas
This Catalyst article explains how some gases can be poured, demonstrated by an experiment using carbon dioxide gas. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 2. Catalyst is a science magazine for students aged 14-19 years. Annual subscriptions to print copies of the magazine can be purchased…
Flies, Weeds, Atom Bombs and Computers
This Catalyst article explores 'Biomodels', biological species which are increasingly well-understood and which have been chosen because they can help us to test new biological theories, particularly in the field of genetics. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 2. Catalyst…
Unlocking the Genetic Diversity of Rice
This Catalyst article looks at wild rice which was domesticated a long time ago, and explores how understanding its genetic diversity can help to develop new strains. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 2. Catalyst is a science magazine for students aged 14-19 years. Annual subscriptions…
Phones and Health
This Catalyst article explores whether the use of mobile phones increases the risk of cancer, including a recent study from Denmark which investigates the issue further. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 2. Catalyst is a science magazine for students aged 14-19 years. Annual subscriptions…
Jewellery Metals
This Catalyst article looks at how jewellery is traditionally made from metals such as gold, silver and platinum because these metals may be found in their native state and are corrosion-resistant. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 2. Catalyst is a science magazine for students aged…
Diving Deep
This Catalyst article explores how many mammal species' bodies are adapted to cope with the great pressures involved as they dive to great depths. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 2. Catalyst is a science magazine for students aged 14-19 years. Annual subscriptions to print…
Volcanoes from Space
This Catalyst article describes how the distribution of volcanoes across the Earth’s surface tells scientists about the underlying pattern of tectonic plates. Much can been learned about volcanoes by observing them from orbiting spacecraft. This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 1. Catalyst…
Where Next?
This Catalyst article introduces Tom Denbigh who describes how he has worked as a volunteer on scientific projects to gain experience before his degree course. This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 1. Catalyst is a science magazine for students aged 14-19 years. Annual subscriptions to print…
Make Your Own Lava Lamp
This Catalyst article describes how to make a lava lamp by using three simple ingredients: vegetable oil, food colouring and fizzing tablets. The article also explains the processes taking place inside a real lava lamp and why they happen. This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 1. Catalyst…
Bad Science - Patterns, Trends and Dastardly Traps
This Catalyst article explains the way scientists work, how they conduct research and look for patterns in data. It also investigates what can go wrong during the process of spotting patterns in the collated information. This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 1. Catalyst is a science magazine…
Iron and Alzheimer’s - Studying Metals in the Brain
This Catalyst article looks into Alzheimer’s disease which affects around 465 000 people in the UK, with the number of sufferers is growing as the population ages. It is a form of dementia that causes cell death in the brain and leads to memory loss and mood swings. The article investigates whether the presence of iron in…
The Sand Beneath Your Feet
This Catalyst article explains how studying sand can reveal both the geological and biological history of a local environment as sand varies from place to place. Sand from near a copper smelter can contain grains of copper; grains can contain worm trails from microscopic worms living in the ocean. Even the grains themselves can contain…
Plant Responses
This Catalyst article explains how scientists came to understand plants' sensitivity to external stimuli and their ability to move. Mimosa pudica is a good example of a plant which folds its leaves in response to touch or heat. However, the folding movement of the leaves is very unusual and not found in many other plants. In…
Circadian Rhythms
This Catalyst article looks at how an internal biological clock within every cell of the human body helps to co-ordinate and organise human behaviour and metabolism into approximately 24-hour rhythms – allowing organisms to synchronise with, and anticipate, day and night. When the body clock is disrupted in humans it can have…
Food Waste Recycling - Power from Potato Peelings
This Catalyst article describes how food waste can be treated by anaerobic digestion to produce methane and fertiliser. This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science Review 2011, Volume 22, Issue 1. Catalyst is a science magazine for students aged 14-19 years. Annual subscriptions to print copies of the magazine can be purchased…
Tiny Particle, Giant Detector - Neutrinos
A Catalyst article about neutrinos. Neutrinos are fundamental particles. They are tiny, a neutrino has a mass about one-millionth of the mass of an electron, and they have no electric charge. This article looks at the detection of these elusive particles which requires the use a giant detector. The one described is from the Katrin…