Australia's Science Forum

Hi all, Does anybody (besides us) have Mac computers in Science and also Dataharvest "Easysense Advanced" Data Loggers?. It seems that Dataharvest no longer support Mac computers and although they had software that ran under the old OS9 system, (5 years or so ago!) they have no intention o...

Dear Wiesia,
So what do you do with the "loose Staff" after you have removed them? We had some loose staff once but eventually they found another school!

I only wish I had a dish washer (besides me, that is)!

(sorry, we have just had a science staff BBQ, so I am feeling flippant!)

Ian

I have heard that it can be done using Neodymium rare earth magnets, but I have not tried it myself.
regards
Ian

Hi all, This one will have the older ones of you digging through the memory banks. Back in the 1980's Lego had a system called Lego Logo which was basically an interface between Lego Technics and an old Apple //e or Apple IIGS computer. (I know that they still have modern versions that run on Macs a...

Thanks Robb and Robyn . I will give it a go!
regards
Ian

Hi all, Welcome back to a new year! Can any one shed some light on this one? It seems that our Phenolphthalein solution goes milky. It seems alright in the dropper bottle, but if put into a clean dry beaker, within a few minutes it goes milky white. Is this normal? One of my Year 7 teachers wanted a...

Welcome back. I hope your break was a good and relaxing one! About 15 years ago I had a small collection of carnivorous plants, (so it was a fair while ago!) I managed to keep them going for a while. From memory, I think the trick was to keep them in very wet soil and very bright sunlight. Other tha...

Hi all,
Here is another one for you experienced Labbies. My Bio teacher wants some PHLOROGLUCINOL stain made up (for staining Lignin). I have the powder, but have no idea of how to make it up into a useable stain. It does not seem to be in my list of stains. Any ideas?
Regards
Ian

Thanks Judy
Aust. Entomology Supplies looks like they might be a goer! They seem to have some good stuff there. I have printed off some prices which I will show to my teacher, and I will jot their name and number down into my "Little Black Book"
regards,
Ian

Thanks all for the help so far. It is looking more and more like I might have to knock one up my self, but I was hoping for an easier solution. Thanks too, Robyn for the offer. It might be a hassle for me to get the actual box from you, but perhaps you could send me the measurements and a descriptio...

Hi all, One of my teachers was asking for a display box to put mounted insect specimens in. I gather that she wanted something about A3 in size, wood with a glass lid and foam on the bottom to push pins into. I have looked through all my supplier catalogues, but have found nothing. Has anybody got a...

I asked my Bio teacher. She just buys prepared slides.
Science Supply Australia (ph. 1300 857 544, web. http://www.chemtalk.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=451) have a good range of monocots, dicot stem ts's for about $7.50 each
Regards,
Ian

Thanks Rob. I filtered it as you suggestedl. Then I popped the filter paper and filtrate into a beaker and added a few mls of ethanol to see what would happen. It disolved well in pure ethanol! Perhaps, next time, I should add the powder to the ethanol, and then add the water, rather than to make up...

Hi all, Can anybody advise me? I have attempted to mix up some Cresol Red pH indicator according to the proportions of 0.5g to a litre of 20% Ethanol (scaled down to the quantity I needed). However, I can not get the powder to completely dissolve. Possibly about 40-50% remains in the bottom of the b...

I have a copy of the book in front of me. It says that it was developed by the NSW Dept of Ed. in association with the Australian Institute of Physics and the Science Teachers Association of NSW. It does not really list a publisher as such or any copyright information. I guess any of these organisat...

Dear Robb, I have only been here a short time, but was beginning to think that there was nothing that you did not know! (and am appreciating your helpfulness) My Nutrient Broth is similar to Liz's, but with Salt and Bonox instead of Beef Stock cube. Being from a Physics background myself, I get a ki...

We have a similar situation here, and have not entirely solved the problem either. We generally just have a handfull of stools around each lab, tucked out of the way as much as possible. At prac exam time, the lucky ones get stools, and some just have to sit on chairs and reach up. We generally find...

Thanks Rob and Worktofish for the information so far. A couple of questions, though. To standardise anything, I guess we need an accurate starting point. I can see that the NaOH will not be any good as it absorbs moisture when exposed to the air. Obviously the stock HCl is no good as it is of unknow...

Hi there everyone, I know that this is a very basic question, and so anybody with more than a years experience as a Lab tech should be able to answer me. I do not fit into that catagory, hence would appreciate some advice Our concentrated HCl comes as a 32% (w/w) solution. The manual that I found wh...

Hi all. I am new to this Website this week, but was interested to read the forum on Distilled Water. This is relevant to me at the moment as our distillation machine seems to be malfunctioning and only produces about 2L per day, but uses about 12-15L per minute for cooling! (Ouch!) I have found that...