Australia's Science Forum

This may seem like a silly question #-o , but, are marble chips limestone or marble? I realise that marble is metamorphic formed from limestone, but will this matter for practicals?. We are doing a prac to simulate acid rain, marble chips in soda water and vinegar-see what happens. Problem is I have...

QCAT is Queensland Comparable Assessment Tasks. According to the blurb they are designed to "provide evidence of what students know, understand and can do in relation to a selection of Essential Learnings for english, mathematics and science in Years 4, 6 and 9 and to the standards". For s...

We completed QCAT last week, now I wonder if anyone tried it out before it was set for QCAT? It was difficult for me so for Year 9 students????? :? I made the hydrometers ok, thanks for the hints Kelli (Phoenix). :clap3: Making the mark on the straw was difficult and very inaccurate, we had results ...

Recipe I have used from a Chemistry text book is; Dissolve 0.2g powder in 15ml commercial NH3 and add 5ml ethanol. (I assumed commercial NH3 was conc. ammonia.) This was for determination of water hardness using EDTA, it did work, however the solution does not keep for long. We could'nt work out why...

We are doing our QCAT test next week. Has anyone done this yet? I am trying this out at the moment and the set up they have given seems a bit dodgy. The hydrometer I have prepared as shown sinks straight away to the bottom of the test tube, it just floats without the nails in the straw. Blu tac does...

Hey NQ Labbies, can you pick me up on the way past through "The Isa". I have not been to Darwin yet and a road trip sounds exciting!

Ah the test and tag issue. We just went through that here, I am the Safety Officer for the College so have advised admin on when and time frames etc. Qld legislation says that if the appliance if connected to RCD safety switch that cuts down the time between tagging. It was done yearly for all areas...

Following on from this thread I found....I have just had a request for growing paramecium. It is pretty much the same as described here, but I am a bit confused. Will the paramecium just grow from hay or spinach leaves (as I have been asked to get), or is this just the culture medium to grow them in...

We get ours from the "Rat Man" at James Cook University in Townsville. He sends them frozen by TNT in a styrofoam esky box, at a very reasonable price. They are usually still frozen when they reach us in Mount Isa. (He used to put them on the greyhound bus but I think that freaked out the ...

Our senior biology class assignment this term was an insect collection. I now have lots of insects pinned to styrofoam hanging around the prep room. Some of the specimens are quite good, including a huge cicada, and I would like to keep these and/or preserve them. I am not sure whether to preserve t...

And I was worried about safety glasses and aprons!. I just found out that yesterday a student dropped a beaker and was not even wearing shoes! :w00t: Apparently they are all just slipping their shoes off and walking around in socks. And that was one of the consciencious teachers!, I am guessing she ...

Don't know why but "I didn't think they needed to" is the standard response lately when I gently remind teachers that students should be wearing safety glasses and aprons when they are using bunsen burners, acids and/or chemicals and food colouring, its not just one teacher, they are all s...

I have just been given a prac request for Heats of Combustion. This is a design your own prac for Year 12 students, and the prac says "You will be provided with burners containing the fuel" I guess that is my part!. Teacher has asked for fuels such as methanol, ethanol ,kerosene, paraffin,...

I think potassium chlorate is banned in Qld schools, I had to get rid of some a few years back. It does sound nasty, and I am pretty sure it is one of those ingredients that can make homemade "bombs", and is banned like ammonium nitrate due to the potential for it falling into the "wr...

Excuse my ignorance, I have spirit lamps in the back of a cupboard here, never used ....... what do you use them for

What do you guys do dissections on? I have baking trays filled with wax which are looking quite grungy and they are not always easy to clean, so I am looking at replacing them. Maybe its a silly question but I am wondering if there is anything else that works better to cut up on.

With the exploding fire ball, will a candle work so that we could do this outside? Is it safe to do inside with the bunsen burner?

Smiley, That is very interesting :? , a different diocese I suppose, although there are IPRASS days which teachers get, they had one on first Monday back, we did get this last year but new Principal won't let us (ancillary staff) have them now. Normally they take them all at Easter but they have som...

Thanks Loopy, a pic would help and how much flour you use too

Regards
Pilar

Think of us poor people in QLD we only get one week could have done with two after an 11 week hectic term, oh well as you say back to the grindstone, with one week down and 9 to go