Lab Team Update

Hi Everyone,

Welcome to term 3; the labs have been very busy with mostly Extended Investigation work and upcoming Science Fair projects which will go off to Queensland, Adelaide and Japan in the near future.

Physics Extended Investigation

As we hit term 3 we have had a lot of Physics students planning their EPI’s and the lab will be humming with all sorts of crazy physics experiments. We enjoy assisting you on your quest, however, believe that you are the experts in these areas, and we can learn from you. We hope you are enjoying the organized chaos that is the physics lab.

Science Fair Projects

This term sees the lab staff being very busy with our Students Science Fair projects, we will shortly be sending students off to Queensland Academy for Science Mathematics and Technology (QASMT – Brisbane), International Student Science Fair (ISSF - Adelaide) and Japan Super Science Fair (JSSF - Kyoto). The labs have been humming with projects spanning from ‘A sunscreen for coral’ to ‘Using curcumin as a borax indicator’ and so much more in between. We look forward to seeing the posters and presentations from these projects before they head off.

Year 10 Extended Investigation (EEI)

The start of term 3 brings us to the Year 10’s thinking more deeply about their EEI projects, equipment, and chemical lists are coming together, crazy requests are happening, and out-of-the-box thinking is flowing. This year the EEI field has been opened broader to the whole cohort giving more freedom for those crazy and challenging experiments that may come through. Some students are also working with various groups over at Monash University on some very interesting projects (Nova Rover, Monash Forge, UAS) as their EEI this year. It’s sometimes hard to come up with new ways of doing things but the students are doing a great job extending themselves, their pracs and asking the right questions. The lab team arelooking forward to working with you all at the start of term 4 where we get stuck into all thedata collection.

Mapping Platypus populations in Melbourne’s River system – ongoing.

The Platypus eDNA project is gently rolling along and a small group of year 10 students have signed up this year to progress the project and do it as their EEI. This project has been presented at International Science Fairs in the past and it is extended every year with JMSS building its testing capability and library of Platypus data along the Yarra river and its tributaries. The lab team will be heading out in mid-August on a sampling campaign alongside students who will also be taking their own samples this year. Stay tuned for the results in term 4.

Last but not least: Don’t forget your labcoat and glasses, please leave them in your lockers for the term. They only need a wash at the end of term or after a dissection. PPE loans from the Labtech office (back of 1L3) are available but you will need your compass card to record the loan.

~The Lab Team

Anna Zonneveld, Erika Trickett, Itta Waterson and Heidi Zonneveld.