11 Science

A planet not too far in the future… surviving a postapocalyptic event

Imagine a future where the ice caps have completely melted and Earth as you knew it was covered in water. Small desert islands are now all that remains of the highest land masses that existed and the floor of the ocean is what remains of our cities as we knew them. Earth is now a Water World. This was the scenario presented to the Year 11 students who took part in the Group 4 Project on 19, 20 and 23 November. 

The Group 4 Project is a collaborative activity where students from different Group 4 subjects (Sciences) work together on a scientific or technological topic, allowing for concepts and perceptions from across the disciplines to be shared. In small groups, students were asked to find solutions to surviving in a Water World. These solutions were then carefully planned as experimental investigations for which students needed to write scientific methodologies.

Two groups focused on the collection of fresh water; one used natural evaporation and condensation and the second used distillation. Both processes they found would produce small amounts of fresh water, but probably not enough on which to survive. Another group focused on making sure they could float across the seas by using the plastic debris that would be left in the oceans, only to find some of that debris would burn easily. This is not a fate that any captain of a ship would want. The final group took a different perspective and tried to adapt to the Water World investigating how our eyes would change if we were constantly submerged. 

The Year 11 students were then required to produce scientific posters and present their findings to staff and students in the School, and our Year 7 students found it quite fascinating. The final task for the project was writing their reflections and it can be concluded that all students found they had learned something new and that the three days were a success.

Group 4 teachers:

Felicity Robinson (Biology)

Amy Byrne (Chemistry)

Stacy Pouliot (Computer Science)

Kris Vestermark (Environmental Systems and Societies)

Robin Wang (Physics)