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23.01.2022 And the next episode is up. In this video we are going crazy with Beyblades and food colouring. If you dont have a Beyblade you can make your own spinner with a plastic lid and a wooden skewer. ... Once your spinner is spinning you simply drip food colouring on it and watch as it transfers kinetic energy to the food colouring, sending it flying out in a beautiful bright rainbow. We let the paper dry and use it to wrap presents, make cards or just hang on the wall. This is one of our favourite experiments where art and science collide. Material list below. National Science Week

23.01.2022 This coming school holidays will be the third in a row that we wont be running one of our awesome school holiday programs. I live for those two weeks every term where you all get to come in, with your little people, and experiences some of our best science experiences we have on offer. Face-to-face, like the good old days. Gosh, I miss it sooooo much. ... Unfortunately, there is no way to run such sessions in a safe manner until Victoria is in a better place. So, for now, the best I can do is put up a few more videos for you to experiment along with and keep making science kits and selling cool science products. Thank you again for all your support during lockdown, its been incredibly tough to stay open and keep pushing to stay afloat, but, like everyone, Im doing my best. Im hoping to restock science kits next week, ready to post out for all your school holiday science needs. Stay safe and keep getting your science on.

22.01.2022 *******I made a mistake. Its at 7.51 Sky is clear, ISS will pass over. Dont forget to go out check.

21.01.2022 Want to know how YOU can bounce a bubble? All you need is a clean sock, detergent, water and a bubble blower and to watch the next awesome video we just put up. Youll also learn how to bubble paint, make a bubble in a bubble and a hexagonal bubble. ... Material list below.

19.01.2022 We are all restocked! We’ve got science kits, Lab Coats, kids safety glasses, test tubes and heaps of other cool science tools so jump onto our store and get your order in for Christmas.

19.01.2022 Probably wayyyyyyy to late for most of you but there is a Halo around the moon right now and it is HUGE. GO LOOK and post your pic below. Thats also Saturn and Jupiter to the side too!... Earthsky.org says: These clouds contain millions of tiny ice crystals. The halos you see are caused by both refraction, or splitting of light, and also by reflection, or glints of light from these ice crystals. The crystals have to be oriented and positioned just so with respect to your eye, in order for the halo to appear. Thats why, like rainbows, halos around the sun or moon are personal. Everyone sees their own particular halo, made by their own particular ice crystals, which are different from the ice crystals making the halo of the person standing next to you.

18.01.2022 Are you willing to SOIL YOUR UNDIES for science? I am. Yup, thats right, scientists are asking you to soil your undies and then send them back for analysis. ... -You register. -Theyll send you a pair of cotton undies. -You bury them in soil in your yard for 2 months. -You dig them up. -And send them back (whats left of them anyway). Soil Your Undies is a fun and engaging citizen science campaign run by our friends at UNE Discovery , their soil scientist, Dr Oliver Knox and CottonInfo that explores soil health and allows participants to share their experiences. For the challenge, participants receive a pair of 100 per cent white cotton undies, which are buried in topsoil for two months. All challenge participants bury their undies (mid October) at the same time, and after two months, these are then excavated and checked for the level of decomposition. If theres not much left of the undies there is good biological activity, which indicates healthy soil. These same soil organisms that break down the cotton can break down plant materials in much the same way. Working with UNE SMART Farms, they will be live streaming the degradation of their undies from one of the Universitys rural properties, Kirby, so youll be able to see what is potentially happening to your undies underground. The challenge will also incorporate educational checkpoints, providing teachers with the resources to explore soil health with their students further. This is a fantastic opportunity for those at home or at school to learn about soils pH, temperature and moisture profiles, and how your soil breaks down cotton underpants! Check out UNE Discovery page does more details. Details on where to register below.

18.01.2022 Are you afraid of moths? Or know someone who is? Look closely, that’s a photo of 100s of moths. Apparently that’s a thing. LEPIDOPTEROPHOBIA, is the fear of butterflies or moths. ... I found this out because I’ve been tracking Bogong moths to help the critically endangered mountain pigmy possum. The moth tracker was launched by Zoos Victoria last year because the billions of Bogong moths, that traditionally migrate to the Highcountry over summer, has virtually disappeared over the last three years. These moths are a food source for the endangered mountain pigmy possum so understanding why the moths aren’t migrating is essential in saving the mountain pigmy possum. A recent photo of some moths that were sighted as part of this program was posted and hundreds of people commented on their fear of the little flying insects. I really didn’t realise that people had a phobia of them. The Mountain Pigmy possum ’s them!! How do moths make you feel?

17.01.2022 Youve got another chance. This time its Jupiter, then The Moon, then Saturn. No clouds and soooo spectacular. ... Go out and see for yourself.

17.01.2022 What an amazing example of art meets science. I this so much. NeedlesandNeurons spends their time creating these sensational artistic representations of scientific illustrations. How cool are they? ... Man, I wish I could stitch like this.

17.01.2022 New science lesson up on the website. Check it out!!

17.01.2022 So many have heard me bang on about how cool Science Gallery Melbourne is. So, if you know someone who is 15-25 and loves science or art, or both, let them know about this totally rad opportunity.

17.01.2022 I thought I would share another one of my little obsessions with you, LIVE FALCON VIEWING. 24/7 hopefully their eggs will hatch soon. For those of you that dont know, you can watch the Peregrine Falcons, nesting at 367 Collins Street in Melbourne, live streamed. This year, there are three eggs in the nest and you can watch their journey, (highs and sometimes lows). At the moment, they fly around, incubate the eggs, hunt for food. Hopefully soon theyll hatch and wel...l be able to watch the little chicks do their thing . They have live viewing on their website and on YT. 367 Collins Falcons Live Stream

16.01.2022 Go outside now. The moon, Jupiter and Saturn and lined up beautifully just for your viewing pleasure. Chuck a photo up below if you snap a good one.

16.01.2022 Todays engineering play. We combined a few different, incomplete sets, the bedroom door and some sticky tape to make our mega marble run. It fell apart a heap of times and every time we improved the design to strengthen the part that was breaking. It was about 40min of trial and error until we got it working like this. ... Anyone else made a marble run or a Rube Goldberg machine during isolation? Pop a picture below if you have or if youve seen a good one somewhere on the web.

15.01.2022 More awesome sky viewing tonight. The Astronomical Society of Victoria says: !... Seldom seen speedy planet Mercury, will tonight make a gorgeous triangle with the enchanting crescent moon and the blue giant star Spica - the brightest star in the constellation Virgo. The best views will be around 7pm tonight, but you can start searching for them from around 6:30pm low in the western sky; they will become more obvious as twilight ends and darkness increases. Mercury will be to the left of the moon and Spica above Mercury. Heres an exercise in perspective: the moon tonight is 357,000 kms away from earth. Mercury is about 170 million kms from us, whilst Spica is 263 light years away from our solar system! Show the family, tell your friends, but dont miss this rare triangular conjunction! (And if you want to get further into astronomy and the Cosmos, become a member of the ASV) ..... Thanks for the reminder again ASV, you guys are the best!! and if you are not a member already, go have a squiz Photo from the ASV FB site

15.01.2022 How beautiful is this bubble? See the rainbows? The way the light bends and bounces of the film? How cool is its shape too? The way it twists and turns, trying to minimise its surface. ... We made this beauty using the recipe from Melbourne Minor. The secret ingredient might surprise you!! Can you guess what it is?

15.01.2022 Want to see a Meteor Shower? Im getting in SUPER early this time, so put these dates in your calendar so you dont miss out. The last one has about 120 meteors / hour!... Orionids: 21st-22nd Oct About 20 meteors per hour Comes from the dust of Halleys Comet Leonids: 17th-18th November About 15 meteors per hour Comes from the debris of Tempel-Tuttle Geminids: 13th-14th Dec Midnight-6am About 120 !!!!!! meteors per hour Associated with the asteroid 3200 Phaethon Dont forget, you can still see Jupiter and Saturn most nights at the moment.

15.01.2022 Looking for something to do on this cold rainy day? How about some DETECTIVE science? Weve just put up a brand-new science video on making your own secret messages using Tumeric and sodium bicarbonate OR washing powder. learn how to make and then reveal your own secret message, turn it into a treasure hunt, or even make a treasure map. Ive also explained the science behind the colour changing properties of tumeric. As always there is a secret sound, a mystery microscope image and a joke. Hope you enjoy it!!

15.01.2022 Thanks for the reminder Melbourne Minor

15.01.2022 Weve just chucked up another video for Science Week. Go check it out and make your own stomp rocket out of things youve got at home. The materials youll need are in the comments. National Science Week... Science rules!!

14.01.2022 I want your bubble wrap. If anyone within 5km of Seddon has any bubblewrap they dont want Id love to reuse it. If you could hold on to it, Id LOVE to come by and get it when permitted. ... Thanks so much.

13.01.2022 Our awesome, totally unique, science kits are back in stock. They come with a heap of real science equipment (that I actually use in the lab), a booklet with loads of experiments, a no mess tray and too many more things to list. They aim to bring science back to everyday experiences. They incorporate heaps of fun, lots of colour and so many sensory opportunities. ... Jump on our website, head to the SHOP page and get in quick before they go. Every time we put more in the shop, they sell out overnight. Thanks again for all the support for our small business. Without all you awesome people, we wouldnt still be here. Xxx

12.01.2022 Postage delays across Victoria. PSA. If anyone is still waiting on a delivery, please be patient. An article in the Age says that many parcels are going interstate before coming back to be delivered, even if the delivery address was just a few postcodes over from where the parcel was posted.

12.01.2022 PVA glue plus food colouring = DIY Leadlight window. Yesterdays little activity was inspired by the National Gallery of Victoria s amazing stain glass roof. Recently we saw post On Melbourne Minor page and on Muddly Puddlys insta page on how to use glue and food colouring to make your own version using a glass jar. We decided wed prefer to make a flat version for our windows in our house so that we could get some colourful light shining through. ... We talked about properties of materials and how different materials are opaque, translucent or transparent. Before we started we had a transparent sheet of plastic. Then, when we started painting, while the glue was wet, it was opaque, the light did not really shine through. But as it dried it became more and more see-through until it became beautifully and colourfully translucent. We also talked about polymers, what they are, and where you can find examples in everyday life (we made some vegan bioplastic this morning which I will share with you soon). We used to glue gun to separate the shapes and then I drew over it in permanent black Texta. If you dont have a glue gun others have just use black paint and PVA glue to draw the lines between the shapes, let that dry overnight, and then fill in the shapes the next day. I was impatient so I just used a glue gun because it dries quickly. Its just PVA mixed with a few drops of food colouring. You could probably even paint directly onto your window then peel it off later (it is pretty drippy while it is wet though).

12.01.2022 Happy Fathers Day Here are a couple of goodies to make you smile. Thanks Lunarbaboon

11.01.2022 Bit of food colouring, detergent and some water....AND a cappuccino frother. This was a super fun experiment exploring what happens when you mix air and a detergent/water solution. Foam! Foams are amazing collections of thousands and thousands of tiny bubbles all touching each other. Bubbles in foams usually have 13-20 faces, each face with 5-8 sides. So cool. ... We looked around the house and found some other foams (dads shaving gel) and the hand pump soap. We talked about why these products were made as foams (mixtures of gas and liquids) rather than just liquids (too drippy) or just gasses (not very practical trying to clean hands with just air).

10.01.2022 Giveaway!!!!!! To finish off National Science Week we are giving away one of our Big One science kits and a kids Labcoats. Woooooo To enter make sure you follow us, sign up to the mailing list on our website and let a friend know below. ... *** shipping only within Australia Well announce the lucky duck tomorrow arvo. This is no way endorsed by, affiliated with, or in conjunction with, Facebook.

09.01.2022 2020 has been a challenging year, full of big emotions. At home weve been using these AMAZING ANIMAL illustrations to help us express these. How are you feeling today? Images by Lim Heng Swee

09.01.2022 The dinosaur life cycle.... ..... now they’ll never be extinct.

09.01.2022 Some cool after school science fun. Just paper towel, water, food colouring and real pipettes. Hahaha. They loved playing with my lab tools.

09.01.2022 Sunday funday. Artist unknown.

09.01.2022 Even our local bar, who do amazing cocktail deliveries, know I love science: Trouble in Dreams, you guys rule! Science IS in everything!

08.01.2022 Weve got ANOTHER chance. Or a few actually this week. SATELLITE TRAINS TONIGHT at 6:40pm there will be 20 satellites and then at 6:52pm theyll be another 32. tonights will be below Saturn and Jupiter. TOMORROW night, thats Thursday, at 6:34 pm there will be 20 and again at 6:56 pm there will be 21. These will pass near the southern cross. ... Fingers crossed for a few cloud free nights. Check my post yesterday for an explanation on what a satellite train is and why theyre up there. Info from See a satellite tonight For other night sky tips, check out Melbourne Minor website, theyve got a whole section on beginner sky viewing.

08.01.2022 Tonight is your chance to see MERCURY with the naked eye. UPDATE: it will likely drop too low to see at about 6.55pm so get out there at about 6.50pm. Mercury is the most tricky of the five naked eye planets to see as it is usually too close to the sun however its current location means that we have an opportunity to glimpse mercury without a telescope. ... Ive seen Mars, Jupiter and Saturn with the naked eye, but NEVER Mercury!!!! Tonight, about half an hour after sunset, you should be able to see it at an altitude of about 15, low on the horizon. Viewers in the Southern Hemisphere (including Melbourne), have a great view of Mercury in September since it gets fairly high in the west. Over the next few nights you should be able to see it and the crescent moon and a spectacular conjunction, so, while the nights are mild and mercury is hanging around make sure you take the opportunity to duck outside and look up for an incredibly and rare opportunity to see this planet. For help identifying it in the night sky I recommend you use the SkyView app. If you do snap a pic, show me. Id LOVE to see it. Thanks to the legends at the Astronomical Society of Victoria for the reminder. check their page for other cool astronomical stuff

07.01.2022 You have ONLY 9 days left to register to soil your undies. This awesome citizen science project is OPEN TO EVERYONE, not just schools, so if you want to do some science at home, even if you dont have kids, register so that you can be a part of some cool Australian science research. If you are a teacher and your class is looking at living things, plants, soil health, properties of materials etc this is an awesome opportunity for some hands on science. You could even get a...ll the students in your class to register so everybody could do this experiment together, from home, collect and collate the data, compare the results. Such an awesome opportunity!! Once you register you will receive cotton undies in the mail and a pack to help you undertake the experiment in your own backyard. You bury them and then, after two months youll dig them back up, pop them in a return envelope and send them back for further analysis. UNE Discovery

06.01.2022 Today is #worldgynaecologicaloncologyday Ovarian, uterine, cervix and other gynecological cancers are among the most common cancers affecting women, but collectively attract less attention than they deserve from the public and policy makers. Women themselves may be unaware of the sometime vague symptoms or may be too embarrassed to consult a doctor, and there remains a stigma associated with these diagnoses in some quarters. ... This reticence needs to be overcome and a more positive message developed to improve the prevention, screening, treatment and care of gynecological cancers so that women have the best chance of survival and quality of life. quote from the worldgoday site Raising public awareness in matters of prevention, early detection, understanding of symptoms and treatment options in gynae cancers is so important. So start a conversation this gynaecological oncology day.

05.01.2022 9.39pm -9.49pm Wednesday night 58 satellites will pass over in a huge train. This Starlink train will pass over at a rate of about 10 satellites a minute so should be pretty mind blowing to witness. there are no s around. Footage from the See a satellite tonight site. Make sure you let anyone who’d be interested know and if ya get a good video of it, please show me. ... Some of you asked- Here’s is why the satellites travel in a train: Why put all of these different satellites in a "train"? By combining the satellites and their data, scientists are able to gain a better understanding of important parameters in the case of the ‘A-Train’ from NASA, it’s related to the behavior of hurricanes, in addition to climate change information. Data from several different satellites can be used together to obtain comprehensive information about atmospheric components or processes that are happening at the same time. Combining the information collected simultaneously from several sources gives a more complete answer to many questions than would be possible from any one satellite taken alone at different times. info from NASA The purpose of the SpaceX satellites is to provide worldwide internet coverage. They plan to launch 1000s of them in coming years. Antromers are concerned that their bright presence in the sky will interrupt recording of other information. Rather than an image occasionally containing a single satellite trail, a typical image would contain multiple trails as numerous satellites crossed the field of view. This makes removing noise from images significantly more difficult and time consuming. Apparently SpaceX is modifying its satellites to avoid these issues. I do not have the details on this yet, but apparently, last year, the director of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) Tony Beasley, said: ‘.Most recently, the NRAO and GBO have been working directly with SpaceX to jointly analyze and minimize any potential impacts from their proposed Starlink system. These discussions have been fruitful and are providing valuable guidelines that could be considered by other such systems as well. To date, SpaceX has demonstrated their respect for our concerns and their support for astronomy. So I suppose we’ll see....... I’ll update you when I find out more. For now, get outside and make sure you look up.

02.01.2022 Its Womens Health Week this week. This is how we start a conversation about Womens Health and cancer research: Meet our amazing collection of earrings. They are a little bit of science for your ears to help get a conversation going about womens health. ... Since moving on from research and focussing on communicating science to kids, I have missed the lab. Ive wanted to find a way to still contribute to cancer research. So here it is! A percentage from the sale from each pair of earrings sold goes back towards gynaecological and breast cancer research. The other aim of the uterus earrings is to start a conversation. One about gynaecological cancers, one about endometriosis, even one about our bodies, and our rights. Similarly, the other aim of the breast earrings is to start a conversation about breast cancer, mastectomy, breastfeeding etc. By wearing these earrings, you are singing loudly and proudly that you support important research and are acknowledging all those touched by these diseases in some way. Lets start a conversation, talk openly about our experiences and make sure no-one faces these issues alone. All of these products are designed by SciencePlay Kids with the help of their amazing artist, Jess Dubblu (look her up)! Product photo design by [email protected] You can get yours on our website, go to the shop and then to the science merch for grownups page.

02.01.2022 Happy Friday. Anyone else totally loose track of what day it is at the moment? I think the only reason I know is based on what topics my daughter does on remote learning (specialist day is Friday so when that rolls around I know there is only one more sleep until the weekend)!... Liz Climo

02.01.2022 Set your alarm for 6:58 pm tonight. Theres a satellite train passing over. These wont be as closely bunched as the lot the other week so hopefully wont be over as fast. It looks like about 30 of them will pass over from 6.58-7.20ish. While your out, make sure you check out Jupiter and Saturn. Ill pop some photos up when I see them. Please add you photos too. ... Footage from the See a satellite tonight site. Make sure you let anyone whod be interested know. Some of you asked- Heres is why the satellites travel in a train: Why put all of these different satellites in a "train"? By combining the satellites and their data, scientists are able to gain a better understanding of important parameters in the case of the A-Train from NASA, its related to the behavior of hurricanes, in addition to climate change information. Data from several different satellites can be used together to obtain comprehensive information about atmospheric components or processes that are happening at the same time. Combining the information collected simultaneously from several sources gives a more complete answer to many questions than would be possible from any one satellite taken alone at different times. info from NASA The purpose of the SpaceX satellites is to provide worldwide internet coverage. They plan to launch 1000s of them in coming years. Antromers are concerned that their bright presence in the sky will interrupt recording of other information. Rather than an image occasionally containing a single satellite trail, a typical image would contain multiple trails as numerous satellites crossed the field of view. This makes removing noise from images significantly more difficult and time consuming. Apparently SpaceX is modifying its satellites to avoid these issues. I do not have the details on this yet, but apparently, last year, the director of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) Tony Beasley, said: .Most recently, the NRAO and GBO have been working directly with SpaceX to jointly analyze and minimize any potential impacts from their proposed Starlink system. These discussions have been fruitful and are providing valuable guidelines that could be considered by other such systems as well. To date, SpaceX has demonstrated their respect for our concerns and their support for astronomy. Ill update you when I find out more. For now, get outside and make sure you look up.

01.01.2022 Tonight its all happening. The International Space Station And ... a FULL MOON! 7.50pm, for about 1 min, the ISS will pass over, below the southern cross. ******* if you miss it tonight, it will be super bright and go past again TOMORROW at 7.02pm and again on Friday night at 7.04pm. Thanks Melbourne Minor for the reminder Moon photo by one of our followers Megs Rogers Also, those of you that dont know, I sent my experiments up onto the International Space Station a few years ago and they were in orbit for three months and the results were so different from my results on earth. So, you could say Im sort of famous. Needless to say, the international space station is quite close to my heart.

01.01.2022 Looking for stuff to do on the school holidays? Run by Melbournes locals? Think tie dye, cooking, craft AND of course SCIENCE (with Dr. Loz)!... Jump onto Highpoint Shopping Centre Instagram page and join the Highpoint Academy starting THIS Saturday.