Post on 29-May-2018
1
From the Chairperson
Semester 1 2014
ASET
News Inside this issue:
From the
Chairperson
1
From Our
Patron
4
ASET
Membership
5
Secretary’s
Report
6
Tried and True 8
Light Scope
9
Did You Know 10
Competition
Winner
11
Corny Corner 12
Science Humour 13
Periodic Table
Puns
15
Periodic Table
Puns Answers
16
Riddle Me This 17
Our Website 18
Riddle Answers 18
Save This Date 19
Hello and welcome back to the new school year. 2014 is the
International year of Crystallography. RiAus is offering free
online PD of Crystallography on Wednesday 25 June from
3.45pm to 4.30pm ACST. To register : http://riaus.org.au/
events/pdplus-crystallography/
Since our last newsletter, we have had a busy time setting up a
database of NSW schools by DEC, CEO and AIS sectors.
When complete, we will have the names and addresses of all
schools in the state and hopefully the names of each person
working in the science area so that we will be able to contact you personally via
snail mail or email.
The executive team have had meetings with Jane Simmons , Executive Director of
Learning and Leadership (DEC) and Suzy Colbran (AIS) and they have offered
their support to promote ASET through their network, and encourage labbies to
join the association.
On the first day of Term 2, we held a PD Day in Dubbo, titled:
“ Lab Management in the 21st century – what you and your school should know
and be doing to comply with latest legislations on GHS and WHS “
A quick overview and practical guide to GHS and WHS including :
Chemical storage and labelling
WHS in the school environment
Practical tips for best practice without a physical and mental breakdown
Put it Out – Know your fires and the correct method of handling a fire extinguish-
er
Bending Without Injury – Learn the correct way of lifting, bending and reaching
without causing damage to yourself.
Left to Right
Julie Wells
Margaret Croucher
Jane Simmons
Wendy Cottee
2
From the Chairperson (cont.)
Semester 1 2014
ASET
News
Dr Annie Wyatt spoke about:
How to deal with difficult people
Conflict resolution
Stress management
We had over 60 attendees from as far away as Bourke, Broken Hill, Light-
ning Ridge, Bathurst, Orange, Newcastle, Coolum, Mudgee, Trangie, Nyngan
and Narromine. Mostly all DET schools but 3 from Catholic schools and 2
from Independent schools.
Dr Annie was a hit with her keynote presentation and was amazed at the
problems people have in their school working environment. Hopefully those
people have been able to go back to school with a fresh approach and over-
come the stresses with the lack of support they receive and can stand
strong in an isolated area.
4 displayers travelled from Melbourne, Sydney and Yamba to take part as
well as the support of suppliers that sent bits and pieces for our "showbag"
of goodies. We thank these suppliers for their continued support of ASET
and encourage you to support them when purchasing your equipment and
chemicals – Science Supply,
Scientrific, Serrata, Westlab, The Glove Company, The Australian
Museum, ASTA, Prof Bunsen, Global Spill Company, Modern Star and Logical
Interface.
The support and positive feedback showed that professional development is
much needed in the regional areas and we are hoping to get to the southern
area of NSW later this year or early next year.
On a personal note, I would like to thank Gillian Blowes – SRG Project
Officer and Debra Comer from Dubbo College, Delroy Campus for their help
in organising the day and Principal Stacey Exner for hosting the day. Most
of all I would like to thank our Vice-Chairperson Karen Mellenbergh for her
presentations on WHS and GHS, 2 areas of everyday school life that
affect everyone.
3
From the Chairperson (cont.)
From Left to Right
Roslyn Williams,
Gillian Blowes (SRG Project Officer )
Phillip Halstread (WHS Directorate DEC)
CONASTA 63 is being held in Adelaide from 6-9 July. There is a great program
lined up with post conference tours being organised. It is a wonderful
opportunity to take part in so many fun and interesting workshops as well as
networking with like minded colleagues from all over Australia.
ScienceASSIST - The website is in its soft launch phase and will be officially
launched at CONASTA
The planned PD day for September 15 at Sydney Grammar School has been
expanded over 2 days, being Mon 15/Tues 16 September.
The theme is “Food for Thought”.
Many suppliers will be on hand this year so will give you the opportunity to speak
with them face-to-face. Registration details will be available by the end of term.
I hope to meet many more of you at future events
Margaret Croucher
Dubbo Firies with the Committee
The Committee with Dr Annie Wyatt
4
From Our Patron
Professor Mary O’Kane
NSW Chief Scientist
“The
saddest
aspect of
life right
now is
that
science
gathers
knowledge
faster
than
society
gathers
wisdom.”
― Isaac
Asimov
ASET
"Labbies play a fundamental role in the
learning process across all
education sectors and it's critical - not only for
yourselves but the young people with whom you
are sharing your scientific
knowledge - that you have the best possible
training, developmental opportunities and
access to professional support. I congratulate
ASET NSW on the success of its recent Dubbo
event and its ongoing commitment to providing
professional development opportunities for its
members."
5
ASET
News
Payment can be directly made to the following account (please place you name in the remittance field): Account Name : Association of Science Education Technicians - NSW Inc
Bank Name: Sydney Credit Union BSB: 802 084
Account Number: 141349 Or by sending a cheque or money order and membership form below to:
/Group85/Documents/Membership_form_amended_new.pdf ASET-NSW Inc.
Membership Secretary PO Box 245, Lidcombe
NSW 1825
ASET membership is now due!
Only $45 and tax deductible
6
PO BOX 245, Lidcombe, NSW
1825
I have been on sick leave from work
since the beginning of the year and have
only just returned for second term. As
is with the other committee members
this does not mean work with ASET
stops.
The team has been busy planning, attending and for some, presenting at
our PD day in Dubbo which was held
on Monday 28th April and I did what I
could to help behind the scenes.
Now that the Dubbo PD was successfully held, we will now start
planning our next PD day for
September at Sydney Grammar school. The beginning of the year also saw the
start of our membership renewal period. A number of reminders were
sent out and as of 30th April 2014 we
have 123 members. A more compre-
hensive report on the membership
breakdown has been submitted.
Looking forward to another successful
ASET-NSW year
Julie wells
ASSOCIATION OF
SCIENCE
EDUCATION
TECHNICIANS
OF NSW
http://
www.asetnsw.org.au
Secretary’s Report
7
PO BOX 245, Lidcombe, NSW
1825
Association Science Education Technicians of NSW
(ASET-NSW Inc)
Membership Report
For 7th May 2014 Committee meeting
As seen above, we have lost some members during the renewal period. A few members have retired or moved to other roles in
schools. There are a small number who have indicated that they
wish to renew but payment has not been forth coming. There is a trend in previous years that members will renew at the
time a Professional Development day is being held in which they
wish to attend.
This can also be seen in the higher numbers than previously reported for Western NSW due to the recent PD day that was
held in Dubbo. The same occurred for the Hunter/ Central Coast
region in 2013 which has now reduced again. I predict this will occur again when we hold the PD day at Sydney Grammar at the
end of the year.
As of 1st Jan 2014 (before
school re-
As of 30th April 2014
No Members 141 123
No Dep’t Education Schools 44 37
No Catholic Schools 40 35
No Independent Schools 56 51
No from Sydney 38 31
No from South Western Sydney 17 15
No from Western Sydney 27 19
No from Nth Sydney 14 11
Total from Greater Sydney area 96 76
No from Western NSW 3 12
No from Nth Coast 3 4
No from Hunter/Central Coast 22 13
No from New England 8 5
No from Riverina 0 0
No from Illawarra & Sth Coast 7 10
No from ACT 2 3
Total from area other than Sydney 45 47
ASSOCIATION OF
SCIENCE
EDUCATION
TECHNICIANS
OF NSW
http://
www.asetnsw.org.au
Secretary’s Report (cont.)
8
Tried and True
Page 8
Here’s a Reagent for testing Protein From a booklet attributed to Max Annis-Brown, Ten-terfield High School. “Recipes for Reagents, Stains and Media Used in Bi-ology” BIURET REAGENT Use: Test for Protein Preparation: Dissolve 3g of copper sulphate and 12g of potassium tartrate in 1 litre of distilled water. Add 600mL 10% sodium hydroxide with constant stirring. Method: Add reagent to solution to be tested (about 1:10). Purple indicates the presence of protein. This was in our lab method book 24 yrs ago when I first started working at Grammar. It works well. Wendy Cottee Sydney Grammar School
Film Canister Rockets Many of us have made film canister rockets
using Alka Seltzer tablets and water (expensive) or Bicarbonate Soda and vinegar
(smelly). Here is a new, simple recipe for “rocket fuel” that works really well in film
canister rockets. It’s simple! Equal parts of Bicarbonate Soda and Citric Acid…
Mix it together and add about 1/4 teaspoon into your film canister. A good squirt of water from a wash bottle, quickly add the lid, invert
the canister and stand back!!!!! Enjoy
Karen Mellenbergh Catherine McAuley-Westmead
9
NEW!
NEW!
Skylight
Scope Are you aware of the 'skylight scope'. This fits on
smart phones to take photos down a
microscope. A nifty new piece of technology! Also good for macro photography of insects,
plants etc. It is only available online
from www.skylightscope.com in the USA for
$95 including delivery. They are only a small
company that was "crowd funded" via the
internet. Check it out on youtube: www.youtube.com/
watch?v=d0w12dfBBbE
regards
Catherine Mullen
SAO Kogarah High (Science)
OH&S Committee
ASET Committee (Minutes Secretary)
95875815
Did you know
Good Web Sites
Resistor color code calculator
http://www.hobby-hour.com/electronics/resistorcalculator.php
Teacher resources to explain the science behind organ donations
http://riaus.org.au/
Simulated Electrical Circuits
http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/circuit-construction-kit-dc
Super Glue was invented by accident. The
researcher was trying to make optical coating
materials, and would test their properties by
putting them between two prisms and shining
light through them. When he tried the
cyano-acrylate, he couldn't get the prisms apart.
Found in the Pacific Ocean, the Mariana Trench is the deepest known point in the world’s oceans.
Did you know that
there are 206 bones in
the adult human body
and there are 300 in
children (as they grow
some of the bones
fuse together).
House flies
have a lifespan
of two weeks.
11
Experiment ‘Method’ Writing for Fairy Bread
Teachers Notes: - This demonstration experiment is done to teach the year 7 students
how to correctly write an experiment method. Students are asked to write the
‘METHOD’ for making Fairy Bread their books. These instructions are then read out to
the teacher, who follows them to the letter (which is quite funny to watch). It shows the
students that they need to give precise step by step instructions and that they need to
include all the amounts, equipment and ingredients when they are method writing. The
teacher will continue to perform this demonstration by following a few more students’
methods until they get it right. The students then get to eat a slice of fairy bread at the
end of the demonstration. They can then write up the whole experiment correctly.
Fairy Bread Making & Method Writing
Aim: To make Fairy Bread
Hypothesis: Will be able to make fairy bread by following the ‘METHOD’ in-
structions.
Risk: Allergies to food samples.
Equipment
2 x loaves of bread
2 x pkt. of 100s & 1000s
1 x 500g margarine
1 x butter knife
1 x pkt plastic/paper plates
1 x pkt. serviettes
1 x pkt disposable gloves
ASET ran a contest to all members for a chance to win two tickets to
MYTHBUSTERS
August 23, 2014 at 2pm
QANTAS CREDIT UNION ARENA SYDNEY
And WE HAVE A WINNER!!!!
Congratulations to
Dearne Stephen
for sharing the item below….
Corny Corner
Q: What do you call a tooth in a glass of water?
A: One molar solution.
Q: What is the show cesium and iodine love
watching together?
A: CSI
14
“Science
without
religion
is lame,
religion
without
science
is
blind.”
Albert
Einstein
“Wisdom is not a product of schooling but of the
lifelong attempt to acquire it.”
― Albert Einstein
15
Periodic Table Puns
1. What you do in a play
2. What you do to a wrinkled shirt
3. “Tasty” part of your mouth
4. Someone who likes to start fires
5. Superman’s weakness
6. Your brother or mine
7. Extinct
8. Imitation diamond
9. A type of flower
10. Las Vegas lights
11. Police
12. Golden State 13. Name of a goofy convict
14. Mr. Mony's enemy
15. What you do to flowers
16. What you did to ripped jeans
17. A “prize” element
18. A very smart person
19. Person from the big blue planet
20. A fur seller
1. Not an exciting person
2. Thanksgiving guests
3. Get clean with this
4. Drive away in style in a
5. Does a body good
6. Proud to be an
7. Mickey’s pal
8. Warrior Princess
9. A nice guy
10. Someone who loves computers
11. The first person in a race has the
12. E = mc2
13. This man followed the yellow brick road
14. How to tell a secret
15. Monday night TV show
16. A phrase from Dr. Suess 17. What a doctor does to his patients
18. Part of a whole
19. Place for washing dishes
20. Drink in an Al can
21. Happens when you lasso a horse
22. What a dog does with a bone
23. A sinking ship
24. What a cloud does
Answers on Page 16
16
Periodic Table Puns Answer Key
Periodic Table Puns 1
1. What you do in a play - Actinium - Ac
2. What you do to a wrinkled shirt - Iron - Fe
3. “Tasty” part of your mouth - Tungsten - W
4. Someone who likes to start fires - Arsenic - As
5. Superman’s weakness - Krypton - Kr
6. Your brother or mine - Bromine - Br
7. Extinct - Argon - Ar
8. Imitation diamond - Zirconium - Zr
9. A type of flower - Germanium - Gr, Rhodium - Rh, or Gadolinium - Gd
10. Las Vegas lights - Neon - Ne
11. Police - Copper - Cu
12. Golden State - Californium - Cf
13. Name of a goofy convict - Silicon - Si
14. Mr. Mony's enemy - Antimony - Sb
15. What you do to flowers - Platinum - Pt
16. What you did to ripped jeans - Sodium - Na
17. A “prize” element - Nobelium - No
18. A very smart person - Einsteinium - Es
19. Person from the big blue planet - Neptunium - Np
20. A fur seller - Sulfur - S
Periodic Table Puns 2
1. Not an exciting person - Boron - B
2. Thanksgiving guests - Indium - In
3. Get clean with this - Chlorine - Cl
4. Drive away in style in a ____ - Neon - Ne or Mercury - Hg
5. Does a body good - Calcium - Ca or Iron - Fe
6. Proud to be an _____ - Americium - Am
7. Mickey’s pal - Plutonium - Pu
8. Warrior Princess - Xenon - Xe
9. A nice guy - Palladium, Pd or Samarium - Sm
10. Someone who loves computers - Technetium - Tc
11. The first person in a race has the ___ - Lead - Pb or Gold - Au
12. E = mc2 - Einsteinium - Es
13. This man followed the yellow brick road - Tin - Sn
14. How to tell a secret - Tellurium - Te
15. Monday night TV show - Nitrogen - N
16. A phrase from Dr. Suess- Samarium - Sm 17. What a doctor does to his patients - Curium - Cm, Helium - He, or Barium -
Ba
18. Part of a whole - Hafnium - Hf
19. Place for washing dishes - Zinc - Zn
20. Drink in an Al can - Sodium - Na
21. Happens when you lasso a horse - Europium - Eu
22. What a dog does with a bone - Barium - Ba
23. A sinking ship - Titanium - Ti
24. What a cloud does - Uranium - U
T. Trimpe 2000
17
Riddle 1 What is greater than God,
more evil than the devil,
the poor have it,
the rich need it,
and if you eat it, you'll die?
Riddle 2 Who makes it, has no need of it. Who buys it, has no use for it. Who uses it can neither see nor feel it. What is it?
Riddle 3
What kind of tree can you carry in your hand?
Riddle 4
What can travel around the world while staying in a corner?
Riddle 5
Forward I am heavy, but backward I am not. What am I?
Answers on page-18
RIDDLE ME
THIS?
18
Our new and improved
Website is now up and
running!
Visit
ASETNSW.ORG.AU
Check out our new features including our members section
and information about our
upcoming Professional
Development Day. This is a work in progress, so
we’d love your suggestions and
input. Please email our
webmaster at webmaster@asetnsw.org.au
Riddle answers from page 16
Riddle 1– Nothing
Riddle 2- Coffin
Riddle 3-A Palm
Riddle 4– A Stamp
Riddle 5-Forward I am ton, backwards I am not
19
Save This
Date!
PD/Conference
Proposed Workshops
15/16 September 2014
Sydney Grammar School
1 day – Members $50 Non-members $95 2 days – Members $85 Non-members $150
Chemical disposal
Chemwatch labelling – how to make your own labels
Curriculum changes for practicals/topics/resources
Data collection
Dissections
Don’t reinvent the wheel
Enzymes
Forensics
Gel electrophoresis
How to use your Physics equipment Keynote : Prof Bill Bellotti – Giving a broad view of food and agriculture; drawing links between food and agriculture, food and health, food and envi-
ronment.
Maintaining equipment
Microbiology
Nanotechnology
Preparing gases
Preserving specimens
Radioactive sources and how to store/dispose
Relevant and motivational technology for the Physics and Biology classroom
Risk Assessments
Rocks
ScienceASSIST
Setting up a Chemical Store Updates on Lab safety/audits/compliance – Breakout sessions per education
sector
Using GOOGLE apps
Using iPads in the Science Classroom
Virtual Practicals