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Listed under:  Science  >  Scientific inquiry  >  Research questions
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Sniffing out disease lesson

In this lesson, students consider contemporary research approaches to disease identification. First, they conduct an experiment to test how sensitive their sense of smell is and explore how our sense of smell functions. Students then learn about at how animals are trained to use their sense of smell to detect human disease. ...

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Beautiful biomes

In this lesson students learn the features of the five main biomes, and use ClassVR headsets and CoSpaces to design and create a virtual biome to explore. They research and identify the features of a biome and then create their own virtual environment. The resource explores the human impacts on biodiversity and explore ...

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Making history

This resource supports students, individuals and community groups to research, produce and share a short digital history about a person or event.

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Ancient China: staff room

This is a rich teacher resource about ancient China. It contains 15 background information sheets; 11 lesson plans for whole-class discussions to introduce particular topics; four inquiry grid worksheets for gathering information; and nine follow-up lesson plans for activities that extend the content. The staff room resource ...

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Chinese Anzacs

This is a website about the experiences of Chinese-Australian soldiers in World War I. It includes: historical facts; a collection of 12 story objects that tell the stories of individuals, events and artefacts; and a Chinese Anzacs Education kit. The kit is comprehensive. The learning activities are presented in five parts, ...

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What is a meat safe?

Before fridges were invented, people used meat safes to keep their food cool. But what is a meat safe? Watch this clip to find out! What was the meat safe made out of? How was it designed to keep bugs out? And how did the meat safe actually keep food cool? Think about the way we keep food cool today. How do the fridges ...

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Belief: Christians in contemporary Australia

What is the most popular religion in Australia? If you said 'Christianity', you would be right. In the 2011 Census, more than 60 per cent of respondents indicated that they belonged to the Christian faith. In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in Christianity among Australia's youth. By focusing on a Christian ...

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Journey into Japan: The end of Japan's isolation

Under the shoguns, Japan was deliberately isolated from the outside world from around 1600 CE. However, by the mid-19th century, Western imperialism was entering a new phase of expansion that no Asian state was able to resist. Discover what happened when the West came beating on the doors of a closed society. This clip ...

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An olden day toilet

In the olden days, there were no toilets inside the house. Why do you think that was? Instead there was a "potty" for the children and a commode chair for the parents. Would you be brave enough to help empty the potty in the morning? How did people in the olden days wash their hands if there was no tap? Buckingham House ...

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Catalyst: Do heavier things fall faster?

Will a medicine ball or a basketball hit the ground first when dropped at the same time from the same height? In this clip, Catalyst's Dr Derek Muller investigates what influences the speed at which objects fall. Derek challenges some people in a market to make a prediction and explain their thinking, before he finally ...

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Catalyst: Living in space

Do you know that people have been living and working in space for more than 10 years? The International Space Station (ISS) orbits the Earth more than 300 kilometres above us. Watch this clip to discover what life is like in space and the type of research that is conducted there.

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In the past: Christmas in the city

Take a look at a crowded city street during the Christmas season more than 50 years ago. Discover what Christmas shopping was like when your grandparents were not much older than you are today. This silent black-and-white clip was filmed in Sydney in 1961.

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GTK: Germaine Greer on rock culture, 1971

Does music have the power to change the world? From the 1950s rock 'n' roll to later popular music of the 60s and 70s, music encouraged teenagers to rebel against the ideas and beliefs of earlier generations and, in some instances, to change society for the better. In this clip, explore some of these changes from the perspective ...

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Thinkabout, Talkabout: Rations and coupon shopping

Discover what it was like to go shopping in Australia during World War II. See how people in the 1940s had to live with restrictions on how much they could buy (rationing). Find out how rationing was an attempt to make the distribution of necessary goods, such as food and clothing, equal for everybody.

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For good measure

If you had to measure the rain level for the whole globe, how would you go about it so you could have as accurate a reading as possible? Rain gauges are great for measuring rain in small areas, but why might they not be as good for measuring large areas? Watch this video to see how the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) ...

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ABC News: Sydney's Moon Festival, 1979

Discover the activities that take place during the Moon Festival and why it is considered to be one of the most important festivals in the Chinese calendar. In this clip from 1979, ABC reporter Neil Ross attends the Moon Festival in and around Dixon Street and Hay Street, in the heart of Sydney's Chinatown.

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Four Corners: Aquarius counterculture descends upon Nimbin, 1973

What would you do to save your home town? By the early 1970s, the northern NSW town of Nimbin was in serious decline. Somewhat hesitantly, local residents agreed to allow the huge Aquarius Festival to come to town, bringing alternative music, lifestyles and values. And money. And people who stayed. Discover how Nimbin locals ...

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Introduction to Food Security

This is a video that defines and explores the concept of food security using animated illustrations, spoken commentary, and pauses for discussion. Identifying the accelerating growth of population and the proportion of people who are chronically hungry, it provides the United Nation's definition of food security and its ...

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Elliot and the Surfing Scientist: Red cabbage pH experiment

It might sound 'un-sciencey', and have a bad smell, but red cabbage is actually very useful for testing the pH of liquids. Added to well-known liquids like lemonade or vinegar, red cabbage juice changes to 'pretty colours'. In this clip, Surfing Scientist Ruben Meerman explains the colour changes and how red cabbage juice ...

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Gaps and opportunities for perennial crops

This is a video about the scientific breeding of perennial crops as described at a 2013 workshop, 'Perennial crops for food security', held by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). After giving the big picture regarding perennial crop research, the 16-minute video focuses on the breeding of perennial wheat and its ...