VicPhysics News: Term 3, No 2 2017
Dear ,
There is something for everyone in this newsletter.
Students: VCE lecture on particle -wave duality this Thursday, bookings for the final Girls in Physics Breakfast close this Friday.
Lab Techs: A workshop on Years 7 - 10 Physics
Teachers: A Workshop on the Prac Investigation at the next Vicphysics meeting, sources of trial papers and lab sessions at the Synchrotron.
Table of Contents
1. Trial Exam Papers
2. Lab Techs Workshop for Years 7 - 10 Physics, 19th September
3. Laboratory Sessions at the Synchrotron for Unit 4 and Unit 2 Synchrotron Option
4. Tours of the Australian Synchrotron
5. Forthcoming events for Students and the General Public
a) VCE Lectures for Students Particle - Wave Duality, 6pm, Thursday, 3rd August, University of Melbourne.
b) Lectures on Dark Matter: Bendigo: 14th August and Central: 15th August
c) Girls in Physics Breakfast, 15th August, La Trobe University Closing date: 4th August
d) State of the Universe III, 6:30pm, Friday 18 August, Swinburne University
e) ANSTO Big Ideas Forum: Two Year 10 students and a teacher, 6th - 9th November, Sydney. Closing date: 20th August
f) Medical Radiations Careers Open Day, 10:00am - 2:pm, 27th August, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre Workshop on the Practical Investigation: Managing and Assessing, 6pm, Thursday, 17th August, Melbourne Girls' College
6. Forthcoming events for Teachers
a)
7. Physics News from the Web
a) Inferior: How Science Got Women Wrong and the New Research That’s Rewriting the Story by Angela Saini
b) Physicists quoting or misquoting Plato?
c) First doubly charmed baryon spotted by LHCb
The next meeting of the Vicphysics Teachers' Network will be at 5pm on Thursday, 17th August at Melbourne Girls' College. All teachers are welcome to attend this or any other meeting.
In the second half of the meeting, will be a workshop on Practical Investigation: Managing and Assessing. See details under item 6a below. If you would like to attend either the full meeting or the workshop, please contact Vicphysics at
Regards,
Frances Sidari (Pres), Jane Coyle (Vice Pres), Barbara McKinnon (Sec) and Dan O'Keeffe (Treas).
The executive of the VicPhysics Teachers' Network.
1. Trial papers
There are several sources of trial papers. They are listed below alphabetically. If you are aware of any others, please advise Vicphysics at . This list is also on the website on the 'Revision and Exam Solutions webpage, http://www.vicphysics.org/exams.html
• Access Education : $82.50, email or disc . https://www.accesseducation.com.au/Event-Program/81/trial-exam-papers-2017
• Engage Education : Youth run, not for profit group. A pdf to schools for a cost, not specified. https://engageeducation.org.au/practice-exams/
• itute : Free download of trial exam and of solutions to sample paper, both as pdf documents . http://www.itute.com/download-free-vce-physics-resources/free-physics-trial-exams-and-vcaa-physics-exam-solutions/
• Learning Materials by Lisachem: $99, hard copy and electronic formats http://www.learningmaterials.com.au/index.php/2017-1/vce-physics-year-12-2-5-hour-trial-exam-units-3-4.html
• NEAP : $140, CD or PDF emailed. http://www.neap.com.au/catalog/index.php/cPath/58_60
• Physics Trail Test Team : The team that used to write the CSE and before that the IARTV exam papers are continuing to write trail papers under this name, after CSE decided not to continue with trial papers. Cost: $150 per school. http://www.physicstrialtestteam.com.au/
• STAV : $8 per hard copy for exam $5 for solutions plus postage and handling. Discount for STAV school members. http://www.sciencevictoria.com.au/stavpublishing/trialExams.html.
• TSSM : $75, By Email, By Hardcopy, By CD-ROM. https://www.tssm.com.au/browse-resourceitems/student-trial-exam-papers-1.aspx
2. Lab Techs Workshop for Years 7 - 10 Physics, 19th September
Purpose: To enhance the skills and confidence of laboratory technicians in supporting the physics aspects of the Years 7 - 10 Science Curriculum. The focus is on the resources commonly found in schools.
The program will include sessions on:
• Learning new skills, e.g. using a CRO, maintaining a Van de Graff, etc
• Setting up Physics Demonstrations for Years 7 - 10
• Techniques for checking/testing and repairing equipment
• Laboratory management hints
• Safe handling of ionising radiation and storage of radioactive sources
• Setting up data logging equipment
• What is that old equipment in the back cupboard and is it of any use?
Time and Date: 9:30am - 3:30pm, Tuesday, 19th September
Venue: Camberwell Grammar School
Cost: $60 Lunch is provided. A copy of LTAV's Physics Reference Manual is available at a discounted price of $20.
To book: Go to Trybooking at https://www.trybooking.com/RGZG
This event is organised by Camberwell Grammar School and the Vicphysics Teachers' Network.
For more details go to www.vicphysics.org/labtech.html or email
3. Laboratory Sessions at the Synchrotron for Unit 4 and Unit 2 Synchrotron Option
Starting in Term 3 2017, specialised practical lab sessions are available for Year 12 VCE students with guided tours of the Australian Synchrotron. ANSTO VCE Laboratory Sessions are the only hands-on experience in Australia that allows students to comprehensively explore key syllabus concepts such as interaction of light and energy, nuclear physics and radioactivity.
Based at the Australian Synchrotron, the sessions are held in ANSTO’s interactive learning centre which includes equipment not normally found in schools. The sessions include a tour of the Synchrotron where students will obtain a deep understanding of how research using synchrotron and nuclear techniques delivers a wide range of benefits.
Sessions are open to the following students.
Lab Session: Interactions of Light and Matter
• VCE Physics Unit 4 / Area of Study 1: How Can Waves Explain the Behaviour of Light?
• VCE Physics Unit 4 / Area of Study 2: How Are Light and Matter Similar?
Lab Session: Synchrotron and its Applications
• VCE Physics Unit 2 / Area of Study 2 / Option 2.8: How Do Particle Accelerators Work?
When: Term 3, 2017
Start time: 9.30am - 12.50pm (or as arranged with individual schools)
Class size: maximum of 24 students per session
Cost: $30+GST per student
To book for more details go to http://www.swinburne.edu.au/business-partnerships/explore-partnerships/community-partnerships/engaging-schools/ansto/
4. Tours of the Australian Synchrotron
Starting August 2017, free guided tours of the Australian Synchrotron will be offered six times a year on Saturdays. You must be at least 12 years old to attend this tour.
Current dates are: 13th September and 18th November.
To book go to: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfjPI3R_Z7eb2RuXZz2QsDeGYvMnkyJ7R_7M4KiaHQydMutpg/viewform
5. Forthcoming events for Students and General Public
a) VCE Lectures for Students Particle - Wave Duality, 6pm, Thursday, 3rd August, University of Melbourne.
The next lecture will be on Particle Wave Duality will be presented by Prof Harry Quiney.
The video of Dr Katie Mack's Dark Matter talk is now online at http://www.vicphysics.org/events-for-students.html along with the videos of other lectures in this series.
The next lecture in the series will be on 4th September, when Ms Clare Kenyon will speak on 'How to pass the exam'.
b) Lectures on Dark Matter:
• 1pm, Monday, 14th August, La Trobe University, Bendigo Campus
• 6:30pm, Tuesday, 15th August, Melbourne University as AIP Vic Branch Public Lecture
Dr Katie Mack, see item c) on Girls in Physics Breakfast, will be speaking.
1pm, Monday, 14th August
Her topic is A Tour of the Universe (and Selected Cosmic Mysteries): Everything humanity has ever seen or experienced represents a tiny speck in a vast and mysterious Universe. What else is out there, and how are we figuring it out? What puzzles wait to be solved? Com with your questions about dark matter, dark energy, black holes, or the ultimate fate of the Universe as we delve into some of cosmology’s most fundamental questions.
The talk is suitable to students in Years 10 to 12. This event is not exclusive to girls.
The event is at the Bendigo campus of La Trobe University. To book teachers need to email Rachel Meredith, . The university is also offering other events for students during the day. For more details contact Rachel.
6:30pm, Tuesday, 15th August. AIP Public Lecture.
The topic is 'Dispatches from a Dark Universe': There’s more to the Universe than we can see – even more than we can ever see. I’ll give a tour of the edges of our knowledge of the cosmos, including where the frontiers are, and what might remain unknowable forever. Come for the Big Bang, stay for the possibility of the ultimate destruction of all of reality.
Topics include dark matter, dark energy and recent research on Higgs vacuum decay.
c) Girls in Physics Breakfast, 15th August. Closing date: 4th August
A student at last year's event told her teacher 'I was talking to a guest at my table and her career sounded so amazing. Then I realised that in 8 years that could be me. I got so excited.'
The next Girls in Physics Breakfast is on Tuesday 15th August at La Trobe University, Bundoora campus. It runs from 7:00am until 8:45am.
The event is for girls in Years 10 to 12 at which they will hear Dr Katie Mack of the University of Melbourne. Dr Mack is the 2017 Australian Institute of Physics (AIP) Women in Physics Lecturer, This breakfast is part of her speaking tour across Australia. Swinburne University's Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing, La Trobe University Physics Department, the AIP Vic Branch, the ARC Centre of Excellence for Future Low-Energy Electronic Technologies (FLEET) and the Vicphysics Teachers' Network are sponsoring these events.
Her topic will be 'Everything you wanted to know about Dark Matter but were afraid to ask' Dark matter: It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together. But what it is it really? Are we sure it exists at all? Can it really be explained by tiny invisible particles? Get you up to date on what we know about dark matter, how we’re searching for it, and how it differs from the other big cosmic mystery, dark energy.
Students will be seated at tables with students from other schools. At each table there will be two or three young women either in the early stages of a science or engineering career or still studying at university. Over breakfast, the students can query them about their life and work.
Cost: $15 per student. First teacher is free, extra teachers at $15 each.
Time: 7:00am until 8:45am. Dr Mack will speak at 7:50am for about 40 minutes followed by time for questions.
Numbers: There is a limit of a maximum of 6 students per school.
Booking: To register and pay for the event on Tuesday, 15th August, please go to Trybooking: https://www.trybooking.com/QHPF .
Closing Date: La Trobe University: 4th August
Note: Payment needs to be made at the time of booking, so a school credit card or personal credit card will be required. School Order numbers are not accepted. There is a small Trybooking surcharge.
If a school subsequently needs an invoice number for their accounts, or if a teacher is making the payment and needs a receipt for reimbursement, please contact Vicphysics at .
For more details, please go to www.vicphysics.org/girls.html.
d) State of the Universe III, 6:30pm, Friday 18 August, Swinburne University
Speaker: Assoc. Prof. Alan Duffy, School of Science, Swinburne University
Abstract: Amidst a flurry of fake news and flat-Earth believers (really this is apparently a thing) I will take us through the real news that mattered this year, from the youngest galaxies ever discovered to ingredients for life seemingly everywhere and more. This talk will be as much a test of your newsfeed as it will be your memory as you get involved in exploring the State of the Universe.
Venue: Swinburne University, Hawthorn Campus, ATC building, ATC101 (enter via Burwood Road)
Map https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.swinburne.edu.au/media/swinburneeduau/about-swinburne/docs/pdfs/hawthorn-map.pdf&sa=D&ust=1500101162774000&usg=AFQjCNFzw52FunrFlqcz0QTbo8sGkgP_ZQ
To Register: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfJ9AntQDQFGIj_EMUG4OkeAYWuCfXcqET4G93M44V_enRfkQ/viewform
e) ANSTO Big Ideas Forum: Year 10 students and a teacher, 6th - 9th November, Sydney.
Closing date 20th August
ANSTO is organising a hands on research program for 22 Year 10 students and 11 teachers from across Australia. They will meet world-class researchers and get hands-on with modern technology. They are looking for people who are creative and passionate – not necessarily the top of the class.
There is a limit of one application per school for two students and one teacher.
This event is free – flights, travel, accommodation and meals are covered by ANSTO.
Applications close 20th August. The application includes 40-second video of your two students telling ANSTO: “What problem would you like to solve through science for the future of our society?”
For more details go to http://www.ansto.gov.au/Events/BigIdeas/index.htm
f) Medical Radiations Careers Open Day, 10:00am - 2:pm, 27th August, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre
Departments of Medical Imaging, Radiation Therapy and Nuclear Medicine
This open day is for students interested in careers in the medical radiations professions. Staff will conduct tours of these departments and provide important career and professional information. University course providers will also be in attendance.
Make the most of this great opportunity to see the latest in high-tech modern medicine. Parents and teachers are most welcome.
Address: 305 Grattan Street Melbourne 3000 VIC. www.petermac.org
6. Forthcoming events for Teachers
a) Workshop on the Practical Investigation: Managing and Assessing, 6pm - 7pm, 17th August, Melbourne Girls' College
This workshop is the second half of the next meeting of the Vicphysics Teachers' Network. The focus of the workshop will be on the Practical Investigation with an emphasis:
• Advising students on topics and
• Assessing the plan, the logbook and the poster.
If you would like to attend, please contact Vicphysics at . Dinner afterwards is an optional extra.
Venue: Melbourne Girls' College, Yarra Boulevard, Richmond.
Check www.vicphysics.org/pracinv.html for more details of the activities.
7. Physics News from the Web
Items selected from the bulletins of the Institute of Physics (UK) and the American Institute of Physics.
Each item below includes the introductory paragraphs and a web link to the rest of the article.
a) Inferior: How Science Got Women Wrong and the New Research That’s Rewriting the Story by Angela Saini
b) Physicists quoting or misquoting Plato?
c) First doubly charmed baryon spotted by LHCb
a) Inferior: How Science Got Women Wrong and the New Research That’s Rewriting the Story by Angela Saini
http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/indepth/2017/jul/13/inferiority-is-complex
A detailed review of this publication.
Despite more than 30 years of campaigning by learned societies and community interest groups, the statistics for women in science are grim. In the UK, girls make up one-fifth of A-level physics classes and only 9% of professional engineers. Although it has become trendy to talk about diversity, to offer “women in science” scholarships and to decorate laboratory walls with photographs of women in lab coats, there are still external forces at play that prevent women from being as successful in science as their male counterparts. In Inferior: How Science Got Women Wrong and the New Research That’s Rewriting the Story, author Angela Saini puts forward the idea that bad science has been used to endorse the cultural prejudice that women are both biologically and psychologically second rate to men.