Poo power or nuclear power?
Poo is always of interest to the school population - and here it is as a potential renewable energy resource! In this activity students advise the government how to cope with diminishing fossil fuel supplies - should the UK build a few enormous nuclear power stations, or should we go for thousands of small renewable energy generators?
The two information pages have been designed to look good on your notice board, too, to promote discussion and further enquiry.
Learning objectives
Students will:
· find out how nuclear power and 'poo power' generate electricity.
· decide whether Britain should generate future electricity in nuclear power stations or renewable energy generators.
Web links
http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20040313/fob5.asp
Good news coverage and a clear diagram of the microbial fuel cell, with links to other articles. Students can also sign up to subscribe to a free weekly e-letter from Science News.
http://www.ncbe.reading.ac.uk/NCBE/materials/microbiology/fuelcell.html
If you are inspired, this is a site telling you about a microbial fuel cell which you can purchase for use in UK schools, with links to papers describing its educational use.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/climate/adaptation/nuclear_power.shtml
Information on how it works, the advantages and disadvantages and what's in store for the future, with links to information about other renewable sources.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/uk/06/electricity_calc/html/1.stm
This site asks you to choose how you would like your electricity generated and then calculates the possible impact in terms of carbon emissions, whether you managed to keep the lights on and how it will affect people’s annual bills.
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/ISIS_energy_review_exec_sum.pdf
Which Energy? 2006 Institute of Science in Society Energy Report
http://www.debatingmatters.com/C2B/document_tree/ViewACategory.asp?CategoryID=88
The Institute of Ideas: Nuclear power topic guide, which has links to sources of background reading and links to other sites with strong arguments for or against nuclear power.