UBC Partnership Program

February 2004 newsletter

Hello Let's Talk Science (LTS) Partnership Program volunteers and friends,

Happy (belated) new-year to all,

So far, this has been a very exSCIting year for the LTS-PP with some notable publicity, science fair judging opportunities and – most importantly – great programs delivered to lots of eager kids! After a successful third training session, we have finally balanced the books of pairing up volunteers and teachers, so everyone should have been in contact with their teacher by now. If not, please contact your teacher as soon as possible. Remember that persistence is key! Also remember to please keep us updated on your progress. Visit evaluation forms are available online under the section “for volunteers” – also go there to check out other people’s activities, and to get ideas for your own. Filling out these forms helps you to assess how your activity went, as well as potentially share that activity with other volunteers. These evaluations help us know whether supplies are necessary to improve the activity, and also give us insight into what is being accomplished in the partnerships.

If you have any suggestions for improving the program, the partnerships, the newsletter, the website, or anything else, please let us know – your input is valuable and important.

So, what are you waiting for? Get out there and share your knowledge. If you respect the students you work with, guaranteed they will amaze you with their smarts and insights - and you will be able to do the same for them.

All the best,

Beth Simpson Yona Sipos Randor

PhD Candidate, Human Nutrition MSc Candidate, Forest Sciences

Coordinators, UBC Let's Talk Science Partnership Program
University of British Columbia
2205 East Mall
Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4

Phone: (604) 222-1025
Fax: (604) 822-5143
Email:

A mushroom walked into a bar. The bar tender said, "Get out of here! We don't serve your kind."
"Hey, what's the problem?"
"Just get out of here. We don't serve mushrooms."
The mushroom in anguish says, "Why not? I'm a fun guy."

In this article, you will find:

  • opportunity to judge at a science fair
  • an activity to inspire you and get you started
  • science jokes (all from
  • many acknowledgments of volunteers
Here's one about Heisenberg: You've perhaps seen or heard of old inns that have plaques on the wall of a room saying, for example: "George Washington slept here." Well, there's apparently an inn in Germany with their own plaque. It says: "Heisenberg may have slept here."

Marshmallow Meiosis with Rebops

From the Partners in Science national Partnership Program newsletter; submitted by Phil Webster, University of British Columbia

Also check out: for other activity ideas

Background:

This activity could be used as an introduction to genetics, or just as easily as a summary where students can use the vocabulary they have learned. Rebops are imaginary organisms that are prolific yet require minimum care. Students will sort the parental chromosomes, select new offspring chromosome, decode the new chromosomes and construct the baby Rebops. Meiosis, fertilization, development and birth – all in one class!

Materials:

  • 1 bag of large white marshmallows
  • 1 bag of small coloured marshmallows
  • handful of small nails
  • 1 container of push pins (red and blue)
  • 1 container of thumb tacks
  • 30 pipe cleaners (cut in half)
  • 1 box of toothpicks
  • 30 sheets of construction paper (2 different colours)
  • 15 medium sized envelopes

Method:

Before the activity:

  1. Two adult Rebops need to be assembled
  2. Make the chromosomes. Make each pair different lengths where the longest should be about 15 cm x 2.5 cm and the shortest 3 cm x 2.5 cm so that each successive pair is about 2 cm shorter than the last. Use one colour of construction paper for mom’s and the other for dad’s
  3. Place a full set of mom and dad chromosomes in an envelope for each group of students (groups of 2-3 are good). Each envelope should have 28 pieces of paper
  4. Prepare a genotype/phenotype chart (see below). An overhead transparency works well in a small room. Handouts could also be given out.

In the classroom:

  1. Introduce the adult Rebops. Ask the students to comment on their characteristics (i.e., they look identical).
  2. Divide students into small groups (2-3 in each group). Hand out the envelopes containing the copies of the adults’ chromosomes. Students should then set out the 2 parental sets of chromosomes with same lengths together and letters facing down
  3. Next, ask the students to take 1 chromosome of each length from each parent and place them together in a new “baby” piles
  4. The baby’s characteristics are determined by turning over the chromosomes and encoding them according to the genotype/phenotype chart. You may ask them to write down the genotype and phenotype
  5. One student from each group can then come and get the materials needed to make their baby Rebop. When completed, all the baby Rebops could go into a designated “nursery” area. Have the students study all the offspring and note any differences
  6. You may wish to have a baby Rebop that has extra or missing parts (e.g., legs). You could lead in to discussing on the importance of complete sets of chromosomes
  7. If time allows get 2 groups to pair up and have their new respective Rebops mate. They grow up fast; after all you just witnessed meiosis, fertilization, development and birth in the last 45 minutes or so.

What’s Happening?

The sorting of the individual chromosomes, which is followed by taking one chromosome from each parent, represents meiosis. Pairing the new chromosomes to make the baby is fertilization. Development and birth happens when the students make their baby Rebops.

Rebops can be used with a wide range of age groups. The simple concept of generation could be introduced with younger students. With older students you could quiz them at any stage and ask what is happening or introduce concepts like linkage and multiple alleles.

Genotype/phenotype for Rebops
Genotype / Phenotype
AA / 2 antennae
Aa / 1 antenna
aa / No antenna
MM / 3 green humps
Mm / 2 green humps
mm / 1 green hump
QQ / Red nose
Qq / Orange nose
qq / Yellow nose
TT or Tt / Curly tail
tt / Straight tail
EE or Ee / 2 eyes
ee / 3 eyes
LL or Ll / Blue legs
ll / Red legs
DD or Dd / 3 body segments
dd / 2 body segments

If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it? –Albert Einstein

Upcoming events:

Beth and Yona will be presenting a poster and a talk on the LTS Partnership Program at a district professional day to the Vancouver school district on Feb 20 at John Oliver Secondary.

Let’s Talk Science has been, and continues to be, featured on MTV-Canada (no, not MuchMusic), on the youth program Select. Yona has already showcased carnivorous plants and exploding Lycopodium (club moss) spores, and the filming of “adventures in science” continues later this month.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Awesome volunteer activities:

Alice Li completed two visits with her grade 2 & 3 class at Queen Elizabeth Annex -- on exploring blood & the circulatory system and another demonstrating digestion.
Barbara Lelj completed visits with her two kindergarten classes of at Lord Beaconsfield Elementary School, doing a colour demonstration & colour wheel activity .
Brianna Melnyk worked on Irish Sea Fisheries Board worksheets with her grade 5 & 6 class at David Livingstone Elementary School.
Charles Lee showed his grade 12 class at St. George's Secondary School that physics can really be applied, and with minimal pain too! as they learned to use force analysis (vectors, components, free body diagrams) to analyse an observed phenomenon..
Josh Neufeld, Heather Neufeld, & Daryl Smith acted as a panel of experts to assist their grade 5-7 highly gifted class at Queen Mary Elementary School with their Exploravision projects (see for more about the Exploravision contest) .
Kaley Wilson and her grade 5 & 7 class at William Osler Elementary extracted DNA extraction from onions.
Karen Yuen investigated genomic approaches in yeast to study genetic instability in cancer (genomic bimating test and colony color-sectoring assay) with her Biology 11 class at Britiania Secondary School.

We've also had quite a few people volunteer to judge science fairs:
Killarney Secondary School Science Fair on February 17, 2004: Alfredo Franco Cea, Samuel Chang, Nicole Fernandes, Mindy Lam, Charles Lee, Lih Yeen Tan, Lillian Ting, Vanessa Thompson, and Tristan Walker
Sir Charles Tupper Secondary School Science Fair on February 17, 2004: Justin Bourne, Raja Chowdhury, Alison Halpert, Ben Harland, Gina Rossi, Cathy Safadi, and Elizabeth Slow
St. Francis Xavier Elementary School Science Fair: Rachelle Lalonde.

Wanted
$10,000 reward.
Schroedinger's Cat.
Dead or Alive