Science by Email 30 September 2011

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	30 September 2011
Carbon in soil can be used to offset carbon dioxide emissions - as long as it's the right sort of carbon. News: Carbon confusion By Mike McRae Ask an apple farmer if their fruit’s organic, and they might explain their answer by discussing which pesticides they use or the way they fertilise their orchard. Take the same apple to a chemist, and they’ll talk about the roles carbon plays within different compounds. In chemistry, the word organic describes a variety of compounds that all include carbon. However, some carbon-based compounds are organic, while others are inorganic. Historically speaking, organic compounds were thought to come from living things. Whether it’s yaks or yeast, living things contain proteins, sugars and fats. These are organic compounds based on a chain of carbon, combined with other elements such as hydrogen and oxygen. Organic chemistry covers more than just the makeup of living things, however. These days, similar compounds are used to make plastics, pharmaceuticals, and even paints. Carbon has been called “atomic Velcro” because of its ability to make and break bonds with many different elements, and the resulting compounds are not all organic. Carbon dioxide and carbonate are examples of inorganic molecules containing carbon. In agriculture, it’s important to distinguish between organic and inorganic soil carbon. Organic soil carbon – such as plant and animal matter – can be increased, holding carbon and offsetting carbon dioxide emissions that are contributing to climate change. Inorganic forms of soil carbon like carbonate are relatively inert and don’t offset carbon dioxide emissions. The Australian Government’s Soil Carbon Research Program has researchers developing new methods to accurately measure organic carbon in soil, without including inorganic carbonate. There’s no doubt that keeping track of carbon in the environment can be tricky business. But given its vital role in the health of our environment (and ourselves), it’s important to know what we’re talking about. More Information Reducing greenhouse gas emissions using soil carbon. Organic chemistry The Organic Federation of Australia Careers Royal Australian Chemical Institute
You'll need these materials.   Hold the cans in your hands and stretch out your arms. Have a friend give you a push.   While you are spinning, pull your arms into your body.   Try this: Spinning chair Safety: Give yourself plenty of space to do this activity and make sure you don't spin too fast! You will need A spinning office chair Two heavy objects – one to hold in each hand. Cans of food work well. A friend What to do Hold the two weights, one in each hand. Sit in the chair and stretch your arms out sideways. Have a friend give you a gentle push so you start spinning slowly. Pull your arms in so they are close to your body. What happens? What's happening? In this activity, the weights in your hands (which are relatively small) rotate around you and the chair (which are relatively large). Any system that is rotating has a property called angular momentum. Like mass and energy, angular momentum is conserved: it can be transferred, but not created or destroyed. When you start spinning in the chair, you have a certain amount of angular momentum which stays constant. The amount of angular momentum depends on the mass of the rotating object, the speed at which it rotates, and the radius of rotation. The radius is the distance from the axis of rotation to the weights. When you bring your arms in close to your body, you decrease the radius of rotation. The amount of angular momentum has to stay the same. As your mass is constant, your speed must increase in order to conserve angular momentum. Of course, eventually you will slow down and stop. This is because the angular momentum is transferred to the air and the bearings of the chair through friction. Applications Figure skaters use the conservation of angular momentum to perform their routines. Skaters are able to increase their speed simply by bringing their arms or legs closer to the centre of their body. Try a Science by Email activity about rotational inertia. More information Gyroscopes View online version Quiz questions 1. What might be described as triclinic, orthorhombic or tetragonal? 2. What does SEM stand for? 3. Where would you find the basal ganglia? 4. What is amber? 5. What are zoonoses? ‘What’s the solution?’ writing competition 2011 is the International Year of Chemistry. To celebrate, The Helix magazine is searching for Australia’s top young science writers. If you’re aged between 11 and 15, passionate about science and wicked with the written word, we want your opinion. To enter the competition, you will need to write an article of no more than 500 words on the topic ‘solution’. It could be the solution to a problem, a chemical solution, or a question that is in need of solving … it’s completely up to you. First prize will be $200 and a year’s Double Helix Science Club membership. Your article will also be published in the magazine. Plus, there are other prizes to be won! The competition’s closing date is Wednesday 30 November 2011. For more information on how to enter, and the competition’s terms and conditions, visit the CSIRO website. This competition is supported by CSIRO’s Double Helix Science Club and I’m a Scientist, Get Me Out Of Here. Did you know? Scientists at CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research have found that wind speeds in Australia are increasing. This has important implications for the future use of wind energy technology in Australia. Website Read it! How did mammals evolve? Where do they live? Meet your relatives at the mammal family reunion. Do it! Spot the asteroids! Events NSW: Parkes Observatory open day The CSIRO Parkes Observatory is celebrating its 50th anniversary. On the weekend of 8-9 October 2011, the Parkes Observatory will host an Open Weekend. The open days showcase the achievements of the Observatory as a world-leading astronomical telescope as well as its role in supporting some of the most significant space missions in history. Activities include telescope tours, talks, hot air ballooning and hands-on activities. More information can be found at the CSIRO Parkes Observatory Open Days website. Future Transport, Saturday 1 October at 9.00 am on Network Ten This week SCOPE is hovering, rolling, flying and sailing into the future of transport! From solar-powered yachts, to blower-vac powered hovercrafts and self-driving electric vehicles; how do you think we’ll be getting around in 50 years? Dr Rob is on a mission to find out! So don’t forget to drive in and watch as the ordinary becomes extraordinary, under the SCOPE!    Next episodes: Thursday 6 October: Fossil Fuels Saturday 8 October: Aluminium Want to have your own episodes of SCOPE to watch whenever you feel like it? Click here to download them directly into your iTunes folder, or go here to download iTunes. Charges apply. Quiz answers 1. Triclinic, orthorhombic and tetragonal are all names of crystal systems that describe how the atoms in a crystal are arranged. 2. SEM stands for Scanning Electron Microscope. 3. The basal ganglia is a region in the brains of vertebrates. 4. Amber is the fossilised resin of ancient trees. 5. Zoonoses are infectious diseases that can be passed from other animals to humans. The CSIRO’s Australian Animal Health Laboratory plays an important role in researching zoonoses to protect Australia from emerging diseases. Science by Email is a CSIRO publication. The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and bankmecu are proud partners of Science By Email. Editor: Jasmine Leong | Manage your subscription | FAQ

 

 

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