Summary

There are just under a billion people in the world who are still living without electricity. Many of them rely on dangerous, polluting and expensive kerosene lamps for light. GravityLight was designed to provide a clean, affordable alternative to kerosene. Unlike other solutions, GravityLight has no reliance on external factors such as sunlight.

Talking Points

1. What are some uses of Gravity Light?

2. Who do you think will benefit from this technology?

   • Currently this technology is being used by 3rd world countries in Africa

   • The conventional way of using kerosene, a type of fuel, has caused health problems and fire hazards in homes

   • How can this technology be employed even in 1st world/developed countries?

3. What are the science concepts behind this technology?

   • Conversion of  energy

   • Conversion of  gravitational potential energy to light energy
     
     

Summary

A record high UV index was registered on 13 March 2021, Saturday.

UV light is one of the radiation emitted by the Sun in the form of a transverse waves that belongs to the category of Electromagnetic (EM) Spectrum. Other waves in this spectrum includes Radio Waves, Microwaves, X-Ray, Gamma Rays (think Nuclear!!).

Talking Points

1. What are some uses of UV Light?

   • Detect for germs and soiled surfaces

   • Sterilization purposes (can even kill COVID-19 viruses)

   • Releases Vit D in body

   • Causes severe sunburn and skin cancer due to excessive exposure

2. The role of the Ozone Layer to absorb the strong UV rays from the Sun. Continuous carbon emissions destroys the ozone. What is the impact? Ozone layer above Australia is the most destroyed!

Summary

NeMO-Net is a game developed by a team of NASA scientist to classify corals.

Gamers can progress through game levels to identify and classify corals, allowing NASA researchers to feed that information to a supercomputer, which creates a highly accurate picture of a coral species.

Currently, the top gamer is 11 years old.

Talking Points

1. What are coral reefs and why are they important?

• A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem

• About 25% of the ocean's fish depend on healthy coral reefs for shelter, food and reproduction.

• Coral reefs protect coastlines from storms and erosion. They are also a source of income, food and medicine. 

2. What are some threats to coral reef ecosystems and how do they affect coral reefs?

   • Natural threats: diseases, predators and storms

   • Manmade threats: pollution, sedimentation, unsustainable fishing practices and climate change

   • These threats can stress corals, causing them to expel the algae within them and turn pale white (coral bleaching), which may lead to their death.

   • Corals are able to recover from bleaching events if conditions improve before they die, though it can take many years for the ecosystems to fully heal. 

3. What are some difficulties in classifying coral reefs and how does this game help?

   • Mapping reefs usually involves high amounts of data and low-quality photos, which lead to slow analysis. 

   • The game allows NASA researchers to quickly obtain information that is already processed by multiple users. They can then feed the information to a supercomputer.

National Geographic: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/space-junk

Summary:

As the human race becomes increasingly reliant on satellites for communication, navigation and weather forecasting, we are also creating more junk in space. Space junk consists of rockets that send satellites out of space, defunct satellites and debris formed after collision of these satellites. The increase in space junk heightened the risk of damaging functioning satellites that we rely on for communication and navigation.  

Talking points: 

1. What risks does space junk pose to us? 

•  It is reported that collisions of working satellites with tiny pieces of trash can leave pits in working satellites. 

• For example, the International Space Station collided with a piece of debris, taking a chip out of the heavily reinforced window. 

2. Considering what has been done to remove space junk, is it possible to clear our space of all these space junk? 

3. Can we pursue advancement in communication and navigation technology and avoid sending satellites into space at the same time? 

An easy guide to nuclear energy: https://kids.earth.org/climate-change/what-is-nuclear-energy/

Ukraine invasion and how nuclear energy / weapons are involved: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/ukraine-war-russia-nuclear-weapons-winter-2965826

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/russia-and-ukraine-accuse-each-other-shelling-around-zaporizhzhia-nuclear-plant-2904041

2022 Doomsday clock statement: https://thebulletin.org/doomsday-clock/current-time/

Summary:

August 2022 - the world has narrowly escaped a nuclear disaster. Russian forces shelled near Zaporizhzhia, Europe's largest nuclear power plant located in Ukraine. 

Nuclear energy is seen as an alternative energy source as nuclear-generated energy releases no carbon dioxide. In addition, it is seen as a more efficient energy source as nuclear fission of 0.5 kg of uranium produces energy equivalent to burning 3 000 tonnes of coal. While there are benefits in using nuclear energy, there are downsides to using it as nuclear radiation harms the environment and threatens the health of living organisms. 

Worse still, countries are threatening to use nuclear weapons in modern warfare. While these weapons has yet to be utilised due to its potential to wipe out 80% of world's population, there is a possibility that a slight miscalculation can result in a deadly result - the bell to strike at midnight - the day humanity is destroyed. 

Talking points: 

1. What are the pros and cons of nuclear energy? Why does countries use nuclear energy despite the dangers it causes when misused? 

2. Do nuclear weapons serve as a threat or built for use someday? You can consider the pros and cons of nuclear energy to determine whether it is sensible to use these weapons. 

3. Will the world ever be nuclear free?