Fair success!

Saturday's Fair in Saxon Square was a tremendous success with nearly 600 people passing through the Christchurch Community Partnership Marquee plus three dogs and our oldest participant was 94 years young. As well as a great showing by the TNT science club participants and helpers we were joined by Friends of Stanpit Marsh and Genoveva Esteban of Bournemouth University and Professor Vince May.

Team CAYP, led by Jae Harris, made sure the day got off to a great start by getting the marquee up efficiently!

Through the day a range of science experiments were available; these were chosen by the TNT participants. We explored how the density of water changes when you add salt; made Cartesian divers and looked at surface tension. Inspired by monsters and creatures from the deep there was plenty of slime to be made as well as using molecular gastronomy techniques to make fish eggs and worms.

Genoveva brought along four microscopes showing amoeba and plankton wriggling around under the lenses.

Martin Madusley ran two story telling sessions in the Library and did more informal storytelling around the craft and clay table.

A full report and collation of comments will be available soon.

We've been delighted with the response and enthusiasm for finding out more about our local environment and the double high tide.

A huge thanks to all those who came along and helped make the day such a great success!

There will be a final story performance on 30th April at Ye Old George Inn, Christchurch

Monday, March 23, 2015

Macronutrients in the harbour

Athena Drakou and Jack Billinge of Southampton University joined the TNT club on Saturday to talk about the study they are involved in looking at the nutrients in the harbour.

For the past 12 months the macronutrient study has been monitoring the nutrient water quality in the harbour and in the Avon and Stour Rivers, part of their work has been examining pollution levels when the sediments are stirred up by storms. 

From their website live data feed, you can see how the levels and the salinity of the harbour change with the tide.

As well as practical activities were learned about the differences between phytoplankton and zoo plankton

 come along to the Fair in the Square on 21 March to find out more! 

Nutrients come from run off from farming land. The nutrient enriched water can cause major problems by causing growth of algae, using up the oxygen in the water that can damage fish stocks or lead to poisonous algal types. 

After the science club we visited the pontoon on the sandspit and heard about the measurements that are being made. The video below shows the sampling systems being set up.

Monday, March 09, 2015

Event 01 21 March

Join the Time and Tide team and the TNT Saturday Crew for some fun exploring the science in the oceans and our local harbour. They will be joined by scientists from Bournemouth, Southampton and Portsmouth Universities as well as others involved in using, managing and exploring the harbour.

The event is free and runs from 11am-4pm and the marquee in Saxon Square will be bursting with a variety of hands on activities for you to try your hands at. 

Interested in taking a table - just get in touch with Helen@katalytik.co.uk

Tuesday, March 03, 2015

Life in the sea

With the help of Dawn Powell, marine biologist, we explored the different creatures that live in the oceans from microscopic plants and creatures to blue whales. Dawn was joined by the project storyteller, Martin Maudsley who created songs and sounds for different creatures and mythical monsters that might inhabit Mudeford.

We used the sports hall to explore how deep the oceans really are -  measured in sheets of loo roll - and how deep different creatures can dive to.

Dawn also brought along lots of specimens from the National Oceanography Centre to show and plenty of books as well as books and mints to take home thanks to the In Deep run by Maria Baker. http://www.indeep-project.org/

Dawn with a polystyrene cup that has been down to the deep ocean and our graphic artist's drawing of the 'how deep is the ocean?' activity

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Project TNT - Wk3

With thanks to Highcliffe School the scarcity of pipettes was resolved and the requested re-run of penny drops was a huge success. The first part of the practical session was devoted to further investigation of floating and sinking, density and surface tension.

A leader board for the number of drops of water on a penny saw 50 drops on one penny! Everyone was able to make their own rainbow by layering different concentrations of salt solution before we set about designing and making boats. Next week we’ll be racing them down a tank and they have to safely carry six pennies.

This week we introduced activity books and stickers, adding in pictures and diagrams to explain the science and capture the memories of all the things we are exploring each week.

With plenty of helpers there is space for a few others to join in this friendly group! Contact Jae Harris at CAYP on 07785 935928or just turn up and complete the medical forms.

Thanks to Tina, Mandy and Tracey for the toast!

Monday, January 26, 2015

Project TNT-Wk2

The theme for the week was sinking and floating.  This week, the Time and Tide storyteller Martin Maudsley brought smuggling tales, thrills and riddles to Project TNT to add a different dimension to our experimentation. 

The session started with our usual icebreaker session testing our memory of everyone’s names before a game of ‘Harbour Run-around’. Then it was time for water. We made Cartesian divers for those who had missed out while Martin taught us some origami skills and explored the properties of paper when wet and dry. We then designed boats for smugglers and found interesting places to hide our goods of screws and pennies.

We explored density and how we can make something sink or float on purpose. We are still waiting for our pipettes to arrive....

We used 3kg of cornflour and enjoyed hitting it hard to squash all of the molecules together so it looked hard, but when we left items on the surface they would sink. Martin talked about mud and hiding contraband in the mud and how smugglers used their knowledge of the tides to sink boats or boxes so they could be found later, under darkness when the tide went out.

While we were experimenting we talked about the smugglers from Christchurch and developed ideas for pirates names such as Barnacle Bill.  

 

Monday, January 26, 2015

Project TNT-Wk1

A Saturday club for young people-exploring things in and around the harbour

Our Saturday club is helping young people to explore the properties of water in a scientific but friendly and semi-structured way. The session begins with ice breaker sessions followed by Harbour Run-around in the sports hall to introduce some key words including: salty, fresh, brackish, tide, river, estuary.

The session content is led by the participants and volunteers. Overall we are exploring some of the weird things we can do with water as we start to explore the oceans. There are still spare spaces!

Penny drops

How many drops of water can you fit on a penny?

Does it make a difference if you have it ‘heads’ or ‘tails’ side up? We managed to get 24 drops onto the heads side and around 15 drops onto the tails side.

We wiped some soap over the surface and repeated our tests. The water drops spread out over the penny and we could drop about 3 drops before it spread over the edges.

Changing the density of water

We did some magic tricks and balanced hot water on top of cold coloured water. When we tried the same trick with cold water on top of the hot water it mixed up straightaway.

We made up three pots of water and salt mixtures with different amounts of salt in the pots and added some different coloured food colouring. By carefully adding the different coloured water into a tube, we could keep the colours separate.

Density and sinking

We made divers in bottles of water. We used a small piece of bendy straw and a paperclip to keep it bent over then trapped the air inside the straw with some plasticine. We added more plasticine and tested if the diver would float in a bowl of water. We then dropped the diver in a water bottle, topped it up to the top and put the lid on. When we gently squeezed the bottle the diver sank to the bottom. This was because as we squeezed the bottle the volume of air inside the diver was squashed making it denser than the water so it sank.

Notes: 

Project TNT is held at Somerford Youth centre on Saturday mornings from 10:00 to 12:00. There are at least four DBS checked adults present and young people volunteering as part of their Duke of Edinburgh Award. To attend contact Jae Harris of CAYP 07785 935928

Monday, January 26, 2015

Media Release 1

On stranger tides…

Have you ever wondered why Christchurch in Dorset has a wonky tide curve? Is it because of the Rivers Stour and Avon emptying into the harbour, or is it because of the Isle of Wight? Katalytik is delighted to introduce Time & Tide, a project-led story and performance piece about Christchurch’s double high tide and the role it plays within the area.

A community science project, Time & Tide is funded by Department for Business Innovation and Skills. Up to March 2015, local business Katalytik will be working with Christchurch Activities for Young People (CAYP) and scientists from the University of Southampton and the National Oceanography Centre Southampton to engage young people in the exploration of the tidal system as well as the science and history of the harbour environment around Christchurch. The results will be showcased on social media and culminate in a public activity day and storytelling performance - in Christchurch at the end of March, 2015.

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is pleased to support this project which takes science into a community setting. A spokesperson said: “It is our hope as a result of being engaged with this project that local people will feel better informed about science issues affecting them and be inspired to be involved further in the future.”

“We’re delighted to announce Martin Maudsley as the project storyteller. Martin helped develop ‘The Gathering of the Winds’ for the 2012 Olympic Sailing venue” says Jan Peters, project lead. “Our aim is to explore and share another reason why Christchurch is special through the creation of a narrative of the tides interweaving science, history and folklore.”

Jae Harris, of CAYP, said: I’m thrilled to be able to offer a new Saturday Club – Project TnT - for young people as part of this project. The Project TnT will explore the harbour environment, the life in and around the harbour and explore monsters of the mud and deep sea. The Club will run in Somerford from January through to the end of March, from 10-12:00 and will bring young people into contact with a range of different companies and scientists interested in our harbour and its local environment,” Young people age 10-12 are welcome. Contact CAYP.

Time & Tide project leader and Katalytik MD, Jan Peters says. “Living in Christchurch for over 20 years, I’m excited to connect local people with our amazing local resources and share my excitement about what makes our harbour so special”. She adds, “I can still recall as an oceanography student finding out about strange tides and was thrilled when I came to live here and saw the benefit of the weird tide curve that keeps the harbour full for longer than it would be, enabling us to windsurf and sail in such safe conditions for most of a day."

Professor Duncan Purdie from the University of Southampton  who is leading a current NERC funded  research project investigating the impact that plant nutrients from the  rivers Avon and Stour  have on the water quality of the Christchurch Harbour estuary  says “through this Tide and Time project we are keen to introduce the local community to the research that is  currently being undertaken to understand how changes in the tide influence the movement and impact of plant nutrients from the two rivers through  Christchurch Harbour and into the adjacent coastal waters of the English Channel. ”    

Follow us on Facebook or visit the Time & Tide website: 

http://www.christchurchtides.blogspot.co.uk 

www.christchurch-macronutrients.org.uk/ for real time monitoring of the nutrient sin the Harbour and Rivers Avon and River Stour

Further information

For more information, interviews & images, please contact: Jan Peters jan.peters@katalytik.co.uk or call 0797 4011278

• To sign up for the Saturday TnT project contact Jae Harris at CAYP on 07785935928
• In summary the following elements of the project will be taking place:
• A steering group of year 11 students are doing Silver Crest awards - 30 hour research projects for their silver Duke of Edinburgh skill and also volunteering at the Project TnT
• Project TnT will run from January through to March for 20 young people and at half term on 18 February
• A community day – Science Fair in the Square - is planned in Saxon Square for 21 March
• Two adult targeted seminars will take place: on  3 Feb and a further event to be confirmed in March.
• An evening performance of the Story with musical accompaniment is also being planned

About Katalytik

Katalytik is a small consultancy based in Christchurch, established in 2004, developing and delivering projects across science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM). We work with educational organisations and employers to attract, retain and advance enthusiasm and passion in science and technology. We specialise in inclusion.

Katalytik is also part of the delivery team for STEM Wilts and Dorset, with Catalyst, offering strategic planning advice to schools around science, technology and maths and matching volunteers from industry with schools to support the curriculum, clubs and competitions that aim to inspire pupils about STEM subjects for more information visit www.stemwiltsdorset.org.uk

Thursday, January 08, 2015

Project TNT - for kids

CAYP in partnership with KatalytiK, a local science based group, are running a free 9 week Saturday morning club for 8 -12 year olds based on all things watery and sea-like exploring things about Christchurch harbour. The club is called TnT -Time and Tide and will take place at Somerford Youth Club from 10 am-12pm starting Saturday 10th January.

Consent medical and emergency contact forms will need to be filled out.

Participants will need drinks and snacks each week.

Those who attend will have a chance to present what they have done at the club at an event which will be held in Saxon Square on Saturday 21 March.
The club will also involve some of our DofE participants who will be undertaking this project as part of their DofE Award and who will also be working to gain a prestigious science CREST award.

For more information or to book a place please contact Jae on 07785 9354928.

Thursday, January 08, 2015