Science Week is designed for everyone – it’s definitely not restricted to schools and universities – with events and activities and talks and shows for every age group.

It provides an opportunity to acknowledge the contributions of Australian scientists’ to the world of knowledge. It also aims to encourage an interest in science pursuits among the general public, and to encourage younger people to become fascinated by the world we live in.

Tuesday | 9:40 – 10am Brain Break Science in the Kitchen with Mr Richards

Wednesday  | 10:10 – 10:30 am Brain Break Science in the Kitchen with Mrs Constanti
11am-12 Deeper into the STEM of our Oceans with Vanessa Pirotta (Whale Snot Scientist) and Dr Sylvia Earle (from the first ever women’s research diving team) Live event

Thursday | 8:40-9am Brain Break Science in the Kitchen with Mr Richards
10am Science of Rockets STEM Program hands on virtual excursion

Friday | 8:40-9am Brain Break Science in the Kitchen with Mrs Constanti
10am Q&A with Dr Karl Live event

PFi Aerospace

Age: All ages
Time: 90 minutes
Format: Design challenge and live panel

Calling all budding world problem solvers: Are you up for this Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Design Cycle challenge? After all, it’s only rocket science! 

Check out this video of a PFI Rocket Engineer breaking down a hybrid rocket motor. How do you think you would go? Now is your chance to find out!

On Thursday 19th August at 10am, be inspired by a live chat with a specialist STEM panel, featuring women in STEM leadership, IT professionals and Rocket Engineers (real-life Rocket Scientists!). Hear about how design challenges are completed at aerospace and what you should focus on throughout the design challenge! 

Then straight after the team at Science of Rockets will guide you through a 30-minute design challenge, inspired by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Design Thinking processes. 

You can also experiment with adding honey and corn syrup and even an ice cube! You will find that some density tower experiments have a very specific and careful way to add the layers, but ours is a bit more kid friendly!

Add your ingredients from heaviest to lightest. Here we have the heaviest being honey, then dish soap, then water (colour the water if desired), then oil, and lastly the alcohol (hand sanitiser). You can colour the water and hand sanitiser with food colouring before adding them to the tower.

STEP 3:  Fill your jar the rest of the way with water. 

STEP 4:  Add drops of food coloring to your oil and water and watch what happens. 

STEP 5:  Now it’s time for the grand finale of this lava lamp experiment! It’s time to drop in a tablet of Alka Seltzer or it’s generic equivalent. 

When the two substances combine (tablet and water) they create a gas called carbon dioxide which is all the bubbling you see. These bubbles carry the colored water to the top of the oil where they pop and the water then falls back down.