This Catalyst article discusses how experiments using the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), which discovered the Higgs boson, at the CERN laboratory can tell us about the nature of matter in the early universe. ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment) is one of the experiments taking place at the LHC. It breaks down...

This edition of the Computing at School (CAS) newsletter covers a range of topics including:

*Unplugged computing magic tricks

*Programming using Alice, Scratch and GameMaker

*Making games with Kodu

*Object oriented programming in Java with Greenfoot

This Catalyst article looks at the career of Nick Treby who works around the world as an acoustic engineer, monitoring and managing sound levels in the environment. The article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2014, Volume 24, Issue 4.

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Published by the Wellcome Trust, the 'Big Picture' explores issues around biology and medicine. Addiction is a term we all use, but what does it mean? Explore some of the ways people understand addiction.

Find out about the science behind addictions. Two lesson plans are also included. The Deadliest Drugs...

In this Catalyst article, Laura Plant describes the time she spent in the Amazon rainforest in northern Peru on a project researching the impacts of forestry on the plants and animals that live there.

In tropical regions, large areas of rainforests have been untouched for centuries. This means that many rare...

This Catalyst article investigates the nature of aerogels, which are among the least dense solid materials, not much denser than air. Aerogels were made as the result of a bet and ended up going into space to capture comet dust. They are the lightest solids which exist and have some unusual features.

The...

A Catalyst article about using the ISIS accelerator to study the structures of materials. ISIS is one of the UK's world leading research centres and this article explains how the centre uses neutrons to study materials at an atomic level. Acting as a super microscope the ISIS accelerator can be used for physics,...

A Catalyst article about the life and ideas of Albert Einstein. He is most famous for his ideas on relativity which formed the theory of general relativity, in which he showed that gravity could be explained as the effect of large masses on space. After the Second World War he also worked with other scientists and...

A Catalyst article about alchemy, the study of eternal life, salvation, and the answer to the ultimate questions about life, the universe and everything. It flourished for more than 1500 years until, in the late 1600s, the beginnings of modern, scientific chemistry edged it aside. The article looks at what was...

This Catalyst article looks at the work of Alfred Russel Wallace who developed a theory of evolution in parallel with Charles Darwin; they published their findings jointly. As a scientist he was interested in lots of different things, from how different species came into existence to the question of whether ghosts...

Alison Foster has combined her education in Chemistry with her love of plants to engage in some exciting projects at the University of Oxford Botanic Gardens. This Catalyst article gives a profile of her career choices, and introduces a public engagement activity called Chemistry in the Garden.

Alison began...

This Catalyst article investigates materials used in jet engines. They must withstand high temperatures and great forces. Special alloys are used for structures such as turbine blades. The article is from Catalyst:...

A Catalyst article about aluminium, a shiny silvery metal, which is extracted from its ore by electrolysis. Further addition of other metallic elements results in an alloy, which can be cast into various shapes using moulds. The article looks at the processes of extraction, casting, patterns, moulds and finishing...

This Catalyst article describes an experiment with fluoride toothpaste on eggshells (as a substitute for teeth). Both teeth and eggs contain calcium compounds which can be attacked by acid. When an egg is put in vinegar the shell is weakened by the acid making it soft and more fragile. When teeth are exposed to...