Yet let us also applaudthe teams of research and manufacturing scientists. Alan’s team at the School of Medicine usually works on reprogramming viruses so they can target and kill cancer - but are now focusing their efforts to help in the fight against the new Coronavirus gripping the world.The team is funded by Cancer Research UK, and are drawing on their expertise in viruses to seek out “tools” which could be used to deliver a vaccine.
They have already identified about half a dozen viral vectors which may be useful for encoding coronavirus antigens - the name for the part of the virus used to safely induce an immune response which may then offer protection against subsequent infection, or immunity.
“Our aim is to produce potential vaccines and then pass these on to immunologists to test to see if they are able to induce an immune response that can protect against coronavirus infection,” said Dr Parker.
Dr Parker and his team are already back at work in the labs at a University research building at the University Hospital of Wales - but adhering strictly to physical distancing.
“Being back in the lab is really weird. It’s so empty and really quite eerie,” said Dr Parker.
“There are four of us on the team who have now been granted ‘essential worker status’ and we’re obviously having to maintain social distancing so are working apart. It’s very strange.
Ref: https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/news/view/2060003-cardiff-scientists-switch-from-cancer-research-to-help-develop-coronavirus-vaccine

Can you encourage students to participate

There are free online lessons for both GCSE and A Level Physics thanks to Lewis Mattheson. This includes links to videos, worksheets that students can do in advance and a daily YouTube livestream where he will go through the worksheet and answer any questions. That will all be free and, at the very least, means you can direct your students to some lessons to take the pressure off your own planning.There is still a lot of uncertainty about what is happening, the plan at this time is to teach online lessons every week until the summer holidays. This will be suitable for Year 9, 10 and 12 who may have covered this material in class as well as suitable for any revision for Year 11 and 13 

Learning at Home with the Royal Society of Chemistry: Keep your 14–16 and 16-18  classes learning remotely with these curriculum-relevant resources and activities
The Royal Society of Chemistry’s education coordinators have selected a range of resources and activities for use while teaching chemistry remotely. They are all suitable for the 14–16 age group, and cover a range of levels. From worksheets to videos, these resources will help with distance learning, across all curriuclums for the UK.  Registration is free of charge

Endeavour is Kew's free online learning platform, full of teaching resources for Key Stage 3, Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5. 
Plan a plant hunter expedition, investigate plants used in medicine and explore habitats under threat. 
From exciting videos of Kew scientists to fun infographics and white-board presentations, Endeavour has everything you need to deliver engaging lessons in plant science and the environment. When registering for Endeavour, you'll be taken to our dedicated learning platform where all our resources are available.

Bombora developed a membrane which is submerged 10m below the sea surface.As waves pass through the membranes, they defect pumping air to turbines and generate electricity.
The team of STEM Ambassadors at Bombora include Civil Engineers, Renewable Energy specialists, Marine Energy Engineers and Project Managers.
The school trip was planned to support ‘Renewable Energy’ themed activities being delivered to the school by Pembrokeshire Coastal Forum and The Darwin Centre. 
STEM Ambassador Owain reported:
‘The class saw Bombora's Wave energy converter being fabricated at Mainstay Marine Solutions. They learned how the company are taking on the challenge of generating clean energy from wave power.
One Year 7 student asked us me how old he needed to be before he could apply for a job with Bomboro.
Our objective when engaging in STEM activities is to inspire the next generation. Mission accomplished!’
It was a fantastic day and the children really enjoyed meeting the team from 
@wavesuband learning more about marine energy and their wave device! 

Bombora's mWave Pembrokeshire Demonstration Project is part funded by the European Regional Development Fund through Welsh Government.
Once the current situation is officially safe, schools interested in visiting should contact pcf@pembrokeshirecoastalforum.org.uk

subject and convince young people that a chemistry qualification opens the door to a wide range of careers options, both in and out of the lab that a chemistry qualification opens the  door to a wide range of careers options, both in and out of the lab

There are endless interesting and rewarding science-based jobs available including ones you might not have thought of. Chemical scientists make a difference everyday.

All participants will be provided with a resource pack including a presentation and a range of hands on activities that can be tailored to the audience. . They are suitable for teachers, technicians and STEM Ambassadors 

To book please use the links below:    

Making Space Workshop Thursday April 30th at 2pm  - repeated on Tuesday 12th May at 4pm online

Join Dr Katherine Compton in Cardiff to find out more about activities that  you could offer to inspire young people to be interested in astronomy and space as part of the One Million Interactions initiative which was launched at the UK Space Agency’s conference in Newport, supported by STEM Learning, ESERO UK and The Careers and Enterprise Company, in order to attract more young people into science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and the space industry, which generates billions of pounds for the economy and is creating 42,000 jobs. 

“There are an enormous variety of careers available in the space sector,” says Tim Peake, “and during my mission to the International Space Station I was part of a team of thousands of people working behind the scenes to make it possible.  

“As an ambassador for space careers in the UK I have seen the power of professionals sharing their experiences with young people. This scheme is a great way of helping those young people take their first steps towards an exciting career in space.”

This workshop will provide you with a variety of new ideas and resources that could be used at both primary and secondary level and is suitable for teachers, community group leaders, STEM Ambassadors and volunteers Book here 

 IOP Wales Physics Forum. Thursday night  7pm - 8pm. 

Want to have an informal chat with other physics teachers, learn some new ideas to  inspire your pupils or ask questions ? Then come along to this informal online meeting and be inspired by ideas tried and tested by other teachers or students. 

Can you share a good website, book, activity, app and talk to others about it? All welcome: students, teachers and NQTs. Join the  Institute of Physics and share good practice and great science together.

Details and booking here.

 Rolls-Royce Schools Prize for Science & Technology

The importance of great teachers can never be overstated and should always be celebrated.

They shape an exciting future for the next generation of STEM trail-blazers, who will in turn shape an exciting future for both Rolls-Royce and the wider world.

That’s why the Rolls-Royce Science Prize was founded in 2004. It’s all part of their STEM education programme that aims to reach 6 million young people by 2020. They want to inspire the highest quality teaching in science and maths classes so that each new generation of students can reach their full potential.

The Science Prize can focus on any area of STEM and it can be either a new idea or development of something you’re already working on. The most important thing : think innovation, they are looking for ideas that are both inspirational and innovative.

Closing date for entries is 29 May.  All details here.

Enter our competition to win an Outdoor Learning kit for your school by inviting your students to redesign an outdoor space for wildlife. If you are teaching remotely, this activity can be done from home!  
Start using our Habitat Explorer scorecards to invite your pupils to rate how good an outdoor space is for wildlife. Depending on where they are, pupils can score their school grounds, home gardens or even their local street. It’s simple – they just need to tick off the different habitats they can find and add up the scores.  
If your students are at home and don’t have access to a garden and can’t go outside, not to worry, they can still take part! Ask them to imagine their local park or school grounds, or if they can see the street or other gardens from their window.  
The next step is to ask your pupils to draw a picture of how they would improve the space to provide additional habitats and support more wildlife. To enter, simply take a picture of the favourite design from your class and submit your details through this online form for schools.   and  this online form for families.   

The Intermediate Biology Olympiad 2020 will take place between 2nd - 9th June 2020.

The competition consists of a one-hour multiple choice test taken online any time convenient during the competition dates. Students will need to be invigilated when taking the paper, either virtually by a teacher or at home by a parent/guardian. Questions will be set on topics students are likely to have covered at GCSE and in their first year of A level.Students who take part in the competition are encouraged to reference their participation in their further/higher education applications.

The Intermediate Biology Olympiad is organised by the UK Biology Competitions committee and administered by the Royal Society of Biology is now open for registrations.T eachers can also download a guide on how to register for the competition.

The competition is open to students in Y12 in  Wales. Every and student who takes part in the competition is eligible to receive free BioNet membership for one year.

Students can take part in the Intermediate Biology Olympiad 2020 for FREE. If you have any queries regarding the competition, please contact Raghav Selvam.

Swansea University’s Technocamps project have launched a series of free online resources to support learners, teachers and parents during the Covid-19 outbreak

With schools across Wales and the UK closed until further notice due to the ongoing pandemic, the Technocamps delivery team have created several tools to maintain momentum and motivation.
Amongst the free online resources is a ‘virtual code club’ via an online video stream. There is a plan to go live every Thursday throughout this ongoing period, with the team also looking at introducing other days too.
There are also worksheets, videos and quizzes available and pupils are encouraged to work through the packs and submit their work to the project team, who are also running an online leaderboard for both schools and pupils.
To download the resources go to the Technocamps website.

Bronze Awards are aimed at KS3 pupils and, if pupils were to fulfil all the criteria required to gain an Award at the end, take about 10 hours to complete.

Examples of projects requiring few resources are:
Devise an experiment into making the perfect cup of tea
Investigate different bread recipes before designing the perfect bread rise
Learn about energy transfer and the insulation properties within different clothes

Teachers and parents are still able to apply for CREST certificates online for students who have fulfilled the Awards criteria. Please contact Llinos at llinos.misra@see-science.co.uk for more information.