Questions for discussion

Transcription

1 Questions for discussion Moon landing EPISODE ST JULY 2009 Bottled water Uluru uproar

2 Youth Orchestra Bark canoe

3 EPISODE 18 Focus Questions 21 ST JULY 2009 Learning Area Science Key learning Students will deepen their understanding of the Apollo 11 mission and space exploration. Choose your own space adventure

4

5 Reflection Related Research Links

6 EPISODE 18 Focus Questions 21 ST JULY 2009 Learning Area Society and Environment, English Key learning Students will develop and present an argument based on the issue of Uluru being closed to climbers. The debate

7 Reflection Related Research Links

8 BtN: Episode 18 Transcripts 21/07/09 On this week's Behind the News: Should tourists be able to climb Uluru? Could you make a canoe out of bark? And the town that banned bottled water. Hi I'm Nathan Bazley welcome to Behind the News. Also on the show today kids getting classical at the highest level. Those items later, but first to our top story. Indonesian Bombing Reporter: Catherine Ellis INTRO: On Friday terrorists set off bombs in two luxury hotels in Indonesia killing at least nine people including three Australians. The attack has shocked a lot of people in Australia because many Australians go to Indonesia for work and holidays. Here's Catherine with more. CATHERINE ELLIS, REPORTER: Indonesia is just north of Australia and the attacks were in its capital Jakarta. More than 50 people were also injured by the bombs. Police think they were set off by part of a terrorist group called Jamaah Islamiah which wants to change the way Indonesia is run.

9 In the past the group has set off other bombs in Indonesia which have killed lots of people. The Australian government is very upset by the attacks. KEVIN RUDD: "This is a very, very difficult time for many Australian families tonight and for many Indonesian families tonight. Our hearts and our thoughts and our prayers go out to each of them at this most trying of times." The Prime Minister has promised to help Indonesia find the people behind the attacks and stop more bombings happening. Presenter And we ll bring you all the latest on those attacks next week. Moon Landing Reporter: Sarah Larsen INTRO: Today is a special anniversary of one of humanity's biggest achievements. Forty years ago 600 million people were glued to their TVs as they watched the first man step on the surface of the moon. The task was huge, getting to a place hundreds of thousands of k s away in an environment completely different to Earth's that has no air and is freezing cold. The story of how it all came to be is amazing, here's Sarah to explain.

10 NEIL ARMSTRONG, ASTRONAUT: I'm stepping off now. It's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind It s a phrase we'll never forget from one of humanity's biggest adventures. SARAH LARSEN, REPORTER: People had dreamed of going to the moon for a long time, but actually landing there? To many that seemed like pure science fiction. But in 1957 the Russians amazed everyone by sending a satellite called Sputnik into orbit. The United States didn't want to be outdone and the two countries began a race into space. JOHN F. KENNEDY, FORMER US PRESIDENT: I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving this goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth. But just getting off the ground was dangerous enough and getting to the moon was a lot more complicated than going into orbit. For that you only had to go a few hundred kilometres. The moon is more than 300 thousand k s away. Then they had to land safely, turn around and come back. It's tricky science, even today. REPORTER: And 40 years ago the world was a different place. Most people didn't even have televisions, let alone PCs. The only computers were huge, cost a fortune, and had about as much computing power as today's calculators. The guys at NASA had to do a lot of calculations themselves. Astronauts put their lives on the line. July 16th They were finally ready. Three astronauts called Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin took off on a mission called Apollo 11. It took three days to get there. Then Buzz and Neil landed in a lunar module while Michael stayed in the command module. NASA control, and the world, held its breath and then...

11 NEIL ARMSTRONG: Tranquillity base here, the eagle has landed. NASA CONTROL: You had a few people turning blue here. We can breathe again. Australia had its own important role to play. The signals from the moon were received by tracking stations at Honeysuckle Creek outside Canberra and Parkes in NSW. Since the moon landing all sorts of other stuff has been done in space but no one's been to the moon since the 70 s. That could soon change. The US is planning to send people back to the moon by One reason is to practice for longer missions to Mars. There's even the possibility of building a colony up there. Not everyone thinks it s a good idea. Some say it s a waste of money when there are problems on earth that need fixing. But whether it happens, it's unlikely we'll ever forget the time we first saw our home from another world and left a footprint on the moon. PRESENTER: What an achievement. Now if you want more info, ABC Science has a special web page all about the moon landing. Just click through to it from our website. Quiz Let s do a lunar quiz. What is the moon? 1. Satellite 2. Planet 3. Asteroid Answer: Satellite That's because it orbits the earth. Planets have to orbit the sun, so the moon is called a natural satellite.

12 Uluru Uproar Reporter: Nathan Bazley INTRO: It's the rock in the middle of the desert that attracts 350,000 people each year. But soon those visiting Uluru, in the centre of Australia, might not get to see as much of it as they'd like. A plan has recommended closing the rock to all climbers. That's got a lot of people fired up, so let's take a look at those on each side of this ascending argument. NATHAN BAZLEY, REPORTER: The question of whether to climb or not to climb Uluru has left this rock in a pretty hard place. Indigenous Australians have lived in this area for many thousands of years and as such have a very strong connection with Uluru. The site has spiritual significance and according to their culture and laws, it shouldn't ever be climbed. But in the past, the local indigenous people didn't get any say in how it was run, so climbers were allowed. On top of their spiritual reasons, the traditional indigenous owners also worry for the safety of those climbing, because the track is very steep and dangerous; in fact, 35 people have died attempting the tough trek. Finally, there are the environmental impacts that come with the thousands of visitors traipsing all over the place, such as rubbish and erosion on Uluru itself.

13 Despite all these concerns, tourists are still allowed to climb the rock,well, technically. NATHAN: Anyone who visits the park is now asked to respect the wishes of the traditional owners and in the past twenty years, 35 percent less people decided to make the trek. But now a new report has been released that recommends more drastic action - closing Uluru for good. The traditional indigenous owners love the plan because it's what they've wanted all along. But despite being the owners, they don't get final say on it. That comes down to the government, because they manage the area. But many pollies, including the PM, reckon it should stay open, because they say it s good for tourism and everyone should have the chance to climb it if they want. At this stage it's still too early to say if the plan will go ahead because everyone gets two months to have their say on it before the government makes a final decision. So what do you reckon? Should Uluru be shut to climbers? Or should everyone get the chance to climb the big rock? PRESENTER: And you can tell us what you think on our website. Bark Canoe Reporter: Sarah Larsen

14 INTRO: Sticking with Indigenous issues and while we were on holidays NAIDOC week was on. That's a time when Aboriginal and Torres Strait islanders celebrate their culture. But while many of the old Indigenous ways have been preserved, in the 200 years since European settlement, some customs have been lost. Sarah's met some trying to resurrect an ancient art. SARAH LARSEN, REPORTER: Here on a reserve in the middle of the suburbs there's a celebration going on, all in honour of this; a canoe. To understand why it's so special you have to go back a couple of hundred years. For thousands of years before Europeans came to Australia this area was the home of the Aboriginal group called the Kuarna people. They used the things around them to make what they needed. Trees became shields and bowls and canoes. REPORTER: Bark canoes like this were used for fishing and duck hunting and travelling across rivers. But after white settlers came fewer and fewer were made and after a while the only place you could see one was here in a museum. Until these guys decided to rediscover the lost art. The first step was finding a tree that was the right shape. PAUL DIXON, CANOE MAKER: We thought, this tree's just wanting to be a canoe. It s got a particular angle on it, it didn't have too many knots on it and the limbs were pretty high up. Then the bark had to be carefully removed in one piece. This hasn't been done in more than 150 years, so these guys are kind of learning as they go. They had hints from archaeologists who've examined how old canoes were made. But it wasn't easy

15 REPORTER: These guys have been working at it for more than a day now and they've got the advantage of modern tools and a cherry picker so imagine how hard it would have been without any of that. And they also have to be careful not to hurt the tree. PAUL DIXON: Once it s removed we cover it with a type of ochre as a form of protection because it was a living tree and part of the environment - they didn't want to kill the tree and they didn't want to hurt the tree just to make a bark canoe. REPORTER: If you look around in the bush you can occasionally see where old canoes have been cut from trees. PAUL DIXON: We call them scar trees and this will be a new scar so it will be a heritage tree. Finally, the bark was off and the canoe was taken off to be trimmed, shaped with heavy logs then dried slowly over fires and painted. Then the big day. JORDAN: It was pretty interesting the how they cut it down using a few new techniques but mainly traditional techniques. For indigenous kids it was a chance to see a piece of their own ancient culture brought back to life. PEGGY: We're here for the ceremony and the canoe KIDS: It's important because I'm aboriginal KIDS: So people learn about how we lived in the old days and how we had to adapt to what happened with this culture. It was also to share a bit of their knowledge.

16 KIDS: The best ones are the red ones. REPORTER: Yeah, they're really sweet. Mila here introduced me to some of the elders and even did some interviewing for me. MILA: Why is it important? MILA'S DAD: I think it s totally important to connect and learn about other people's culture and that how you do normally even when you make friends you ask where you're from and what do you do, it s the same in other races, cultures. I've certainly learnt a lot. I've made new friends and I've seen history being made all thanks to a canoe. PRESENTER: And thanks to Mila for guest reporting for us there. Quiz 2 Time for another quiz. How much water should the average kid drink in a day? glasses glasses glasses Answer: 6-8 glasses

17 But that amount varies a lot depending on how hot it is and how much you are exercising. The basic rule is make sure you drink when you are thirsty. Bottled Water Reporter: Catherine Ellis INTRO: But how do you get your water? A tiny town in New South Wales called Bundanoon is the first place in Australia and possibly the first in the world to ban bottled water. That sounds extreme -so why did they do it? What could they have against bottled water? Catherine investigates. CATHERINE ELLIS, REPORTER: How much of your body is made up of water? That's right - sixty percent. What about the individual bits? Well the brain is about 70 percent water, the lungs - about 90 percent, bones - 20 percent and blood - more than 80 percent. Water helps us digest food, transport nutrients around the body, get rid of waste and control our body's temperature - without it, we'd die. So to keep hydrated - do you turn on the tap or buy a bottle? Because according to research consumption of 'bottled water' is rising!

18 Last year Australians spent half a billion dollars on the stuff. It's a booming industry, which some say is pretty crazy when water's perfectly safe and virtually free from a tap! CATHERINE: In Australia it's estimated, a thousand litres of tap water costs roughly $1.20, whereas the same amount of the pre bottled stuff can be as much as $3000 dollars! But as well as the cost, some people are upset about the impact bottled water has on the environment. In Bundanoon they're so worried, they've decided to ban it. You see the process of producing, packaging, transporting, refrigerating and disposing of the plastic bottles creates harmful greenhouse gasses. And precious resources - like oil - are used to make the plastic. CATHERINE: It's estimated that to produce every one litre bottle of water, 200ml of oil is used up. British researchers reckon drinking a bottle of water is like driving a car for a kilometre. And once you're done drinking, the bottles can end up as litter or landfill. So in Bundanoon, instead of selling these, people will be encouraged to take a reusable container to free water fountains around town. But not everyone agrees with banning the bottle. They say taking away the option of water means shoppers will only have sugary drinks to choose from, which can be bad for your health.

19 And it could be dangerous in some parts of Australia where the climate is very hot and people need to keep hydrated. Also bottled water is important during natural disasters like the Victorian bushfires or floods when other water becomes contaminated. So what do you guys reckon? BOY 1: I reckon they shouldn't be banned at all. GIRL 1: It might be convenience for people who go to sport and forget their drink bottles and stuff. GIRL 2: They're convenient, but it's really just a waste of plastic. BOY 2: We reuse them and then once they've had enough we throw them out in the recycle. Some people want more towns to follow Bundanoon and ban the bottle. Others simply hope it will make shoppers think more carefully about how much bottled water they drink and how they dispose of empty bottles. As for what happens, I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Poll

20 It's an interesting issue so we'll let you have your say in this week's poll. Should bottled water be banned? If you want to vote go to our website The Score Ok time for some sport now - let's hit off with some cricket. Australia has pulled off an amazing batting effort to win the second Ashes test. It scored the highest fourth innings score to pass England's lead of 522. ******** To Rugby Union, and the Wallabies are refusing to give up on the Bledisloe Cup, despite losing the first game. They went down to New Zealand 22 16, after leading 13 to 3 early in the first half. ****** The Adelaide Thunderbirds are through to the trans-tasman netball grand final after defeating Waikato Magic They now face the Vixens for the big match in Melbourne on Sunday. ****** And the Hockeyroos have finished runners-up in what will be their last Champion Trophy tournament until at least 2011.

21 They went down 4-3 to defending title holders Argentina in a penalty shootout. ****** Despite that close loss, the hockeyroos are still one of our most successful national sporting teams. In fact they've been awarded 'team of the year' an amazing five times. Youth Orchestra Reporter: Nathan Bazley INTRO: Changing pace... have you ever heard of a bassoon? Or an Oboe? Well they are just some of the weird sounding instruments you'd find kids playing like pros in Australia's top youth orchestra. Getting into this prestigious group takes years of practice and dedication. NATHAN BAZLEY, REPORTER: When most kids dream of being a musician this is probably the image you'd think would be floating around in their heads. But how many do you think dream of something like this? Okay so it might not have the distortion, or the moshing; but there are hundreds of kids lining up to get a piece of this action.

22 It's called the Australian Youth Orchestra. These kids are some of the best in the country at the instruments they play and they like nothing better than coming together to play some amazing classical music. SARAH: Classic music is a lot more calming than pop music I think, pop music can get really intense after a while and it's always the same thing, and classic music there's such a wide variety. An orchestra is a little bit different to your usual pop band. First up they can have up to 100 members, and a huge variety of instruments get involved. NATHAN: Each section of instruments is named for how they make sound. Most orchestras have string, brass, woodwind and percussion sections. And in each section there are bound to be some instruments you've never seen before! JACK: So this is the bassoon, you put a reed on the end and blow through the reed, the air goes through the crook goes down to the bottom of the instrument then back up and out of the bell. So depending on how many holes or buttons you press down depends on how low or high the note is. Jack has been playing since he started school, but says practice is still a big part of it. JACK: Because of year 12 this year and having to focus on 4 other subjects it gets a bit hard, so whereas I'd like to do three hours, I only get one, one and a half each day, it's not quite enough but yeah...

23 Violinist Brigid does even more practice now she's finished school. BRIGID: Everyday for a minimum of four hours. These guys are all here to put in some serious practice for a big show they're about to do. Most would agree that getting together to play in such a talented group is their favourite part of music. JACK: It's probably the greatest reason that I stay in music is like having that feeling of being in an orchestra everyone together and being a woodwind player we have this small group within the huge ensemble so you've got this interaction between players and interaction between sections and so you get this amazing feeling in the end. And come the end of this month they'll be playing the works of 17th Century composer Beethoven, to huge crowds. But this young orchestra does get the chance to play some slightly more modern stuff too. Yep, a few years ago the orchestra got the opportunity to try something a little different - jamming with the Cat Empire! So those distorted moshing rock dreams might not be so far off for these amazing classical kids. Closer And if you want to know where you can see those guys playing check out our website. There's also a web extra with more interviews.

24 That brings us to the end of another show. Until next week, have a good one!