SXR270 Tutor - Day 3

Day 3 starts - and I choose the scrambled egg - not very memorable.

Then off to the lab. On the way we have to wander into a copse of trees to grab a sample of lime leaves - some shaded, some in bright sunlight. It's one of the rituals apparently. It's also one of the experiments the students will be doing later.

Getting to the lab, its the leaf disc experiment, and it all goes pretty well - if you exclude the results. They have to subject leaf discs of various plants to radioactive carbon-14 to see how much is taken up by different surfaces and colours of plants.

About 5 different plants were tested including the huge maize plant.

Note the cameo role of the air conditioner next to it - which probably isn't doing it a great deal of good. There is a lot of radioactive marker tape around, and we have to take extra precautions. Special lab coats so as not to spread contamination, gloves and goggles, and a special fume cupboard with lots of admin sheets to account for all the radioactive material.

Most of the results were the exact opposite of what they should have been, oh well - that's science - something I had to say more than once today.

The afternoon brings the presentation skills, and the students have an hour and a half to put together presentations to present to the rest of the group. Then its off to a very large lecture theatre where they get to present them to the group (only 18 people). All very successful. Then a tutor debrief as we prepared to hand over to the next theme.

Then back for tea (pork and various veg, bread and butter pudding).
Then to be with my group as they get introduced to the next theme, and to help out with the poster design workshop.

Then, I think I see the bar in my near future! Oh karaoke.... hum. Its OK - but you can't hear people talk or hold a conversation. Just the one tonight then.

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