In the first of our monthly videos in partnership with Streamglish, this 2-minute news report is about driverless taxis in San Francisco, California. It fits well into a sequence on Innovations scientifiques et responsabilité. Like each of the videos, it will be available on our site for a month, along with the downloadable activity sheet. Vocabulary … Continue reading “Video Resource: Who is in the Driving Seat?”
The days when the public faces of NASA are only white men seem to be coming to an end. On 8 July, the space agency announced that it is renaming its Washington headquarters the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters in honour of one of the African American women mathematicians whose contribution to the space race … Continue reading “Times Are Changing at NASA”
The mathematician Katherine Johnson has died at the age of 101. Her calculations were vital many NASA space missions. She was one of the “Hidden Figures” brought into the spotlight by the 2016 book and film. Hidden Figures told the true story of a team of female mathematicians who worked in NASA during the early … Continue reading “Katherine Johnson Human Calculator Dies”
It was the British equivalent of making an announcement during the halftime break in the U.S. Superbowl game. Immediately after the 2017 Wimbledon men’s final the BBC revealed what the entire U.K. seemed to have been waiting for… that the next actor to portray the lead in sci-fi series Dr Who would be… a woman! … Continue reading “Doctor She”
“50/50: Rethinking the Past, Present, and Future of Women + Power” is a free downloadable film and discussion guide about gender balance that is central to 50/50 Day on 10 May. Here are some suggestions for using the film and other resources for a them on women’s rights or gender balance. You can find more … Continue reading “50/50 Day Film in Class”
Jamaica is famous for reggae, and in particular Bob Marley. But Jamaican music has a long and complex history, and is much more influential than seems credible for a nation with a population of less than 3 million. In music, as in athletics, Jamaica punches well above its weight. An exhibition at the Philharmonie demonstrates … Continue reading “Jamaican Rebel Music”
In this B1 article your students will learn about Jamaica, its history and its music as a new exhibition opens at the Philharmonie in Paris: Jamaica! Jamaica! Most students will have heard of Reggae and Bob Marley, and they may have studied the Triangle Trade in History. In any case, this is a good opportunity … Continue reading “The Sound of Jamaica”
The new robot exhibition at London’s Science Museum offers several videos on this motivating subject which can lead to work on science and technology, but also on human anatomy, modals and comparisons. The exhibition trailer doesn’t have any voiceover, just onscreen text. It points out that by looking at robots we question what it is … Continue reading “Robot Videos”
Robots seem futuristic, in the realm of science-fiction. But a new exhibition at London’s Science Museum traces their history back 500 years. A hundred mechanical wonders have taken over the museum. The exhibition’s curator, Ben Russell, explains that it was when astrologers developed a view of the universe as functioning like a clockwork mechanism, they … Continue reading “Robots Invade London’s Science Museum”
Canada pioneered an experiment on a universal basic income for all citizens in the 1970s. Now, one province, Ontario, has promised another trial. And other countries or regions are also toying with a basic income for all. In 1974, when Pierre Trudeau was Prime Minister, the federal government and Manitoba Province launched a four-year minimum … Continue reading “Basic Income: An Idea Whose Time Has Come?”
