September 18, 2013
Do you know what a Rube Goldberg machine is? No, neither did we. But the students at Murgon State High School and St Mary’s Catholic College in Kingaroy have been building some recently.
Rube Goldberg was an American cartoonist who often drew complex gadgets that performed simple tasks in indirect, convoluted ways.
University of Queensland PhD student Dan O’Connor has been visiting Year 8 and 9 classes at Murgon SHS and Year 6 at St Mary’s as part of the 2013 Wonder of Science program.
Two of projects he has been working on with the students includes investigating salinity, and Rube Goldberg machines.
The program, initiated by the Queensland Division of the Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, aims to build passion and enthusiasm for science and technology in Queensland’s young people.
There is a special focus on students in Years 6-9 living in rural and remote communities.
The students undertake a research project and will deliver their findings at a competitive student conference in Dalby on December 5.
“All students get to experience the peer-review process which is an integral part of a research scientist’s career,” Dan said.
“At the conference, the students will present their work and be judged by their peers from other schools throughout the Darling Downs region.
“The South Burnett students will also get the opportunity to critique projects completed at other schools.”
Dan said he was enjoying working with the students.
“Wonder of Science allows students to experience what the career of a research scientist involves and will hopefully encourage young people from the South Burnett region to continue science-based subjects through senior school and onto university,” he said.
The Year 8 class at Murgon SHS’s Rube Goldberg machine involved busting a balloon in a complex and comical manner.
“While the final outcome will remain top secret until the conference, we can reveal that marbles, biology textbooks and a helicopter where all involved in the development phase of the project,” Dan said.
St Mary’s Year 6 class are in the planning stage of their Rube Goldberg project.
Another science project the students are working on is investigating how salinity can affect natural ecosystems.
“Murgon Year 9s are in the process of testing the effects of increased salinity on seed germination,” Dan said.
Despite being enrolled through the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation (QAAFI) at St Lucia, Dan is based at the J Bjelke-Petersen research station in Kingaroy.
He has recently been joined by Kylie Wenham, another UQ PhD student, who is investigating soil-borne diseases in peanuts.
Both students are keen to work with local schools during their PhD studies.
[Photos: Dan O’Connor]
