National Science Week is drawing to a close - one of the busiest and exciting times for us here at the Australian Stem Cell Centre.
Busy because we have scientists trooping all over Victoria visiting over 25 schools as part of the
Back to Schools Program, and exciting (especially this year!) because of the launch of our
Stem Cell Teachers’ Kit.
We receive over 500 enquiries a year from the public, and are all too aware of how influenced people’s opinions of stem cell research can be
by unreliable or unresearched sources of information. And, of course, sci-fi films. (I once saw Scully ‘cure’ a child with an incurable neurological disorder in the
second X-files movie by using ‘stem cells’.) There is never such a thing as silly question, but we do find it slightly worrying when people ask how long it will be before we can bring someone back to life. Or clone them. And their dog. To be fair, there are dog cloning companies overseas (charging considerable fees) - but cloning a human is illegal in Australia and many other countries for good reason.... but we’re getting off topic.
The ASCC takes public education seriously, it’s one of the fundamental components of the work we do. Whilst sci-fi might be fun, sometimes the scientific reality is quite different and our aim is to help people understand more about this exciting field of science.
Though science is fast-moving and concepts can be complex, the basics of stem-cell biology can be easily explained and comprehended. The key is how the material is presented. We have worked hard to provide resources such as the Teachers' Kit and the
Stem Cell Channel (an interactive website with mini-documentaries and interviews). Given how fast the field is moving, information can also become quickly out of date. To combat this, the teachers' kit contains a lot of links to outside material, which is regularly updated.
If you are a teacher or a student, we hope these resources are handy. There is something for everyone -
Check out our
Fact Sheets, and the
Stem Cell Channel.
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Teachers, if you would like to find out more about the Kit and getting your FREE copy,
click here.