In April the group gathered around two large tables and we were divided into teams. One was set to build electric generators, the other to make a simple electric motor driven by a 3 volt battery. Along with some simple instructions a coil of copper wire and some magnets our dexterity was challenged in winding 300 coils of wire around a flimsy armature but eventually the motor wire and the diode lit up on generating a brief current.
As summer beckons, we turn to our biology sessions. We gave a practice run to the mercury vapour lamp, trapping the extraordinary range of colourful moths which inhabit our back gardens but are rarely seen. Around 60 specimens were caught and identified before being released. Rare specimens are identified and notified for verification to i-record.
In June we have a botany trip to the Yew forest in Kingley Vale just outside Chichester, followed by examination of chalk downland flora under the expert eye of Helen Dignum, who will run the trip. We hope this will be followed by a picnic at the dewpond.
In the Autumn we will be looking at using AI, followed by a session on visualizing radioactivity using different types of cloud chamber.