This outreach programme aimed to build upon good practice from the Royal Society of Chemistry's (RSC) project Chemistry for our Future, and to develop new activities which could then be used with the RSC’s Spectroscopy in a Suitcase (SIAS) equipment. It explored appropriate contexts which may appeal to students...

From the Integrating Mathematical Problem Solving project by Mathematics for Education and Industry (MEI), this activity for post-16 students shows how modelling helps decision making by allowing us to see what is likely to happen. The mathematical ideas covered are:
• Modelling cycle
• Binomial...

The Nuffield Foundation provide this resource where students use simulated stature data for men and women in eight countries to draw histograms and look for general results, as manufacturers need to take these into account when they design products. This is mainly intended as an introduction to the normal...

In this activity students begin with a simple introduction to the stock market; calculating new prices for a variety of fictional shares based on daily percentage changes.

The task requires students to calculate simple percentage changes. A spreadsheet is provided for students to record their results which...

From the Integrating Mathematical Problem Solving project by Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI), this activity shows how, when introducing a new way of doing things, it is useful to model how it is likely to work. When comparing the value of money over a period of years, inflation needs to be taken into...

From the Integrating Mathematical Problem Solving project by Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI), this activity shows how changing the assumptions which a model is based on can change the way it behaves. It is important to compare predictions from a model to what we know happens in real life. This unit...

The Nuffield Foundation provide this resource which enables students to carry out significance tests on proportions and test hypotheses about successful applicants to higher education. The data provided on information sheet A is simulated but similar to real data available on the UCAS website. Information sheet B...

These technical briefs focus on low cost approaches to accessing energy. This is vital to health and well being and low costs are particularly important to poorer communities in the developing world.

This resource focuses on some research data into the prevention of anterior cruciate ligaments (ACL) injury. The activities included in this resource will enable students to develop their ability to evaluate claims based on science through critical analysis of the methodology, evidence and conclusions, both...

In this resource, students consider whether two Poisson distributions can be added together to form a third Poisson distribution. The initial, discussion generating proposition is backed up by a proof. The resource also contains an accompanying spreadsheet on which students can run simulations to test the result....

In this resource students deal with an optimisation problem involving perimeter and area based on a Greek mythological story about a princess. She wants to maximise the area contained in a given perimeter and decides on a circle. The concept of the Isoperimetric...

In this resource the side lengths of a triangle are given. The challenge is to find the ratio of the product of each of the tangents, divided by the sum of each of the tangents.

Each student worksheet contains a different triangle, but the answers all have something in common.

The solution involves...

This activity examines the use of percentages in research and the media. The examples used focus on the distinction between absolute and relative percentages and percentage changes. The need for improved education in the area of communication of risk is at the heart of...