A Catalyst article looking at the use of plant cells to generate electricity via photosynthesis. This branch of science is called biophotovoltaics. The Sun is the ultimate source of energy for almost all life on Earth and harnessing this energy is one of the great scientific and technological challenges....

This Catalyst article describes how, as two tectonic plates separate, wide fissures appear in the ground in northern Ethiopia. Eventually a new ocean will form in the area affected. The Earth’s surface is not stable or permanent. The tectonic plates that form our planet’s outer crust are constantly moving around,...

This Catalyst article explains how chemists build molecular 'traps' to mimic the surface of a cell. To scientists, sugar is much more than a food; sugar molecules can also form polymers which act as ‘molecular bar codes’ to help cells recognise each other. The article describes how chemists made a synthetic...

A Catalyst article about fainting and how it can be the result of a sudden drop in blood pressure, which is often part of a shock reaction. Maintaining blood pressure is an important part of keeping the human body in balance. This article examines hypertension, living with high blood pressure, and the relationship...

A Catalyst article about the use of tiny electronic sensors to monitor the movement of people. As electronic devices get smaller and more powerful, they are finding new uses in monitoring human activity. This article describes a project to develop sensors with uses in medicine, sport and electronic gaming.

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A Catalyst article about a temple singer who was preserved as a mummy over 2000 years ago in Egypt. She now lies inside a coffin in a museum in Manchester. Thanks to developments in medical science, researchers are revealing the secrets of her life and piecing together the diseases she suffered from by using X-rays...

A Catalyst article about buckytubes, a type of carbon nanoparticle.The allotropes of carbon —diamond, graphite and buckminsterfullerene (bucky balls) — are well known. Now scientists are working on buckytubes. These are based on elongated tubes formed from sheets of hexagonally-linked carbon atoms, capped at both...

A Catalyst article about a visit to CERN, the particle physics lab and what the centre has to offer a science student by way of a case study.

This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science Review 2007, Volume 17, Issue 4.

Catalyst is a...

This Catalyst article looks at hearing loss, which is usually associated with the elderly, straining to hear the TV while turning up their hearing aid. As a teenager losing the ability to hear correctly seems decades away but hearing loss is increasingly becoming a problem for young adults and teenagers. The...

A Catalyst article investigating if mobile phones produce harmful radiation. The short article compares the view points of a concerned parent, protester, scientist, official report and a complacent citizen.

This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science Review 2005, Volume 16, Issue 1.

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According to a working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research, published in 2016,  removing low-performing...

A Catalyst article explaining how carbon capture and storage can reduce the amount of carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere and may reduce the effects of climate change. Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. This is a major contributor to climate change but can CO2 be captured and...

A Catalyst article about carbon dioxide which can be used as a solvent in industry, or as a regulator of blood pH. This article looks at some other uses of carbon dioxide and considers its importance in global warming. It also explains how the greenhouse effect is a natural part of the operation of the Earth's...

This report highlights the principles of effective Careers Education Information and Guidance (CEIAG) as evidenced and agreed by the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL); the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL); the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER); and the 157 Group. The...

This guide offers a practical step by step approach to interpreting, meeting and exceeding the requirement of the Statutory Guidance for schools.

It also includes two pages on the work of the Career Development Institute, which has a key role to play in influencing careers and skills policy and a...