When it comes to gathering water data, the “employee of the month” may look a little on the “green and cubical” side. Alongside Yorkshire rivers, there are multiple green boxes working hard to gather data on river quality that should, in a couple years, be available for river users and potential swimmers to access through an app that tracks pollution.
Though there are currently apps that show pollution data, that information is old and outdated. This upcoming app is special, because it will use live data from an on-site sensor to provide real-time pollution levels in the water. It’s not meant to tell people “safe” or “not safe” or “swim” or “don’t swim,” but it can give people what they need to make an informed decision... mostly.
The green boxes have a big shortcoming: they’re unable to detect some really nasty bacteria like E.coli, which can only be measured in a lab. But don’t worry, old-school scientists are on the case, manually taking samples to send away for analysis. These findings will be used to build a data set that will be combined with green box data, and AI learning will infer when E.coli (and other bugs) are present in the river.
So, today, we celebrate a beautiful marriage — one of traditional testing, new technology, and AI. It may not be the pairing you’re rooting for on Love Island, but it shows great promise for water safety!
There’s a shark in the water! No, no, it’s good — we promise! The WasteShark is not actually a shark, but an autonomous robot that was built to tackle a big problem: plastic pollution in the water. Some estimates put the amount of plastic waste in the hundreds of millions of metric tons. Between canals, rivers, and oceans, waterways around the world are affected.
To make things worse, marine plastic is a relatively new problem, so the solutions haven’t caught up to the issue. The old methods of putting people in boats to fish out plastic isn’t enough, so Richard Hardiman, CEO of RanMarine Technology, took to the drawing board and built a robot.
The WasteShark is basically a vacuum that cruises around the water and sucks up trash, without needing a person to sit and drive it. It can be controlled remotely or put in autonomous mode, because of its sophisticated addition: software that helps it identify and avoid sucking up items that are not trash. The ducks and fish are very grateful. Despite its sophistication, there are still challenges with developing the robot, since scientists have to figure out how to program it to recognize and act on reflections, currents, and wind.
The shark can gather up to a ton of trash over a 24 hour period, which is just the beginning of what needs to be done to reverse the pollution issue. Luckily, the next step is already in the works: the MegaShark.
From the scorching surface of Mercury to the icy winds of Neptune, this BBC Learning Hub playlist takes you on an awe-inspiring voyage across our celestial neighborhood. Explore the mysteries of alien worlds, witness dramatic planetary weather, uncover the origins of Saturn’s rings, and ponder life on Mars. Whether you're a curious stargazer or a space science enthusiast, these video clips from landmark BBC series like The Planets and Wonders of the Solar System will ignite learner's imagination and deepen your cosmic curiosity.
Get ready for a speedy adventure! This BBC Learning Hub playlist, packed with clips from Grace’s Amazing Machines, takes students on a high-octane journey through land, sea, and sky. From gyrocopters and tugboats to superbikes and supercars, each video introduces a powerful machine — and the science that makes it move.
Perfect for teaching concepts like forces and motion, energy, friction, and transportation technology, these clips are a fun, fast-paced way to explore how things go, glide, float, and fly. Each video comes with discussion questions, hands-on activities, and more to help kids think, tinker, and learn like real engineers. Buckle up — it’s going to be a wild ride!
Take your class on an exciting journey through Florida’s amazing wildlife and habitats! This playlist explores the warm springs where manatees gather in winter and shows how dolphins team up in Florida Bay to catch their food in clever ways. Along the way, your students will discover what makes Florida’s ecosystems so special and why they’re worth protecting. These clips are perfect for sparking curiosity, starting great classroom discussions, and inspiring kids to think like young scientists and conservationists.
In Postcards From the Surface of Mars, Professor Brian Cox examines the geographic evolution of Mars, noting the vast canyon called Valles Marineris. He looks at photographs taken from the surface of Mars that look eerily similar to Earth: sunsets, clouds, and landscapes. There is, however, one glaring difference: no sign of water. This video is excerpted from BBC's Wonders of the Solar System, a spellbinding documentary series that explores the most extreme locations on Earth to explain how the laws of physics carved natural wonders across the Solar System.
The article "Water found buried under Mars equator" from BBC's Science Focus showcases the discovery of ice beneath Mars' equator using data from ESA's Mars Express spacecraft. This finding could be crucial for future human missions to Mars, as the ice deposits could provide a valuable water source.
In The Unique Underwater Ecosystems of Submarine Mountains, narrator Sir David Attenborough goes deep beneath the ocean surface, where volcanic eruptions have built enormous submarine mountains — some taller than Mount Everest when measured from the seafloor. These underwater peaks create unique ecosystems, as powerful ocean currents sweep nutrients up their slopes. This influx of nutrients supports vibrant marine communities, including soft corals, whip corals, and giant sponges that filter nourishment from the water. Though these ecosystems thrive in complete darkness, they rely entirely on the energy transported by deep-sea currents. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
In Nine North Creates an Extraordinary Ecosystem, narrator David Attenborough goes deep beneath the Pacific Ocean near the Galápagos Islands, to examine the hydrothermal vents known as "Nine North." The vents release superheated water, creating an extraordinary ecosystem. Towering mineral chimneys support a thriving community of giant tube-worms, some growing up to three meters long. These deep-sea creatures rely on the energy from the vents to survive, making them some of the fastest-growing marine invertebrates. However, this environment is unpredictable—vents can suddenly go dormant, leading to the rapid extinction of entire micro-worlds. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
In The Mysterious Nautilus, narrator Sir David Attenborough highlights the nautilus, a fascinating marine creature that spends its days hiding over 1,300 feet (400 meters) deep in the ocean. Unlike its close relatives, the squid and octopus, which have lost their shells over time, the nautilus retains its protective spiral shell. This shell contains gas-filled chambers that control its buoyancy. Propelling itself backward using a water jet, the nautilus must rely on chemical sensors in its small tentacles to detect both prey and predators. One of its main predators is the octopus, a master of disguise. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
When it comes to gathering water data, the “employee of the month” may look a little on the “green and cubical” side. Alongside Yorkshire rivers, there are multiple green boxes working hard to gather data on river quality that should, in a couple years, be available for river users and potential swimmers to access through an app that tracks pollution.
Though there are currently apps that show pollution data, that information is old and outdated. This upcoming app is special, because it will use live data from an on-site sensor to provide real-time pollution levels in the water. It’s not meant to tell people “safe” or “not safe” or “swim” or “don’t swim,” but it can give people what they need to make an informed decision... mostly.
The green boxes have a big shortcoming: they’re unable to detect some really nasty bacteria like E.coli, which can only be measured in a lab. But don’t worry, old-school scientists are on the case, manually taking samples to send away for analysis. These findings will be used to build a data set that will be combined with green box data, and AI learning will infer when E.coli (and other bugs) are present in the river.
So, today, we celebrate a beautiful marriage — one of traditional testing, new technology, and AI. It may not be the pairing you’re rooting for on Love Island, but it shows great promise for water safety!
There’s a shark in the water! No, no, it’s good — we promise! The WasteShark is not actually a shark, but an autonomous robot that was built to tackle a big problem: plastic pollution in the water. Some estimates put the amount of plastic waste in the hundreds of millions of metric tons. Between canals, rivers, and oceans, waterways around the world are affected.
To make things worse, marine plastic is a relatively new problem, so the solutions haven’t caught up to the issue. The old methods of putting people in boats to fish out plastic isn’t enough, so Richard Hardiman, CEO of RanMarine Technology, took to the drawing board and built a robot.
The WasteShark is basically a vacuum that cruises around the water and sucks up trash, without needing a person to sit and drive it. It can be controlled remotely or put in autonomous mode, because of its sophisticated addition: software that helps it identify and avoid sucking up items that are not trash. The ducks and fish are very grateful. Despite its sophistication, there are still challenges with developing the robot, since scientists have to figure out how to program it to recognize and act on reflections, currents, and wind.
The shark can gather up to a ton of trash over a 24 hour period, which is just the beginning of what needs to be done to reverse the pollution issue. Luckily, the next step is already in the works: the MegaShark.
From the scorching surface of Mercury to the icy winds of Neptune, this BBC Learning Hub playlist takes you on an awe-inspiring voyage across our celestial neighborhood. Explore the mysteries of alien worlds, witness dramatic planetary weather, uncover the origins of Saturn’s rings, and ponder life on Mars. Whether you're a curious stargazer or a space science enthusiast, these video clips from landmark BBC series like The Planets and Wonders of the Solar System will ignite learner's imagination and deepen your cosmic curiosity.
Get ready for a speedy adventure! This BBC Learning Hub playlist, packed with clips from Grace’s Amazing Machines, takes students on a high-octane journey through land, sea, and sky. From gyrocopters and tugboats to superbikes and supercars, each video introduces a powerful machine — and the science that makes it move.
Perfect for teaching concepts like forces and motion, energy, friction, and transportation technology, these clips are a fun, fast-paced way to explore how things go, glide, float, and fly. Each video comes with discussion questions, hands-on activities, and more to help kids think, tinker, and learn like real engineers. Buckle up — it’s going to be a wild ride!
Take your class on an exciting journey through Florida’s amazing wildlife and habitats! This playlist explores the warm springs where manatees gather in winter and shows how dolphins team up in Florida Bay to catch their food in clever ways. Along the way, your students will discover what makes Florida’s ecosystems so special and why they’re worth protecting. These clips are perfect for sparking curiosity, starting great classroom discussions, and inspiring kids to think like young scientists and conservationists.
In Postcards From the Surface of Mars, Professor Brian Cox examines the geographic evolution of Mars, noting the vast canyon called Valles Marineris. He looks at photographs taken from the surface of Mars that look eerily similar to Earth: sunsets, clouds, and landscapes. There is, however, one glaring difference: no sign of water. This video is excerpted from BBC's Wonders of the Solar System, a spellbinding documentary series that explores the most extreme locations on Earth to explain how the laws of physics carved natural wonders across the Solar System.
The article "Water found buried under Mars equator" from BBC's Science Focus showcases the discovery of ice beneath Mars' equator using data from ESA's Mars Express spacecraft. This finding could be crucial for future human missions to Mars, as the ice deposits could provide a valuable water source.
In The Unique Underwater Ecosystems of Submarine Mountains, narrator Sir David Attenborough goes deep beneath the ocean surface, where volcanic eruptions have built enormous submarine mountains — some taller than Mount Everest when measured from the seafloor. These underwater peaks create unique ecosystems, as powerful ocean currents sweep nutrients up their slopes. This influx of nutrients supports vibrant marine communities, including soft corals, whip corals, and giant sponges that filter nourishment from the water. Though these ecosystems thrive in complete darkness, they rely entirely on the energy transported by deep-sea currents. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
In Nine North Creates an Extraordinary Ecosystem, narrator David Attenborough goes deep beneath the Pacific Ocean near the Galápagos Islands, to examine the hydrothermal vents known as "Nine North." The vents release superheated water, creating an extraordinary ecosystem. Towering mineral chimneys support a thriving community of giant tube-worms, some growing up to three meters long. These deep-sea creatures rely on the energy from the vents to survive, making them some of the fastest-growing marine invertebrates. However, this environment is unpredictable—vents can suddenly go dormant, leading to the rapid extinction of entire micro-worlds. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
In The Mysterious Nautilus, narrator Sir David Attenborough highlights the nautilus, a fascinating marine creature that spends its days hiding over 1,300 feet (400 meters) deep in the ocean. Unlike its close relatives, the squid and octopus, which have lost their shells over time, the nautilus retains its protective spiral shell. This shell contains gas-filled chambers that control its buoyancy. Propelling itself backward using a water jet, the nautilus must rely on chemical sensors in its small tentacles to detect both prey and predators. One of its main predators is the octopus, a master of disguise. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.