©ABC 2018

Questions for discussion

Cape Town Water Crisis

1. Discuss the BTN Cape Town Water Crisis story as a class. What points were raised in the

discussion?

2. Where is Cape Town, South Africa? Locate using Google Maps.

3. Approximately how many people live in South Africa?

4. What national disaster is predicted for Cape Town?

5. What is meant by the term “Day Zero” in the BTN story?

6. Since February 1st people have had their water restricted to only…

a. 5 litres a day

b. 15 litres a day

c. 50 litres a day

7. How are people in the story saving their water? Give an example.

8. What will happen if “Day Zero” arrives in Cape Town?

9. How do the people in the story feel about the crisis?

10. What questions do you have after watching Cape Town Water Crisis story?

Write a message about the story and post it in the comments section on the story page.

Mungo Man

1. Mungo Man is the oldest skeleton ever found in Australia. How old is Mungo Man’s

skeleton? Approximately…

a. 400 years old

b. 4 thousand years old

c. 40 thousand years old

2. In which region was Mungo Man’s skeleton discovered? Locate using Google Maps.

3. How did Geologist Jim Bowler find the skeleton?

4. Why was the discovery of Mungo Man important?

5. What did the scientists learn by studying Mungo Man’s skeleton and burial site?

6. What did the discovery of red ochre on Mungo Man’s skeleton symbolise?

7. Why were the traditional Aboriginal owners of the Willandra Lakes angry? 8. When was Mungo Man’s skeleton given back to the traditional owners of the land?

9. How did this story make you feel?

10. Name three facts you learnt watching the BTN story?

Check out the Mungo Man resource on the Teachers page.

Do the quiz on the BTN website.

Heatwaves

1. Summarise the BTN Heatwaves story.

2. What did you learn while watching the Heatwaves story?

3. What is Australia’s most deadly natural disaster?

Episode 3

20th February 2018

©ABC 2018

a. Bushfires

b. Floods

c. Heatwaves

4. Where do Australia’s heatwaves come from? Locate on a map of Australia.

5. What type of weather conditions are associated with a high-pressure system?

6. What type of weather conditions are associated with a low-pressure system?

7. Which weather conditions can make a heatwave worse? Give an example.

8. Who are most at risk of developing heatstroke?

9. How do you stay safe during a heatwave? Discuss in pairs.

10. What do you understand more clearly after watching the Heatwaves story?

Write a message about the story and post it in the comments section on the story page.

How does gravity work?

1. Before watching the BTN story, discuss what you already know about gravity.

2. Briefly summarise the story.

3. Who came up with the theory about gravity?

a. Thomas Edison

b. Leonardo Da Vinci

c. Isaac Newton

4. Complete this sentence. Gravity works because every object that has _________ is

naturally pulled towards every other object that has _________.

5. Explain how gravity works using your own words.

6. What did Galileo discover?

7. If you dropped a feather and a hammer at the same time which would take longer to reach

the ground? Why?

8. What would happen if you did the same experiment on the Moon?

9. What did you learn about gravity in the BTN story?

10. What questions do you have about gravity? Working in pairs, research a question and

share the information with the class.

Check out the How does gravity work? resource on the Teachers page.

Indigenous Winter Olympian

1. Explain the BTN Indigenous Winter Olympian story to another student.

2. Harley Windsor is the first Indigenous Australian to compete in the Winter Olympics. True

or false?

3. In your own words explain what figure skating is.

4. At what age did Harley start figure skating?

5. How has Aboriginal dancing helped Harley with his figure skating?

6. Where does Harley’s figure skating partner come from?

7. Why do you need to be able to trust your partner in figure skating?

8. Describe some of the moves in figure skating.

9. Why was Harley and Katia’s partnership in figure skating difficult to start with?

10. What did you like about the story?

Write a message about the story and post it in the comments section on the story pag

©ABC 2018

Teacher Resource

Mungo Man

1. Mungo Man is the oldest skeleton ever found in Australia. How old is

Mungo Man’s skeleton? Approximately…

a. 400 years old

b. 4 thousand years old

c. 40 thousand years old

2. In which region was Mungo Man’s skeleton discovered? Locate

using Google Maps.

3. How did geologist Jim Bowler find the skeleton?

4. Why was the discovery of Mungo Man important?

5. What did the scientists learn by studying Mungo Man’s skeleton and

burial site?

6. What did the discovery of red ochre on Mungo Man’s skeleton

symbolise?

7. Why were the traditional Aboriginal owners of the Willandra Lakes angry?

8. When was Mungo Man’s skeleton given back to the traditional

owners of the land?

9. How did this story make you feel?

10. What do you understand more clearly since watching the BTN story?

Note Taking

Students take notes while watching

the BTN story. After watching the

story, students reflect on and

organise the information into three

categories.

What information about Mungo Man

was...?

• Positive

• Negative or

• Interesting

KWLH

Discuss the BTN Mungo Man story as a class. What questions were raised

in the discussion (what are the gaps in their knowledge)? The following

KWLH organiser provides students with a framework to explore their

knowledge on this topic and consider what they would like to know and

learn.

Episode 3

20th February 2018

November 2016

Students will explore the discovery

of Mungo Man’s skeleton at Lake

Mungo.

HASS/ Knowledge &

Understanding / History – Year 4

The diversity of Australia's first

peoples and the long and

continuous connection of Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander Peoples

to Country/Place (land, sea,

waterways and skies)

HASS/ Knowledge &

Understanding / History – Year 7

The nature of sources for ancient

Australia and what they reveal

about Australia’s past in the ancient

period, such as the use of

resources.

How historians and archaeologists

investigate history, including

excavation and archival research.

The methods and sources used to

investigate at least ONE historical

controversy or mystery that has

challenged historians or

archaeologists, such as in the

analysis of unidentified human

remains.

©ABC 2018

What do I know? What do I want to know? What have I learnt? How will I find out?

Students will develop their own question/s for inquiry, below are some examples.

• What discoveries were made at Lake Mungo?

• What did the scientists learn by studying Mungo Man’s skeleton and burial site? What was life like

for Mungo Man?

• What does the discovery of Mungo Man’s skeleton tell us about the history of Australia?

• What is the significance of Mungo Man to scientists and Indigenous people.

• Why was there tension between scientists and Aboriginal people at the time of the discovery of

Mungo Man’s skeleton?

Key Words

Students will develop a glossary of words and terms that relate to Mungo Man and archaeology. Below are

some words to get them started. Students will add words and meanings to their glossary as they come

across unfamiliar words throughout their research. Students may want to consider using pictures and

diagrams to illustrate meanings.

Remains Excavation Site Discovery

Archaeology Artefacts Mapping Geology

Burial site Ancient Estimate Radiocarbon dating

Six Hat Thinking

As a class, use Edward De Bono’s Six Hat Thinking to explore the issues raised in the BTN Mungo Man

story. Make your own coloured hat cut-outs and place on the floor. Students will take it in turns answering

questions in relation to what they have learned from the BTN Mungo Man story and what they want to learn

further about the topic. Ask students the following questions:

How did the Mungo Man story make you feel?

What do you know about Mungo Man?

What have you learnt from the story?

Were there any positives from the story? If so, what were they?

©ABC 2018

What are some of the negatives or challenges that you learnt

from the story?

Why is it important to find out more about Mungo Man?

What questions were raised during this activity?

What do you want to learn further about this topic?

Journal writing

Students will imagine they are geologist Jim Bowler and they have just

discovered Mungo Man’s skeleton. Students will write a journal entry

explaining how they feel about the discovery.

Students will then imagine they are one of the traditional Aboriginal

owners of the Willandra Lakes region and it is November 2017. Students

will write a journal entry about how they feel now that Mungo Man has

been given back and reburied at Lake Mungo.

Students will compare their responses, and then respond to the following question – Why was there tension

between scientists and Aboriginal people at the time of the discovery of Mungo Man’s skeleton?

How do we know about the ancient past?

Finding out about the ancient past can be difficult. Some ancient peoples and civilisations have left behind

evidence of the past which help us learn about how they lived. But often our knowledge and understanding

of the ancient past is incomplete.

How do we know about the ancient past? Brainstorm ideas as a class.

• Scientists make discoveries, like finding ruins or skeletons which help us understand how people

used to live.

• Scientists use new technologies and new methods to investigate ancient structures.

• We can look at artefacts in museums, libraries and art galleries (primary sources).

• We can look at documents, like reports and newspapers, which can be found in the library or on the

internet (secondary sources).

Students will then complete the following activities to learn more about the discovery of Mungo Man at Lake

Mungo.

• Create a timeline to show significant events at Lake Mungo over the past 200,000 years.

• Where is Lake Mungo? Find using Google Maps. Where did geologist Jim Bowler find Mungo Man's

skeleton?

• What technologies did scientists use during the discovery of Mungo man’s skeleton?

• What were scientists able to find out about Mungo Man by studying his skeleton?

©ABC 2018

ABC News – Mungo Man: what to do next with Australians oldest remains

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02-12/mungo-man-what-to-do-next-with-australias-oldest-

remains/9371038

National Museum Australia – Lake Mungo, 45,000 years ago

http://www.nma.gov.au/kspace/teachers/mungo/learning

ABC Education – Discoveries at Lake Mungo

http://education.abc.net.au/home#!/media/522233/

©ABC 2018

Teacher Resource

How does gravity work?

1. Before watching the BTN story, discuss what you already know

about gravity.

2. Briefly summarise the story.

3. Who came up with the theory about gravity?

a. Thomas Edison

b. Leonardo Da Vinci

c. Isaac Newton

4. Complete this sentence. Gravity works because every object that

has _________ is naturally pulled towards every other object that

has _________.

5. Explain how gravity works using your own words.

6. What did Galileo discover?

7. If you dropped a feather and a hammer at the same time which

would take longer to reach the ground? Why?

8. What would happen if you did the same experiment on the Moon?

9. What did you learn about gravity in the BTN story?

10. What questions do you have about gravity? Working in pairs,

research a question and share the information with the class.

After watching the BTN story, respond to the following questions:

Mind Map

Hold a class discussion about the information raised in the BTN Investigates –

How does gravity work? story. Create a class mind map with gravity at the

centre. Ask students to record what they know about the topic. What questions

do they have? Develop a class definition of gravity.

• What did you SEE in this video?

• What do you THINK about what you saw in this video?

• What does this video make your WONDER?

• What did you LEARN from this story?

• What was SURPRISING about this story?

Episode 3 20th February 2018

Students will develop a deeper

understanding of how gravity works.

They will also learn about the

experiments conducted by Galileo

and Newton.

Science – Year 7

Change to an object’s motion is

caused by unbalanced forces,

including Earth’s gravitational

attraction, acting on the object

Scientific knowledge has changed

peoples’ understanding of the world

and is refined as new evidence

becomes available

©ABC 2018

Gravity research

Define: What do I want to know?

Key questions to research

Students can choose one or more of the following questions or come up with their own:

• How does gravity work?

• Why is gravity important?

• Which scientists have helped our understanding of gravity?

• How is the force of gravity on Earth different to the gravity on one of the other planets in the

solar system?

• How has the human body adapted to the force of gravity on Earth over time?

• How much would you weigh on other planets? Calculate your weight on the other planets and

the moon.

• What is weightlessness?

Locate: Where do I find the information?

What resources will help answer my questions? (Internet, people, resource centre, organisations,

print). Discuss with students what a reliable source is.

Select: What information is important for the investigation?

Students may need support to sort through and select relevant information.

Organise: How do I make sense of the information?

Students can organise their research by creating main headings from their questions. Write each

heading on a separate piece of paper. Record the information found for each question.

Present: How do we let others know about this information?

Each group needs to discuss then decide on the best way to present the information. Possibilities

could include:

• A `Did You Know’ Facts sheet

• Infographic

• Oral presentation

• Prezi presentation

• Create an infographic using Canva

Evaluate: What have we learnt?

Each group reflects on what they have learnt about gravity during their investigation. Students will

reflect on their learning and respond to the following.

• What I learned...

• What I found surprising...

©ABC 2018

Create a Biography

Students will create a biography about either Galileo Galilei or Sir Isaac Newton to find out more about their

lives and scientific discoveries. Use the Biography Organiser template to structure the information. There are

some weblinks at the end of this resource to help students with their research. The following videos may also

help students understand the work they did.

The work of Galileo Galilei

The work of Sir Isaac Newton

Who discovered gravity?

Possible questions to research:

• What did they do or discover?

• When were they born?

• What scientific discoveries made them famous?

• What were their challenges?

• How do we recognise their achievements?

• How did they change our understanding of the world?

• How would our world be different if their discovery had

not been made?

• Imagine you could sit down and talk to them. What

questions would you ask about their life and work as a

scientist?

Present your findings in an interesting way.

• Give a presentation on their achievements

• Create a portrait

• Design a poster

• Make a “Did you know?” for other students

• Write a letter thanking them for their achievements

and how it has changed the world

• Create a timeline highlighting significant events

Galileo’s famous gravity experiment

Watch Professor Brian Cox test gravity using a bowling

ball and a feather. Students explain in their own words the

experiment conducted in the vacuum chamber. What did

the experiment prove?

Watch the famous footage of the Apollo 15 astronaut,

David Scott dropping a hammer and feather on the moon

to prove Galileo’s theory. Ask students to respond to the

following questions:

Why did the hammer and the falcon feather hit the ground

at the same time on the moon? Could you repeat this

experiment on Earth? Why or why not?

Test out some of Galileo’s famous experiments using this interactive

©ABC 2018

Why do astronauts float in space?

Before students watch the video, ask them to

make some predictions about why astronauts float

in space.

Watch the ABC Education video then answer the

following questions:

• How does the scientist compare the

gravitational force on us to the force on the

astronauts?

• Why doesn’t the space station crash into

Earth?

• What was surprising about the information in this video?

Further investigation

How does weightlessness impact on an astronaut’s daily routine? What impact does it have on their body?

ABC Education – Who discovered gravity?

http://education.abc.net.au/home#!/media/30447/?id=30447

NASA Space Place – What is gravity?

https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/what-is-gravity/en/

NASA – The human body in space

https://www.nasa.gov/hrp/bodyinspace

YouTube – BBC Teach: The work of Sir Isaac Newton

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ydh7AShMzM’

YouTube – BBC Teach: the work of Galileo Galilei

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeR8Iz7Qnhg

©ABC 2018

BTN: Episode 3 Transcript 20/2/18

Hey, Amelia here. Thanks for joining me for BTN.

Here’s what’s coming up today.

• Meet a 40,000-year-old skeleton called Mungo Man.

• Find out how heatwaves actually happen.

• And we investigate how gravity works by dropping things over and over and over again.

Cape Town Water Crisis

Reporter: Matt Holbrook

INTRO: You'll see all that and more soon. But first, we're heading to Cape Town which after a long-

running drought is now just months away from running out of water. Here's how the residents there

are trying to delay what they're calling 'Day Zero' or the day the taps dry up.

MATT HOLBROOK, REPORTER: Just the sight of rain is enough to get people here in Cape Town

really excited. Cape Town is a city in South Africa, and for a couple of years now, it's been

struggling with a really bad drought. But in recent months, the situation's got worse, and a bit of

rain isn't anywhere near enough to help. Water reserves are so low that the whole city is at risk of

running out.

Authorities predict taps could be turned off by June 4, and they're calling that "Day Zero". Here in

Australia, water restrictions are something many of us have experienced. But Cape Town's are

something else entirely. People have been allowed just 50 litres a day, since February 1st.

And 50 litres doesn't actually get you that far. For example, dishes and laundry, 18 litres a day. 90

second shower, 15 litres. 1 toilet flush, 9 litres. Washing your hands, 3 litres. Cooking, 2 litres.

Drinking water, 2 litres. 1 dog bowl, 1 litre. And that’s your 50.

If you want more than a minute and a half long shower, or to go the toilet more than once a day,

you're in trouble. And people have gone through some extreme lengths to save water. Showering

just a handful of times a week, or avoiding washing their clothes.

MARILYN BIGGS, CAPE TOWN RESIDENT: We can't believe nowadays that we miss out on rain.

It's very dry in Cape Town. But, we know that God will send the rain.

As the drought continues, people are asking questions about how it was allowed to get so bad, and

what's going to happen next. In 2014, the city's water sources were at capacity. But as drought

stretched on, water supplies have been stretched to their limits.

ANGA, RESIDENT: The water situation is making our lives very difficult cos we apparently now

live, now today we've got water, tomorrow we don't.

©ABC 2018

RESIDENT: I think the water is going to run out, it's very scary to think about, but I think it's a

reality.

PREMIER HELEN ZILLE: This will be a disaster above all disasters. No city in the world has had to

deal with a situation such as the taps running dry.

If ‘Day Zero’ does arrive, many will have to go to collection points guarded by security forces for a

daily ration of just 25 litres of water. But in the meantime, the restrictions are making a difference.

Pushing back the date of 'Day Zero", from April, to May, and now June. Hopefully by then these

areas will be recovering.

Mungo Man

Reporter: Ruby Cornish

INTRO: Next today. The oldest skeleton ever found in Australia, Mungo Man, has been returned to

his home 40,000 years after his death. He spent the past 40 of those years being studied by

scientists. But while he's now been returned to the area he once lived in there are still arguments

over what should happen next.

42 thousand years. That's more than 15 million sunrises. It's an amount of time pretty much

impossible to imagine, and that's how long-ago Mungo Man lived. Mungo Man is the nickname

given to the oldest skeleton ever found in Australia, and his discovery rewrote our history. Mungo

Man was found here, in the Willandra Lakes Region at Lake Mungo. It doesn't look much like a

lake these days but back then it would've been very wet here. Geologist Jim Bowler found Mungo

Man's skeleton on a research trip in 1974. The discovery was a big deal because it proved that

Aboriginal people had been here about twice as long as previously thought.

MARY PAPPIN: Mungo Man showed Australia that Aboriginal people have been here for a very,

very long time.

Scientists were able to tell a lot about what Mungo man's life would've been like back then by

studying his skeleton and the burial site. Mungo Man was about 50 when he died, which is pretty

old for an early human. He was tall with big teeth (but missing two at the front). He had bad arthritis

in his elbow, most likely from spending a lot of time throwing a spear. When he was buried, he was

laid out carefully and sprinkled with red ochre, so he was probably an important guy.

JIM BOWLER: It was a remarkable moment of realisation of just how modern the Earth’s earliest

Australians really were.

To do all this research on Mungo Man, scientists took him away from where he was buried and

kept him in a university lab. This made the traditional Aboriginal owners of the Willandra Lakes

angry because nobody asked their permission.

MARY PAPPIN: These are our ancient cemeteries. These are our burial grounds. These are what

we hold very dear to us because we know our old people are sleeping there. Taking the bones

away and taking them to a city is taking that person away from their spirit.

©ABC 2018

It led to years of disagreement between the scientists who were studying Mungo Man and the

people who wanted him back in his resting place. In November last year, Mungo Man's skeleton

was given back to the traditional owners of his land. Jim says, over time, he's learned why that was

such an important thing to do.

JIM BOWLER: I realise that when we took those bones away there was a lot of hurt amongst

Aboriginal people. We owe an apology for science and what science has done to Aboriginal people

in the past.

And the apology was accepted.

MARY PAPPIN: Thank you Jim. We welcome what you just said. Thank you.

But that's not quite the end of the story. The traditional owners of the Willandra region are now

deciding whether Mungo Man should be reburied and left to rest forever, or whether scientists

should be allowed to study him again when technology improves. Until they decide, Mungo Man is

being kept in a secret place on the country he once called home.

Ask a Reporter

Have you got a question about Mungo Man? Ask me live on Friday during Ask A Reporter!

Head to our website for all the details.

This Week in News

First up, there are a lot of people calling for Barnaby Joyce to step down as Deputy Prime Minister.

Last Friday the Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull criticised Mr Joyce who's been in a bit of trouble

lately.

Soon after, Mr Joyce fired back calling the PM 'inept' among other things.

He's taken a week off work but says he intends to come back as Deputy PM afterwards.

Meanwhile, the clean-up has begun in Northern Western Australia after it was hit by a category two

cyclone over the weekend.

Cyclone Kelvin recorded wind gusts of more than 150 kays an hour and damaged some major

roads which authorities say could take months to be repaired. Broome is now on track for one of its

wettest seasons on record with around one year's worth of rain falling in just one month.

©ABC 2018

Over in New South Wales, the government's looking at introducing new rules to help kids recover

from concussions.

Experts say kids need a lot of time to recover from the effects of a concussion so they've

recommended at least two days off school when diagnosed with one.

Meanwhile, a new study has found that a lot of kids are getting hurt at indoor trampoline parks.

Over the past six years more than 450 kids have ended up in emergency departments.

The most common injuries were sprains, strains and dislocations but there were also some

fractures and even head injuries.

Most parks go through checks each year to make sure their trampolines and foam pits are safe but

health experts reckon the rules could be better.

In Argentina some of the country's beaches have been taken over by penguins.

Hundreds of thousands of Magellanic penguins have been hanging out here for breeding season

but experts say they'll soon say goodbye and swim north to warmer waters.

And finally, check out this video of a snake in Tasmania that has surprisingly good balance.

The video was posted on social media showing a tiger snake slithering along a wire fence.

Experts say snakes are actually very good climbers and this one was probably just a bit curious.

Heatwaves

Reporter: Jack Evans

INTRO: Next up. Queenslanders have suffered through some really high temps over the past week

and they're not the only ones to sweat it out this summer. It left us wondering - how do heatwaves

actually happen? We asked the ABC's weather experts to give us the low down.

Heatwaves are Australia's deadliest natural disaster, they’ve killed more people than bushfires,

cyclones and floods combined. But have you ever wondered where heatwaves come from? Well,

they come from here: the central Australian desert. The reason the outback is so hot and dry is

because of a big high-pressure system which often sits over us. To understand more you really

have to go up. You can't see it, but I am surrounded by a high-pressure system. It's very dry and

there's not a lot of wind so the temperature just builds and builds.

You might have seen weather maps like this one, the H here represents a high-pressure system

and it usually means good weather and clear skies for those below. The L represents a low-

pressure system and that usually means the weather could be cloudy or rainy. High and low-

pressure systems are actually moving across the country all the time. Often, it's high pressure

©ABC 2018

systems that are responsible for pushing dry warm air towards the coast. But it takes more than

that to cause a heatwave.

There are a few different systems that can contribute. First droughts, if there is a drought here the

air that gets pushed down here will be hotter than usual. And if that high-pressure system doesn't

move the hot air will stay around for longer making the heatwave worse. Cyclones can also help to

cause a heatwave. If there’s a cyclone around here it can push the heat here where it gets sucked

down over central Australia adding to the hot air already there. If these conditions happen to

combine then the heatwave is going to be much more intense and dangerous.

DR STEPHEN GOURLEY: Well, heatwaves are so dangerous because people are often caught

unawares when they do it. They’ll go out on a day when they can usually get away with something

and when it is really hot their normal activities can lead to being over heated. You are particularly

vulnerable at the extremes of age. So the very very young and the elderly are more particularly at

risk of getting heatstroke but anyone is susceptible anyone and that's why it's a problem.

Out here in Alice forty degrees is just another summer’s day. But down in Tassie, a couple of days

over thirty can be enough to be dangerous. It's all about what you're used to. So, keep an eye on

your local forecast and the next time there’s a heatwave on the way take it easy in the sun, and

keep an eye out for your elderly neighbours and relatives. Perhaps go for a swim.

Quiz

What’s the hottest temperature ever recorded in Australia?

40.6

45.6

49.6

The answer is 49.6. That was recorded at Moomba in SA.

BTN Investigates: How does gravity work?

Reporter: Jack Evans

INTRO: Hi BTN, my name is Zia and my question is: How does gravity work?

It dropped. It fell. Oh no. It dropped again. Is gravity getting you down? Introducing, Gravi-gone,

'cause you're a better you in space. Thanks, Gravi-gone.

JACK: Pfft, as if anybody’s gonna fall for that.

MATT: Hi, yes, I’ll have one Gravi-gone please, or 2, we’ll just make it 4.

©ABC 2018

Unfortunately for Matt there is no escaping gravity, here on Earth anyway. Gravity is basically the

super glue that holds everything down, in fact, it’s the reason we even have a 'down'. But how does

it actually work?

Well gravity is one of those things people have been wondering about for a really, really long time.

There were lots of early theories and experiments to try to find out why things fall down. The guy

who most of us think of as the grandfather of gravity is this guy, Sir Isaac Newton. He was an

English mathematician, astronomer, theologian, author and physicist who came up with a theory

about gravity almost 300 years ago. The story goes that Newton was sitting under a tree when an

apple fell and hit him on the head.

JACK: Although some say that never actually happened, but whatever. But, whatever. The point is

that whatever fell whether it was an apple or a banana or a fish led to Newton asking this question.

Why did the apple fall down onto the ground and not up into the sky, hmmm? He realised there

must be an invisible force pulling the apple to the ground and he called that force gravity.

Now gravity works because every object that has mass is attracted, or naturally pulled towards,

every other object that has mass. The force of that pull depends on how much mass an object has.

An apple has a small mass whereas the Earth has a much, much larger mass so the apple falls

towards the Earth. But the interesting thing about gravity is that it pulls everything towards the

Earth at the same rate. That was discovered by a famous Italian guy called Galileo who dropped a

heavy ball and a light ball from the top of the leaning tower of Pisa. Both were said to have fallen at

the same speed.

JACK: Although that probably didn't happen either. But in any case, the moral of the story is that

the two balls would fall at the same speed.

Of course, if you dropped a feather and say a hammer the feather would obviously take longer.

That's because air pushes against the feather more than the hammer slowing it down as it falls.

However, if you did the same experiment somewhere without an atmosphere, say on the moon,

you'd find they both fall at the same rate. And here's proof from US astronaut David Scott in 1971.

DAVID SCOTT: How ‘bout that.

Speaking of space, in order to get to the Moon, you have to fight very hard to break away from

gravity. Which is why you need a really big rocket to say send a sports car into space. And why

you'll need something more legit than a Gravi-gone.

MATT: I'm not sure if these are working. I need to buy some more.

Quiz

If you dropped something, how far would it theoretically fall in one second?

1.8 metres

©ABC 2018

9.8 metres

90.8 metres

The answer is 9.8 metres.

Sport

It's been an exciting first week for the Aussie Olympics team at the Winter Olympics.

Matt Graham picked up silver in the men's moguls. Jarryd Hughes snagged silver in the

snowboard cross and Scotty James took out bronze in the snowboard half pipe while his school

cheered him on back home.

Nice!

Meanwhile, Melbourne City is celebrating its third straight championship in the W-League after

defeating Sydney F-C 2 - nil.

Jess Fishlock made all the difference scoring in the 35th minute and then delivering this free kick

that led a second goal from Jodie Taylor.

City is the first club in league history to claim three consecutive titles.

Footy fans have now had their first taste of AFL X. It's the league's new pre-season comp with

modified rules. It's played on a rectangular ground with fewer players on field and much shorter

games.

There's no centre bounce after a goal and a ten-point super goal is awarded if it's kicked from 40

metre mark. After three big nights the overall winners were the Adelaide Crows, Melbourne

Demons and the Brisbane Lions.

Donovan Mitchell has won the NBA's annual dunk contest. The contest pits the league's best

dunkers against each other and this year saw some impressive ones.

This amazing recreation of Vince Carter's 360-degree spin dunk from the 2000 comp got Mitchell

the win. This was a highlight, too. An incredible "double tap" dunk.

And finally, Tasmania has held its first state scooter comp. More than 50 riders took part and some

of their tricks and stunts were pretty impressive. Out of the fifty riders, only two were girls.

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AMEYAH: Me and her were the only girls, so I kind of had to come second.

That's something the organisers want to change next time.

DYLAN MORRISON, SCOOTER PRO: In 10 years there might be like 100 girls in the comps.

Scooter Pro Dylan, says the sport is growing in popularity every year and so is the quality of

competition.

DYLAN: It was so much fun. I never thought it would get this crazy but it has and now I'm over here

inspiring all these little kids to do their best in comps.

Indigenous Winter Olympian

Reporter: Matthew Holbrook

INTRO: Finally today, 21-year old Harley Windsor made history last week as the first Indigenous

Australian to compete at the Winter Olympics. So, let's find out more about him and his journey to

South Korea.

This was an incredible moment for Harley. The culmination of a life-long dream, and a milestone

for the whole country. The first time an Indigenous Australian has competed at the Winter

Olympics. But it all started back when Harley was just 9 years old.

HARLEY WINDSOR, SKATER: I got in to figure skating by accident. I took a wrong turn with my

mum one day and I found Blacktown ice-rink, so I asked if I could go in and everything took off

from there. It was so different to the regular sports and I'd never done it before so it sort of was a

bit of an exotic sport to try.

It turned out he was a natural.

HARLEY WINDSOR, SKATER: From such a young age I always did Aboriginal dancing, and I've

always been involved in Aboriginal culture, so I guess that's helped a bit with the movement on the

ice and the transition from dancing from when I was young to skating now has really helped.

By the time he was ten, he'd won gold at a state championship, and within three years he was

competing overseas. Things have really taken off since pairing up with Katia, who moved here

from Russia two years ago to dance with Harley. Their sport is all about working in unison with

your partner, and includes things like lifts, death spirals, and throw jumps, so you really need to be

able to trust them.

KATIA, SKATING PARTNER: I like skating with Harley, he's a good partner. He's not angry, he's

quiet.

Their partnership was tough work to start with, because they didn't speak the same language. But

it turned out to be a good match. In March of last year, Harley and Katia became World Junior

Champions. The first Aussie pair to win the title. Now he's officially an Olympian, Harley would like

to use his achievements to inspire other Indigenous Aussies.

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HARLEY WINDSOR, SKATER: At first it was a little bit of a shock and stuff like that, but I guess it

just makes me feel a bit proud and a little bit honoured that I can be the first one.

And while this team won't be coming home with a medal this time, this is just the start of what they

hope to accomplish.

HARLEY WINDSOR, SKATER: It's going to be a good memory for me and a good experience that

I can carry with me for the rest of my life.

Closer

And that brings us to the end of today's show but you can always head to our website for more

including your chance to submit a question for BTN Investigates and I'll see you next week for

more BTN.