A-Level Curriculum matching
'Big Picture on Nanoscience' provides many opportunities to develop students' understanding of social and ethical issues relating to science and new technologies.
The topics covered are also particularly relevant to the following A-level subject areas:
Biology, for example:
- biological molecules
- biotechnology and medicine
- environmental biology.
Chemistry, for example:
- the changing properties of materials at nanoscales
- different types of nanostructures and their associated properties and applications.
Physics, for example:
- particles and quantum phenomena
- applications of physical principles and techniques in medicine
- electron microscopes.
Sociology, for example:
- implications of technological changes and their impact on individuals, organisations and society
- the role of the public in making scientific decisions
- methods of public engagement with new technologies.
Several of the topics addressed in this issue cover more than one subject (for example the convergence between biology, chemistry and physics seen in many new nanotechnologies) and could potentially be tackled as a cross-curricular set of lessons or project based on contributions from some or all of these subjects.
