Improving Food Production with Agricultural Technology and Plant Biotechnology

This free online course, hosted on FutureLearn, is aimed at 16- to 19-year-old students considering studying science at university. Designed to extend beyond curricula, it takes students on a journey through the plant-based food production system, from growing to harvesting to food processing. Through video case studies, interviews with experts, discussion boards and an interactive game, students will discover how science and technology are innovating food production to solve some of the biggest challenges in global food security.

Observing stomata in Tradescantia zebrina

The green stomatal guard cells can be distinguished against the purple underside of the leaves of Tradescantia zebrina, making it much easier for them to be counted. This resource builds students' microscopy skills and encourages them to think about the functions of stomata.

A-Level Set Practicals - Osmosis in bell pepper pericarp tissue

This resource is designed to meet the specifications for the A-level practical endorsement in England (CPAC). It is a new version of the classic osmosis practical measuring the weight change of tissues in various osmotic solutions using pieces of bell pepper (Capsicum annum) instead of potato. This is a reliable way for students to plot and use calibration curves in order to eventually work out the osmotic potential of the pepper cells.

Interviews with scientists - Omega-3

Omega-3 fatty acids are vital for human health. But how can we source them sustainably? Professor Johnathan Napier of Rothamstead Research talks about the role that Omega-3 fatty acids play in our diets, how we currently source them from algae via fish, and how he hopes to use genetic engineering to breed plants that produce these molecules in their oils.

Interviews with scientists - the mystery of the evolution of stomata

In this 5 minute talk, Professor Alistair Hetherington of Bristol University discusses the mysterious evolution of stomata. The accompanying notes include a teachers' summary, plus student questions and answers.

Interviews with scientists - How big data is transforming biology

in this 6 minute video, Professor David Salt of the University of Aberdeen introduces the topic of ‘big data’ – huge data sets that are at the heart of much of today’s cutting edge biological research. He talks about what big data is, how researchers work with it to test their hypotheses, and what the potential implications may be for scientific research in the future.

Interviews with scientists - Photosynthesis to Feed the World?

In this 8 minute video, Professor Jane Langdale of the University of Oxford discusses her work leading a team of scientists seeking to increase food production through research into the fundamentals of photosynthesis.

Interviews with scientists - saving the world's forests

In this 5-minute video Dr Ed Mitchard, of the University of Edinburgh, introduces the use of new technologies in conservation, specifically the role of REDD+ in preventing deforestation across the world. The accompanying notes include a teachers' summary, plus student questions and answers.

Plant pathogens: ID (poster and presentation)

The poster ‘Plant Pathogens – Identification’ illustrates diagnostic tests that are commonly used to identify plant pathogens in the lab and in the field. The poster is accompanied by a presentation, which can be used as a step-by-step walkthrough of the ideas in the poster.

Plant pathogens: control (poster and presentation)

The poster ‘Plant Pathogens: Control’ illustrates the many ways that we control plant pathogens, from polyculture farming to controlling the import of plants. The poster is accompanied by a presentation, which can be used as a step-by-step walk-through of the ideas in the poster.

Interviews with scientists - feeding sub-Saharan Africa

This 5-minute video interview with Professor Giles Oldroyd offers a thought-provoking take on the topic of fertilisers and nitrogen fixation. In the west, we’ve spent 50 years relying on increasing food yields by adding nitrogen-based fertilisers to the soils. But it’s not an approach that seems to be working for the millions of smallholder farmers across western and central Africa.

Interviews with scientists - Plant-derived medicines to cure cancer

This 5-minute video interview with Professor Sarah O’Connor from the John Innes Centre, introduces her work to find new molecules that can successfully treat cancer. This is an interesting way to introduce students to biochemistry, and to encourage them to take a synoptic approach to their biology curriculum, by bringing together plant science and medicine.

Interviews with scientists - Plant survival strategies: hormones and responses

In this 5-minute video interview,Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser, Director of the Sainsbury Laboratory, University of Cambridge, discusses the different survival strategies of plants and animals. This video gets students to develop their understanding of the role of plant hormones in an intriguing context.

Interviews with scientists - Drew Purves on computer modelling, ecology and climate change

In this 5-minute video interview, ecologist and computer scientist Dr Drew Purves introduces computer modelling and its role in biology.

Interviews with scientists - coffee history and survival

This 5-minute video interview with Dr Charlie Clutterbuck of Manchester Metropolitan University introduces students to the history and economics of coffee and the impact of a plant pathogen on coffee production. The accompanying notes include a teachers' summary, plus student questions and answers.

Interviews with scientists - GFP and reporter proteins

This 5-minute video interview with Prof John Christie of the University of Glasgow introduces students to fluorescent reporter proteins and their importance to our understanding of cell biology. The accompanying notes include a teachers' summary, plus student questions and answers.

How much of our food crops are lost to disease? Lesson starter

Plant disease is new to the curriculum. This is a simple and easy starter to encourage students to understand the impact that plant disease has both on the world’s poorest farmers and on consumers in the UK.

Interviews with scientists - Dr Cristobal Uauy on wheat genomics and yield

This 5-minute video interview with Dr Cristobal Uauy of the John Innes Centre introduces post-16 students to contemporary genomics and food security. The accompanying notes include a teachers' summary, plus student questions and answers.

A-level practical skills - Molecular Modelling

This practical activity aims to develop students' understanding of primary, secondary and tertiary structure of proteins through computer protein modelling. Computer modelling can create 3D interactive images to support the student to visualize different interactions between amino acids within a molecule.

Measuring forests: saving forests

This relevant and engaging activity gives a concrete example of how conservation activity can be guided by science. It also covers some of the practical and mathematical skills common to all biology A-level courses, particularly logarithms. Students work with data from a conservation scientist, Dr Ed Mitchard of the University of Edinburgh, and identify how new technologies can be used to preserve the world's forests.