Comblab project finished in December 2014. In this website you can download Comblab teaching materials ready to be used in several languages. Currently most Comblab partners go on working with MBL for secondary science.

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GROWING TREES IN A GARDEN - The influence of plants on a soil.

Mr. Firman lives in a family house surrounded by a large garden that he cares for. In one part he grows vegetable and fruit, in other part there are fruit trees, and in the back there are old broad-leaved trees and some conifers. While he was reconstructing the front fence, Mr. Firman decided to make a hedge and with spruces. These trees are quite cheap and grow fast. In a half year it was obvious that spruces do not thrive, although they are watered additionally. In the backyard there are lot of trees with no sign of suffering, so why do the spruces grow badly?

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BLOOD PRESSURE - Do you know, what it is?

„150/95, please, make note into patient folder“, asked Doctor Smith his nurse. He turned to the patient and says: “So, Mr. Martin, your blood pressure is too high. And, last time, it was high as well. From now, no smoking, no alcohol drinking and tell your wife not to use salt very much.” Mr. Martin was surprised and tried to compel Doctor to allow something:  “But, Doctor, just one cigarette a day.“ However, Doctor Smith was unyielding: „No, no, nothing is possible. Do you want to have a stroke? Or a heart attack? Or, you want to destroy your kidney?

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WHAT MAKES YOUR HEART BEAT? How to influence heart activity?

The heart is crucial, irreplaceable for humans because it works tirelessly from birth to death. Its role is essential – heart ensures blood circulation in the bloodstream by contractions and the supply of oxygen to the cells, which is used for energy production and for life at all. The heart works like a regular pump never-ending, with which we can see some phases. These phases correspond to the gradual withdrawal of ventricular fibrillation. As for pumping water, also the heart is influenced by pulse - the rhythmical electrical discharges in the right atrium.

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PREDATOR PLANTS - Eutrophication impact

Imagine, you are walking in the summer in the country with lots of water sources, rivers, lakes, ponds and rivulets. You may remember that the water did not look the same. Some water seemed to be quite clean, some was covered with oily spill, other with lots of plants or it seemed just green.

But not everything what is green, is good for nature. Water with lots of plant organisms, like algae, is possible threat for other organism. How is it possible and is the big amount of plants in water natural for water?

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PLANTS AND OXYGEN Can plants be dangerous in a bedroom?

Jane and Sue are friends and they have not met each other for a long time. Both of them love flowers and plants, especially Sue has apartment full of plants; they are everywhere, in the living room, in the bedroom, in the kitchen. When Sue came to visit Jane, Jane had no flowers in the bedroom. When Sue asked about it, Jane explained immediately: “In the dark at night, flowers do not produce oxygen, in contrary, flowers consume it. Hence, sleeping people cannot breathe very well and sleep is not very good. And, if the windows are closed, people can be in danger.” Can it be true?

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THE LIFE OF YEAST How much do you know about fermentation?

Mr. Walker has bought a new factory to start producing ethanol. The factory has several types of rooms and as Mr. Walker does not want to pay a lot of money for reconstruction, so he needs to find out which room is the best for fermentation process. Room U.1, in the basement below ground level, has permanent low temperature (0-5 °C); room 1.1, on the first floor, is usually 15-20 °C; on the same floor there is a room 1.7 above the gas boiler, which is from the boiler heated up to 35-40 °C. Mr.

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