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Fossils unlock future secrets

8 April 2009

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A group of Japanese high school students have been working with a team from the Monash School of Geosciences and the Monash Science Centre at Inverloch in Victoria – home to many significant polar dinosaur fossil discoveries over the past few years.

The students, along with their teachers and parents, are from the prestigious Notre Dame Jogakuin girl's school in Kyoto, Japan.

They have been working with Monash for the past three years on a number of science communication projects, one on climate change through time (with dinosaurs) and one on natural disasters.

Monash geologist Professor Patricia Vickers-Rich said it was fantastic to take students out of the classroom and give them a greater understanding of how what has happened in the past could impact upon the future.

"We can examine these rocks and find out what the temperature was, what animals and plants were living here and what conditions were like," Professor Vickers-Rich said.

"Understanding these factors can allow us to build models of what conditions might be like in the future."

During their visit the students presented the Dean of the Faculty of Science Professor Rob Norris with a donation of 170,000 yen (approximately A$2500) towards the University's Bushfire Appeal. The students raised the money as part of their project on natural disasters.

Professor Vickers-Rich said the School of Geosciences and Monash Science Centre would continue to work with the Notre Dame Jogakuin high school on cooperative projects into the future.

For more information visit the Home of Dinosaur Dreaming web page.